After a car accident you are dealing with several things at once: injuries and doctor visits, an insurance company that wants a statement, a car in a body shop, and a question about whether you need an attorney. Choices you make starting at the scene affect the medical care your own policy pays for and what you can recover from the driver who hit you.
In the short video below, firm injury attorney Attorney Austin R. Diaz covers a few of the key steps to take after a car accident in Florida, along with what to avoid.
At the Crash Scene
Call 911
Call 911. One call gets police to the scene and medical help on the way if anyone is hurt, and it takes care of the report Florida requires you to make after a crash with an injury, a death, or at least $500 in estimated damage (§ 316.065(1)).
Take Photographs/Videos Before the Cars Are Towed
If you are able to, photograph the scene before anything is cleared. Shots to consider:
- A wide shot of the whole scene that shows the road, the weather, and how much light there is
- Skid marks, debris, and fluid on the road surface
- Damage to every vehicle, from several angles, and from far enough back to show where each car came to rest
- The interior of your vehicle, including deployed airbags and broken glass
- Traffic signals, stop signs, lane markings, and anything blocking the view of the intersection
A slow walk around the scene with a video camera running records where each vehicle came to rest, which changes the moment the cars are towed.
Get Phone Numbers
The crash report usually records names and addresses for the drivers and any witness the officer speaks with. Phone numbers are not on it, so ask the other driver and anyone who stopped and saw what happened for their number before you leave.
If No Officer Comes to the Scene
Nothing gets written down unless you write it down. Get the other driver’s name, phone number, driver license number, insurance company and policy number, and a photo of the license plate.
You then have 10 days to submit a written crash report to the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles on its form (§ 316.066(1)(e)).
Getting a Copy of the Crash Report
Crash reports are confidential for 60 days, and you can request yours during that period as a party to the crash. Reports are available through flhsmv.gov.
Get Medical Care Within 14 Days
Florida pays personal injury protection medical benefits only if you receive initial services and care within 14 days after the crash (§ 627.736(1)(a)). The 14 days run from the date of the crash, not from the day you start feeling hurt.
PIP covers 80 percent of your medical bills and 60 percent of lost income, and both draw on the same limit. The limit is $10,000 when a doctor determines you had an emergency medical condition, and $2,500 when a provider determines you did not.
Choosing Your First Provider
Not every provider counts toward the 14-day requirement. Your first visit needs to be with one of the following:
- A medical doctor or osteopathic physician
- A dentist
- An advanced practice registered nurse
- A hospital, or the ambulance crew that treats you at the scene
- A chiropractor (can start your treatment but cannot make the emergency medical condition determination that raises your limit to $10,000)
Massage therapy and acupuncture are not covered by PIP.
Injuries That Manifest Later
The CDC reports that certain concussion symptoms appear right away while others may not appear for hours or days after an injury. Soft tissue injuries can follow a similar course. Get evaluated inside the 14-day window whether or not you feel hurt.
Check Your Own Insurance Coverage
Florida requires $10,000 in personal injury protection and $10,000 in property damage liability to register a vehicle with at least four wheels, according to the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. Bodily injury liability coverage, which is what pays for injuries the at-fault driver causes, is generally not required, as The Florida Bar explains.
The driver who hit you may have nothing available to pay for your injuries past your own PIP. Uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage on your policy covers that gap (§ 627.727), and The Florida Bar notes that it applies whether you are in your own car, riding in someone else’s, or struck as a pedestrian.
Pull out your declarations page in the first week and look for:
- Personal injury protection
- Uninsured and underinsured motorist
- Medical payments
- Rental reimbursement
If uninsured motorist coverage is missing, it is either because you signed a form rejecting it or because your policy carries no bodily injury liability coverage for it to attach to. Ask your insurance company which one applies. Giving up the coverage requires a signed form, and receiving the annual notice about it is not enough on its own.
Watch What You Say and Sign
Check Who Is Calling Before You Give a Statement
Nothing requires you to give a recorded statement to the other driver’s insurance company.
Your own company is different, because your policy contains cooperation provisions and PIP benefits depend on complying with them. Find out which company is calling and under which coverage before you agree to anything.
Read Releases and Check Endorsements Before Signing
Property damage and injuries are separate claims, and settling the car does not have to settle the rest. Read two things all the way through before signing:
- A release that comes with a property damage settlement, where the wording can reach past vehicle repair
- The back of a settlement check, where an endorsement can mark the payment as full and final settlement of all claims
The car accident attorneys at Lesser, Landy, Smith & Siegel can read release language and check endorsements before a client signs anything from an insurance company.
Limit the Medical Records You Release
An authorization controls which records an insurance company can pull. A broad one reaches records from before the crash and records that have nothing to do with your injuries. Check the date range and the providers listed, and ask to narrow both.
Stay Off Social Media
Anything posted after a crash becomes available to the other side once a case is in litigation, and a photo from a trip you took months ago carries the date you posted it.
What gets used is not limited to what you post yourself:
- Check-ins at restaurants, gyms, or events
- Photos showing physical activity
- Comments about how you are feeling
- Posts by other people that tag you
Changing your privacy settings limits who sees new posts and does not remove anything already captured. Talk to an attorney before deleting anything.
Vet Solicitations Before You Respond
Once the crash report becomes public, you may hear from law firms, clinics, and claims services by mail, email, text, or phone. Before responding, check for:
- A named attorney and a Florida Bar number you can look up on The Florida Bar’s website
- A physical office address
- Whether the sender identifies itself as a law firm, a medical clinic, or a claims service
A message that names no attorney and gives no bar number may be coming from something other than a law firm.
Florida Deadlines for Car Accident Cases
You have two years from the crash to bring a case for negligence (§ 95.11(5)(a)). Florida cut the deadline from four years to two in 2023, and the shorter period applies to crashes after March 24 of that year.
The table below summarizes the key dates to know after a Florida car accident.
Florida Car Accident Deadlines at a Glance
| When | What happens |
| Day of the crash | Notify law enforcement for a crash with injury, death, or at least $500 in estimated damage |
| Within 10 days | Submit a written report to FLHSMV if no officer investigated |
| Within 14 days | Receive initial medical services and care, or PIP medical benefits are lost |
| Day 60 | Crash report confidentiality period ends |
| Within 2 years | Bring a negligence case |
When Fault is Shared
Being partially at fault affects what you can recover. Florida’s comparative fault rule assigns a percentage of responsibility to each party in a crash. A party found more than 50 percent at fault for their own harm recovers nothing, and at 50 percent or less the award is reduced by that percentage (§ 768.81(6)).
Florida Car Accident Questions
Can I Sue the Driver Who Hit Me in Florida?
Yes. Medical bills and lost income above what PIP pays can be pursued against the at-fault driver. Recovering pain and suffering on top of that requires a permanent injury, significant and permanent scarring or disfigurement, or death (§ 627.737(2)).
Does PIP Cover Me if the Crash Was My Fault?
Yes. PIP pays regardless of who caused the crash, subject to the 14-day requirement and your policy limit. Exclusions apply if you caused your own injury intentionally or were hurt while committing a felony (§ 627.736(2)).
Can I Still Use PIP if I Missed the 14-Day Deadline?
Missing the window costs you PIP medical benefits. It does not end a case against the driver who hit you, which runs on the two-year deadline instead.
Do I Have to Report the Crash to My Own Insurance Company?
Auto policies require notice of a crash, so report it. Reporting the crash and giving a recorded statement are separate things, and one does not require the other.
Which Policy Covers Me if I Was a Passenger?
A passenger who owns a car generally looks to their own policy first. A passenger without one is covered by the policy on the vehicle they were riding in (§ 627.736(4)(e)).
Speak With Lesser, Landy, Smith & Siegel
Talk to a Florida Car Accident Attorney
If you’ve been injured in a car accident in Florida, you may be entitled to compensation for your medical care, your lost income, and what the crash has taken from you beyond that. Lesser, Landy, Smith & Siegel has fought for injured victims across Florida for close to a century. Our car accident attorneys take on the insurance company, handle the deadlines, and pursue the maximum recovery available in your case all at no cost to you, unless we recover compensation.
Call (561) 655-2028 for a free consultation at one of our offices in West Palm Beach, Boca Raton, Bradenton, Stuart, or Broward County.
