What should you do in the first 48 hours after a crash? Get medical care. Protect the evidence. Slow down before you talk to insurance. Those first two days carry more weight than most people realize. Injuries surface, memories blur, vehicles get repaired, and insurance adjusters start building their version of events. If you take the right steps early, you give yourself leverage instead of regrets. A crash scrambles your focus. Even a low-speed collision can leave you rattled. In serious wrecks, people are thinking about pain, their car, their job, their kids. Legal strategy rarely tops the list. But it should be somewhere on it. At Besse Law Office P.A, we’ve seen how much the first 48 hours can shape the outcome of a case. If you’re searching for direction, this is where we’d start as an accident lawyer in Kansas City . Get Checked Out, Even If You Feel “Fine” Adrenaline is deceptive. We’ve had clients walk away from a crash convinced they were lucky, only to wake up the next morning unable to turn their neck or lift their arm. Soft tissue injuries, concussions, internal trauma. They don’t always announce themselves immediately. Go to urgent care or the ER. Tell the provider exactly what happened. Let it be documented. That medical record created within hours of the crash can become one of the most important pieces of evidence in your case. When we step in as your accident lawyer in Kansas City, we rely on those early records to connect the injury to the collision. Gaps in treatment give insurance companies room to argue. And they will argue. Preserve the Details Before They Disappear If you can safely do so, take photos. Wide shots of the intersection. Close-ups of damage. Skid marks. Debris. Your bruising. The dashboard. We’ve had cases where a single photograph made the difference. Get witness names. Save the tow receipt. Request the police report number. These small actions are rarely small in hindsight. By the time someone calls us at Besse Law Office, P. A week later, the vehicles are often repaired, the scene has changed, and witnesses have moved on. The first 48 hours are your cleanest opportunity to lock in what actually happened. Be Careful With Insurance Conversations You should notify your insurer promptly. That’s part of the process. But when the other driver’s adjuster calls and sounds sympathetic, remember who they work for. You are not obligated to give a recorded statement on the spot. You are not required to estimate your injuries two days after the crash. Early settlement offers are often calculated before the full extent of medical treatment is known. We’ve handled enough claims to recognize the pattern. A quick offer. Pressure to resolve. Language that feels helpful but is structured to limit exposure. Before you commit to anything, speak with an accident lawyer in Kansas City who can review the numbers and the strategy behind them. Start Tracking the Impact Recovery isn’t just about hospital bills. It’s the physical therapy appointment you miss work for. The overtime you can’t take. The childcare you suddenly need. The prescription refills. The mileage back and forth to medical providers. Write it down. Keep the receipts. Make notes about pain levels and limitations. Not dramatic entries, just honest ones. Months later, those details matter. They tell the story better than memory alone. When clients bring us organized documentation, it strengthens our position immediately. As your accident lawyer in Kansas City, we can build a claim grounded in specifics instead of estimates. Know Which Law Applies Kansas City straddles two states. The laws aren’t identical. Statutes of limitation differ. Comparative fault rules differ. Even the insurance frameworks can shift depending on where the crash occurred. And if the injury happened on the job, that’s another layer. Workers’ compensation may apply. A third-party negligence claim may exist. Those are not interchangeable paths. If your crash intersects with employment, a Kansas City workplace accident lawyer needs to evaluate it carefully and early. At Besse Law Office P.A, we sort through those legal angles at the outset. It’s far easier to position a claim correctly at the beginning than to fix a misstep later. Don’t Wait Until the Pressure Mounts The first 48 hours are rarely calm. We know that. But early guidance changes outcomes. It protects evidence. It prevents damaging statements. It sets the tone for negotiations. If you’ve been injured, contact Besse Law Office P.A. for a consultation. We’ll review what happened, explain your options plainly, and tell you where you stand. No scripts. No pressure. Just straight answers from an accident lawyer in Kansas City who has handled these cases before. FAQs
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