Arizona · Injured in a crash

Injured in a Car Accident in Payson?

A rear-end crash on the Beeline Highway at the light by the shopping centers, a head-on on State Route 260 east of Star Valley when someone passes a camper, a rollover on the curves of State Route 87 coming up from the Valley. If you were just in a crash in Payson and you are trying to figure out what to do next, this page is the short version, with the Payson-specific details, and links to the full guides.

It costs nothing to find out

If you are reading this and thinking you cannot afford a lawyer, read this part first. Personal injury lawyers do not charge you to talk, do not charge by the hour, and do not charge anything unless they recover money for you. The fee comes out of the recovery at the end, never out of your pocket. The first conversation is free. Call Clyne is free too: we ask you a few questions and connect you with a licensed Arizona attorney who looks at your case at no cost. Nobody will ask you for money. Read How Much Does a Car Accident Lawyer Cost.

First, the two things that matter most in Arizona

See a doctor within a few days, even if you feel fine. Arizona has no 14-day rule and no PIP. It is an at-fault state, so the at-fault driver's insurer pays, and your own medical payments coverage, if you have it, can pay early bills. Every day between the crash and the first visit is a day the other driver's insurer will use against you. Banner Payson Medical Center on South Ponderosa Street is the only hospital in Rim Country, with a 24-hour emergency room, and it is a state-designated Level IV trauma center, which means it stabilizes serious patients and transfers them. There is no Level I or Level II trauma center anywhere near Payson. The nearest Level I centers are in the Phoenix area, about 90 miles down State Route 87, so the most seriously injured crash victims from Payson and Star Valley are usually flown to a Valley hospital such as Banner Desert Medical Center in Mesa. Urgent care or your own doctor counts too. Read What to Do After a Car Accident in Arizona.

Do not give the other driver's insurer a recorded statement. They will call fast and sound friendly. You are not required to talk to them. Read what to say when they call.

Getting your crash report in Payson

Inside town limits, the Payson Police Department responds to crashes, including on the Beeline Highway where it runs through town. Once State Route 87 or State Route 260 leaves town, it is the Arizona Department of Public Safety (DPS). In the unincorporated parts of Gila County around Payson, and in the Town of Star Valley, it is the Gila County Sheriff's Office, although the two agencies sometimes cover for each other when one is closer. Ask the officer or deputy at the scene which agency wrote the report and get the report number.

Arizona crash reports come from the responding agency's records unit. Payson Police reports are requested through the town's online public records portal or from the Records Division at 303 North Beeline Highway. Gila County Sheriff's reports come from the Sheriff's Office records section, and DPS reports from the DPS Records Unit portal.

Roads where Payson crashes happen

The stretches that come up most: the Beeline Highway (State Route 87) the whole way through town, from the State Route 260 junction north past the shopping centers and the signals, State Route 260 east through Star Valley and up toward the Mogollon Rim, a narrow two-lane highway with no shoulders where head-on crashes during passing have drawn extra DPS patrols, State Route 87 south toward Rye, Sunflower and the Valley, with its long grades and curves, State Route 87 north toward Pine and Strawberry, and Houston Mesa Road out toward the forest. Payson is a weekend town, so summer and holiday traffic brings drivers who do not know these roads, plus RVs, boat trailers and motorcycles. Note the road surface, the weather and whether it was dark, photograph the center line, the shoulders and any passing zone signs, and get the names of anyone who stopped, because on a two-lane mountain highway the whole case can come down to who crossed the line.

What to do in the first 48 hours

• Call 911 and get a report, even for a "small" crash.
• Photograph both cars, both licenses, both insurance cards, and the scene.
• See a doctor within a few days, even if you feel fine.
• Report the crash to your own insurer. Facts only.
• Do not accept a quick check or sign anything from the other driver's insurer.
• Keep every bill, receipt and visit summary.

The full step-by-step list is in What to Do After a Car Accident in Arizona.

Know the Arizona clock

For most car accident injury claims in Arizona you have two years from the date of the crash to file a lawsuit. If a city, county or state vehicle was involved, you must file a formal notice of claim within 180 days. Arizona uses pure comparative negligence, so being partly at fault reduces your recovery but does not erase it. Details in Partly at Fault in an Arizona Crash.

When to talk to a lawyer

Not every fender bender needs one. Talk to a lawyer when you were injured and are still treating after a week or two, when the other driver was uninsured or fled, when fault is being disputed, or when you missed work. Arizona personal injury lawyers work on contingency, which means no fee unless they recover money for you, and the first conversation is free. More in Do I Need a Lawyer If It Wasn't My Fault and How Much Does a Car Accident Lawyer Cost.

More Arizona towns and the full set of guides: Car accidents in Arizona.

Call Clyne is a lawyer referral service, not a law firm. Stephen Clyne is not an attorney. This article is general information, not legal advice, and laws change. Talk to a licensed Arizona attorney about your situation.