How to Keep an Auto Accident Diary – What Are the Benefits?

Confusion often arises about what to include in an accident diary after a St. Louis car accident.

If you’re involved in a car wreck, keeping an accident diary or journal could make a difference in your injury claim. However, confusion often arises about how to write and what to include in an accident diary.

Let’s discuss why keeping a diary after a car crash is a good idea and how to record the right information.

How Can an Auto Accident Diary Help Your Case?

An accident diary allows you to record important details about the accident in a way that’s easier to remember. In other words, a diary will help you remember everything about your car accident in detail. 

Not a bad trade-off, considering your brain will often do whatever it can to forget the trauma of what happened in your car wreck.

In addition, accurate and specific details can help strengthen your car accident claim, thus increasing your chances of fair compensation. Additionally, you can use your diary to report your symptoms and injuries to the doctor. What’s more, a copy of your diary could be included in your medical records and serve as evidence in court.

Items to Include in Your Auto Crash Diary

The rule of thumb is to include any information you think is relevant and will help strengthen your injury claim. That said, here’s a look at the primary information you need to include when writing your accident diary:

Describe the Accident Specifics

The best way to protect and maximize your claim is to start documenting right after the crash. The accident specifics will serve as evidence, and your attorney can use these details to build a compelling case. Here’s what you should write down:

• The day, date, and time of the accident
• Where you were coming from and going to
• Maneuvers you were undertaking before the impact, i.e., merging into traffic, stopping, turning, or slowing
• Your speed
• Weather conditions
• The quality of the road
• The other driver’s reaction after the accident

Describe Your Pain

Use descriptive words such as tingling, throbbing, or pulsing to express the pain you’re experiencing from your injuries. This will give a more precise picture of your pain.

Where possible, take photos of visible injuries. Photographic evidence of your cuts and bruises can be used to show the pain and suffering you experienced due to your injuries.

Describe How the Injuries Are Affecting Your Daily Life

Merely saying that your injuries are causing a great deal of pain in your life is not very convincing. Instead, it will help if you clearly describe how every injury has affected your everyday life. 

Paint a picture of your life before and after the collision to help the insurer or court understand how the accident has affected you. For example, describe how the injuries have limited your ability to work and enjoy time with family and friends. 

You can also document any emotional impact your injuries are having — your fear of losing your job, worrying about your piling bills, etc.

Medical Appointments

Indicate in your journal every doctor’s visits, surgery, physiotherapy, or other treatment you received due to your injuries.

St. Louis Auto Accident Attorneys

Have you been injured in a car accident in St Louis? Our experienced St. Louis auto accident attorneys have been helping injured car accident victims protect their rights for 25 years. Give us a call today for a free case evaluation and learn more about getting the compensation you are entitled to.

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