In a Pedestrian Accident – Get a Police Report.

Transcript: Hi, I’m Indiana personal injury attorney David Holub.

Being a victim of a car crash can be very scary.

Being a pedestrian who is hit by a car can be just as scary, if not more frightening. It can be an overwhelming experience.

We’re posting this video because we’ve had a number of situations where clients who have been hit as a pedestrian have not called the police immediately after being hit or injured. It’s very important to call 911 and have the police contacted, either doing that yourself or having the driver who struck you, is important to do.

It’s important to do it even if you think you’re unharmed at the moment. Many times, adrenaline rushes mask the serious nature of injury that can occur if you are struck by a vehicle as a pedestrian. Being thrown to the side of the road may be such where you get up and you’re just thankful that you can stand, but it may result in a lot of injury that you’re not immediately aware of. It’s close to impossible to get a police report created after the fact if the police are not called to come to the scene. We suggest that you calmly ask the driver of the vehicle involved in the crash to contact the police and any EMT personnel that you may need to help you at the scene.

If a driver has fled the scene, which is something that frequently happens in pedestrian crashes, even though the law requires everybody to stay at the scene of a potential injury incident. If the driver has fled, however, try to make a note, if you can, of the make and model of the vehicle, and if there is information otherwise–like how many people were in the vehicle, distinguishing features of the vehicle, bumper stickers, and those kinds of things.

And you yourself should call 911 immediately and have them come to the scene. There may be skid marks, there may be other bits of information available at the scene that the police can document. Also, the police may be able to contact people in the neighborhood who were witnesses, or there may be video cameras that captured the incident. A police investigation is important to every crash, but it’s important in pedestrian incidents as well.

If statements are obtained, insurance information is obtained from witnesses and the other driver, these bits of information coupled with photos can help your attorney piece together what happened.

A report from a police officer as well as photos you might take at the scene can all help in processing a claim for damages.

Please check out the other videos we have on our website, including those at our YouTube site, and our Facebook site.

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