Getting behind the wheel of your car and cruising down the highway can be one of the most freeing and liberating feelings. Whether you’re picking up some friends to head out for a night on the town or simply just seeing where the road takes you, it’s often an adventure. It’s important to remember that while you’re enjoying this freedom, accidents can happen at any time.
Often accidents happen when you least expect them and within a blink of an eye. Whether you’re involved in a fender bender or something more severe, a road accident is an upsetting and traumatic situation for anyone. Many people often say it felt like everything around them was happening in slow motion after being involved in an accident, which leaves you shaken and disorientated. To help you out if you’re ever in an accident, you can follow these 5 steps:
1: Stop your car
This may sound obvious, but many people’s first instinct is to drive away after they’re involved in a car accident. However, you are legally required to stop your vehicle. In the interest ofroad safety, you should switch on your hazards to warn other drivers that they are driving towards an accident or road incident. Once you have done this, climb out of your car and check if anyone is hurt if you are able to. Thankfully with just the push of a button, you can summon medical services and roadside assistance to your location with HelpMe.
2: Help anyone who may be hurt
Our first instinct is always to help someone in need or in pain, but this isn’t always the case in an accident. If you, your loved one, or another person involved in the accident is injured, it’s better to let the emergency responders tend to their wounds as you wouldn’t want to do anything to make things worse. If you have first-aid knowledge, you are better positioned to help those around you, but if not, instead help by contacting an ambulance orrescue unit.
For anyone that is injured or in need of medical assistance, you can easily summon Emergency Responders directly to your location with our HelpMe App.
3: Call emergency responders
As we touched on in point 2, depending on the severity of your accident, you may need to contact emergency responders to assist you. This could be in the form ofemergency medical care, the fire department, or the Police. Once you get hold of them, you’ll need to provide them with the address of where the accident occurred so that they can find you quickly. If you’re unsure where you are, you can use your smartphone’s GPS, Maps App, or Google Maps to find your location. Thankfully with HelpMe, you don’t need to worry about this as our App will transmit your exact location directly to your responders.
4: Do not tamper with the evidence
Many people don’t realise that if anyone has been injured in an accident, you can’t move your vehicles until the Police or traffic officer permits you. The only exception to this is if the cars involved are obstructing the flow of traffic. In this case, you may move your vehicles to allow other cars to pass, but the vehicles’ positions in the accident must be marked with chalk or spray paint. Most of us don’t carry spray paint or chalk around with us in our cars. Instead, you can take photos with your phone of the accident to give the officials a thorough understanding of what happened.
5: Get all the necessary information
Many people forget during the craziness of an accident to gather all the relevant information and details from everyone involved. Don’t worry if you suddenly think that there’s more than you expected to remember. We have put a list together of the things you need to ask for:
- Full name of the person involved in the accident
- Identity number
- Driving licence number of the driver(s) of the other vehicle(s)
- The physical address of those involved in the accident
- Contact details
- Vehicle registration number
- Description of the vehicle(s) involved
So, you may be thinking after going through our list of things to remember that it’s way too much to keep track of, and you’d be correct. It is a lot to keep track of, especially when you’ve just been involved in an accident.
Thankfully we can also offer you a solution to this problem. HelpMe by MiWay offers a complete Crisis Response App with a call centre that will help guide you through everything you need help with in an emergency. With the push of a button, HelpMe can use your phone’s GPS to send emergency medical services, the Police, roadside assistance, and breakdown services direct to your location. So, if you want 24/7 help and the correct people guiding you through your next accident,sign up to HelpMetoday!
You can find out more about the steps to take when you’re involved in an accident by reviewing the K53 Learners Manual.
