The Importance of Eyewitnesses in a Personal Injury Case

Building a strong personal injury claim means using a wide range of evidence to prove your case. While you may be able to explain in detail what happened, your word likely won’t be enough for the insurance company. They want to see physical evidence, medical reports, and eyewitness accounts. If you can find eyewitnesses for your personal injury claim, you may be able to strengthen your claim.

Looking for more personalized assistance with your personal injury claim? The team at Mann & Potter is here to help you. Call us at 205-879-9661 to get started.

Finding Eyewitnesses

You may be wondering how you can find eyewitnesses, especially if no one came forward at the time of the accident. In many cases, witnesses stop to provide information and observations. However, depending on where your accident occurred, you may be able to talk to people who live in nearby houses or apartments, those who drove by the accident scene, passengers in your vehicle, pedestrians and bicyclists, and those in nearby businesses.

The Type of Eyewitness Matters

While all eyewitness testimony can be useful in a personal injury claim, different people’s words carry different value in the eyes of an insurance adjuster. Yes, you may be able to get input from people who were with you at the time of the incident. You should know, though, that the insurance company is unlikely to take their statement as seriously as they take a statement from a completely unbiased third party.

While the people with you may not have a financial interest in your personal injury claim, they still know you and may want to support you in your claim—even if that means exaggerating the truth. Even if your friends and family members would never do that, that’s what the insurance company is afraid of. If you have eyewitness testimony from a friend or family member, try to balance it with input from a neutral third party.

How Eyewitnesses Help Your Claim

Eyewitnesses support your personal injury case in a variety of ways. First, they may be able to present information that you don’t have. They likely had a different point of view during the accident, so they may have additional context that can be useful for your attorney.

Even if they do not have new information, they may have observations that match up with yours. That gives credibility to your retelling of the incident and makes it harder for the insurance adjuster to claim that your viewpoint is inaccurate.

In some cases, eyewitnesses can answer critical questions that determine who is liable for an incident. For example, consider a traffic accident that occurred at an intersection. You know that the light was green, but the other driver insists that their light was green. The entire question of liability hinges on which one of you is telling the truth.

Enter a witness who was at the same intersection when they were passed by the other driver. They tell the police that the light was absolutely red for them when they saw the other driver fly past them without even slowing down. This makes it incredibly difficult for the other driver to claim that you are lying about your light being green.

Time is of the Essence

Regardless of how you find eyewitnesses and what they have to contribute to your claim, it’s important to avoid wasting time as you build your injury claim. No one’s memories last forever, and odds are that the incident isn’t quite as important to the eyewitnesses as it is to you. Their memories will fade even more quickly than yours. It’s crucial to talk to a personal injury attorney as soon as possible after your accident. They can review your evidence, talk to your eyewitnesses, and get their input while their memory is still fresh.

Contact Mann & Potter Now to Start Your Claim

Whenever you are ready to begin your personal injury claim, the team at Mann & Potter is here for you. Let’s take a look at your case, explain your options, and come up with a plan to get the compensation you deserve. Call us at 205-879-9661 or reach out to us online to set up a consultation now.