Collecting Evidence For Your Florida Personal Injury Case
In a Florida personal injury case, you must prove negligence on the other party’s part in order to recover compensation. You must also prove your injuries’ severity before you can recover compensation. Therefore, it is crucial to gather as much evidence as possible after suffering a personal injury if you wish to file a successful claim. Although you only need to prove that your case is true, winning your Florida personal injury case will require a demonstration of key evidence. Below, we will focus on gathering evidence for a Florida personal injury case.
Gathering Physical Evidence for Your Florida Personal Injury Case
After an accident, you can establish fault on the other party’s part by using things you can see or touch, also known as physical evidence. For example, after a car accident, you can use the dent in your car to show how your accident happened.
You can also use physical evidence to prove the severity of your injuries. For example, after a car accident, damage to a car can help demonstrate the severity of the impact. Also, things like blood, bruising or cuts and/or damaged possessions (i.e. child car seat) can show the extent of physical injuries.
When it comes to preserving physical evidence, it is vital that you do so in the first few days following an accident to avoid it getting lost, repaired, destroyed, or modified.
Gathering Non-physical Evidence for Your Florida Personal Injury Case
You can also establish fault and prove the severity of your injuries after a Florida accident using non-physical evidence. Often, non-physical evidence makes up the bulk of a personal injury case as access to physical evidence may be limited. Non-physical evidence is basically meant to be presented as information. And, usually, this information is testimonial or factual in nature.
Examples of non-physical evidence in a personal injury case include police reports and witness testimony. Police reports are usually written after a car accident occurs. A police report is a factual and unbiased report of what transpired on the day of an accident. An attorney can help you obtain a police report of your accident.
When it comes to gathering and preserving witnesses’ testimonies, your attorney can, for example, ask witnesses to sign what is known as an “affidavit.” Signing an affidavit involves signing a written statement that narrates what a witness saw.
How Photographs Can Help Your Florida Personal Injury Case
Sometimes preserving physical evidence can be challenging. Fortunately, photographs can be used as evidence in a personal injury case. After an accident, ensure you take a number of photos. For example, after a car accident, take photos of the damage to your car (from all different angles and distances), the at-fault’s car (from all different angles and distances), and the entire accident scene, ensuring that all photos have timestamps. It would also be best to take pictures of your injuries after an accident. Because injuries heal over time, having photos of your injuries taken soon after your accident can help you prove you suffered severe injuries. Remember, close up pictures are good, but many times, pictures that show your entire body (i.e. upper body / lower body) are better for perspective.
Contact a Coral Springs Personal Injury Attorney
When it comes to gathering evidence for a personal injury case, there are several ways to approach the process. An attorney can help you identify the best approach to use and sort out what may or may not be considered admissible. Our Coral Springs personal injury attorneys at Lyons & Snyder are here for you. We can help you gather evidence for your Florida personal injury claim and recover the compensation you deserve.
