Understanding Your Rights After an Accident

The minutes and hours after a serious accident are some of the most important — and most disorienting — moments of your case. What you do, what you say, and what you preserve in that window will shape every settlement conversation that follows.

California law gives injured people powerful protections, but those protections only work when you exercise them deliberately. Below is the framework our trial attorneys give every new client, distilled from more than 10,000 cases handled.

1. Get medical attention first — every time

Adrenaline masks injury. Soft-tissue damage, concussions, and internal bleeding routinely present hours or days later. A documented medical visit on the day of the incident is the single most valuable piece of evidence in a personal injury claim, because it forecloses the carrier's favorite argument: that your injuries came from something else.

2. Document the scene before it disappears

• Photograph vehicle positions, damage, debris, skid marks, and traffic controls before anything is moved.
• Capture the surrounding environment — lighting, weather, street signs, and any obstructions.
• Get names, phone numbers, and insurance details from every driver and witness.
• Note the responding officer's name, badge number, and the report number.

3. Say less than you think you should

Insurance adjusters are trained to record statements that minimize their exposure. "I'm fine" or "I didn't see them" can be replayed against you for years. Limit on-scene statements to facts an officer needs, and decline recorded interviews until you have spoken with counsel.

Statute of limitations Most California personal injury claims must be filed within two years of the incident. Claims against a public entity require notice within just six months. Missing either deadline typically extinguishes the right to recover — no matter how strong the underlying case.

4. Preserve everything — even what seems irrelevant

Damaged clothing, broken eyewear, dashcam footage, the cracked phone, the crumpled bicycle helmet — keep it. Do not repair the vehicle until photographs and an independent estimate are in hand. Physical evidence wins cases that paperwork alone cannot.

5. Call counsel before you call the carrier

The first call you make to the at-fault driver's insurer sets the tone for the entire claim. A short conversation with an experienced personal injury attorney — almost always free of charge — will tell you what to say, what to refuse, and what your case is worth before you give anything away.