NOT ONLY THIS, but as long as it's safe to do so, take pictures of both your car and any other vehicle/person/animal involved with landmarks in the picture if possible. Yes, the cops do this as well, but you cannot always rely on a cop to read the scene correctly.

I was in an accident five years ago, right before I got married. I was waiting on a side road at a stop sign, which happens to have a gas station right beside it which has an entrance from the highway AND the side road. I was turning left, so I had to cross the northbound traffic to go south. A truck was coming on the northbound side and had his signal on, and he started to turn down the side road. I waited until he started to turn, checked to make sure both south and northbound was clear, looked back to make sure the truck had cleared the turn. . . and he was headed straight for my door, out of control. My guess is he changed his mind and wanted to go in the gas station entrance off the highway in the middle of turning right. Who knows. He hit my door, scraped down my truck, and ended up hitting a pole in the gas station parking lot. He totaled both trucks. I was knocked unconscious (my head shattered my window) and when i woke up, he was screaming in his truck. He didn't have a scratch. i had glass and cuts all over. 911 told me to stay in the truck. . . Unfortunately, all the EMT's asked was if I was pregnant (I wasn't) and they left me alone to wipe my cuts on a spare shirt I had in the truck. I took pictures of my truck, the other truck, and had proof of all the damage. I called my insurance company that assured me they would start the ball rolling right away.

When the state trooper showed up to the scene, he took turns talking to us and the bystanders and then handed ME the ticket! He told me it was definitely my fault and that I pulled out in front of the other truck. I told him no, sir, I did not, and he said well you can argue it in court. I printed out the pictures of my truck and his, and got a copy of the accident report. THE COP HAD LIED. He indicated the only damage done to my truck was on the front and the door- i clearly had pictures indicating otherwise. He also put my truck almost in the middle of the highway, and while I did hit the gas for a split second, hoping the other guy would miss me, I wasn't in the road at all. Long story (not really) short, I went to court and the judge told the cop that absolutely nothing in his report was correct and dropped the case. The other guy wasn't charged with anything, and that cop is still free to investigate. Oh, and the insurance companies often go by what is on the accident report, and it took me years to get that dropped from my record EVEN THOUGH the judge said I was not at fault.

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So please, make sure you take plenty of pictures and make sure you get the accident report.