Aside from video footage of the accident, photos are the most valuable type of evidence you can have in any accident case. That’s why it’s important to take good-quality photos from several different perspectives.
Our Los Angeles car accident lawyers at Simmrin Law Group are ready to help you understand what makes a good post-accident evidence photo and help you use your photos to build a strong case. Read on to learn more about the types of photos to take and how they can benefit your case.
How Photos After an Accident Benefit Your Case
Photos are an essential piece of evidence to have after you’ve been injured in a Los Angeles accident. Photos can:
- Support your recollection of the crash details and damage locations, which insurers may question or deny.
- Assist liability determinations by third parties by objectively documenting road and traffic conditions. Photos can be especially helpful in truck accident cases where multiple parties may be involved.
- Refute any conflicting claims made by other parties about how the accident occurred.
- Preserve a record of short-term vehicle or property damage before repairs obscure responsibility.
- Provide documentation of injuries for medical providers and prove the need for treatment.
- Potentially disprove other drivers’ statements alleging different impact damage positions.
- Serve as exhibits to bolster expert witness analysis of wreck cause and insurance affidavits.
- Remind you of important specifics later if memories of the trauma have dimmed over time.
For a free legal consultation, call (310) 896-2723
What Photos Should You Take After an Auto Accident?
We know that photos are helpful, but there are several things that you could photograph after an accident. The most valuable photos you can take after you’re injured in an accident are:
- Overview shots of all vehicles involved from several angles. This shows damaged placements.
- Close-ups of any visible dents, scrapes, or cracks on your vehicle.
- Any leaking fluids, debris fields, or roadway conditions that contributed.
- Your vehicle if it needs to be towed before it is moved.
- The other driver’s license, insurance card, and photos of them if present.
- Road signs, traffic lights, or any environmental factors.
- Photos of any injuries sustained, even minor ones like bruises forming.
- Your odometer reading before towing, in case mileage is questioned later.
Be sure to date and label images clearly. Photos provide objective evidence that can support your account of what happened in an accident.
How Our Car Accident Lawyers Will Use Your Photos to Build a Strong Case
Your photos from the accident scene provide valuable factual evidence for our Los Angeles car accident lawyers to utilize when constructing your personal injury case. We know that visualization is key to clearly demonstrating what occurred.
Analyzing the Details
Our car accident attorneys at Simmrin Law Group will take the time to thoroughly examine each photo you provide. We will view the images both individually and collectively to glean important specifics. Small clues within the photos that may not seem significant alone can contribute to our understanding when analyzed together.
Our legal team will make notes of all damage placements, signs, markings, vehicle positions, and environmental factors visible. This in-depth review allows our Los Angeles car accident lawyer to gain highly nuanced insights into the mechanics of the accident.
Supporting Your Account
We can leverage your photos to corroborate your first-hand recollection of the collision when speaking with insurance providers and constructing our legal arguments. The photos back up the timing and nature of events as you reported them.
This helps establish you as a trustworthy witness right from the earliest stages of the legal process. If opposing parties provide conflicting claims, we can rely on your photos as objective evidence to refute inconsistencies in other’s statements.
Engaging Experts
Our car accident legal team understands that expert analysis provides invaluable assistance. We will present your photos to expert accident reconstructionists, engineers, and other specialists. These experts can closely examine details visible in the photos that may not be apparent to the non-specialist eye.
They can analyze physical clues like damage patterns and positions to support our legal arguments about how the mechanics of the crash unfolded and who was responsible according to scientific and technical reviews.
Negotiating With Insurance
When discussing liability and settlement with the at-fault driver’s insurance, we will highlight your photos as definitive proof of our assertions. Insurance providers may attempt to deny fault or minimize payouts without clear documentation.
Presenting your photos strengthens our bargaining leverage by validating our version of events with objective visual documentation. This supportive evidence increases our credibility so we can make sure you recover the maximum compensation for injuries and losses.
Preparing for Court
If out-of-court resolution fails and litigation becomes necessary, your photos become trial exhibits. Displaying them for a presiding judge and jury allows those visual details to come alive. This transforms dry legal arguments into an immersive recreation of events substantially impacting the resolution of your case.
When Can Photos Hurt Your Case After an Accident?
While photos can help provide strong evidence to support your account of the accident, in some limited situations, they could undermine aspects of your case if not carefully evaluated. Our Los Angeles car accident attorney will review all photos to identify any details that could be misconstrued or open the door to alternative interpretations.
Some potential issues include photos showing your vehicle in a position inconsistent with your recollection, damage patterns that forensic experts dispute our view of crash mechanics, or images capturing elements outside of your control, like road conditions or signage in a manner disadvantageous to liability arguments. Our lawyers can then work to anticipate and address any contradictory implications to maintain a cohesive narrative.
Complete a Free Case Evaluation form now
Learn More About Taking Photos After an Auto Accident in Los Angeles
When you know how important it is to take photos after any accident in Los Angeles, you can increase your personal injury case’s settlement exponentially by taking quality photos that prove fault. Our team of car accident attorneys in Los Angeles at Simmrin Law Group can answer any questions you have.
Contact us today for a free case consultation about your auto accident.
Call or text (310) 896-2723 or complete a Free Case Evaluation form
