Guides

Car accident guides

Written in plain English and checked against official sources. Start with what to do after a crash, or jump to the topic you need.

After a Crash

Car Accident Evidence Checklist: What to Collect and Keep

A complete checklist of the evidence to gather after a car crash, from scene photos and witness details to medical records, bills, and insurance letters.

How to Get a Police Accident Report After a Car Crash

Learn who keeps your crash report, how to request a copy online, by mail, or in person, what it costs, how long it takes, and how to fix mistakes in it.

What to Do After a Car Accident: A Step-by-Step Checklist

A plain-language checklist for the scene of a car crash, the first 24 hours, and the first few weeks, so you protect your health, your claim, and your records.

Insurance Claims

Dealing With Insurance Adjusters After a Car Accident

How insurance adjusters work, what to share and what to hold back, how to keep records, push back on low offers, and file a complaint with your state.

Diminished Value Claims: Recovering Your Car's Lost Resale Value

What diminished value is, when you may be able to claim it after a crash, how to document the loss, and why first-party and third-party claims differ.

How Car Accident Settlements Work, Step by Step

From demand letter to check: how injury settlements are valued, negotiated, and paid, what a release means, how liens work, and when money is taxable.

Medical Bills and Liens After a Car Accident

Who pays your medical bills after a crash, in what order, and how health plan, Medicare, Medicaid, and hospital liens are repaid from an injury settlement.

No-Fault vs. At-Fault Car Insurance: How Each System Works

Learn how no-fault (PIP) and at-fault (tort) insurance states handle injury claims after a crash, including lawsuit thresholds and choice no-fault states.

Property Damage and Total Loss Claims: Getting Your Car Fixed or Replaced

How car damage claims work, how insurers decide a vehicle is totaled, how to challenge a low valuation, and what to know about loans, salvage, and rentals.

Recorded Statements to Insurance: Should You Give One?

What a recorded statement is, when you may have to give one to your own insurer, why you can usually decline the other driver's, and how to prepare if you do.

Uninsured and Underinsured Motorist Claims Explained

How UM and UIM coverage pay when the at-fault driver has no insurance or too little, how limits work, how to file a claim, and the mistakes that can hurt it.

Accident Types

Hit-and-Run Accidents: What to Do and Who Pays

What to do right after a hit-and-run, how to help police find the driver, and which coverages, like UM, collision, PIP, and MedPay, may pay for your losses.

Motorcycle Accident Claims: Insurance, Fault, and Evidence

How motorcycle accident claims work: common crash causes, insurance gaps riders face, how helmet use and bias can affect fault, and the evidence that helps.

Pedestrian and Bicycle Accidents: Claims and Coverage

What to do if a car hits you while walking or biking, which insurance pays (including your own auto policy), how fault works, and evidence that helps.

Rideshare Accident Claims: Uber and Lyft Insurance Explained

How Uber and Lyft insurance changes with the driver's app status, what state laws require in each period, and how to file a claim after a rideshare crash.

Truck Accident Claims: Federal Rules, Insurance, and Evidence

How truck accident claims differ from car crashes: FMCSA rules, federal minimum insurance levels, who may be liable, and the evidence to preserve early.

Whiplash and Soft Tissue Injuries: What to Know for Your Claim

A plain-language look at whiplash and other soft tissue injuries after a crash, why they're often disputed by insurers, and how to document them properly.

Legal Basics

Comparative Fault Explained: What Happens When You Were Partly to Blame

How pure comparative, modified comparative, and contributory negligence rules affect a car accident claim when more than one driver shares the blame.

Pain and Suffering Damages After a Car Accident

What pain and suffering covers, how insurers and juries estimate it, the evidence that supports it, and how fault, caps, and taxes can affect the amount.

Small Claims Court for Car Accidents: A Practical Guide

When small claims court makes sense after a car crash, typical dollar limits, how to prepare your case and evidence, and what to expect at the hearing.

Statute of Limitations for Car Accidents, Explained

What a statute of limitations is, when the clock starts and pauses, why claims against government agencies have shorter deadlines, and how to find yours.

Wrongful Death Claims After a Fatal Car Accident

Who can bring a wrongful death claim after a fatal crash, what damages families may recover, how deadlines work, and how it differs from a survival action.

Working With Lawyers

Contingency Fees Explained: How Injury Lawyers Get Paid

How contingency fee agreements work in car accident cases, what ABA Model Rule 1.5(c) requires, how costs are deducted, and how to read the numbers.

Do I Need a Lawyer After a Car Accident? An Honest Guide

When handling a car accident claim on your own may work, when talking to a licensed attorney may make sense, and what to ask before you decide.

How to Choose and Verify a Car Accident Lawyer

How to check a lawyer's license and discipline record, spot illegal solicitation, compare fee agreements, and ask the right questions before you hire.