How to protect your health, safety, and right to injury compensation after an auto accident in Alabama.

Every four minutes there’s a traffic accident in Alabama. Whether you’re in a fender-bender or a serious collision, knowing what to do after an accident can help protect you legally, and help preserve your right to compensation from the at-fault driver.

1. Stop At the Accident Scene

If you’ve been in a car crash, Alabama state law says you must stop at the scene of the accident.

If there was no apparent injury or death, the driver is not impaired, and the vehicle can be safely moved from the roadway, then the driver can move the vehicle to the shoulder, emergency lane, median, or other location close to the accident site.

Exchange Driver Information

At the scene of the accident, don’t apologize to the other driver or make excuses for what happened. Simply exchange information as required by Alabama law. An Alabama driver involved in an accident is required to give their name, address, and vehicle registration number to the driver or occupant of the other vehicle.

Hitting a Parked Car in Alabama

You are legally obligated to stop at the scene if you hit a parked car, light pole, fence, or any other property in Alabama.

When you hit an unattended vehicle:

• Notify the driver or owner of the car you hit and give them your name and address
• If you cannot find the vehicle’s owner, you must leave a note listing your name and address

If you don’t own the car you’re driving, you also need to provide the owner’s name and address.

If you cause damage to property other than a car:

• Make a reasonable effort to notify the property owner
• Give them your name, address, insurance information, and your car’s registration number
• Show your driver’s license to the owner if they ask to see it

2. Assist the Injured and Call 911

If anyone is injured and requires medical assistance, you must help them. Alabama law requires that you “render to any person injured in such accident reasonable assistance.” This includes providing first aid if you can, and making arrangements for them to get medical treatment by calling 911.

Give the 911 operator the following information:

• Location: Be specific. Look for street signs, highway mile markers, traffic signs, and other landmarks. Report the nearest intersection and what side of the road you’re on. The more specific you are, the faster emergency personnel can respond.
• Injuries: Tell the 911 dispatcher if there are obvious injuries, if anyone was ejected from a vehicle, or if anyone involved is complaining of pain or discomfort.
• Accident Scene: Tell the operator about any hazards at the scene, such as spilled fuel, overturned vehicles, or downed electrical wires.

If police respond to the scene, Alabama law requires them to investigate and file a police report within 24 hours.

3. Seek Immediate Medical Attention

Don’t tell everyone you’re fine and don’t refuse medical help at the scene. The insurance company can then challenge your claim, arguing that either you weren’t hurt “that bad” or your injuries were not caused by the collision.

If paramedics arrive on the scene, let them evaluate you. Tell them how you feel and what symptoms you experience. If they want to take you to the hospital for treatment, go with them. If you are not transported to the emergency room from the scene, see your own medical provider or go to an urgent care center as soon as possible, preferably on the day of the crash.

Tell your medical providers when and how you were injured. Detail all your injuries and symptoms, not just the main or worst symptoms. You deserve treatment and compensation for all your injuries, so make sure everything is included in your medical records.

Refusing or delaying medical attention gives the at-fault driver’s insurance company an excuse to deny your claim. The adjuster will say your injuries are not related to the accident. If you are worried about payment, there are ways to get your medical care paid for after an accident.

4. Begin Collecting Evidence to Support Your Claim

The minutes after an accident may seem chaotic and confusing, but they can also be the most important to your claim. This is when you must gather any evidence you can. As time ticks by, physical evidence left at the scene will disappear, along with the people who can help you prove your case.

If you are able to safely move around at the scene, try to get:

• Photos and video: Take as many pictures as you safely can. Take a video of the scene, showing the position of the cars and the surrounding area. Get close-up pictures of the damage to the vehicles from different angles.
• Witness statements: Witnesses aren’t legally required to stay at the scene. Get the contact information for anyone who witnessed the accident as soon as possible. If they are willing, take a video of the witness describing what happened.
• Vehicle information: Write down the make, model, year, license plate number, and expiration date of the other vehicles involved.
• Driver information: Get the other driver’s full name, home and business address, telephone numbers, email addresses, date of birth, and driver’s license number. If the driver isn’t the owner of the car, get the owner’s contact information as well.

Begin taking notes as soon as possible after the accident. Write down the date and time, and everything you remember leading up to the crash and immediately afterward. Include details about the weather, road conditions, the angle of the sun, and what the other driver said or did.

Passengers are not obligated to share their names or contact information with anyone other than a law enforcement officer. However, there’s nothing to stop you from jotting down your observations, including the apparent age and gender of the passengers, a physical description, and visible injuries.

5. Report the Accident to Police

If police respond to the scene, you won’t need to notify them. Their auto accident report creates an official record of the incident.

As the claimant (or plaintiff in a personal injury lawsuit) the burden is on you to prove the other driver negligently caused the accident. The police accident report will go a long way towards proving the other driver’s fault, especially if they were cited for traffic violations. The details of the police report may be your strongest evidence.

To obtain a copy of a “Crash Report,” visit the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency website. There is a reasonable fee for a copy of an accident report, which can be paid with all major credit cards.

Police may not respond to fender-benders or accidents without reported injuries, leaving it up to the drivers to notify law enforcement. If you were only in a minor collision with no injuries, you can notify the appropriate Alabama law enforcement agency afterward.

Alabama law requires drivers involved in an accident to notify:

• The local police department, if it occurred within city limits.
• The sheriff’s department, if outside a municipality but within county lines.
• The Alabama State Highway Patrol, if it occurred on a state highway.

6. Notify Your Insurance Company

Auto insurance policies are legally binding contracts between the policyholder (you) and the insurer. Your auto policy likely contains a Notice of Occurrence and Cooperation clause. This requires you to contact your insurance company after an accident and cooperate with their investigation.

Example of a Cooperation and Notice of Occurrence clause:

“Insured agrees to notify the underwriter ABC Insurance of any accidents and thereafter with all information, assistance and cooperation which ABC Insurance reasonably requests and agrees that in the event of a claim the insured will do nothing to prejudice ABC Insurance position….”

Your insurance company needs to hear your point of view before speaking with the other driver and their insurance company. Hearing your version of events helps them effectively defend you, especially if the other driver insists you were at fault.

Your insurance company has a duty to defend you when the other driver blames you for their injuries and files a lawsuit against you.

7. Notify the At-Fault Driver’s Insurance Company

After an Alabama car accident, you are entitled to seek compensation for your property damage and personal injuries from the at-fault driver.

You or your attorney will send a notice of intent to file an injury claim to the at-fault driver’s insurance company shortly after the accident. The insurance company will acknowledge your notice with a claim number and may assign an adjuster to your claim.

If you already have an attorney, the insurance company is not allowed to contact you directly. If you sent the notice on your own, the adjuster will try to contact you and may ask for a recorded statement. You don’t have to give one without an attorney present. Never give a statement when you are in pain, tired, upset, or nervous. The adjuster is trained to ask leading questions and get you to say things that will hurt your claim.

Shared Blame Can Kill Your Case

Because Alabama is a pure contributory negligence state, your claim will be stronger if you can establish upfront that you did nothing to contribute to the accident.

Under pure contributory negligence rules, you could be banned from claiming any compensation from the at-fault driver if you share as little as 1% of the fault for causing the collision. The police report will help prove you are not to blame, and independent witness statements can underscore that you could not have avoided the crash.

8. Consult a Car Accident Attorney

If you’ve fully recovered from minor injuries, and only want reimbursement for your trip to urgent care and other small costs, you may decide to handle your own insurance claim.

If you don’t want to deal with the other driver’s insurance company on your own, you suffered serious injuries, or if your claim is complicated, you owe it to yourself to speak with a personal injury attorney before deciding how to proceed.

Complicated injury claims may include:

• Assertions of shared blame
• Wrongful death
• Multiple-vehicle accidents
• Uninsured or underinsured motorists

Compensation amounts for injury claims are directly related to the victim’s damages. These include total economic losses related to the accident, and an amount for the victim’s pain and suffering.

Most injury law firms offer a free consultation to accident victims. Gather your medical records, police report, witness statements, and other evidence related to the accident. Bring all your documentation to the initial consultation with the attorney.

A personal injury lawyer will review your case, estimate the settlement value of your claim, and discuss potential legal complications. There’s no obligation.

The attorney-client relationship is important. You can meet with more than one attorney to find the right fit for you and your family. Most injury attorneys work on a contingency fee basis, meaning the attorney is not paid unless they settle your claim or win your case in court.