What do you do if you’re in a car accident, you end up going to the hospital or home and an officer comes to take a statement from you?
My name is John Burns and I’m a personal injury attorney car accident attorney. My office is located where Mission Viejo, Laguna Niguel and San Juan Capistrano all come together. Here is the answer to your question.
Sometimes a police officer will not be able to take your statement at the accident scene. In such cases, the officer may later come to your hospital room or your home to take a statement from you.
In such a case you have to be careful when you give a statement. Here are the reasons why.
If you’ve been given any medications by either the paramedics, the ambulance crew, or the emergency room personnel you may not be able to give an accurate statement. If you took medication on your own you also have to be careful.
After a car accident the officer is going to write down your statement for the Traffic Collision Report. What is in that report may affect whether the insurance company decides the other driver is at fault or if you might be at fault. If you mistakenly say something to the officer that is not correct it might hurt your car accident case..
As a car accident attorney here is my advice in regard to you giving your statement to a police or highway patrol officer.
- If you don’t feel well, you do not have to give a statement. You can tell the officer “I’m sorry, I don’t feel well enough to give a statement, could you come back later?”
- If you have been given or have taken medication tell the officer something like” they’ve given me pain medication, it may affect my ability to give an accurate statement”.
- If you do give a statement, slow down, take your time responding to the officer’s questions. You may not be able to respond accurately and not even know it, so if you go slowly, you can usually rectify that problem.
If you have been injured in a car accident I would like to talk with you about your case. As a personal injury car accident attorney in the Mission Viejo, Laguna Niguel, San Juan Capistrano area for many years, I can help you with your case.
There is also no charge to talk to me about your car accident or other personal injury case. You can also download or order delivery of my FREE BOOK below. My phone number is (949) 496-7000, and my email is john@johnburnslaw.com. I look forward to hearing from you.