Following a car accident in the Buffalo area, you should have your injuries cared for immediately at a hospital or by your doctor. Nobody wants to be involved in a personal injury case, and most people are hopeful that their injuries will heal without the need for extensive medical treatment.
In our years of experience as personal injury attorneys in Buffalo, we have found that this hope can often work against you if your apparently minor injury turns out to be a serious physical injury. Failure to document this injury right away may lead to questions about its relationship to the automobile accident.
When you see the doctor or other medical personnel, you should tell them about every complaint and injury you have, even the ones that seem very minor. Some types of personal injuries, such as back or neck injuries, do not always immediately result in severe pain.
Make sure your doctor aware of even minor complaints. Not only will this help your doctor in his or her efforts to diagnose your injuries, but it will also result in documentation of that complaint should the injury prove more serious than you initially thought.
First, New York State law and Buffalo ordinances require that any driver involved in a car accident stop at the scene even if a personal injury has not occurred. You should not move your car unless leaving it where it is creates a hazard for other drivers. At this point making sure everyone is safe, including others using the road, is the most important step you can take.
If you have suffered a personal injury, in most cases you should remain where you are and wait for help. If you are not injured but other people are, you should immediately dial 911 and request an ambulance. Unless you have medical training, you should not attempt to treat any injured person yourself or move them unless they are in immediate danger.
Following a motor vehicle accident, New York State requires all drivers to exchange their names and addresses, along with the names and identification numbers of their insurance company. If possible, you should ask to see the other driver’s license, registration and insurance card and copy down all of this information.
Aside from exchanging this required information with the other driver, it is best not to have any discussion with him or her. Do not get into a discussion with them about who caused the accident. Wait for the police to arrive and tell the police officer your recall of how the accident occurred.
When speaking to the police, you should find out his or her name, badge number and department or precinct. It will make it easier for you or your personal injury lawyer to obtain a copy of any police reports at a later date.
Following the accident, you should contact your insurance company immediately. If the insurance company is not notified of an accident in a timely fashion, they may deny your claim.
A motor vehicle registered in New York State must have liability insurance with a minimum of $25,000/50,000 for injury, $50,000/100,000 for death, and $10,000 for property damage caused by any one accident. New York State is a no-fault state.
The liability coverage must remain in effect while the registration is valid, even if the vehicle is not used, except for motorcycles.
The liability coverage must be New York State insurance coverage, issued by a company authorized to do business in New York State and licensed by the New York Insurance Department. Out-of-state insurance coverage of any type is never acceptable or valid. If your vehicle is registered in New York State, the liability insurance coverage must be New York State insurance coverage.
Liability coverage must be issued in the name of the registrant and must remain in the name of the registrant at all times. A change to a name different from the registrant causes a lapse in insurance coverage. The driver’s license of the registrant and the registration will be suspended.
You are required to show a New York State insurance identification card when you apply for a vehicle registration. Your insurance company, agent or broker must issue two original New York State insurance identification cards to you. They must have the same name as the registration application and must have a barcode.
The insurance company must also file an electronic notice of insurance coverage with the New York Department of Motor Vehicles to verify the liability coverage. The agent or broker cannot file this notice. Your insurance identification card and the electronic notice of insurance coverage together verify your insurance coverage.
An insurance identification card must be presented within 45 days of the effective date of the insurance coverage. You must bring the cards to the New York Department of Motor Vehicles office when you apply for the registration. They will keep one card. Keep the other card with the vehicle. If a police officer requests your proof of insurance, you must show your insurance identification card.
Uninsured Motorists Coverage protects you, your family members who reside with you, and the occupants of your vehicle, for injuries as the result of negligent actions by an uninsured vehicle or hit-and-run motorist for accidents occurring in Buffalo or anywhere else in New York State.
A claim may be filed with your auto insurance company if anyone in your vehicle is injured by the driver of an uninsured vehicle or a hit-and-run motorist, or if you or a member of your family are injured while in an uninsured vehicle, or injured as a pedestrian by an uninsured or hit-and-run motorist. If you do not own a car, but a relative in your household does, you may be covered under that policy.
If no other coverage is available when injured as a pedestrian by an uninsured vehicle or hit-and-run driver or as an occupant of an uninsured vehicle in New York State, you may still be eligible for uninsured motorist protection from the Motor Vehicle Accident Indemnification Corporation (MVAIC).
You should purchase SUM (Supplementary Uninsured/Underinsured Motorists) coverage to protect against out-of-state accidents, or accidents involving another motor vehicle whose owner or operator is insured for third-party bodily injury, but only at relatively low liability limits. SUM coverage can also be purchased in amounts up to the bodily injury liability limits of an insured’s own policy.
An insurer must offer SUM limits of $250,000 per person per accident and $500,000 per accident ($250,000/$500,000) if a person has bodily injury liability limits of that amount or higher. Insurers may offer higher SUM limits.
