Being involved in a hit and run accident can be extremely scary. You may also be concerned that damage to your automobile won’t be covered since the driver fled the scene. In this case, the actions that you take immediately following the accident are extremely important and can even help you bring the responsible party to justice. State Farm offers the following advice if you’re involved in a hit and run.
Don’t leave the scene
While it may be tempting to leave the scene of an accident to pursue the other driver, doing so can actually get you in trouble. Fleeing the scene of an accident is a crime, no matter the reason. Additionally, you could miss out on getting important information, which may be used when making an accident claim. It’s best to wait for law enforcement, from both a safety perspective as well as to benefit you.
Get as much information as possible
Any information you can get will be helpful when reporting the accident to the authorities. If you don’t have the license plate number, the make, model, and color of the vehicle can be useful. You should also take note of which direction the vehicle was headed in, which can help when police are in pursuit. In terms of your vehicle, taking pictures of any damage offers insight into how the damage occurred. This will be helpful if the police catch the other driver.
Talk to witnesses
If there are any bystanders on the scene, be sure to speak with them about what they saw. Witness testimony can be very helpful when making an accident claim and bystanders may even be able to provide evidence about the other vehicle that you previously missed. Witness testimony is valuable because it offers an objective version of events, which will shore up your claims when other drivers are negligent.