When you’re a passenger who has been involved in a car wreck, it’s easy to get confused about what you should do next – especially if you’re injured.
Ideally, you don’t want to have to use your MedPay or private health insurance to cover your medical costs, and you certainly don’t need those co-pays piling up on you. You may also have property that needs to be repaired or replaced, and you have every right to expect fair compensation for all your pain and suffering.
Unfortunately, neither the driver you were with nor the other driver wants to take responsibility for the crash. What do you do now? Here are a few steps to take:
First, get the treatment you need
Regardless of how the whole thing shakes out, you should get the medical care you need. If you have either private insurance or MedPay, that will at least cover your immediate care – and the insurance company can ultimately reclaim their losses from the at-fault driver’s insurance through a process called subrogation.
Second, file a claim with both drivers’ insurers
Ultimately, it may take a while before there’s any final verdict regarding which driver is at fault – and it could be both of them. As a passenger, you’re not really in a position to know, so the best way to protect yourself is to file a claim with both driver’s insurance companies – then settle in because this process probably won’t be quick.
How much you can ultimately recover for your injuries and losses may ultimately depend on which driver is found to be at fault for the crash (or whether the liability is divided), the number of people injured in the wreck and the limits of the drivers’ individual policies.
Car accident injury claims can be complicated under the best of circumstances, but when you’re a passenger, it can be even harder to get what you’re rightfully due without experienced legal assistance.
