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What should you do immediately if you meet with an accident / Breakdown
With its ever-increasing population and being one of the busiest countries with respect to road traffic, the congestion occurring on small roads, the general disregard towards obeying traffic rules and callous attitude while driving, it is not surprising that the rate of occurrence of road accidents in India is on a steep rise. So what do you do if you face a situation of accident or a sudden breakdown while on the road?
Here are a few tips:
1. Safety firstThe first thing to do when you are involved in a car crash or a sudden breakdown, is to confirm that you are safe. Even simple accidents can make you feel a bit shaken up. You might feel dizzy when the momentum of the car is brought to a sudden and abrupt halt. Take a minute to steady yourself, take deep breaths and try to assess the safety of your surroundings. If the car is bang in the middle of the road, it is better to navigate it to the left parking lane so that it doesn’t come in the way of oncoming traffic. If you suspect a gas leak from the smell, it is better to get out of the car and stay a safe distance away till the source is located.
2. Stay calm
This is the first step towards handling the situation at hand. Staying mentally peaceful, irrespective of who was at fault or who has been responsible for the accident, is extremely important. Emotions like anger need to be kept in control for managing the situation without losing cool. Secondly, staying calm is essential to form a mental triage and try to attend to the injuries of those who have been injured.
3. Do not leaveNever leave the place till you have spoken to someone, either the other driver or the traffic police or the police themselves. Stop the car, if possible, move the car to a side lane, turn off the engine, switch on the hazard lights, and wait till help arrives.
4. Call for helpThere are toll free traffic helpline numbers on all highways for attending to emergencies like vehicular accidents or major breakdowns. If there is possibility that passengers have been injured, it is wise to call an ambulance. If you are injured yourself, try to flag down a vehicle or pedestrians and ask them to call for help. They can in turn inform authorities, and ask for more helping hands that can begin the rescue work till official help arrives.
5. Help the injuredIf anyone is injured in the accident, whether it is passengers in your car, or those in the other vehicle or pedestrians involved, try to assess their level of injury. Cars are usually provided with first aid kits, and till medical help arrives, the first aid kit can be useful. Try to provide basic first aid to the best of your knowledge. If someone is unresponsive, activate the emergency medical service, call for help, and if you are trained in basic life support, try giving basic life support till medical help arrives. Right now, the Indian society of Anaesthesiologists has taken the initiative to train every individual in COLS (Compression Only Life Support), also known as Jeevansanjeevani, to help save lives of people who become unresponsive, till medical help arrives. Simple high quality chest compressions can keep the heart pumping and blood circulating, provided you know the correct technique of doing so. If someone has twisted bones, it is better not to move them. If someone seems to have sustained a neck injury, the neck should not be moved till paramedics arrive and attach the cervical collar.
6. Call the policeIn cases of accidents, it is better to keep the police informed and FIR is generally filed. Police can also help with activation of emergency response teams, gathering evidence from eye witnesses as well as controlling crowd if necessary. Do not get involved in any kind of brawl with the driver of the opposite vehicle, and avoid blame games, as in accident situations and panic scenarios, tempers run high. It is better to let the right authority handle it.
7. Call the car insurance companyOnce you are safe, calm, and sure that there is no injured person who needs your attention, the police has been informed, medical help is on the way, it is a good idea to inform your car insurance company. The car insurance companies have their roadside assistance numbers as well. Depending on the type of accident, major or minor, and the severity of damage caused to the vehicle, the insurance company people will guide you as to the next step to be taken, whether the car can be taken to nearest service centre of whether they would send a roadside assistance team.
8. Exchange informationFor the purpose of legality, it is better to take all the information you can from the driver of the opposite vehicle – their name, their address, the car type and the registration number of the vehicle. You might be needed to give your details to the opposite party as well. However, till you are certain as to what exactly happened, it is better neither to accept responsibility nor to blame the other driver. All things settle with time, and by the right authorities.
9. Documentation The importance of documentation can never be undermined. It is better to take pictures with your mobile phone camera, as well as jot down the sequence of events as you remember them occurring while they are still fresh in your mind. This documentation will prove helpful in case a law suit is involved for the accident.
10. Call your lawyer
In case there is a possibility that you may face a law suit for the accident, it is a good idea to call your lawyer and keep him/her in the loop so as to be on the safe side legally.
These are the simple things to be kept in mind if you ever happen to be involved in a car accident/breakdown.