Should I Hire a Car Accident Lawyer for a Minor Accident in South Florida?
Why Hiring a Car Accident Lawyer for a Minor Crash in Palm Beach County, Broward County, and across South Florida May Be Important
If you’ve been involved in a seemingly minor car accident in South Florida, one of the first questions you may ask yourself is whether you need to hire an attorney. If you have a fender-bender crash, both you and the other driver seem fine, and both of your vehicles have only suffered minor damage, you and the other driver may not see the need to go through the formal process of contacting the police, filing a crash report, or filing an insurance claim. However, not acting to protect your rights and interests following even an apparently minor car accident can have serious repercussions down the road.
After you’ve been in a minor car crash in South Florida, turn to Gonzalez & Cartwright, P.A. for help. Our firm offers free consultations so there’s no cost or obligation to you to talk to one of our knowledgeable car accident attorneys to discuss the details of the accident and learn more about your legal rights and options. You may quickly come to find that you stand to lose a lot more than you initially thought after a seemingly minor car crash. Our attorneys can help guide you through the steps after a car accident to ensure that your legal rights and interests are protected and that you have the opportunity to pursue fair and full compensation for any injuries, damage, or losses you’ve suffered.
Contact our firm for a free case review to learn more about how having knowledgeable legal counsel on your side can make a difference even after a minor car accident in South Florida.
Steps to Take after a Minor Car Crash in South Florida
After you’ve been involved in a minor fender bender car accident in South Florida, there are a few steps you should always take, even if you and the other driver don’t feel like making a big deal about the crash:
- Always exchange information with the other driver or drivers involved in the accident, including contact information, driver’s license information, and insurance information
- Take photos of the accident scene, including damage to the vehicles, marks on the road, and traffic controls at the scene.
- Report the accident either by contacting the appropriate law enforcement agency or by filing a crash report with the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. Under Florida law, law enforcement must be contacted following an accident involving fatality, injury, hit and run, DUI, a disabled vehicle, a commercial vehicle, or apparent property damage of at least $500
- Get examined by a doctor as soon as possible after the accident to check for any injuries you may have suffered in the accident
Finally, you should speak to a car accident lawyer, even if the car accident only appeared to have involved minor damage to your vehicles. You may have suffered injuries that only manifest themselves weeks or even months after the accident. If you wait too long to speak to a car accident attorney, you may end up losing out on the opportunity to pursue compensation from the other driver or drivers who may have been at fault for the crash.
Let Gonzalez & Cartwright, P.A. Help Protect Your Rights after a Car Accident in South Florida
Following a minor car crash, Gonzalez & Cartwright, P.A. can help you preserve and protect your legal rights and options. For example, we can help ensure that you are in a position to pursue a car accident claim in the event you later discover that you had suffered injuries in the accident. We can conduct an investigation of the crash, recover evidence needed to establish fault, and ensure that the accident is properly reported to the authorities.
We can also fight to protect your rights and interests if the other driver or drivers involved in the accident later try to pursue a claim for compensation against you. Our experienced attorneys can aggressively advocate on your behalf if the other driver tries to drag you into a “they say, you say” situation due to a lack of documentation or evidence from the accident.
Even if you do take the steps to report the accident to law enforcement and file an insurance claim for any damage or losses that you’ve suffered from the accident, our firm can deal with the insurance company on your behalf, especially if you are contacted soon after the accident by an adjuster who tries to pressure you into a quick settlement that may not provide you with full compensation.
Contact Our Firm for a Free Case Evaluation to Learn More about How We Can Help with Your Car Accident Claim
Contact Gonzalez & Cartwright, P.A. today for a free, no-obligation consultation to discuss how our experienced car accident attorney can help, even after you’ve been involved in a seemingly minor car accident, to ensure you receive the full compensation you deserve for your case.
Frequently Asked Questions about Whether You Should Hire a Car Accident Lawyer for a Minor Accident in South Florida
Although it may seem unnecessary to hire an attorney for a minor car accident in which only vehicle and property damage was suffered, you may want to consult with an attorney about your legal rights and options, as even a minor accident can cause chronic pain or injuries that don’t manifest until weeks or even months after the accident. An attorney can also be helpful when you are having difficulty getting compensation from the insurance company under personal injury protection or comprehensive/collision coverage.
It may always be helpful to review any settlement offer you receive from the insurance company with an experienced car accident attorney, even if you’ve only been in a minor car accident. A lawyer can review the settlement offer and the underlying facts and circumstances of the accident to advise you whether the offer represents fair and full compensation or whether you should negotiate for a higher offer or wait to settle.
