Honolulu Motor Vehicle Claims Important Initial Steps for Your Claims Honolulu Car Accident Attorney - Claims We Handle Honolulu MVA Injury Attorney - Call us now

Car Accident Attorney Hawaii

Honolulu Hawaii Auto Accident Attorney Bill Lawson

Initial Steps Accident Claims

Initial Steps in Making Your Claim

- Preservation of evidence
- Accident/incident reports
- Medical information
- Employment information
- Recorded statement
- Conclusion


Preservation of evidence

After an accident the very first and most important requirement (from the point of view of making a claim) is usually to preserve whatever evidence is available regarding the accident. This usually involves keeping, saving, storing and preserving whatever evidence it is possible to keep, save, store and preserve and photographing or videotaping all evidence that may for some reason be perishable or subject to change. It also involves locating and interviewing witnesses to the accident and others who may be familiar with the conditions which gave rise to the accident.

All products- such as appliances, furniture, containers, medications, food, etc.- involved in the accident should be saved. Specific examination and testing is often required. The vehicles involved in a severe collision should be saved for inspection by experts. The cause of a motor vehicle accident can often be determined by an expert's inspection of the vehicles involved. A dangerous condition which gives rise to the accident should be photographed and/or videotaped as soon as possible. Otherwise it may change or be changed before the necessary evidence to pursue the claim has been gathered. Interviews should be conducted promptly- before memories fade or subsequent events corrupt the memory's recall. Identifying and locating witnesses and obtaining accurate recall of the events surrounding the accident becomes progressively more difficult with each day that elapses after an accident. Delay may prove to be very costly. So please don't delay.

Proper preservation and documentation of the evidence related to your claims may require experienced investigators and even the involvement of trained scientists and engineers. These expenses can be fairly steep. They are particularly steep for a family already dealing with the financial burdens of an accident.

If you retain this office on your case, we will be happy to assist you in keeping, saving, storing and preserving evidence and in photographing and/or video-taping and otherwise documenting facts and circumstances related to your claims. These costs will be advanced by us for your case.

Accident/incident reports

After an accident it is important to begin to record all information relevant to that accident. In a car accident, drivers exchange names, addresses, phone numbers and insurance information. If the police are called, a lot of additional information is usually recorded in the police report. In a slip and fall accident, the injured person- or his representative- should file an incident report as soon as possible with the owner of the premises where the accident occurred. This report should indicate the approximate location, the date and the time of the injury and a very brief statement (one sentence) of what happened. Similar incident reports can be generated for dangerous product claims, maritime claims, and other claims. The existence of an incident report can be helpful in answering an insurer's first concerns regarding an accident- did this accident really happen and was my insured involved?

Medical information

As soon as reasonably possible after an accident, an injured person should seek qualified medical attention. Although medical care is pretty expensive, the absence of medical care- especially for an extended period of time- may be even more expensive to an injured person. Such delay may significantly damage the valuation of a personal injury claim. It creates uncertainty in the insurer's assessment of the injuries- were they truly a result of this accident? It may also create doubt in the minds of jurors- if the injuries were serious enough for a lawsuit, why wasn't a doctor consulted? See a qualified doctor for your treatment and someone that you trust. Be aware that there are some doctors who bias their opinions in favor of insurance companies. You will want to avoid having such a doctor as your treating doctor.

Employment information

In order to make a lost earnings claim, you will need to have one or more off-work slips (with specific dates indicated) and proof of the earnings lost during that period. The earnings lost can be proven by payroll records, a letter from the employer or other appropriate documentation. For accidents in Hawaii, a wage loss claim is sometimes available under TDI, worker's compensation or occassionally as part of the no fault coverages in a car accident.

Recorded statement

Most insurance adjusters will want to take a recorded statement from a claimant before completing evaluation of a claim. This statement may be used later to attempt to attack a claimant's credibility. Giving such a statement without the advice and assistance of an attorney carries significant risk. Most claimants are well advised to obtain the services of a competent and experienced personal injury attorney to protect their legal rights before proceeding with such an interview.

Conclusion

In short, there are many steps to be taken to establish a personal injury claim once an accident has occurred which may give rise to a claim. Evidence must be preserved, photographs and videotapes must be taken and witnesses must be located and interviewed. Other basic investigation must be undertaken and information must be gathered. Within a short period of time, much evidence (and perhaps evidence crucial to the case) will be lost. To obtain a satisfactory resolution of the case later, the proper groundwork must be laid at the earliest possible date.

Contact us now for a free evaluation of your case.


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Car Accident Attorney Hawaii


William H. Lawson, Esq. and
Amy L. Woodward, Esq.

Century Square
1188 Bishop St. Suite 2902
Honolulu, HI 96813

New client hotline:
(808) 524-5300


Pearl City, Aiea and Waipahu:
(808) 671-7600

Main business phone:
(808) 528-2525



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Added Research Tools


Products Liability - Cases & Comment at Accident Lawyer Hawaii.com (leaving this site)





Jones Act - maritime law and seaman cases at Accident Lawyer Hawaii.com (leaving this site)




The Constitution Of The State Of Hawaii at Injury Lawyer Hawaii.com (leaving this site)



Recent Personal Injury and Car Accident News


Mediation works - so we use it regularly. In Providence, R.I., in 2014 eight female aerialists doing a hair-hang act 20+ feet above the ground were severely injured when the metal frame supporting their act collapsed hurtling them to the floor. They recently obtained a total combined settlement of $52.5-million through mediation of their claims See, Eight severely injured aerialists recover $52.5-million settlement through mediation.




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AV Preeminent rated by Martindale Hubbell Martindale Hubbell - AV rated lawyer - Best Rating Possible Multi-Million Dollar Advocates Forum Multi-Million Dollar Advocates Forum AVVO Top Rated Personal Injury Attorney AVVO Top Rated Personal Injury Attorney, 10 of 10 ATLA Top 100 Trial Lawyers ATLA Top 100 5.0 of 5.0 top rated by Lawyers.com Lawyers.com - Rated 5.0 out of 5.0 - Top Rating Possible National Trial Lawyers - Top Lawyer National Trial Lawyers - Top 100 Trial Lawyers Million Dollar Advocates Forum Million Dollar Advocates Forum American Society of Legal Advocates - Top 100 - 2017 American Society of Legal Advocates - Top 100 - 2017 Marquis' Who's Who Marquis' Who's Who in the World, Who's Who in America and Who's Who in American Law AVVO Clients' Choice Personal Injury Lawyer AVVO Clients' Choice Personal Injury Lawyer American Society of Legal Advocates - Top 100 - 2015 American Society of Legal Advocates - Top 100 - 2015 Best Attorneys in America - Life Charter Member Best Attorneys in America - Life Charter Member


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Initial Steps for Car Accidents

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