The first and most natural reaction after an automobile accident is to panic-DON'T!

Though it is difficult to keep a cool head when you are involved in a mishap, collecting your senses and acting wisely could save you lots of time, money and legal issues.

Try to remember the following action steps, so that you not only manage the situation better at that point in time, but are saved from additional stressors down the road.

- The first thing you ought to remember when involved in a road accident is not to flee from the accident site. Leaving the scene of an accident, even when you are innocent, can get you entangled in a lot of legal problems later.

- The next thing to remember is to not move your vehicle or change the accident scene until the authorities have arrived.

- Attend to other victims, but only after you have made sure that you are ok. However, take care not to move injured persons, unless there is fire (or some other type of emergent circumstance) or you are a qualified medical professional.

- Either contact the police yourself or get someone to call them. Police can play an important role, as they have to create and file accident reports, especially if someone is hurt or property damage to the vehicles exceeds $1000. All such official information will be helpful in the future as you deal with insurance companies and if you have to go to Court for a traffic charge (like failure to yield the right of way, disregarding a stop sign, speeding, etc.).

- After the accident try to collect as much information as possible about other drivers. Information like phone numbers, addresses, license plate numbers and insurance policy numbers can be of great assistance to you in future, as you file your claims for injuries and property damages. In cases where there are witnesses to the accident, try to gather their contact information as well.

- If you collided with a stationary vehicle or other property, the onus lies with you to locate the owner of the vehicle or other item into which you crashed. In case you are unable to find the owner, leave a note on the car, with your name, address, contact number, license plate number, time and date when the accident happened and the estimated damage. You may also notify the police regarding the accident within 24 hours. Finally, if you have a camera (digital, phone, Polaroid, etc.), then take pictures of the resulting damage to rebut any later inflated claim by the owner of the damaged property.

As you can see, there are lots of action steps after an automobile accident in Virginia which you can take, instead of just panicking. All the information and facts which you gather are for your own good and will help you in the future if you are entangled in any legal hassle or insurance claim.

So keep your cool and act wisely!