What Kinds of Photos Should I Take of My Richmond Car Accident?

The moments immediately after a car accident are the best time to collect evidence of what happened, the damage, and your injuries. Even just an hour later, the lanes will be cleared, roads could be dry from the rain. It’s not long before any video of the accident may also be lost as it is overridden with new images. As victims receive treatments, the bleeding begins to stop, and the healing begins.

The photos and videos you take early on can help support your version of the car accident and the personal injuries. The insurance carriers and defense lawyers may hire photographers who will focus on showing why their client is not liable. They may even hire investigators to take candid photos they can use to dispute your claim. Your photos support your claim.

A victim’s first priority should always be their health. A person who has a traumatic brain injury, traumatic amputation, spinal cord damage, or burn injuries needs immediate medical care. To the extent possible, victims, family members, and friends who are with the worker should take photos and videos of any type of injury. These images can provide important evidence supporting your claim against other drivers or potentially liable parties. They can also help show just how physically and emotionally traumatic a victim’s injuries are.

If your car has a dashcam, then take steps to secure the dashcam for further viewing. Some of the visual evidence that is taken immediately after an accident that can help your case includes the following:

• The accident site. Closeups, wide-angle, and zoom shots can capture the vehicles involved in the accident, the positions of the vehicles after a collision, the number of lanes, whether there were any traffic signals (and whether they were working), any signs, skid marks, trees and branches, and other aspects of a car accident.
• Damage to the vehicles. Pictures should show where the damage to cars and other vehicles is and the severity of the damage. The location of the damage is often an indicator of who is at fault. For example, if there is damage to the rear of your car and the front of another car, then it is likely that the other car is responsible for your rear-end collision. Take photos of all the vehicles, not just your car. The photos/videos should focus on the following:
  • The Commonwealth or state that issued the license plate and the license plate number
  • The damage to the metal, glass, and any other parts of the car
  • To the extent possible, photos of the inside of the vehicle

The car damage can help to show how fast the driver was traveling, how forceful the impact was, and which passengers likely suffered the most harm.

• Your injuries. The photos are meant to show you at your worst. They should show all your bleeding, cuts, bruises, swelling, burns, and any other physical trauma. If a family member or friend is taking photos, they may be able to document your treatment — as long as doing so doesn’t interfere with emergency responders or violate privacy rules.
• The weather conditions and road conditions. Try to take pictures to show:
  • If it was raining, foggy, or there were other visibility problems due to the elements. How wet the roads were.
  • Any potholes, barriers, curves, shoulders, or other conditions that might have required that another driver take precautions.
• Other helpful information. Depending on how the accident happened, other visual evidence you might consider taking includes:
  • The driver’s license cards, insurance cards, and registration cards of the other drivers – if they allow you to take photos.
  • Whether the roads were undergoing any repairs, and whether there were any construction crews nearby.
  • Any debris on the road.
  • Any nearby cameras that might have recorded the car accident.
  • Any damage to road signs, road barriers, or the shoulder of the road.
  • Any evidence that might show a car crossed into another lane of travel.
  • Any nearby speed limit signs.
  • The other defendants to capture who they are if they are not injured. Be respectful if they have injuries.
  • Any passengers and any witnesses, and their contact information if possible.

How should victims, family, and friends take photos at the site of the car accident?

The first priority is the safety of the photographer and everyone at the accident site. Never, for example, get close to oncoming traffic to take a photo. Generally, photographers should use their smartphones. Be sure you know how to take pictures and save pictures so you can access them later. Do not edit the photos. Keep them as you took them.

Take photos from different angles. Make sure you capture the essential details. Take zoom and wide-angle photos if you know how to use those features. Check your photos as you take them to be sure they are capturing what you want. Do not take 20 photos and then look at them when you get home. Look at them at the accident site to be sure you have the photos you need.

Another place where photos of the victim can help is the hospital entrance. At-home photos showing the struggles of the victim to walk, sit, climb stairs, and other difficulties can also help the victim’s claim.

Contact Phelan Petty Injury Lawyers

At Phelan Petty Injury Lawyers, we work with investigators, doctors, and other experts and witnesses to help verify the cause of your accident and the full scope and severity of your injuries. Our investigators can take photos of the accident site. They inquire whether any businesses or homeowners have any video of the accident. They look at the damage to the cars, or we will get the necessary information from the car repair shops. We can obtain medical reports and medical records from your physicians and review your full range of medical treatments and trauma.

Call us or use our contact form to schedule a free consultation. The sooner our car accident lawyers speak with you, the faster we can investigate your Virginia accident and focus on your medical care.