What the Car Accident Scene May Reveal in Your Personal Injury Case

 Posted on September 20, 2022 in Car Accidents

Fault in car accidents is not always readily apparent. There is hardly an infallible mechanism for making a concrete determination regarding what has occurred unless the accident was captured on film clearly enough to reveal each driver’s behavior prior to the accident. Even if video footage can be located, rarely is the picture sufficiently detailed and lengthy enough to show the movements of each driver in the minutes preceding the collision. Rather, cameras are limited in their range of view and may fail to capture critical information. 

Much of the events can be revealed through a skilled forensic examination of the accident scene. Your attorney may, in some cases, use an expert reconstruction or involve a private forensic investigator if there is a significant dispute as to the cause of the accident and scientific evidence is needed. However, to reap the full benefits potentially available from a forensic examination, it is critical to contact an attorney promptly, before cleanup efforts by first responders or even unfavorable weather patterns erase or conceal needed evidence. 

Potentially Available Evidence Located at the Collision Site

Attorneys who are experienced in pursuing compensation following a car accident frequently seek out evidence that may be available at the location of the motor vehicle accident in question. Information and evidence that may potentially be available at the accident scene includes: 

• Vehicle positions - If the nature of the accident was so severe as to prevent involved parties from removing their vehicles from the roadway, the resting positions of each vehicle may be revealing. Often, the positions at which each vehicle came to a stop can reveal which vehicle hit the other. This information, while suggesting that the driver who initiated the collision is at fault, is not in itself dispositive in every case. 

• Tire tracks - Tire tracks can be indicative of a driver’s futile efforts to brake in order to prevent the collision. Equally telling may be a lack of tire tracks, suggesting that the driver initiating the collision failed to spot the other vehicle in time to even attempt braking. 

• Debris - The position of vehicular debris, including broken glass, detached bumpers, or other vehicle components that had become detached, may suggest the angle or speed at which impact occurred. 

• Signage - Also of great importance to the case is the presence and nature of official signage, whether instructive or informative. The presence or absence of signs or traffic lights may show that a driver had knowledge of but failed to comply with or heed the warnings of official notices regarding road rules. 

The above list mentions but a few of the critical types of evidence that a trained attorney or another forensic expert may be able to take from the accident scene. 

Call a Lake County Car Accident Lawyer

Salvi & Maher, LLP is skilled in investigating the scene of a car accident. Our experienced Waukegan car accident attorneys will carefully seek out knowledge that may be gleaned from the accident site itself. Call 847-662-3303 for a free consultation. 

Source: 

https://kodsiengineering.com/accident-investigation/