Vehicle accidents and crashes happen commonly; chances are at some point you’ll be involved in one. Fortunately, most of the accidents that occur result in minimal damage or harm. Collisions can transpire suddenly, and drivers often don’t know precisely how. Finding out what happened is crucial to holding the negligent driver responsible. After an accident, the police and insurance will gather what happened from driver statements, witness statements, the accident site, damage to the vehicles, and the police report.
Finding the negligent party is far easier if the collision is caught on camera. Video cameras are just about everywhere now; your accident is likely to have been recorded if you were at a parking lot or intersection. Cameras that may have caught the accident include surveillance cameras, cell phones, vehicle recording devices, traffic cameras, or even doorbell cams.
An attorney can tell you whether a video of the accident will help your case. If you have a partial video of the accident or it doesn’t capture both cars leading up to the collision, it may not be as compelling or even useful for your case. To obtain a video of your crash, you will need to return to the scene and look for cameras of any kind; getting video swiftly after your collision is important as many cameras record over old footage, making it impossible to recover. Many cameras are either privately-owned or government-owned, and you’ll need the proper permission to access it. You will need the exact date and time the accident occurred.
There are many situations where a video has resolved an otherwise complicated case. Video is especially helpful when disputing a traffic light condition or when an accident occurs in a neighborhood, parking lot, roundabout, or at a stop sign.
It can be a lot of work to locate or obtain a video of the scene. This complicated process is why it’s essential to contact a skilled attorney who knows the laws and quickly ensure that any video documentation is collected.
