If you’re in a car accident, that can disorient you. Even if the accident didn’t physically harm you, it can shake you up mentally and psychologically. If you never experienced a car wreck before, you may also not know exactly what you should do in the aftermath.
You may not know whether you should hire a lawyer, for instance. You may feel unsure about when a court appearance is required following a car accident.
In this article, we will talk about the rules regarding car accidents and court appearances. There’s some flexibility with some of these rules, while others have a fairly rigid status.
It Varies State by State
First, you should know that if you’re in a car accident, and you’re not sure whether you need to appear in court or not, it varies state by state to some degree. In other words, if you’re in a car wreck in one state, and you must legally appear in court afterward, that doesn’t necessarily mean you would have to do the same thing in a neighboring state if the same thing happened.
To figure out whether you need to appear in court after the accident, you can talk to a car crash lawyer. They can probably advise you as to whether you need to appear in person or whether you can take some other action instead.
However, failing that, you can usually look for a court summons in the mail. If you got in a car accident, and you must legally appear in court for some reasons connected to that, you should get a written notification that will come to your mailing address.
If You Got a DUI, You’ll Need to Appear in Court
If you got a DUI at the accident scene, then you’ll absolutely have to appear in court. The police might arrest you at the scene and put you in jail till you sober up. You might spend a few hours in there, or you may have to spend the whole night.
After that, you will have a court appearance. You broke the law, so a judge will want to talk to you about it.
You might very well have to make additional court appearances after that initial one as well. The judge will tell you when you next have to appear in court.
A Dispute Over Liability
Now, we’ll go through some other situations where you may have to appear in court after a car accident. In none of these should you think with 100% certainty that you must appear, but you will probably have to.
If there’s a dispute over who causes the accident, then you will likely have to appear in court at least once. Presumably, in such a scenario, you will hire a car crash attorney who can represent you.
They can speak on your behalf. They can also give you advice on the spot as to what action you might potentially take if you have multiple options available.
The Other Party Sues You
If the driver of the car that you hit decides to sue you, then you will definitely have to appear in court. Again, you will want to retain a personal injury lawyer who can help you.
You can tell the judge whether you’re fighting the allegation by the other driver or whether you intend to offer them a settlement. Your lawyer can prove invaluable as you attempt to figure out the best path forward.
Bad Faith Insurance Practices
Maybe you will find yourself in a situation after a car accident where your insurance company denied your claim. They might also offer you a settlement, but you feel it’s a lot lower than what you should reasonably get.
Again, hiring a lawyer and appearing in court will probably become necessary. You might have to appear in court multiple times. You may have a lengthy battle on your hands to hash out whether you can get any more money from the insurance company beyond what they initially offered you.
Traffic Ticket Disputes
If a police officer pulls you over and gives you a traffic ticket, then you can fight it. It’s not always advisable, but if you genuinely think that you did nothing wrong, then showing up in court to contest the ticket might feel like the best move.
If the police officer does not show up to offer their testimony, then you might get the judge to dismiss the ticket. If the police officer does appear and gives their side of the story, then the judge might decide that you’re in the wrong, and that you need to pay the ticket with no further argument or deliberation.
Uninsured or Underinsured Drivers
If you get in a car accident involving an uninsured or underinsured driver, it’s pretty likely that you will need to show up in court. You will presumably hire a lawyer and demand that the other driver appear in court along with you to answer the charges.
If they have an insurance policy, but it’s not enough to cover the damages that you’re trying to recoup, then they might have to pay you the difference. If they have no insurance at all, then perhaps you can get them to cover the entire amount of economic damages that you sustained.
However, an uninsured or underinsured driver can always dispute those charges. It’s not always the smartest idea, but that doesn’t mean some motorists won’t still do it.
We’ve laid out some situations where you might have to appear in court following a car accident. The one thing you should try to remember, though, is that if the court system, a police officer, or another individual or entity in a position of authority demands that you make a court appearance, then it is probably a mistake if you don’t do it.
By showing up in court, that signals compliance. Even if you plan to dispute the charges, at least you’re obeying the law.
