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Recorded statement after your accident? Think again.

Now the second way that your company is going to fight your case is to take a tape recorded statement from you. Almost all companies do this. A lot of times they will tell you it’s because they have to take a statement before they can give you medical treatment. I will tell you that it’s absolutely not the law. You do not have to give a tape recorded statement in order for your company to pay for medical expenses or medical treatment for you. That is an excuse that they are using because they want to tape record you and get their version of the accident on the record with you.

Now let me talk to you if you are going to give a recorded statement you need to be very careful because they are probably going to talk about the accident and how it happened and whether anybody was at fault. Whatever you say in that recording can be used against you in court. It’s like the police say when they arrest someone. You want to be very careful if you are going give a tape recorded statement. It’s not just going to be put in a drawer somewhere. If you end up having to file a claim later on, it will absolutely be used against you later.

Another point about recorded statements is you don’t have to answer all of the questions they ask you. You can very politely say I would rather not answer that question or I don’t want to address that issue at this time. You may still be employed by the company, you may have friends out there, you don’t want to blame your friends for the accident but they may be at fault. In that situation, just tell the company person I don’t want to talk about fault during my recorded statement. If they refuse that, then you know they are not on your side and they are only looking out for themselves.

Now let me make one last point about recorded statements. Usually they will come to your house. A lot of times they will come to the hospital if you are actually in the hospital, which is a sad thought but if you do a recorded statement a lot of times you can insist that your spouse be there or someone else be there while you are giving the recording and another thought too is make sure that you are not on any type of heavy medication. You want to make sure you are thinking clearly and that you understand all of their questions. If you are going to give a recorded statement, we always recommend that you do not give that type of recorded statement if you can avoid it though.

Louisiana Jones Act attorneys dedicated to helping people seek justice and fair compensation. The Young Firm has over 50 years of experience representing maritime workers and injured seamen. With more than 50 years experience, our Louisiana Maritime attorneys have been focusing on the practice of admiralty and maritime law.