What to Do After a Car Accident in Mississippi

A car accident can turn your life upside down in seconds. Your car is damaged, you may be hurt, and suddenly you are dealing with police, insurance adjusters, and medical bills — all at once.

The decisions you make in the hours and days that follow matter enormously. Insurance companies are watching. They are looking for any reason to minimize what they owe you. The steps below will help you protect your health, preserve your claim, and put yourself in the strongest possible position.

Your first priority is safety. Check yourself and your passengers for injuries before anything else. Even if you feel fine, call 911. Mississippi law requires you to report accidents that involve injury, death, or property damage over $500.

When police arrive, a crash report is generated. That report becomes one of the most important documents in your case — it establishes the date, location, parties involved, and often an initial determination of fault.

Do not skip the police report. "We can handle this between ourselves" is one of the most common things at-fault drivers say at the scene. It almost never works out in your favor.

Adrenaline is a powerful thing. Many people walk away from serious crashes feeling shaken but okay, only to wake up the next morning barely able to move. Whiplash, soft tissue injuries, and even traumatic brain injuries can take hours or days to fully manifest.

See a doctor the same day if at all possible. If you cannot get to your primary care physician, go to an urgent care clinic or emergency room.

Two reasons this matters beyond your health:

1. It creates a medical record that connects your injuries to the accident. If you wait a week to see a doctor, the insurance company will argue your injuries happened somewhere else.
2. It shows you took your injuries seriously. Gaps in medical treatment are one of the first things adjusters use to reduce settlement offers.

If you are physically able to do so safely, document the scene before vehicles are moved:

• Photographs of all vehicles — every angle, every point of impact
• The road itself — skid marks, debris, traffic signs, road conditions
• Your visible injuries — cuts, bruises, airbag burns
• The other driver's information — name, license number, insurance card, license plate
• Witness contact information — names and phone numbers of anyone who saw the crash

Your phone is your best tool here. Take more photos than you think you need. You cannot go back.

Notify your own insurance company promptly. Most policies require timely reporting as a condition of coverage. This is true even when the other driver is clearly at fault.

However — and this is important — reporting is not the same as giving a recorded statement. You are not required to give a recorded statement to the other driver's insurance company. In fact, doing so before you have spoken with an attorney is one of the most common mistakes injured people make.

Adjusters are trained to ask questions in ways that minimize your claim. A simple answer like "I'm doing okay" can be used against you later.

If the at-fault driver's insurance company contacts you quickly with a settlement offer, be cautious. Early offers are almost always low — sometimes dramatically so.

Insurance companies know that injured people are often stressed, facing medical bills, and missing work. A fast, modest check can look appealing. But once you sign a release, your claim is over. You cannot go back for more money if your injuries turn out to be more serious than you initially thought.

Before you accept anything, understand the full extent of your injuries. Some injuries — herniated discs, nerve damage, traumatic brain injuries — take weeks or months to fully diagnose.

In Mississippi, you generally have three years from the date of the accident to file a personal injury lawsuit. That may sound like a long time, but evidence disappears, witnesses become harder to locate, and memories fade.

There are also important exceptions that can shorten this window significantly:

• Claims against a government entity (a city, county, or state agency) under the Mississippi Tort Claims Act must be filed within one year, with a formal notice of claim required before that.
• Wrongful death claims have their own timeline.
• Minors have different rules that affect when the clock starts.

If you are unsure whether a deadline applies to your situation, do not guess. Ask an attorney.

You do not have to navigate this alone. A personal injury attorney can:

• Investigate the accident and preserve evidence before it disappears
• Handle all communication with insurance companies on your behalf
• Identify all available sources of compensation — including your own UM/UIM coverage if the at-fault driver was uninsured or underinsured
• Advise you on the true value of your claim before you agree to anything

Most personal injury attorneys, including this firm, work on a contingency fee basis. That means you pay nothing unless we recover money for you. There is no upfront cost and no hourly billing.

A few things that can seriously damage your claim:

• Do not post about the accident on social media. Insurance adjusters monitor social media. Photos of you at a family event the week after a "serious" injury can be used against you.
• Do not give a recorded statement to the other driver's insurer without speaking to an attorney first.
• Do not delay medical treatment. Every gap in care is a gap the insurance company will exploit.
• Do not sign anything from an insurance company without understanding exactly what you are agreeing to.

Mississippi law gives injured people the right to pursue full and fair compensation for their medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering, and more. But those rights only matter if you act to protect them.

If you or someone you love was hurt in a car accident in Mississippi, I am here to help. Call (769) 208-5683 for a free case evaluation. There is no obligation, no pressure, and no cost unless we win.

Ronald E. Stutzman, Jr. is a personal injury attorney at The Stutzman Law Firm, PLLC in Flowood, Mississippi. He represents injured Mississippians in auto accident, trucking, premises liability, and insurance bad faith cases. This article is for general informational purposes and does not constitute legal advice. For advice specific to your situation, please consult an attorney.