It is always a good idea to plan ahead so that you will know what to do is you have an auto accident. One way of doing this is to establish a relationship with a car accident lawyer. This can save lots of grief in the future.

According to www.shoalslawyers.com – Just After an Auto Accident Follow This List

• Don’t drive away after being involved in an auto accident. There are serious consequences that could follow.

• Keep your cool so that you will be able to handle deal with everything that takes place next, and to keep everyone else calm.

• Make sure that all passengers involved in the accident are safe and check for injuries that may require immediate emergency services. Call 911 if you are unsure.

• Make sure that oncoming cars are aware of the accident by turning on your hazard lights or by setting out flares to mark where it is safe for them to drive.

• Move your car out of the way if there are no serious injuries to allow for traffic flow to continue.

If there was another car involved in the auto accident, be sure to exchange information with them and call the police if the damages were greater than $500. Don’t leave the scene until you have obtained the following.

• Contact information for the other driver including name and telephone number.

• Driver’s license number.

• Vehicle identification number (VIN) of the other vehicle.

• Since the owner of the vehicle could be different from the driver’s, get their name and address as well.

• Name, address and telephone number of the insurance company and the policy number for the other vehicle.

This information can be found on the insurance card that should be in the vehicle. If you are unable to obtain this information, be sure to take down the tag number of the vehicle.

Auto accidents with less than $500 damage do not require calling in the authorities, but you can still call them if you feel the need regardless of the amount of damage. If you do call the authorities, you must stay with your vehicle until they have completed their investigation.

Your description of the auto accident should only include the facts; your opinion of who is at fault is not required at this time. If you are issued a ticket for the accident, do not refuse to sign it or you may be taken into custody. Placing your signature on a ticket is not an admission of guilt. It is simply a statement that you will appear in court to either pay a fine or dispute your liability.

This may be the time to call a car accident lawyer to help you deal with the situation.