If you’re facing a personal injury of any kind, you’re probably feeling a little overwhelmed. You don’t know what your options are, but you know that you’re drowning in bills, expenses, missed work, and stress. What can you do to make it better? There is so much to do!
You deserve compensation to cover these things and help you move on with your life following an injury. Personal injury lawyers often get a bad rep, but the truth is they are there to help you through stressful times like these. You are not alone, and a lawyer can help you work through your options and get the compensation you deserve.
Hire a Fort Wayne personal injury lawyer right away. In the meantime, this personal injury checklist could be a huge help for you as well. The checklist provides you with things that you might need for your case and what you can start working on accumulating. Your lawyer can also help you collect these things.
Associated Police Report
If there is any type of police report associated with your personal injury, work on obtaining a copy. This will be relevant to your case. If the personal injury has no police report, there will be other documentation items that can be used.
If this is a work injury and there is an accident report, that’s a good place to start!
Photographs
One important element of documentation is photographs. If you are able, it’s a good idea to photograph the scene immediately, regardless of the type of accident. These photos can be very helpful later on.
In addition, it can help to photograph any injuries as well. This can be useful proof of injuries when you’re six months down the road and the injuries no longer appear as substantial.
Medical Bills
Always keep all medical bills, insurance payments, EOBs, and any detailed medical statements. You will need these bills when you file a claim, and they provide documentation of any expenses related to the injury.
Insurance Details
Insurance information will be important, and all information about insurance should be acquired for any associated parties from the incident that led to an injury. In the event of a car accident, this would include other drivers’ insurance information.
Lost Wages or Missed Work
It will be necessary to provide proof of lost wages and missed work. This means you will want to have wage statements, pay stubs, and documentation of any missed hours or lost pay from this injury. Gather anything you can to document that you’ve missed work or lost pay.
Correspondence Tracking
When you have correspondence with any other parties, this should be clearly documented and retained. It’s best not to have any conversations or correspondence without your lawyer present for the task. This includes insurance companies, businesses, other responsible parties, and any other related persons.
Take Notes
Take notes for yourself. Document and journal everything that might affect your personal injury case. Keep track of side effects and how they affect your life. Document expenses, missed work, counseling obtained, and whatever else occurs. You can even document lost sleep or nightmares as a result of PTSD or trauma.
The final rule of any personal injury checklist is that you aren’t in this alone. Take steps to document and organize everything that is related to your case, but remember that your Fort Wayne personal injury lawyer is here to help you through it. This injury has drastically affected your life, so take steps to recover damages and get your life back on track.
