Confusion is the most common emotion felt following any type of car accident. You weren’t expecting this, and it took you by surprise. It scared you, and now you’re confused and worried and very upset about what happened as well as how to proceed following this kind of accident. Now you’ve had a little time since the accident to process what happened, and you can clearly see your shock and confusion made you say a few things you shouldn’t have said.
Your personal injury attorney knows you didn’t mean to make a false statement, but the confusion felt immediately following an accident can cause you to remember things differently than they occurred. Perhaps you even left out details you know are important, but you forgot about them in the moment. Now you’re remembering what happened correctly, and you need to make some changes to your statement. Can you? What happens if you change your statement? Will you lose your case? Let your personal injury attorney help you.
Call Your Attorney
The moment you remember something differently following an accident, call your attorney. Do not speak to anyone else about what you remember. Your personal injury attorney must be the first person who hears this story and discusses your options with you. You’ll relay your story to your attorney while he or she goes over the police report statement you gave at the scene of the accident.
Your attorney will compare what you said at the time to what you said now, and they will go over the paperwork to see if it’s important. Perhaps you remember seeing the other driver run a red light just before they hit you, but you didn’t remember that at the scene. Your attorney can check to see if that information is already in the police report due to the admission of the driver or even a witness statement or evidence from a traffic camera.
If the information you suddenly remember is already in the report, you won’t lose your case. However, if the information you now remember contradicts what’s already in the report, it might be a problem and your attorney will need to discuss your options with you. Your attorney has to advise you on the next steps.
Can I lose my case?
Yes, you can. If you remember something that doesn’t work with the witness statements, that turns the accident into your fault, or contradicts all the evidence, you could lose your case. Your memories could also help your case if it’s something major or already in evidence. You might remember something that can be proven at a later date that could be the missing piece to proving your case.
All situations are different, and you never know what might happen if you remember something differently following the accident. This is why it’s imperative to speak to your attorney before anyone else. You never know what kind of memories are real and what might be imagined following a dream or some sort of assumption you made in your own subconscious.
Your attorney’s job is to find out if your memories are real, if they are not, or if they have any bearing on your case. Sometimes what you remember has nothing to do with your case at all, and it means you’re going to spend some time speaking to your attorney for nothing. It’s better to make the call and meet with your attorney than it is to forgo doing this.
Your personal injury attorney is here to help you with your case. You aren’t the only person who was hit by someone else in a car accident and confused when the accident report was filed. Accident reports are helpful to your case, but the quickness with which they are created following an accident can sometimes cause you to give false information or forget to give important information.
It’s normal to be confused, to be scared, and to be distracted when you give your statement. You’re not alone, but you do have to call your attorney to discuss how to handle this new evidence you’re remembering. Your case could be in trouble, you won’t know until you call your attorney.
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