Frequently Asked Questions About Personal Injury

Meaning, if you are injured in a car accident, you only have “one chance for justice.” So that begs the question: should you settle with an auto accident insurance company on your own and what happens if you find out that you were much more injured than you thought?

If your answer was “yes” to that question, you are most likely out of luck. You cannot recover any additional money for these auto accident-related injuries. But just to be sure, please feel free to call us now at 1-800-655-6585 or click here for a free consultation with an experienced automobile accident attorney. We have a large bilingual staff that can assist you in either English or Spanish.

What Are the Legal Consequences if You Sign a Piece of Paper from the Responsible Person’s Auto Accident Insurance Company (or Someone Else) Called a “General Release” For My Auto Accident?

You may be releasing not just the person that you believe was responsible for the auto accident, but also others could be released. This document could be used against you to possibly release anyone or anything for your car accident.

When Is the Best Time to Hire an Auto Accident Attorney?

You should hire a car accident lawyer as soon as possible.

Why?

We live in a world where often the appearance of truth can often be more important than the actual truth. Car accident insurance companies — even your own, — have just one goal: to pay you as little as possible.

Call us now or click here for a free consultation with an experienced automobile accident attorney as to how we may help you at 1-800-655-6585. We look forward to providing good advice to help you make smart decisions about your case in either English or Spanish.

CLAIMS HANDLING BY INSURANCE COMPANIES FOR CAR ACCIDENTS

Car Accident Insurance Claims Processing?

Insurance claims for people injured in car accidents can be time-consuming and frustrating. Property damage claims, as the figures are much easier to calculate, are usually handled much faster.

First, an insurance claim is made with all the insurance companies. You will probably be asked to provide the following information about yourself:

General information.
Provide your social security number and date of birth (so that an insurance company can do a background check on you).
Take your recorded statement.
Provide a very general overbroad medical authorization to get your personal records without your knowledge (which we view as an invasion of your right to privacy).
Conduct a damaged car inspection.
Send people to the accident scene and assign one or more insurance company representatives which will call and write you from all of the insurance companies.

Since many of these insurance company representatives handle too many auto accident claims, they will often take a lot of time to return your call. Many people do not understand this, and it can be very frustrating when your calls are not returned by your car accident insurance company.

The responsible party’s insurance company will probably try to settle the entire bodily injury claim using a written release, and ask the injured person to sign it as soon as possible, usually for a small amount of money in comparison to what you claim is actually worth. Indeed, many times, these same insurance company representatives will call people right after an accident, visit the injured in a hospital and attempt to obtain information while many injured people are still experiencing the stress of an accident and still taking prescription or other medication — which interferes with a person’s ability to give good information.

It is important to remember that as the injured person in a car accident, in most cases, you will receive just one bodily injury settlement check from the responsible person’s insurance company. This means that you have just one chance for justice.

One of the many ways that we can help you, as experienced auto accident attorneys, is that we wait to make sure that your medical condition has stabilized and been level for a good period of time. Also, we like know all about your past, present, and future treatment and how it will affect your life (e.g., what if you have to take time off from work for a future operation?) Then, if something continues to bother you — perhaps a back or neck problem sending shooting pain down your arms or legs — we will wait and see what your doctor determines is the cause of this problem and whether or not you will need future medical care (and will miss work in the future), which we work hard to make sure it is properly documented and part of your case.

To avoid or lessen all of this confusion and hassle, please contact our firm of experienced car accident attorneys for a free consultation at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

How Long Does It Take to Settle a Car Accident Insurance Claim?

There are no set special time limits (other than the legal Statute of Limitations [link to FAQ What Is the Difference between a Car Accident Insurance Claim and a Lawsuit?], which are the legal time limits to file a lawsuit). The amount of time without a lawsuit will depend on many different factors including, but not limited to:

How seriously injured you are.
If you require future medical treatment.
Whether or not your car accident attorneys and you need to get the opinion of an expert (e.g. doctor or accountant).
Whether the responsible party has admitted to causing the car accident.
How many people were involved in the car accident.
How long it takes for your bodily injuries to stabilize. Car accident attorneys define this as maximum medical improvement.
Any other related factors.

Car accidents can result in a wide variety of different bodily injuries. Some car accidents — such as what might be considered a minor rear-end auto accident — result in soft tissue injuries, injuries that car accident attorneys refer to as musculature injuries, and generally, these auto accident injuries will get better with physical therapy.

Other car accidents can result in more serious bodily injury, including broken or fractured bones and other serious internal injuries which could require hospitalization, extensive therapy and other forms of medical treatment. As experience car accident lawyers, we know that people recover and heal from injuries differently.

Another important consideration to be made is who caused the car accident. Many times this is unclear and requires a car accident investigation to determine who was responsible, potentially delaying your car accident claim.

In many car accidents, there may be multiple parties who are responsible. In this situation, despite a police report, insurance companies, including your own, will conduct their own car accident investigation, even with simple car accidents. The auto accident insurance companies interviewing all witnesses to reach their own conclusion on who was at fault for the car accident.

Some car accident claims are not resolved before the legal time limits (statute of limitations), and, as your auto accident lawyer, we would file a lawsuit to protect your rights from expiring. Sometimes, by merely filing a lawsuit, this causes an insurance company to wake up pay a reasonable settlement.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident attorney at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

What Is the Difference Between a Car Accident Insurance Claim and a Lawsuit?

Hiring an experienced car accident lawyer does not necessarily mean you will be involved in a lawsuit. Rather, we will strive to reach the best possible settlement on your behalf without a a lawsuit. Sometimes filing a lawsuit is necessary to gain leverage over an insurance company that will not budge on a ridiculously low initial settlement offer.

The first thing that we do, as your car accident attorney, is open a claim with the responsible party’s insurance company. This claim is not a lawsuit; it is simply a claim with the responsible party’s insurance company for the property damages and bodily injuries, and our offices will communicate with the insurance company’s claims adjuster to settle the car accident claim. In most situations, a smart car accident lawyer will be able to reach a settlement with the insurance company without going to trial.

Once a claim is opened, there are several reasons why a lawsuit may be necessary:

One big concern is time. In California, the statute of limitations (the time limit to file a lawsuit) for a personal injury claim is generally two years from the date of the accident, although there are many exceptions. (link to statute of limitations faq) If this time limit has been exceeded, then there is nothing you can do to recover anything. California Law only allows you so much time to pursue your legal rights.
Another possible reason for filing a lawsuit is that people need money right away and cannot afford to wait. If an insurance company gives a ridiculously low offer, then we might file a lawsuit so that a resolution will likely be reached much faster.
A car accident lawyer might file a lawsuit is when the people involved in a car accident are elderly, very ill or even below the legal age of being an adult (under the age of 18-years-old), and it is necessary to protect their interests as much as possible.

A lawsuit is filed when the car accident lawyer files several legal documents, along with a filing fee, to the proper court and then personally serves these documents on the responsible party (not the insurance company).

Statistics show that the large majority of car accidents settle well before trial. Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident lawyer at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

What Is a Recorded Statement and How Will It Affect My Car Accident Claim?

One of the methods that insurance companies use to investigate car accidents is a recorded statement. As the words suggest, the conversation is usually recorded over the telephone or sometimes the car accident insurance company will attempt to go to your home for an in-person statement with you.

In a recorded statement, you will probably be asked questions about the accident, your injuries, private medical information, date of birth and even your social security number. They usually last about 15 to 30 minutes, but some car accident insurance companies have been known to take much longer and, in our opinion, ask questions which are an invasion of your privacy — information they have no right to know!

Remember, the insurance company is not looking out for your best interest and anything you say will likely be used against you later on.

Recorded statements can sometimes be even more important, especially in a car accident when a police report was not made and there were no witnesses. The insurance company also uses the recorded statement of the responsible party to get their version of how the accident happened. Witness recorded statements are also taken, if possible.

Sometimes our auto accident attorneys at the Law Offices of Michael Pines do not recommend giving a recorded statement at all. If we do allow it, we like to have at least received the police report and make sure that you are not taking any medications that would cause you to not be able to give clear answers.

As experienced car accident lawyers, we will be able to assist you with recorded statements by scheduling the recorded statement as a conference call with the claims representative. We will not let the insurance company take advantage of you or ask you questions which have nothing to do with the car accident. As a condition of giving a recorded statement, we would insist on having a both a copy of the tape and a written transcription of what was said.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident attorney at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

DETERMINING HOW MUCH YOUR CASE IS WORTH

Can I Recover Money for Medical Bills Paid by My Health Insurance?

Generally speaking, a person injured in an automobile accident can still recover their medical costs, even if their medical bills were paid by health insurance.

Many people, who are injured in car accidents, are reluctant to have their health insurance pay their medical bills out of fear that it will limit the amount of money they believe they will receive at the end of their case, or because they believe the person who caused the auto accident’s insurance company should immediately pay all their medical costs. Who is responsible for paying medical bills after an auto accident (link to “Who Pays For Your Car Accident Injuries FAQ”)?

The exact amount of money that you will be able to recover will likely depend upon what type of health insurance you have (e.g., Medi-Care, Medi-Cal, Kaiser, Blue Cross private insurance, Blue Cross employee insurance, military insurance, etc.).

As experienced car accident lawyers, our job is not only to get you as much money as possible from the responsible person’s auto accident insurance company, but we also want to make sure that at the end of our legal representation that you end up with the most amount of money in your pocket.

You may also be required to pay back your own health insurance company for monies that they spent on your behalf. Why? To ensure that you are not paid twice. Where is this written language usually located? It can be found in the fine print of insurance contracts or in California or United States law. We can usually reduce this payment; or, in some cases, we can defeat an insurance company’s right to reimbursement when they are trying to get their hands on your automobile accident settlement.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident attorney at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

How Insurance Companies Determine How Much Money to Pay You for a Car Accident?

A very common question our clients ask, while going through the personal injury claims process, is, “Who actually decides how much money to pay me?” Sometimes, a person makes this decision after reviewing all of the circumstances your accident, which includes your medical records to determine all of your complaints, including the pain and suffering you went through or are still going through.

However, many car accident insurance companies now use computer software unbelievably called “Colossus“. This program turns an insurance representative into a data input clerk. The auto accident insurance rep literally inputs all of the medical records, charges (and medical billing codes) into this computer program, which in turn, then spits out a settlement number supposedly which is what your bodily injury claim is worth. .

The big problem with this software is that, as car accident lawyers, we do not believe it is fair. Since human beings are involved in this process, working as quickly as possible, many times the wrong information is put into what we view as a very dishonest program (meaning, we believe even if the right information is input into this nefarious software, it is rigged against an injured person). Again — to be clear — these computer programs are designed to save the car accident insurance companies money and, at the same time, pay you less money for your auto accident injuries.

As car accident attorneys, we do not use these type of computer programs. Instead, we listen to your doctors and you!

How can a computer determine pain and suffering? With many insurance companies, unless there is new information, they will refuse to pay you any more money. Whereas we, as car accident lawyers, help to ensure that your entire claim is correctly evaluated the first time.

We can help at anytime, but we prefer to help injured people as soon as possible. Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident attorney at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

What Is Loss of Earnings Due to a Car Accident?

When you are injured in a car accident and you become unable to work, you are entitled to receive compensation for time lost from work, even if you use your accrued personal, sick or vacation time.

When making a claim for loss of earnings, while not absolutely required, it is a very good idea to have documentation of your time missed at work and how much you would have made if you had been able to work. Usually a loss of earnings claim will be made using pay stubs or employer documentation.

There is a big difference in loss of earnings claims between hourly and salaried workers. To determine the exact number for an hourly worker, the process usually requires more documentation — and sometimes an expert opinion — to determine the average number of hours that you would be expected to work and also that you have worked these hours in the past.

If you are self-employed, it can be much more difficult depending upon what type of documentation you have and what you can legally divulge. Many times you will be asked to present financial statements for the past two or three years before the car accident, including:

Tax returns (this is not legally required as it is considered private). However, this is something that we carefully discuss with our clients.
An injured person’s customer list and how much they pay you. You can protect your clients’ identities by lining out their last names or something to that effect, or alternatively, you could get your client’s permission to disclose their relationship with you.
Any other evidence to show the time you missed, including financial statements.

An experienced auto accident attorney will be able to assist you in gathering documentation to present your self-employed loss of earnings to an insurance company.

In addition to financial documentation, the time lost must mirror documentation from your own doctor or healthcare provider (e.g., notes of inability to work or restricted work limitations). A doctor’s note stating that you are injured and unable to work for a period of time will serve as evidence that you missed time because of the injuries from the auto accident. Again, you must mitigate (lessen) your damages discussed and, at the same time, not make your injuries worse. This requires a delicate balance, and an experienced auto accident lawyer can help in that regard.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident lawyer at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

What Constitutes Loss of Earning Capacity Due to a Car Accident?

You may be entitled to recover for loss of earning capacity as a result of injuries due to a car accident.

Earning capacity is your physical ability to work not just now but in the future. Car accident injuries often have a major impact on your health and overall ability to enjoy your daily life, and these injuries also affect your ability to work.

Loss of earning capacity is especially important in cases where the auto accident injuries result in permanent injuries. In order to make a claim for loss of earning capacity, it may be necessary for your car accident lawyer to consult with a doctor, vocational rehabilitation or other expert to determine what percentage of your earning ability was reduced by the injuries from the accident. That information determines how much you can recover for loss of earning capacity. Keep in mind that hiring experts, such as vocational rehabilitation experts or economists, is best left to an experienced car accident lawyer.

Please contact us for a free consultation with a car accident attorney at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

Why Should I Not Exaggerate My Car Accident Damages?

The law states that you should not exaggerate injuries or damages sustained in a car accident. As car accident lawyers, we call this the duty to mitigate (lessen) your damages. You are obligated to be honest when disclosing your injuries or damages in a car accident and should never take advantage of the situation.

Here are some examples of car accident claim exaggerations:

Property Damage

Obtaining an unrealistically expensive estimate to fix your car.
Keeping a rental car too long.
Getting a rental car that is not similar to the car involved in the accident.

Bodily Injury

Receiving too much treatment when it is not medically necessary.
Getting treating from an unreasonably expensive doctor or facility.

Other Damages

Taking unnecessary time off from work.
Claiming that unrelated business and personal losses were a result of the accident.
Claiming that you injured yourself despite the fact that you had a pre-existing medical condition that was not aggravated by the car accident.

You may be asking yourself, “Why should I do anything when this car accident was not my fault?” The reason you are required to mitigate (lessen) your damages is to ensure that other people do not take advantage of car accidents to recover more money than they are entitled to.

Mitigating your damages also helps increase your trustworthiness in the eyes of the insurance company. It shows that you are not taking advantage of the accident and it helps justify your claim.

As experienced car accident attorneys, we will explain to you, in detail, how to avoid these common mistakes, so please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident lawyer at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

What If a Car Accident Makes My Current Health Situation Worse?

Often times, people injured in a car accident think that if a previous health condition was injured in a car accident, a claim cannot be made for this injury. In many cases, this is absolutely false, and it may make your case worth much more money!

As car accident attorneys, a typical injury we see after a car accidents is neck and back injuries. Suppose that someone had spinal cord surgery (such as a neck spinal disk fusion) before the accident. Even though that person was experiencing pain in that area, the pain worsened after the car accident.

Should you be able to recover for this? Yes, assuming that a qualified medical doctor or other expert can explain why the accident aggravated or made the injury worse.

Another way to look at this situation is to think of buying eggs at a grocery store. What do most customers do? Open the egg carton and see if any of the egg shells are broken. As crazy as this seems, the law has a rule called the “Egg Shell Doctrine,” which applies to an injury that has been made worse. This means that the responsible driver has to accept the injured person in the physical and medical condition which he or she is in at the time of the car accident.

What if the injured person is quite young and athletic? What if the injured person has thinning bones (called osteoarthritis)? What if the injured person had a weakened muscular condition, such as fibromyalgia?

Again, the responsible driver, who caused the injuries, must accept the person was not at fault for the way he or she was just before the car accident. Meaning, the responsible driver must pay for any additional or new injuries even to the same body parts.

The injured person has the obligation to explain to a car accident insurance company why he or she is entitled to money in this special situation. As experienced car accident attorneys, we assist injured people in explaining the worsened or new condition to get you the most amount of money in this special situation.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident lawyer at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

How Many Bodily Injury Settlements Can I Get For a Car Accident?

In a car accident, generally, you only get one chance for justice, which is at the very end of the claim. This is not to be confused with a work-related car accident, which is very different. The best time to hire our offices is sooner, not later.

Your settlement will consist of many different types of damages.

You can recover your medical expenses including past and future doctor bills, co-pays, hospital bills, x-ray/MRI bills, and related billing.
You may recover time lost from work as a result of the accident.
You are entitled to compensation for human pain and suffering.

An experienced car accident lawyer will present your entire car accident claim to the insurance company when it is time to settle. Knowing that you only get one opportunity to settle your claim, it is a good idea to get help from a car accident attorney to maximize your financial recovery.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident attorney at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

What Is Loss of Consortium and How Will It Affect My Auto Accident Claim?

If you are severely injured in an automobile accident, not only are you entitled to recover from the responsible party for your injuries and human pain and suffering, but your spouse may also be entitled to recover for something called “loss of consortium.”

Loss of consortium is a way to recover for the loss of companionship, care, sexual intimacy and comfort that the injured spouse would normally offer the non-injured spouse. This type of recovery is usually seen in cases where a person is severely injured and physically unable to provide the companionship, care and comfort to their non-injured spouse.

It is important to note that loss of consortium almost always applies to legally married couples only. A typical loss of consortium claim would involve a non-injured spouse file a claim in an auto accident where the injured spouse suffered an injury, such as a broken hip, because the injured spouse will not be able to get out of bed or move around without severe pain and difficulty for an extended period of time.

Similarly, injuries that require extensive surgery and a long period of recovery might also qualify for a loss of consortium claim for the non-injured spouse.

It is important to note that in order to make a loss of consortium claim, there are certain specific legal requirements that must be met. As experienced auto accident attorneys, we will help you determine if and how you should make this claim. .

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident lawyer at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

What Is Subrogation and How Is It Related to My Car Accident?

Companies that have paid money on your behalf might use a word most people do not know, subrogation, which is their right to recover for any payments they made to you from the responsible person in a car accident. That is because insurance companies, and whoever paid any monies on your behalf, do not want you to recover a settlement twice — once from your own auto accident insurance company and the other time from the responsible driver’s car accident insurance company — for the same car accident.

Your insurance company will generally attempt to recover any monies it has paid on your behalf from the responsible driver’s car accident insurance company and reimburse you for your deductible. In many cases, car accident insurance companies have special expedited procedures to enable this recovery amongst themselves for property damage, usually the a process called intercompany arbitration (where a third party, usually one person chosen by both insurance companies, makes a decision who should pay, whether in full or a partial payment).

Most health insurance policies have a hidden right of subrogation clause in their contract with you. When you are injured in a car accident that was not your fault and you use your own health insurance to pay for your medical treatment, your health insurance company has the right to recover from the person who was responsible for the car accident.

It is important for you to know how much you need to give back of what was paid to you. This is usually determined by who paid for the medical treatment, and this can be quite complicated. In addition to contracts, there may be legal duties to reimburse as well (e.g., Medi-Care under the Federal Healthcare Recoveries Act; Medi-Cal, under California’s Welfare & Institutions Code, and the United States Military under Federal law).

Another way to look at subrogation is to understand that subrogation is just a battle, while the war concerns how much money you will actually receive in your pocket after your car accident is settled. There are many laws that enable an injured person to a reduction in what has to be paid back if the car accident injured person has a car accident attorney.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident attorney at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

What Is the “Assumption of Risk” Argument For Car Accidents?

Assumption of risk is an argument that can be raised by a person responsible for an auto accident that might prevent an injured person from obtaining enough money.

For example, a passenger gets into a car that is being driven by a drunk driver even though the passenger knows that the driver is intoxicated (DUI). The passenger saw the driver consuming too much alcohol or the driver was obviously intoxicated (the driver had red eyes, smelled of alcohol or had slurred speech). Even if the car accident was largely the fault of another party, by assuming the risk, the passenger might be partially or completely prevented from recovering money for injuries resulting from the drunk-driving car accident.

This is another reason to hire an auto accident attorney immediately, especially before a car accident insurance company — even your own — takes your recorded statement or conducts other investigation with your assistance. Many people think by assisting the car accident insurance company, the injured person is helping the investigation and that the responsible person’s insurance company will somehow treat them right. Many times, this is completely false.

Car accident insurance companies are out to score a profit. Paying for automobile accidents is an expense, not an income, and they will do their best to pay you as little as possible.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident attorney at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

What Is “Pain and Suffering” Due to a Car Accident?

Pain and suffering refers to the mental, physical and emotional stress that is caused by a car accident. There is no specific monetary figure for this suffering, and the dollar amount has to be calculated by either a car accident insurance company or, if necessary, a jury. Each pain and suffering claim is based upon many things and can only be valued one case at a time.

Putting a value on human pain and suffering is one of the most difficult tasks in a personal injury case. However, an experienced personal injury attorney should be able to assist you in determining how much money you should recover.

While proving pain and suffering from an auto accident can be quite difficult, some of the damages that often fall under this category are as follows:

Aches and pain.
Permanent disability.
Loss of enjoyment.
Temporary and/or permanent limitations on activity, depression and scarring.

Please remember, you should consult with an experienced car accident and personal injury attorney if you are injured in a car accident. The injured person only has one chance at justice and fairly paid for all of the injuries and their pain and suffering in a car accident.

Call us now or click here for a free consultation with an experienced personal injury attorney as to how we may help you at 1-800-655-6585. We look forward to providing good advice to help you make smart decisions about your case in either English or Spanish.

HIRING A CAR ACCIDENT LAWYER

Are Consultations with Our Car Accident Lawyer’s Offices FREE?

Our job, as car accident attorneys, is all about making the best out of a bad situation. Even though you are not at fault, the whole process is a time-consuming hassle. Our job is to handle the claims, legal stress, and ultimately your case so as to lighten your load.

After a car accident, you need to get your automobile repaired, obtain medical treatment, get better and, of course, pursue a claim with the responsible party’s car accident insurance company — as well as your own insurance company. This process is usually very stressful and time consuming. Our job is to make it much easier on your and give you honest straight-forward advice that is in your best interest.

Many people, who are involved in car accidents, believe that contacting their own car accident insurance company will cause them harm. In almost all situations, this is not true. As car accident lawyers, if possible, we prefer to handle a claim with your insurance company as soon as possible as first impressions often do count. When you are involved in a car accident, it is important to know that you do not have to deal with a car accident insurance company on your own.

One of the biggest concerns that people, especially those without any type of health insurance have, injured in a car accident is medical treatment. There are many people living in the United States that are unable to afford health insurance and are forced to pay for medical treatment for auto accident injuries out of their own pocket.

How will you be able to afford medical treatment? Even if you do have health insurance, should you use it to pay for medical treatment for injuries from an auto accident? And if you do, will you have to pay them back?

Another big concern people involved in car accidents have is getting their automobile fixed. You have the option of using your own insurance or going through the responsible party’s insurance company. As experienced car accident attorneys, we can help you make the best decision for your car accident case.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident lawyer at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

How Can an Experienced California Auto Accident Attorney Help You Now?

With all due respect, most people are terrible at representing themselves when injured in an automobile accident which results in injuries or wrongful death. They say and do the wrong things because of many reasons:

They are in pain.
They may have lost a loved one due to a wrongful death.
They could be medicated with strong prescription medication and not able to think clearly.

Meanwhile, insurance companies generally have no real obligation to give you a fair settlement, let alone explain the process to you. For the most part, they could care less about your situation. It is a numbers game for them, and they are only out to settle for as little or no money as possible in your car accident claim.

Upon hiring a car accident attorney from the Law Offices of Michael Pines, we immediately contact all parties involved with the auto accident and their insurance companies. We promptly cancel all prior settlement offers and authorizations and will work towards building a much better — and larger — settlement offer.

Here is how the auto accident insurance companies will try to set you up for a minimal settlement offer:

Car accident insurance companies will attempt to take your tape recorded statement, many times, even if you are in a hospital or drugged up on pain medication. Most people think it is their duty to cooperate and give this statement. Please, do not give them your recorded statement without first consulting with us. If we hire an investigator, and we ask to take the responsible party’s recorded or in-person statement, do you think they would consent to it? No, they would not because we are not cooperating with their agenda. The same works for you. Do not help the car accident insurance companies benefit from you with your consent!
All insurance companies like to send you a lot of paperwork to fill out, paperwork we view as nothing more than unnecessary paperwork meant to delay an injured person’s claim after a car accident. One important form for you to be wary of is called a medical authorization. If you sign the insurance company’s medical authorization, they are free to get any of your medical records. They have no obligation to give you advance warning, let alone to provide you with a courtesy copy of what they receive about your private information. And where do all of these private medical records usually end up? Your private medical records are placed in a special data base so that all insurance companies can view it.

So remember, always consult with your auto accident attorney before filling out any information for the car accident insurance companies.

Meanwhile, car accident attorneys handle each claim on a case-by-case basis, meaning each case is different. Here are some of the things that we would do for you:

If there is a police report, we will wait for that report to come in.
If you are hospitalized or on pain medication, we will not allow a recorded statement.
Even if a recorded statement is done, there are many limits that we can place on it to protect your rights.
If you do not have health insurance, we will do our best to set you up with medical treatment, which will be reimbursed at the end of the claim.
Did you know in most instances, if you have health or medical insurance, health insurance companies want to be paid back for any services they have provided you? As your car accident attorney, we would reduce or eliminate this reimbursement, which is often only available to attorneys under California Law.
We do our best to make sure that we receive all medical billings you have received.
We carefully determine the nature and extent of your injuries to determine what your pain and suffering, lost wages, medical bills and any future expenses.

Always remember, you only have one chance for justice (one settlement at the very end of the automobile accident claim), so it is extremely important to get it right the first time. That is why you should always hire an experience car accident lawyer.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced auto accident attorney at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

What Happens If I Try to Handle My Auto Accident Case Without a Lawyer?

When you are injured in a car accident, is it possible to settle with an insurance company, or even directly with the person who is responsible for the car accident?

Yes, but in our opinion, car accident insurance companies prefer not to deal with car accident lawyers. We are not good for their bottom line.

In short, settling your own car accident injury or property damage claim could result in you getting the short end of the stick. You are entitled to different types of damages for your injuries in a car accident, but your auto accident insurance company will probably not inform you of those rights, and in most cases, they are not required to do anything to help you. You are on your own.

Many car accident insurance claims adjusters will try to get you to sign a document called a release of all claims as soon as possible and offer some token minimal settlement to compensate you for what happened. Unfortunately, many people end up prematurely settling their car accidents claim for pennies on the dollar, meaning they got ripped off.

The best way to make sure that your legal rights are protected — and recover a fair amount of money — is to hire experienced car accident attorneys who are able to help and guide you to a fair car accident settlement with the responsible party’s auto accident insurance company. You should not rush because you only receive one bodily injury settlement.

Insurance companies are usually very skilled at putting on a friendly front and getting you to trust them. They spend millions of dollars on advertising and use slogans and celebrity endorsements to gain your trust (e.g. “You are in good hands with us.”).

Additionally, your auto accident insurance company may promise that your medical bills will get paid, and that you will a fair amount for your pain and suffering. Sometimes they will even pressure you into signing a release of all claims very soon after a car accident.

Yet, car accident insurance representatives really do not care about your well-being. Their general goal is to settle your claim as soon as possible for the least amount of money possible. They will probably not take into consideration the fact that you have not fully recovered from your injuries.

Another important consideration is the fact that insurance companies are notorious for using what you say and do against you. Insurance companies will ask for your side of the story (which can be in the form of a recording statement, written statement and by any other means), but you have to be careful with how much information you give them.

Unfortunately, many people talk before they think. Trying to settle your car accident claim on your own can become very stressful as you have to be very careful with what you say to car accident claim adjusters.

Do you still think you should handle your auto accident claim by yourself without the help of an experienced car accident lawyer?

Please contact us for a free consultation at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

Are There Any Auto Accident Attorney Fees Until I Recover Money?

At the Law Offices of Michael Pines, our car accident attorneys do not charge any money until we recover money for you. While many attorneys charge an expensive hourly rate, we only charge for the result. This is called a contingency fee.

A contingency fee is great solution that it allows an injured person to hire an automobile accident lawyer immediately. Many people, especially when they are injured, do not have the extra money to pay a car accident lawyer right after the auto accident.

The reason for this arrangement is to allow people — from all walks of life — access to the legal system and not just those that can afford it. A contingency means a specific condition must occur before we are paid anything. We get paid when someone injured in an automobile accident is paid for their injuries and other losses. The charges are calculated from the liability automobile recovery.

Remember, as specialized automobile accident attorneys, we never issue a fee for our services until we recover money on your behalf. If you think about it, we accept cases where we believe we can be helpful. No one can give a guarantee on the outcome of a case, and in fact, doing so is against the law. We always promptly answer and return telephone calls or emails and treat our clients in the same manner that we would want to be treated if we were in an unfortunate automobile accident and needed a car accident lawyer.

As soon as we are hired, all necessary work is done to get the car accident claim moving as quickly as possible. This includes an investigation:

Interviewing witnesses.
Doing some basic asset checks, such as checking through the County Real Property/Home Assessor Roles.
Discovering and communicating with all car accident insurance companies to set up the auto accident claim.

So remember that in order to alleviate stress and receive professional help in dealing with an insurance company — which will likely put their profits over your personal health and well-being — it is a good idea to hire a car accident attorney right away. If you choose hire the experienced auto accidents Law Offices of Michael Pines, remember that we work to get you paid — not the other way around.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident lawyer at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

How Can a Car Accident Lawyer Get You More Money with MED PAY?

Is medical pay a benefit or is it a loan? As car accident lawyers, we view our job is to give you the maximum possible benefit for the premiums paid to car accident insurance companies and their lawyers.

Your car accident insurance policy may include medical payments (meaning health insurance for a car accident) regardless of who was at fault. Med-pay coverage can be used to pay for treatment that may not be covered by some general health insurance companies, such as chiropractic care and perhaps acupuncture. There are also strict limits on the amount of time, after a car accident, you have to make a claim for medical payment benefits from a car accident or wreck. Medical payments are also available if you were a passenger in someone else’s car or truck during an auto accident.

Your own car insurance company may pay medical payments on your behalf but, at the conclusion of your car accident claim against the responsible party, your own car insurance company may require that you reimburse them for the medical payments paid. They may even sue you in court to recover this money.

As experienced car accident lawyers, we may be able help you in this situation. According to California Law regarding car accidents, despite your own automobile accident insurance company’s request, you may not have to reimburse a car accident insurance company for medical bills, they incurred on your behalf, if you did not receive enough settlement money.

Should there be a reimbursement, a good auto accident attorney would reach a settlement that limits the amount of money that you have to pay your own car accident insurance company and then, in most cases, pass the savings directly onto you.

It is important to remember it is not how much money you receive; but rather, what matters is how much money you have after paying off all your medical expenses. As your car accident lawyers, we will work very hard to make sure that you get as much money as possible in your pocket.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident lawyer at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

How Does an Auto Accident Attorney Produce a Settlement Demand?

A settlement demand is a complicated document that your auto accident attorney will professionally prepare and send to the responsible person’s automobile accident insurance company. This document is a demand for financial compensation.

In coming up with an amount for your settlement demand, both your auto accident attorney and you must consider many things, which include:

Your total amount of medical treatment and an estimate of your future expenses.
The time you have missed from work, and the time you are expected to miss in the future.
Your out-of-pocket expenses.
Any other expenses that may be required to treat long-term injuries or ailments associated with the accident.

In addition, a car accident lawyer requests compensation for the human pain and suffering that resulted from your auto accident. For example, insurance companies cannot see bills reflecting dollar amounts for a birthday party you may have missed as a result of your injuries or pain, or a vacation that had to be cut short because you were in too much pain. It would be very difficult to come up with an itemized bill showing all the time you lost with your children because you were in too much pain to play with them, or all the time you lost with your spouse or significant other because you were in too much pain to spend time with them.

For those reasons, it is important to have an experienced car accident lawyer who can include all these human factors into the settlement demand to the responsible party’s auto accident insurance company.

A good auto accident attorney will usually present the demand when you have reached maximum medical improvement. This means that your doctor has released you from treatment because you are as good as you are going to get. At that time, your car accident attorney will immediately gather all the necessary facts and documents to properly present your demand.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident attorney at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

How May Car Accident Attorneys Reduce Health Insurance Reimbursement?

Can my health insurance take money out of my car accident settlement? Yes, your health insurance may be able to take money out of your car accident settlement. Most health insurance plans have a right of reimbursement if another person is responsible for the car accident that caused your injuries. A right of reimbursement simply means your health insurance company may attempt to force you to repay them for anything that they paid due to your car accident.

So how can you tell if your health insurance company, or anybody, is attempting to recover money from your auto accident settlement? The first clue is receiving a letter from your health insurance company, or another company acting on their behalf, asking if someone else was responsible for the car accident. An experienced car accident attorney would be able to help you provide the best possible response.

Your health insurance usually obtains a right of reimbursement from the following:

The contract between the health insurance company and the person who is insured.
Due to California law or another law.

Your health insurance company contract usually contains a provision — in the fine print — that allows them to recover money out of your settlement. According to California law, hospitals may also be allowed to assert a claim against your settlement, meaning their name will appear on your car accident settlement check to force you to pay the hospital back for your medical treatment due to a car accident.

Fortunately, California law places some limits on the amount of money a health insurance company can recover from your, helping an injured person reduce the amount of money they have to repay after settlement. This means that might get more money in your pocket!

As experienced car accident attorneys, we work very hard to significantly reduce if not completely waive the amount that has to be repaid.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident lawyer at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

How Can a Car Accident Attorney Help When a Police Report Is Wrong?

Depending upon the location and facts of a car accident, police may be present at the scene of a car accident; and if there are injuries, the police should immediately respond. There are other reasons the police may respond, such as a hit-and-run auto accident (or if one of the persons involved was driving under the influence of alcohol (such as a DUI car accident).

Regardless, the police officer, or officers who write a car accident report, are rarely witnesses to the auto accident, let alone were present when the car accident occurred. Sometimes, even with terrible car accidents, the police officer will try to convince people that a formal police report is not required and just have the people involved in the car accident exchange information. Remember, the police only have so many patrol officers available at any given time and may take awhile to arrive where the car accident occurred.

The police officer’s conclusion to the cause of the accident is based upon many factors, which include:

How long the police officer has been investigating traffic accidents.
The traffic officer’s training or any special courses as to accident reconstruction which have been attended.
Witness information, if any witnesses stayed around.
The statement of all drivers and passengers.
Special evidence such as skid marks, vehicle parts laying in the road, and damage to the cars.

Even more confusing, many car accident insurance attorneys or claim representatives will do their own car accident investigation, which may include requesting to take your recorded statement over the phone (which you should never do).

Police report conclusions can often be wrong, and in actuality, police reports are not admissible evidence, should your case go to court. Therefore, can you not see how important it is to have an experienced car accident attorney assist you in your case?

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident attorney at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

How Can a Car Accident Attorney Help Me with a Deposition?

Car accident claims sometimes require a lawsuit. In those cases, usually an insurance company gives unjustified excuses why they should not pay. If a lawsuit occurs, a very common method of gathering information by the insurance company’s lawyer is called a deposition.

A deposition, for an auto accident, is a discussion of your car accident, taken under oath by the attorney for the responsible person in front of a court reporter. The court reporter types out everything that is said (it looks likes a magazine with questions and answers).

You should take a deposition as seriously as you would your testimony at trial because if you say anything different at trial, the insurance company lawyer will use that against you, asking “When were you telling the truth, at the time of the deposition six months ago or now?”

In preparation for your auto accident deposition, you should:

Do not bring any materials, including personal notes, to the deposition room unless they have been specifically reviewed and approved in advance by your car accident lawyer.
Listen carefully to each question before answering the question by the insurance company’s car accident lawyer.
Answer every question honestly. You are under oath and false answers and lying may have severe legal consequences.
Do not volunteer information. Always think before answering a question.
Speak slowly, clearly and loud enough so that the court reporter will be able to take down every word.
Be polite, as the insurance car accident lawyer will form an impression of you as a witness.
You do not have to give an answer. Rather, you are there to give your best testimony, not guess.
If asked about a document, read it carefully before providing a response.
Think about, pause, and speak slowly before beginning each answer.
Do not argue with the insurance company’s car accident lawyer and be courteous to this attorney as well.
You may talk privately with our law firm’s car own car accident lawyer at any time. Our job, amongst many things, is to protect your from being harassed and make sure that you are asked proper questions.
You may, where appropriate, qualify your answers with words such as “to the best of my recollection…” and “I believe…”
Do not guess.
Answer only the question that is asked. Do not anticipate or assume questions.
If told not to answer a question by your car accident lawyer, do not answer the question.
Do not do anything unexpected unless you have first discussed it with your auto accident attorney.
Be mindful that this deposition is only one phase of the case.
Do not hesitate to say that you do not know something.
On complicated or difficult questions, you may state that you need time to consider the answer. Meaning, think the answer to this question quietly to yourself, not out loud where the auto accident lawyer for the insurance company will take advantage of your over answering the questions.
If you feel tired or uncomfortable at any point, do not hesitate to ask for a break.
Do not be influenced by the insurance company attorney’s friendliness, apparent cooperativeness or courtesy. Remember, the insurance company’s car accident lawyer is out to pay you as little as possible. This attorney may even try to score points with an insurance company to obtain additional business on your behalf.
Finally, do not wear casual clothing, flashy jewelry or a lot of makeup at the deposition. Wear nice dress type clothing that you are comfortable wearing. Remember, a deposition could take several hours to complete and you do not want to be uncomfortable during the questioning. For example, if you never wear a suit, or perhaps do not wear a ties, do not wear any of these clothes. However, you should wear nice presentable clothes, as if you were going to a job interview at a nice company. Also, the deposition may even be videotaped to be played later in front of a judge or jury.

As experience car accident lawyers, we understand that the deposition process may appear daunting so we will explain and help guide you through this process.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident lawyer at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

CAR, MOTORCYCLE & OTHER ACCIDENTS AND INJURIES

How Do Car Accident Police Reports Affect My Car Accident Claim?

Police reports have many different roles in personal injury cases that involve injuries that were caused by a car accident:

Information About the People Involved in the Car Accident. This includes names, phone numbers and addresses.
Car Accident Insurance Information. This includes the name of the car accident insurance company and policy number.
Statements of Auto Accident Witnesses. Police reports provide the name, address and phone number of the people who witnessed the car accident, along with the police officer’s summary of the witness’s statement. Some witnesses, however, do not remain at the scene of an accident to give a statement, and in those cases a phone number may be left.
Property Damage Estimate From Car Accident. Police reports should provide a description of how much damage was done to the vehicles involved; however, categories such as minor, moderate or major property damage can be wrong or misleading.
Auto Accident Location Diagram.
Statements of the People Involved in the Car Collision.
Police Officer’s Opinion of Who is Responsible For the Car Collision. Police reports may also provide the investigating officer’s opinion of who is fault for the accident. While police reports are often used to help determine who is responsible for causing the car accident, it is important to note that the police are not always correct.

When the police arrive at the scene of a car accident, they usually conduct an investigation that may include interviewing the people involved — including witnesses — in the accident and examining any physical evidence such as vehicle damage and skid marks.

Police officers often make mistakes in their auto accident investigations. That causes them to put the wrong person at fault in the police report, and this can be devastating to an injured person’s car accident case as the other person — or their automobile accident insurance company — will argue that the police report is correct, that they are not at fault and that you cannot recover any money for your injuries. Moreover, they may sue you for their injuries since the report puts you at fault.

A good car accident attorney should be able help an injured person fight the damaging effects of an incorrect police report. That is why you should always hire an experience auto accident lawyer as soon as possible after a car accident.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident attorney at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

What Are the Differences Between Minor, Moderate and Major Car Accidents?

There are three major categories of car accidents: minor, moderate and major car accidents. Insurance companies use these categories to help determine the amount of money to pay you for a car accident.

At the beginning of a claim, there are two things that insurance companies and car accident attorneys consider when determining whether a car accident is a minor, medium, or major car accident:

Amount of property damage (damage done to the car, bicycle, motorcycle, etc.)
Severity of the injuries.

Often times, what appears to be the truth in a car accident is actually more important than what actually happens to you. For this reason, it is important to immediately consult with an automobile accident attorney before your case is improperly handled.

Written below, this is what car accident insurance companies and others believe. Just remember, a minor or moderate car accident can also cause serious injuries or even a wrongful death.

Minor Car Accidents

In a minor car accident, there usually is not much damage to either automobile, aside from some minor scrapes and possible dents. An example of a minor car accident is an accident that may occur when two people are backing out of a parking space at the same time and rear-end each other.

Minor car accident injuries typically involve minor aches, pains and headaches. People may consider these injuries minor, and usually, minor injuries require little to no medical treatment and can be treated with over the counter medicines, such as Tylenol.

Moderate Car Accidents

Moderate car accidents constitute the most common category of car accidents. Moderate car accidents tend to involve more property damage than minor car accidents, including large dents, scrapes, etc. Moderate car accidents are sometimes determined by whether or not the airbags deploy.

Injuries in Moderate car accidents include headaches, back and neck pain, muscular aches and pains or bone and joint injuries — with possible trips to the Emergency Room. Many people injured in moderate car accidents also see a chiropractor for treatment associated with whiplash (the most common injury to occur in all car accidents).

Major Car Accidents

Major car accidents involve a substantial amount of damage to the car, such as head-on car accidents, flipped cars, broken doors and windows, etc. Usually, cars involved in major car accidents are totaled (meaning, the car is not fixed but you are paid what the car is worth).

Injuries in major car accidents include emergency room visits, overnight stays in the hospital, broken bones and sometimes wrongful death. Many injuries may also require one or multiple surgeries, substantial treatment plans such as physical therapy and may even result in permanent disabilities or ailments (such as arthritis that was aggravated by a car accident). In many cases, fatal car accidents can result in a wrongful death action by an auto accident lawyer.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident attorney at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

What Are the California Vehicle Codes Relating to Car Accidents?

The California Vehicle Code sets forth the laws and rules of the roadway.

In many car accidents (especially if there is bodily injury), the police or the auto accident legal authority will come out to the car accident scene and take down information to be placed in a written document called a traffic collision or police report. This report will often indicate specific Vehicle Code violations (e.g. speeding, unsafe lane change and running a red light).

The Vehicle Code also determines the minimum amount of car accident insurance required to drive a car in California, which is usually $15,000 per injured person in a car accident or $30,000 for all people injured if that person is at fault in a car accident. We recommend getting a higher limit, which usually does not cost that much more.

The Vehicle Code also requires you file a Department of Motor Vehicle (DMV) report for car accidents with a certain monetary amount of property damage or if any bodily injuries occur (a car accident attorney can fill out this form on your behalf). In addition, there is another DMV form to assist you in getting the responsible person for a car accident’s insurance information, if none was provided at the scene of the accident. The Vehicle Code also outlines the procedure and guidelines for sentencing when driving under the influence (DUI) of alcohol or other drugs in a car accident.

The California Vehicle Code is a very useful tool for all California drivers. An experienced auto accident attorney will use the vehicle code to assist in recovering on behalf of the injured.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident lawyer at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

What Are Some Safety Tips to Help Avoid Bicycle Accidents?

Car and bicycle accidents can be extremely serious. Here are some tips that might be able to help you avoid a bicycle accident:

Always wear a bicycle helmet.
Obey all road traffic controls.
Ride your bicycle near the right-hand edge of the road such as a bicycle lane.
If you carry another person on your bicycle, make sure you follow all safety laws including the use of an approved passenger seat.
Always use hand signals when turning or stopping.
Look out for cars at cross streets, driveways, and parking places.
Keep your bicycle in good condition (e.g. brakes and tires).
Be careful when checking traffic and do not swerve when looking over your shoulder.
Always ride carefully.
Wear proper clothing and shoes to alleviate skin injuries.
Ask your bike dealer for safety equipment (e.g. special side mirrors and reflectors).

Please contact us for a free consultation with a bicycle accident lawyer at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

How Can an Experienced Personal Injury Lawyer Help With Dog Bite Injuries?

California law [Civil Code, Section 3342(a)] states, “The owner of any dog is liable for the damages suffered by any person who is bitten by the dog while in a public place or lawfully in a private place, including the property of the owner of the dog, regardless of the former viciousness of the dog or the owner’s knowledge of such viciousness.”

Under state law, you are able to recover money for injuries caused by a dog bite, even if the dog has never acted viciously and/or has never bitten anyone before. This law is designed to prevent dogs from being a danger to society, and dog owners must be responsible in making sure their dogs do not harm other people. This is especially true when the dog owner is aware that the dog is especially vicious or dangerous.

If you or a loved one is injured by a dog bite, you may be able to make a claim against the dog owner through his or her homeowner’s insurance. In some situations, homeowners associations or landlords may also be responsible for dog bite injuries.

Many dog bite claims have serious injuries and scarring, especially with young children. As experienced personal injury lawyers, we will investigate everyone responsible to get you a financial settlement.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an animal or dog attack accident and personal injury lawyer at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

What Is Emotional Distress Due to a Car Accident?

Emotional distress usually concerns people that were in a car accident. The recovery for this injury is combined with pain and suffering, and called general damages. Many times we find that our clients are fearful immediately after a car accident. Hopefully this fear goes away; however, if it does not, one should seek professional help to deal with what may be a driving phobia.

If you have suffered any emotional trauma or distress as a result of a car accident, you should hire an auto accident lawyer as soon as possible. As experienced auto accident attorneys, we can fight to ensure that you and your family receive a financial settle to help you through a difficult time.

There are special situations where a person, who was not involved in the car accident, is able to recover compensation for emotional distress. This is usually restricted to family members who actually see and at the same time are aware of the accident (an unfortunate example, when a parent was watching his two children cross the street, in a marked crosswalk, when without warning, a car moved and struck one of the children).

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident lawyer at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

How Are Car Accidents in Mexico Handled?

Car accidents, that occur south of the border in Mexico, are generally not covered under your American insurance policy; however, there might be a special clause buried in your policy that states accidents within so many miles from the Mexican-U.S. border may be covered.

With this in mind, what is the best way to protect yourself if you are going to be driving into Mexico (e.g. from San Diego to Tijuana, B.C.)? As experienced car accident attorneys, we recommend that you purchase Mexican Driver’s Insurance for your time spent in Mexico before you cross the border.

If you are injured in a car accident in Mexico by a U.S. resident, you may have the right to hold that person liable in the U.S., not Mexico, which is very likely a big logistical nightmare.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident lawyer at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

WRONGFUL DEATH

Who Can Make a Claim Due to a Wrongful Death Car Accident?

When someone who has passed away in a wrongful death car accident, depending upon the circumstances, an auto accident attorney may be able to make a claim on behalf of many, including but not limited to the late person’s:

spouse
domestic partner
children
step children
children born out of marriage (sometimes referred to by others as “illegitimate children”)
foster children
those that may stand to inherit money
parents and others

Our firm believes if this terrible situation occurs, that you should hire an experienced car accident attorney as soon as possible. There are many reasons to hire a wrongful death car accident attorney, such as if you are in one of the eight categories listed above, and we can help answer your questions regarding wrongful death accident claims, such as:

Who has the legal priority to recover the most money from the late person’s estate (how much they are worth)?
What happens if a claim is made on behalf of one of the people listed above but the other people never receive any notice of the car accident that caused the death?
Do these people have any legal rights to money after you have received your settlement (can a claim now be made against you)?
How can family tension be avoided if there is a disagreement or anger as to who is entitled to the late person’s money? A common example of tension and anger is when the dead person remarried and there are children from a prior relationship. What happens in this case? This nightmare situation could occur when these two groups are fighting amongst themselves (such as parent versus children, or even children versus children)? How can this be prevented?
How much money can each person in each category receive and how is it determined?

Due to these difficult situations, each of the categories of people who may have the right to make a claim, as discussed earlier, will be discussed in a separate frequently asked question.

Please choose the Wrongful Death FAQ that best represents your claim for a more complete answer to your specific set of circumstances:

Father’s Death: What Can a Car Accident Lawyer Recover?

Husband’s Death: What Damages Can a Wrongful Death Car Accident Attorney Help a Widow Recover?

Mother’s Death: What Financial Damages Can a Wrongful Death Car Accident Attorney Help You Recover?

Son or Daughter’s Death: What Financial Damages Can a Wrongful Death Car Accident Attorney Help You Recover?

Brother or Sister’s Death: What Financial Damages Can a Wrongful Death Attorney Recover?

What Happens If a Person is Terribly Injured in a Car Accident and Then Dies?

What is a “Survival Action” from the View of a Car Accident Attorney?

Another possible issue, how are any of the people, who have the right to a claim, able to prove that the death was caused by a car accident and not something else? What if the cause of death can only be determined by an autopsy, but the government decides this is not legally required, what then?

As wrongful death car accident attorneys, we may be able to arrange and pay for a private autopsy on your behalf. We have had cases where an autopsy was conducted before a deceased person was cremated because all evidence of the cause of death would disappear after the body was cremated. Remember, the people who are making a claim must show that the car accident was the most likely reasonable cause of death, not the other way around.

Some people believe that the person responsible for a car accident must prove that the auto accident was not the cause of death, but again, this is not true. That terrible burden is on those who have the right to make a wrongful death auto accident claim.

Due to the terrible tragedy of losing a loved one and the possible legal problems that can come up later, we strongly recommend that you hire an experienced automobile accident lawyer as soon as possible. Our firm has the strength, experience, kindness and knowledge to help you in this terrible tragedy.

Due to these terrible facts, please contact us for a free consultation with a wrongful death car accident lawyer at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

Father’s Death: What Can a Car Accident Lawyer Recover?

When a father dies as the result of an auto accident, a wrongful death automobile accident attorney should be able to help you recover money. The following people recover money for their late father’s financial support, as well as what is called loss of comfort, society and protection:

Each of his children, regardless of whether his child was minor or an adult, married or unmarried, financially dependent or nondependent.
Illegitimate children may also have a right to make a claim for monetary damages.

Unfortunately, you cannot recover anything for your grief or sorrow if you lose your father in a fatal car accident. However, you may be able to recover the loss of comfort, society and protection, as well as for financial losses that would have been provided. This is why you need an experienced wrongful death accident attorney to help you make sense of what you can recover.

The recovery amount money may be limited by the life expectancy of either the deceased or the children, whichever is shorter. In a wrongful death car accident, you may also be able to recover for funeral and burial expenses. It does not matter how much money each of the children have; what matters is the financial support by the late parent before the wrongful death car accident, and the relationship between the child and the late father. Those factors determine a child’s settlement amount

As wrongful death accident attorneys, we would carefully examine the amount of money the father would have contributed to support his children had he not been killed in a fatal car accident, which includes:

Maintenance, education and care for each of his children.
The cost of many items (such as food, clothing, shoes, housing, books, college tuition, haircuts, entertainment, travel, medical and dental care, eye examinations and eyeglasses, gifts, athletic equipment, transportation, and whatever other items the father could have afforded).

The other portion of damages, referred to as loss of comfort, society and protection can be proved by discussing the father/child relationship, which includes but is not limited to shared activities, counsel and instruction he provided. For example, as wrongful death car accident attorneys, we can prove this by showing the following:

The father read to his children.
The father took them to recreational games (such as baseball or football).
The father brought them fishing, hiking, skiing or camping.

As wrongful death accident attorneys, we will assist the surviving children by limiting the responsible party’s insurance company from attacking their late father, who do so by attempting to show that he had no relationship with his children, rarely saw or lived far away from his children.

We know as wrongful death auto accident attorneys that the responsible party’s insurance company would like to pay you as little as possible and may bring up personally offensive facts (e.g. the father did not have enough education or experience to advise his children with financial or business matters), or the insurance company could even argue that the father was in poor health before the auto accident and that he was actually dependent on his children, and not the other way around.

How can a wrongful death car accident attorney help if the children are grown up and on their own? In this case, it is important to highlight the quality of the relationship:

How often the children and father visited one another.
The quality of the father/child relationship.
How often they got together for family gatherings.
We will even note the child’s respect for the late father.

Financial support can be proved in several ways and is not limited in the way most people think. A deceased person’s earnings at the time of the car accident death does not limit the claim, but rather, as wrongful death car accident attorneys, we would argue that value of what the deceased would have probably earned should be taken into consideration to calculate how much you can recover. This includes his age, education, skill, personal habits and ambition.

The claim is not limited to only the late father’s personal labor if the late father owned his own business or was self-employed and would have collected money from the labor of others.

Due to the complexity of this claim, we strongly recommend that you consult with an experienced wrongful death auto accident attorney as soon as possible after your father’s death. This is a tragic situation, and we believe that you may not be able nor should have to deal with this situation on your own. The responsible party’s automobile insurance company will probably not explain all of your legal rights and only wants to pay you as little as possible in just one lump sum settlement.

Remember, you cannot later go back and make a claim for additional damages after this claim is settled.

Taking these terrible facts into consideration, please contact us for a free consultation with a wrongful death car accident lawyer at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

Husband’s Death: What Damages Can a Wrongful Death Car Accident Attorney Help a Widow Recover?

When a husband dies in an auto accident, his widow has a claim to recover for what is legally called loss of comfort, society and protection; and she may also be able to make a claim for what is legally called loss of consortium, which the law defines as the loss of support, services, love, companionship, affection, sexual relations and comfort.

The amount of money that can be claimed is measured by a either the widow or the deceased person’s age, whichever is shorter. Of course, in a wrongful death car accident, a widow is able to make a claim for funeral and burial expenses.

What happens if there is a remarriage after the death of a widow’s late husband? The widow will still be able to recover, and it is not a penalty and does not hurt the widow’s wrongful death claim in the slightest way. This is not to be confused with a widow who was separated from her husband at the time of his death. That claim is generally limited to loss of legal support and nothing for all the good years they spent together.

Child support can also be claimed as long, as long as it was being paid to the widow at the time of death.

Financial support can be proved in several ways. A deceased person’s earnings, at the time of death, does not limit the claim; but rather, as wrongful death car accident attorneys, we would argue that proof of what the deceased would likely have earned must be taken into consideration for how much you can recover. This includes the husband’s age, education, skill, personal habits and ambition.

Please note: the claim is not limited to only the late husband’s personal labor if the late husband owned his own business, was self-employed or would have collected money from the labor of others.

As long as the widow had personal knowledge of her late husband’s earnings, she is qualified to provide that information. As accident attorneys, we would also seek out others who may be more knowledgeable as to the late husband’s business affairs and personal working habits and should be able to further document this claim.

Some other examples of what a widow may recover:

Contributions for personal items, holiday gifts and entertainment money.
Medical care which the late husband provided to his widow.

If the marriage was unhappy and about to break up, it is possible that another person such as a child may be able to state this fact and reduce the widow’s claim for damages.

Due to the complexity of this claim, we strongly recommend that you consult with an experienced wrongful death auto accident attorney as soon as possible after your husband’s death. This is a terrible situation, and we believe that you may not be able nor should have to deal with this situation on your own.

It is also very important to consult with an experienced wrongful death car accident lawyer, when dealing with an insurance company which will probably not explain all of your legal rights and only wants to pay you as little as possible in just one lump sum settlement. Remember, you cannot later go back and make a claim for additional damages after this claim is settled.

Due to these terrible facts, please contact us for a free consultation with a wrongful death car accident lawyer at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

Mother’s Death: What Financial Damages Can a Wrongful Death Car Accident Attorney Help You Recover?

When a mother dies as the result of a car accident, a wrongful death automobile accident attorney should be able to help the following people recover money for their late mother’s financial support:

Each of her children, whether her child was a minor or an adult, married or unmarried, financially dependent or nondependent.
Illegitimate children may also have a right to make a claim for monetary damages.

Believe it or not, you cannot recover anything for your grief or sorrow from the loss of your mother due to a car accident, but you may be able to recover money for what is legally called loss of comfort, society and protection, in addition to financial losses that would have been provided to you. This is why you need an experienced wrongful death auto accident attorney to help you make sense of what you can recover.

The amount of recoverable money may be limited by the life expectancy of either the mother or the children, whichever is shorter. In a wrongful death car accident, you are also able to recover for funeral and burial expenses.

It does not matter how much money each of the children are worth; what matters is the financial support provided to the children by the late mother before the wrongful death car accident, and the relationship between the child and the late mother.

As wrongful death car accident attorneys, we would carefully examine the amount of money the mother would have contributed to support her children, which includes:

The cost of raising, maintaining, caring and educating her children had she not been killed in the car accident.
This also includes the cost of many items such as food, clothing, shoes, housing, books, college tuition, haircuts, entertainment, travel, medical and dental care, eye examinations and eyeglasses, gifts, athletic equipment, transportation, and whatever other items the mother could have afforded if the fatal car accident had not occurred.

The other portion of damages, referred to as loss of comfort, society and protection can be proved by discussing the mother/child relationship, which includes shared activities, counsel and instruction she provided. For example, as wrongful death car accident attorneys, we can prove this by showing that the mother read to her children, took them to recreational games, fishing, hiking, skiing and camping.

As wrongful death accident attorneys, we will assist the surviving children to limit the responsible party’s insurance company from attacking their late mother. The insurance company will attack the late mother by attempting to show that she had no relationship with her children, rarely saw them or even lived far away from her children. We know that, as wrongful death auto accident attorneys, the responsible party’s insurance company would like to pay you as little as possible and may bring up personally offensive facts to further their case. The insurance company could even argue that the mother was in poor health before the auto accident and that she was actually dependent on her children, and not the other way around.

A wrongful death car accident attorney can also help grownup children by showing:

How often the mother and children visited one another.
The quality of their relationship.
How often they get together for family gatherings.
Showcasing the children’s respect for their late mother.

Financial support can be proved in several ways. A late mother’s earnings at the time of the car accident death does not limit the claim, but rather, as wrongful death car accident attorneys, we would argue that the more accurate monetary figure is what the late mother would have probably earned. This includes her age, education, skill, personal habits and ambition. This claim is not limited to only the late mother’s personal labor if the late mother owned her own business, was self-employed or would have collected money from the labor of others.

Due to the complexity of this claim, we strongly recommend that you consult with an experienced wrongful death auto accident attorney as soon as possible after your mother’s death. This is a tragic situation, and we believe that you may not be able and should not have to deal with this situation on your own.

It is also very important to consult with an experienced wrongful death car accident lawyer as soon as possible, especially when dealing with an insurance company. They will probably not explain all of your legal rights and will only want to pay you as little as possible in just one lump sum settlement. Remember, you cannot go back and make a claim for additional damages after this claim is settled.

Due to these terrible facts, please contact us for a free consultation with a wrongful death car accident lawyer at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

Son or Daughter’s Death: What Financial Damages Can a Wrongful Death Car Accident Attorney Help You Recover?

The most terrible situation that can happen to a parent is the loss of a child. A funeral procession is the last line that any parent would ever want to walk in. As wrongful death auto accident lawyers, we do our very best to understand and help with the terrible grief you have suffered. We will do our very best to make sure that legal affairs are not pushed to the side, and that your legal rights are protected, not just for the parent’s financial benefit, but to punish the person that caused the car accident.

Believe it or not, you cannot recover anything for your grief or sorrow from the loss of your child due to a car accident. Yet, it does not matter whether nor not you are the natural, illegitimate or adopted parent; you may be able to recover for what is legally called the loss of comfort, society and protection, as well as for financial losses that would have been provided to you. This is why you need an experienced wrongful death auto accident attorney to help you make sense of what you can recover. This would include whether or not the child was minor or an adult, married or unmarried or financially dependent or nondependent.

As experienced wrongful death car accident attorneys, we would assist parents to collect money for medical expenses that were your responsibility due to the auto accident as well as for funeral and burial expenses. The amount of recoverable money would be limited by the life expectancy of any parent or the late child, whichever is shorter.

The parent’s financial worth is generally not important. Some important factors that should be considered are as follows:

Whether or not the child was reasonably certain to have provided benefits to his or her parents from his or her earnings and services both before and after he or she became an adult.
The parent’s cost to support and educate the late child had he or she lived.
Whether the late child ran errands on the parent’s behalf.
Whether the late child assisted with the planning and preparation of food.
Whether the child mowed the lawn and took care of the garden.
Whether the late child constructed and repaired things around the house.
Whether the late child cared for other family children.
Whether the late child assisted with running a family business.

As wrongful death accident attorneys, we can also assist you by preventing the responsible party’s insurance company from attacking your child’s relationship with you. For example, the responsible party’s insurance company may attempt to show that the late child had no relationship with his or her parent or rarely saw or lived far away from his or her parent before the car accident. Additionally, we know that the responsible party’s insurance company would like to pay you as little as possible and may argue personally offensive facts such as that the late child did not have enough education or business experience.

A wrongful death car accident attorney can still help if the children are now grown up and on their own. To do so, we would show the quality of the parent/child relationship and how often the late child and parent visited one another.

Financial support can be shown in several ways. A child’s earnings at the time of the car accident does not limit the claim, but rather, as wrongful death car accident attorneys, we would argue that the value of the case should be what the child would have probably earned should had he or she not been in a fatal car accident. This would include the late child’s age, education, skill, personal habits and ambition before the car accident.

Due to this claim’s complexity, we strongly recommend that you consult with an experienced wrongful death auto accident attorney as soon as possible after the death of a child. This is a tragic situation, and we believe that you may not be able nor should have to deal with this situation on your own.

It is very important to consult with an experienced wrongful death car accident lawyer, especially when dealing with an insurance company. They will probably not explain all of your legal rights and will only want to pay you as little as possible in just one lump sum settlement. Remember, you cannot later go back and make a claim for additional damages after this claim is settled.

Brother or Sister’s Death: What Financial Damages Can a Wrongful Death Attorney Recover?

The death of a brother or sister is a family tragedy. Not only are you mourning the loss of a brother or sister, but your whole family is suffering emotionally. As wrongful death auto accident attorneys, we work hard to make sure that your legal rights are protected and, at the same time, punish the person that caused the car accident. A brother and sister may have the right to recover financial damages for the loss of their sibling regardless of age.

Believe it or not, you cannot recover anything for your grief or sorrow from the loss of your brother or sister due to a car accident. You may, however, be able to recover for what is legally called the loss of comfort, society and protection, as well as for financial losses that would have been provided to the surviving brother or sister. This is one possible reason why you need an experienced wrongful death auto accident attorney to help you make sense of what you can recover.

The amount of recoverable money may be limited by the life expectancy of either the deceased or their brother or sister, whichever is shorter. In a wrongful death car accident, you may also be able to recover for funeral and burial expenses.

Some examples of important considerations for brother or sister claims would be whether or not the late brother or sister:

Was reasonably certain to have provided the financial benefits to the brother or sister.
Provided financial, legal and business advice.

As wrongful death car accident attorneys, we would insist that any inheritance from a late brother or sister is irrelevant, and it does not matter whether or not your late brother or sister was from a different mother or father than you.

The responsible person’s insurance company would probably try to deduct from your award by stating that your late brother or sister did not provide you with any financial assistance prior to his or her death. However, we would fight for this on your behalf.

Again, as wrongful death auto accident attorneys, we would make it clear to the responsible party’s insurance company that there was a familial relationship between the deceased brother or sister and the surviving siblings. As experienced wrongful death auto accident attorneys, we would work to prove the family relationship by showing that the deceased brother or sister:

Attended family gatherings.
Exchanged birthday and holiday gifts (such as Christmas gifts).
Displayed affection, respect, concern or loyalty.
Financial dependency.

As wrongful death car accident attorneys, we would carefully examine the amount of money the late brother or sister would have contributed to support you, which includes:

Maintenance, education and care to you had he or she not been killed in the car accident.
The cost of many items such as food, clothing, shoes, housing, books, tuition (including college tuition if it can be proven the brother or sister would have attended college), haircuts, entertainment, travel, medical and dental care, eye examinations and eyeglasses, gifts, athletic equipment, transportation, and whatever other items the brother and sister not only could have afforded if the car accident had not occurred.

As wrongful death auto accident attorneys, we assist the surviving siblings by limiting the responsible party’s insurance company from attacking his or her brother or sister. The insurance company will attempt to show that the deceased sibling had no relationship, rarely saw or lived far away from his or her siblings.

We also know, as wrongful death auto accident attorneys, that the responsible party’s insurance company would like to pay you as little as possible and may argue personally offensive facts. The insurance company could even argue that the brother or sister was in poor health before the auto accident, and that he or she was actually dependent on his or her siblings, and not the other way around.

A wrongful death car accident attorney can even help if the deceased’s siblings are now grown up and on their own. As your wrongful death lawyer, we would show:

How often the siblings visited one another.
The quality of their relationship.
How often they gather for family get-togethers.
We will even detail their respect towards one another.

Financial support can be proven in several ways and is not limited in the way most people think. A deceased family member’s earnings, at the time of the car accident death, does not limit the claim, but rather, as wrongful death car accident attorneys, we would argue that value of what the deceased would have earned should also be taken into consideration. This includes his or her age, education, skill, personal habits and ambition. The claim is not limited to only the late brother or sister’s personal labor if the late brother or sister owned his or her own business, was self-employed or would have collected money from the labor of others.

Due to the complexity of this claim, we strongly recommend that you consult with experienced wrongful death auto accident attorneys, such as our firm, as soon as possible after your brother or sister’s death. This is especially true as you are probably communicating with an insurance company that does not have your best interest in mind. They will probably not explain all of your legal rights and only want to pay you as little as possible in just one lump sum settlement. Remember, you cannot later go back and make a claim for additional damages after this claim is settled.

Due to these terrible facts, please contact us for a free consultation with a wrongful death car accident lawyer at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

What Happens If a Person Is Terribly Injured in a Car Accident and Then Dies?

Generally, there are two possible outcomes.

The person injured in a car accident case settles the claim while he or she is alive.
The person injured in a car accident dies before the case is settled.

With a wrongful death, settlement becomes even more complicated because the people who bring the wrongful death auto accident claim must be able to prove that the death was caused by the auto accident — not that it is probable but possible to a degree of medical certainty.

When we are hired, we conduct an immediate investigation into all the facts of the accident, including:

The injured person’s: age, injuries, past medical history.
Any long term consequences.
Medical and wage loss.

Obviously, it is important to settle an auto accident claim as soon as possible. Under California law, human pain and suffering dies with the injured person. As the injured person gets only one settlement, however, it is important to not miss anything. There are many possible outcomes, and we will do our best to give you as many options as possible.

Usually, people are emotionally unable to deal with the details of a wrongful death car accident claim. The people that have the ability to bring a claim on behalf of the deceased person must prove that the person died because of the car accident. For this reason, it is important to conduct a complete investigation, often including an autopsy, in order to prove that the car accident caused the person’s death.

A wrongful death car accident settlement can often be greatly affected by actions which are taken immediately after a person passes away. An experienced wrongful death car accident attorney will be able to guide you through this difficult time and help you recover the maximum financial compensation under the circumstances.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident attorney at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

What Happens if a Loved One Dies Before Settling a Personal Injury Claim?

When a person dies as a result of a car accident, there are two possible claims (or lawsuits) that may be brought against the responsible person by an experienced car accident attorney. In a survival action, a car accident attorney is unable to prove that the death was caused by the car accident. In a wrongful death action, a car accident attorney is able to prove that the death was caused by the car accident.

One important difference between a survival action and a wrongful death action are the damages (money) the surviving family members or others are allowed to demand from the responsible party and/or their car accident insurance company. In a survival action, a person’s family and/or others are only allowed to recover losses that occurred before someone passed away, which includes any punitive damages that the deceased person would have been entitled to recover. This means that the family members or others pursuing the survival action are going to be limited to recovering:

The value of the medical expenses and care incurred before death.
Ambulance services.
Loss of earning capacity from date of injury to the date of death.
Any punitive damages (money awarded to an injured person to punish the responsible party for their conduct) the decedent would have been entitled to had they lived.

An experienced car accident attorney will be able to give you a more detailed explanation. In a survival action, family members and others are limited by law in what they may recover, which many people view as unfair. Family members and others are not allowed to recover money for:

The deceased’s human pain and suffering as a result of the car accident.
Pecuniary/financial damages including:

Loss of money the deceased person would have earned before and after death.
Compensation for the loss of services to the family such as advice, counseling, and instructions at home.
Contributions to the family such as money, food, housing, education, clothing and entertainment.
Love, comfort, society, and protection.

Deciding whether or not to file a survival action can be very confusing and painful. Due to the complexity of this claim, we strongly recommend that you consult with an experienced auto accident attorney as soon as possible after the death of your loved one. This is a tragic situation, and we believe that you may not be able nor should have to deal with this situation on your own.

The responsible party’s automobile insurance company will most likely not explain all of your legal rights and only wants to pay you as little as possible in just one lump sum settlement. Remember, you cannot later go back and make a claim for additional damages after this claim is settled.

Due to the complexity of these situations, please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced wrongful death car accident lawyer at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

ACCIDENT RESPONSIBILITY

What Happens If I Am Partially at Fault For My Automobile Accident?

In California, you can still recover money even if you were partially at fault for an automobile accident. Just because the car accident may have been the fault of both drivers, this does not mean that you cannot recover anything for your injuries. Many times when people are involved in an automobile accident, it is not clear which driver is at fault for the accident. For example, when one driver may have been the real cause of for failing to stop at a stop sign, perhaps another driver also contributed to the car accident if he or she was speeding.

Here are two basic examples to explain if one is completely at fault or someone else was partially at fault (this may reduce the amount of money you are entitled to receive):

John and Mary are involved in an auto accident. John runs a stop sign and is 100% at fault. John will then be responsible for 100% of Mary’s damages and money she should receive.
John and Mary are involved in an auto accident. John runs a stop sign, but Mary was speeding. If it determined that John is 80% at fault and Mary is 20% at fault, Mary will only recover 80% of the money that she is entitled.

As experienced automobile accident attorneys, we can work towards getting the best recovery in a bad situation. Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident attorney at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

What Is Negligence and What Does It Have to Do With My Car Accident Claim?

Negligence is a legal term used to describe a wrong-doing that is done by someone, generally to another person. It refers to conduct that is wrong as a result of someone not taking the necessary steps to reasonably protect someone else from harm.

In auto accidents, negligence is used in order to obtain a financial recovery for your injuries. There are four general considerations which should be taken into account when deciding whether or not someone has been negligent:

Duty of Care. Each driver has a duty of care or responsibility to surrounding people (including motorcyclists, bicyclists and pedestrians) to drive safely, obey the laws to prevent car accidents from happening.
Breach of Care. Breach simply means when someone fails to do any of the things that someone has responsibility for, such as safely driving an automobile. (For example, speeding is an example of a breach of care.)
Causation. In order for someone to be at fault in a car accident, it must be proven that the injuries and damage that result are actually caused by the accident. (i.e. you must show that your back pain is the result of the car accident and not the result of some other activity, such as lifting something heavy later that day or participating in a sport that can cause injuries.)
Damages. Damages include car accident related injuries to your person as well as damage to your car. An auto accident insurance company may pay you money for injuries that were caused by a car accident. For example, if you have whiplash and have to go to the chiropractor for treatment, the damages may include the chiropractor’s bill as well as any time you may have missed from work due to your injuries.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident attorney at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

Are Employers Also Responsible For Employees’ Car Accidents?

In most circumstances, yes.

For example, if a Federal Express delivery driver should hit you, Federal Express is usually responsible for their driver’s poor driving. Another benefit is that the employer will usually have more car accident insurance than the person driving the responsible vehicle.

It may be important to show that the responsible person was working at the time of the accident. This often involves special legal investigation and research. Additionally, large companies that are involved in personal injury claims spend more money to defend their claims and often hire expensive lawyers to represent them.

Michael Pines used to work for large corporations whose drivers were at fault for these types of truck or car accidents. He has special insider knowledge which can help you get the most amount of money for these types of accidents.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident lawyer at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

Is a Parent Responsible for Their Minor Child’s Auto Accident?

If someone is involved in an automobile accident, and the person responsible for the car accident is a minor, the first question our firm is asked when this situation arises is, “Are the minor’s parents responsible for the injuries and damages their child has caused.”

Parental liability is the legal term used to refer to a parent’s responsibility to pay for damages caused by their minor child. In California, a minor is a person under 18-years-old. Parental liability, if any exists, typically ends once the child reaches the age of 18.

Generally speaking, a parent is not legally responsible their minor child’s negligent acts. One of the most common examples of negligence is a car accident caused by inattention to road conditions, running a red light, drunk-driving (DUI) or speeding. This means that if a minor child causes a major auto accident and has minimal automobile insurance (California law generally requires a driver to carry only $15,000 per injured person or $30,000 for all person injured in an accident), that injured person will not have the ability to seek additional money from the minor’s parents.

While there is usually no parental liability for a car accident, there is a common exception to this rule if a parent allows their minor child to drive a car when the parent knows the minor child has been drinking alcohol. In this case, you can claim the parent is responsible for your injuries because the parent was also negligent for entrusting, and providing, automobile to a person they know, or should have known, is unable to safely drive. This theory of parental liability is called negligent entrustment.

If the minor drives his or own car and pays for his own insurance while living at home, and for example, assume that an intoxicated or drunk teenager driver is the cause of an auto accident. The parent or legal guardian is generally not liable unless it could be shown that the parent had something to do with this accident (e.g. allowing a drunk teenage driver to operate a car). In these and other situations, we strongly recommend that you speak with us at your first convenience and before you have spoken with any insurance company.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident lawyer at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

Can I Make a Claim Against the Police For a Car Accident?

In California, the police are usually not responsible for personal injuries, property damage or any other damages. They are protected or immune from auto accident liability. This protection applies to the police in many different situations, including when a police officer collides with your car while in a high speed chase. Of course, the person driving away from the police is not protected, just the police.

In addition to the police having protection or immunity from injuries caused by car accidents, California’s Car Accident laws also provides very broad protection to other government agencies and others in many similar situations (such as ambulances and firemen).

While the police enjoy immunity for most car accidents, there may be a way around this rule. Additionally, there may be other people responsible for the accident. At the Law Offices of Michael Pines, we have experience with claims against the police and others. We have devoted our entire practice to helping injured people with difficult cases.

Even though you might not have done anything wrong — except perhaps been in the wrong place at the wrong time — if something like what was described above happened to you, we strongly recommend that this case be handled by an experienced car accident lawyer.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident lawyer at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

What Are the California Government Claims For Auto Accidents?

This very general FAQ is limited to a California governmental entity (such as a local County or City government), but not the United States government. As will be discussed, we strongly recommend that a car accident attorney be hired as soon as possible after an automobile accident, as California law is quite tricky.

If a government entity is at fault, there are two things that you need to be aware:

You must file a special government claim form in its entirety.
Also, to file a lawsuit against the government, there is a much shorter time limit than a private citizen claim.

A big challenge, right after many car accidents, is proving whether or not a governmental entity is actually involved or has some responsibility for an automobile accident. While it may be obvious that the government is involved in some auto accidents because the other driver is in a marked government vehicle (such as a police patrol car or a car/truck with government license plates), some government employees drive their own personal non-marked cars that may be very old. Also, what happens if the injured person from a car accident is taken away by ambulance and never had a chance to discuss the car accident or exchange information?

There are special rules and obstacles that apply to making an auto claim if you are injured in an automobile accident that is caused by a California governmental entity or if a car accident was caused by the government’s failure to keep a public area safe. One major difference between a California government car accident and a private claim are the time limits one has to present their claim for person injuries. This time limit or deadline is called the statute of limitations.

Another example, that can be very confusing, is the different businesses that may not appear to be owned by a government entity (such as ambulances, public buses and real property owned by the State of California, and hospitals). If a government name is not plastered on the business, it is most likely hidden in special documents (i.e. the County Assessor or as stated by the California Secretary of State).

If the car accident is caused by the government’s failure to properly maintain a roadway or area, a detailed investigation should be immediately conducted to determine which governmental entity (such as a state, city or county) owns or has control of this area where the auto accident occurred. Another consideration is if there is a history of other people being involved in car accidents in the same exact area in which your car accident occurred.

This type of claim must be presented to the correct governmental entity and according to that entity’s guidelines, usually within six months from the date of the car accident. Each governmental entity has their own special claim forms, procedural requirements, and guidelines; and the six month time limit is an extra step entirely different from the usual two year time limit you would have to file a lawsuit for an injury claim against a private citizen. There may be special circumstances that allow you to present the government claim and file a lawsuit past the six month deadline, but the outside deadline to present the claim and lawsuit is usually one year.

In addition to the six month government claim statute of limitations, there are also special rules that state how long you have to file a lawsuit if your government claim is rejected or denied. Generally, your government claim is deemed denied if you do not receive a response within 45 days of presenting the claim. If your claim is denied in writing or deemed denied for lack of a government response, one usually has six months from the date of denial to file a lawsuit in the proper court of law, even if it is before the one year statute of limitations.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident lawyer at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

CAR ACCIDENT INSURANCE

What Does Your Car Accident Insurance Company Hope That You Do Not Know?

Car accident insurance companies, even your own, are out to save money by paying you as little as possible. Car accident insurance companies take in billions of dollars each year, and when a person is hurt, they are sometimes treated very unfairly by their own auto accident insurance company. Why and how would they do this? They will probably want to take your recorded statement and ask you all kinds of personal and private questions (such as your social security number). There are many reasons for this, but they mostly want to pin your story down in the event things change, and perhaps in the hopes that you were not thinking things through when you provided a recorded statement. Does a recorded statement help you? No! The car accident insurance companies may try to use it against you to show that somehow your story has changed over time to imply that you are lying. They may even try to discourage you from even hiring an auto accident lawyer and will almost certainly not tell you what you are legally entitled to recover (i.e. pain and suffering, loss of work, and disfigurement).
In almost all car accident cases — not including worker’s compensation — an individual gets just one bodily injury settlement at the very end of the auto claim/case. Some people cannot work, or perhaps do not have health insurance, but people are supposed to somehow get by, receive medical care, maintain their lifestyle, support one’s family, and then collect the money which was lost much later. What happens if your bills are due, such as rent, electricity, car payments, and now, healthcare expenses? What if you cannot afford to take time off from work? What if you now do not have a car to take you to work? Can you get access to quality healthcare without insurance? There are no magic answers to each of these and other problems, but there is a smart way to respond instead of reacting. As car accident attorneys, we have a legal obligation to inform you of what is called the statute of limitations, or the legal time limit to bring a bodily injury claim in a California court of law. This is generally two years from the date of the car accident. Just remember, the time limits may be shorter for many reasons, however, if a government employee/entity is involved or if the responsible party passes away. As always, each case is different.
What appears to be the truth is often more important is actually the truth. For example, the injured person must prove that the car accident was someone else’s fault and the resulting injuries were due to the same car accident, which in the law is called the burden of proof. Meaning, just because someone hit you and admits fault, the injured person has to prove with some reasonable medical and legal certainty that the accident is the cause of the injuries. Therefore, pictures of the injured areas, property damage or any other damages are very good, in this regard.
Auto Accident insurance companies want your cooperation, but they will rarely do the same for you. They want to take your statement and ask you all kinds of personal questions, but try asking them if they will agree in writing to give you the responsible party and/or their insured’s statement in exchange for your cooperation. In about 99.9% of the time, the answer is no.
Many times a computer will determine how much your auto accident claim is worth. This is not universally true; the claims adjuster will usually deny it, claiming their computer is a tool. But, many car accident insurance companies (link to “How Insurance Companies Determine How Much Money to Pay You for a Car Accident?”) overuse a computer program called Colossus. Ask them about this program, and see if they can send you some literature about it.
All doctors and health insurance companies are the same. As car accident attorneys, we wish it were true, but it is not. Today, we have Health Maintenance Organizations (HMOs), such as Kaiser, who usually require approval for everything and are out to save money at your time and expense. Then, there are some healthcare providers who are treatment oriented and will treat what is wrong with you, but do not want to be involved in with any accident insurance claims process on your behalf. Remember, as discussed above, if you bear the legal burden of proof, it is helpful if you doctor, and perhaps other experts, help show that the accident is the legal cause of your problems. Auto accident Insurance companies usually will not tell you that you can get paid for re-injuring the same part of your body that has been hurt before. This is referred to as an aggravation of a pre-existing condition, meaning that the car accident may have made your previous condition worse.
A good auto accident attorney can make the world of difference. Why? Here are some reasons why you should choose us as your auto accident attorney:

Most people are terrible at representing themselves for a car accident as they say and do the wrong things. Meanwhile, the insurance companies are listening, watching and writing down everything that will help the insurance company — not you.

For most people that are terribly injured, the question is not will a car accident attorney will be hired, it is whether or not that person will hire a good auto accident attorney as opposed to just any car accident attorney. In our firm, we have excellent experienced attorneys and a large, bilingual support staff. Michael Pines is an experienced former insurance company attorney who has insider knowledge about how insurance companies work. In our firm, the attorneys went to top law schools, and we specialize in car accidents claims.

We would be glad speak with you over the phone or send someone to you for a no pressure and free consultation. We are pleased to give references and are proud to tell you we have been practicing since 1992.

We have two goals for people. (1) For the injured person to get well. (2) Get the injured person the maximum financial result possible. Money is the only way we have in the U.S. to compensate the injured, but do not forget that about 60 million Americans reportedly do not have health insurance.

The best time to hire an accident lawyer is at the beginning of the case, just as if one was ill and needed to see a doctor. We can give an estimate once we have enough information about your case and can give you intelligent and honest advice. What people like about our firm is that we tell people from the very beginning exactly what we think, whether it is good or bad.

We are one of the few firms where you can contact an attorney seven days a week, including holidays. We treat people as we would want to be treated if the roles were reversed and we were injured in a car accident.

As accident lawyers, we do not charge for anything unless there is a recovery, so, you have nothing to lose by contacting us and getting a free opinion. Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident attorney at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

How Do Car Accident Insurance Companies Attempt to Invade Your Privacy?

Auto accident insurance companies — even your own — generally use your private medical records to determine how much money to pay you. These records include:

Your doctors’ and nurses’ notes.
Medical charts, x-rays, MRIs and other diagnostic medical tests.

While it is important to provide them with an accurate medical file, it is even more important to protect your personal right to privacy. Remember, you are not obligated to give the insurance company access to your entire health history. Keep in mind that medical records will often contain your social security number.

If you do not hire an experienced car accident attorney to protect your privacy rights, car accident insurance companies will often ask you to sign a general medical authorization for the release of ALL medical records, regardless of whether or not they are related to your car accident injuries. The medical authorizations provided by the car accident insurance company are not written to protect your privacy rights; instead, the car accident insurance company medical authorizations allow the insurance company to gather all types of private health and medical information that may or may not be related to the accident. In addition, the auto accident insurance company’s medical authorization may allow the insurance company access to your medical records without a specific expiration date. Meaning, the car accident insurance company medical authorization may allow a “free for all” of your private medical records and health history.

Not only will the auto accident insurance company attempt to retrieve your private health information, most insurance companies will then put this information into a computer database that may be available to other insurance companies without your specific permission. Indeed, at another time after the accident, you may sign a document without fully understanding that you gave the car accident insurance company access to medical records that you thought were unavailable or you did not realize they existed.

As experienced auto accident attorneys, we understand that car accident insurance companies need to review auto accident injury-related medical records, but they do not need access all of your medical records. Our firm has created unique medical record authorization forms, specially designed to protect your privacy rights. Medical authorizations are governed by a federal law called the Health Insurance Portability & Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA). It is important to be aware of HIPAA laws in order to protect your medical privacy rights because, under this law, medical authorizations have the following requirements:

Medical authorizations must have expiration dates.
These documents must be written in a larger font for easier reading.
It must expressly state that you have a right to receive a copy of the authorization.

Do not be fooled into thinking your privacy rights are protected by auto accident insurance companies that use HIPAA authorizations. The auto accident insurance company is able to get around many of the requirements by simply having you sign a document. The safest way to secure your medical and personal records is to hire an experienced auto accident attorney.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident lawyer at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

What Constitutes Full Coverage in a Car Accident?

If you were to ask a group of people what kind of automobile insurance coverage they have, a majority of them will probably answer “full coverage.” So what exactly does full coverage mean? What are your car accident insurance policy limits? What if you are involved in a car accident with a teenage drunk driving (DUI) driver or someone without insurance? What about your medical bills (where does the hospital send them, to the injured person, or to the person that caused the car accident)? All these are questions left unanswered by the term full coverage.

Having full coverage generally means that you have the minimum — not the maximum — car accident insurance with both liability and collision coverage. Minimum liability coverage (generally $15,000.00 per person or $30,0000.00 per accident if there was more than one person) is required by California law, and it covers the bodily injury caused by car accidents when the insured person was at fault. Collision coverage usually pays for car property damage.

Full coverage does not mean you are covered for every type of accident. You could potentially have “full coverage” and only carry minimum liability requirements and minimal collision coverage. Here are some examples of when you may not be covered:

Driving another person’s car, especially if that car does not have its own car accident insurance.
Operating a non-covered vehicle (such as a speed boat).
Getting into an accident where there are more damages or money owed than the stated amount of the policy limits in your car accident insurance policy.

As California car accident attorneys, one of the sneakiest insurance policies we have seen is when the insurance does not follow the car. For example, assume you have a 100/300 insurance policy and your brother, who does not live with you, drives your automobile. There might be a clause in your policy that states that unless your brother lives with you, and considers your residence to be his legal address, that there is only minimum insurance, or 15/30.

The same people that state they have full coverage also assume they have uninsured motorist coverage. While California law states that it has to be offered, in many situations when people are struggling to save money, this coverage is allowed to be turned down.

Another feature offered in many auto insurance policies is medical payments. This is a set amount that is immediately available to cover medical expenses the occupants of your car, and in rare cases, the occupants of all people injured in a car accident. This is a nice benefit, especially if you want to be able to make sure that passengers without their own health insurance are covered in the event of a car accident.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident attorney at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

What Happens If the Responsible Party in an Automobile Accident Has No Insurance?

According to the Insurance Research Council in 2007, California has around 26 million licensed drivers and estimates that 22 percent of them are uninsured. This means that about one in four drivers has no automobile insurance. This statistic is quite conservative as other sources estimate that about a third of all California’s drivers do not have enough car accident insurance. This can vary depending upon individual cities, but remember, just because you are in a good part of town does not change the fact that people without car insurance can drive almost anywhere.

An uninsured driver does not have any automobile accident insurance, while an underinsured driver simply does not carry enough automobile accident insurance to pay for injuries or damages caused by an accident. California law generally requires a driver to carry at least $15,000.00 per injured person or $30,000.00 for all person injured in an accident.

Many uninsured drivers are responsible for the most serious accidents:

Additionally, many uninsured drivers do not have enough personal assets to reimburse an injured person even with a successful lawsuit. This makes recovering an auto accident settlement or judgment from an uninsured driver almost impossible.

If you are involved in a car accident, and the person who caused the accident has no automobile insurance or does not carry enough automobile accident insurance to pay for your injuries and damages, your uninsured motorist coverage on your automobile policy should cover you — although, you will need to check with your individual car accident insurance company to double check this. Additionally, uninsured motorist coverage can also apply whenever a hit-and-run driver causes an auto accident, as long as there is actual physical contact from the hit-and-run driver’s car.

About underinsured motorist coverage, your California uninsured motorist coverage may also apply if the responsible driver does not have enough liability insurance, but only if the other driver’s liability limits are lower than your uninsured coverage limits. So if the driver, responsible for the accident, carries liability limits of $15,000 per person, you may not be able to make a claim for additional financial compensation under your policy unless you carry uninsured/underinsured motorist policy limits greater than $15,000. For example, if a teenage drunk driver causes an accident and carries the lowest limit of liability insurance (usually $15,000), and you have $30,000 in uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage, you will have the ability to make a claim with your own insurance company for an additional $15,000 — the monetary difference between the two policies.

Uninsured motorist coverage must be offered on all automobile policies sold in California, unless it is rejected by the person who purchased the car accident insurance. While many people are nervous to use their own insurance for any type of claim for fear that their insurance rates will increase, your uninsured motorist coverage is designed to compensate you for a personal injury caused by a driver who is uninsured or inadequately insured. If you carry uninsured motorist coverage, it will usually be designated with letters “UM” on the declaration page which summarizes an automobile insurance policy’s coverage.

It is also important to know how much is covered by your uninsured motorist’s car accident insurance policy. Uninsured motorist insurance should cover you, your passengers and all family members who reside in your household. Your uninsured motorist coverage may also apply to any passengers in your car and any other people driving your car with your permission. Uninsured motorist vehicle coverage can also apply whenever anyone, who is covered by the policy, is injured by a driver who is uninsured or underinsured, even if you are a bicyclist or a pedestrian.

You may find out that your own insurance company can be very difficult to deal with as they would step into the shoes of the responsible uninsured motorist. Remember, the injured person has one chance at justice and a fair settlement to pay for all of the injuries in an accident. You may find that your own car accident insurance company will attempt to pay you as little money as possible.

Please remember, you should consult with an experienced California accident attorney if you are involved in a motor vehicle accident that involves an uninsured or underinsured driver.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident attorney at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

What Are Policy Limitations for Those Injured in a Car Accident?

An injured person in a California car accident is only able to recover the stated policy limits from the responsible party’s car insurance or from the injured party’s uninsured motorist coverage (link to “Uninsured Motorist Coverage”), except when going after the responsible party’s personal assets. This means that if you are terribly injured, the most you can recover is the stated policy limits.

Of course, if you have no health insurance, this can really turn out to be unfair. If you are injured in an auto accident, the hospital bills are not sent to you and not the driver responsible for the car accident.

The California auto accident attorneys at the Law Offices of Michael Pines have helped many people in this situation avoid the necessity of filing bankruptcy. There are many ways of attempting to save money on outrageous hospital and medical billings.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident lawyer at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

What Does a $15,000/30,000 Bodily Injury Mean in an Automobile Accident Insurance Policy?

This means auto accident insurance will provide $15,000 per person and $30,000 per car accident if there is more than one person injured in the auto accident.

California law requires a minimum of $15,000/30,000 bodily injury liability insurance for all drivers. The purpose of liability insurance is to compensate injured parties in an auto accident for their bodily injury (including past, present and future medical expenses). When a person is at fault for an auto accident, and the other party is injured, the responsible person’s bodily injury insurance should pay for each of these damages.

Bodily injury policy limits of $15,000/30,000 only apply to the injured parties in an automobile accident who are not at fault. Also, this is not a way for you to recover from your own insurance policy. The limits are to protect your personal assets should you be the cause of a car accident. If you are injured in an automobile accident, and it was not your fault, the responsible party’s insurance should pay for your bodily injuries. With this in mind, it is a good idea to hire an experienced auto accident attorney to help recover the greatest financial settlement possible from the responsible party’s insurance company.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident attorney at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

How A Few More Dollars for Car Accident Insurance Equals Peace of Mind?

California law requires drivers to have a minimum amount of liability insurance when driving in the event of a car accident. Generally, the minimum is $15,000.00 per person or $30,000.00 per car accident if there was more than one person. This amount, however, is only a minimum requirement and insurance companies offer much higher limits for just a few dollars more per month.

You may be asking yourself, how will I benefit by paying more per month for car accident insurance? The best way to answer this question is to look at a few examples. Suppose you are in a car accident rear ended by a DUI teenage driver and are seriously injured. The teenager has the minimum car accident insurance required by California law. Let’s take this case. You have a hospital bill of over $100,000. What are your options?

In this situation, uninsured motorist coverage under not at fault car accident insurance might be applicable. Uninsured motorist coverage may apply in a car accident where the responsible party does not have insurance or where the responsible party does not have enough insurance. If the responsible party does not have enough insurance, the law allows you to recover from your own uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage as long as your limits are higher than the responsible party’s policy. If you have $100,000 in uninsured motorist coverage, you can recover the $15,000.00 from the drunk (DUI) teenage driver’s insurance, and then recover $85,000.00 from your own car accident uninsured motorist insurance policy. California law does not allow you to “stack” or add up both policies, you can only recover the difference after the responsible party pays; however, if you have minimal uninsured motorist policy limits, you could end up with an $85,000 medical bill to pay if you do not have a means to pay your medical bills!

Higher car accident insurance limits are generally not as expensive as they seem. You can save money by increasing your deductibles which may allow you to have higher limits for both liability and uninsured motorist’s coverage.

Let’s look at another example. Suppose you are involved in a car accident and were found at fault. Your insurance will only cover up to the policy limits you pay for. If you only carry a minimal policy, ($15,000.00/$30,000.00) you could potentially be sued for any damages that are more than your car accident insurance policy limits. A few dollars more per month for higher liability for bodily injury and property damage would mean peace of mind in knowing that your personal assets, such as your home might, be protected from a potential lawsuit.

Car accidents can happen to anyone, anywhere and anytime. It is important to understand the real value of higher car accident insurance limits. Statistics show you have about a 5% chance of being injured in car accident. This statistic can go up or down depending on what kind of car or motorcycle you drive, your age, and other factors. Realistically, your chances of being involved in a car accident are quite high. With this in mind, spending just a few more dollars for higher coverage is one the best investments you can make.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident lawyer at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

Why Should I Be Concerned About Car Accident Insurance Exclusions?

If you are involved in a car accident, there are situations where your own car accident insurance may not provide insurance coverage. Car accident insurance policies not only provide what your insurance will cover, but they also describe circumstances that are not covered, called exclusions. Therefore, it is well worth reading your car accident insurance policy before a car accident occurs — not after.

There are several ways a driver can be excluded, meaning, not have car accident insurance even though the car being driven had car accident insurance. For example, if you live with another person, such as a roommate, friend, boyfriend or girlfriend, and so forth, and they are not listed on your policy as a driver, they may be excluded from car accident insurance coverage. Even in situations where you fail to inform your insurance company that you live with someone, they may be considered to be excluded.

A deliberate act, such as purposely running into another car or person or street racing, may not be covered under your car accident insurance policy. It is also very important to make your automobile insurance payments on time as your insurance will likely cancel for lack of timely payment.

Your personal auto insurance policy may not cover your vehicle when used for business or profit. Therefore, it is very important to accurately tell your car accident insurance agent what your car is used for. This remains true even if there is a change during the car accident insurance term, which is the time that you have insurance to protect you and others in the event of any car accidents.

Accordingly, it is very important to make sure you are aware of exclusions in your car accident insurance policy.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident lawyer at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

How Umbrella Insurance May Cover You if You Are Injured in an Auto Accident?

The old saying, “When it rains, it pours,” is true with car accidents. For this reason, if the responsible party has a separate insurance policy in addition to car accident insurance, depending upon your injuries, you may be able to recover substantially more money.

Umbrella car accident and other insurance is a form of excess liability insurance that may provide extra insurance coverage to a person who was injured in an automobile accident. Umbrella insurance is considered “excess insurance” or “sleep insurance” because it is not usually effective until the responsible person’s other insurance policies are completely used up by the injured person.

If you are injured in an auto accident by a person who carries both auto insurance and umbrella coverage, which may be with a separate insurance company from the person’s auto accident insurance, you must recover all the money in the auto policy before you can make a claim under the umbrella coverage. Umbrella insurance is usually attached to either an automobile insurance policy or a homeowner’s insurance policy, and it typically carries much higher limits of liability car accident insurance, making more money available for an injured person to recover after an auto accident.

There are often insufficient amounts of money to compensate a person when they are seriously injured in a major automobile accident. Umbrella coverage can be crucial in making sure an injured person recovers a fair settlement. It is often difficult to discover if a person has an umbrella policy, or other forms of insurance, without the help of an experienced car accident attorney.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident attorney at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

What Is the Difference Between California Admitted and Non-Admitted Car Accident Insurance Policies?

Unfortunately, many people buy car accident insurance, pay their premiums, and — if there is a car accident — they just assume that their insurance company will step in and help them. After all, is this not the reason that people pay a car accident insurance company? Yes, but there is much more to the process.

All car accident insurance companies are different. Just like some people have more money in the bank, the same is true of car accident insurance companies. In fact, there are some car accident insurance companies that may not have enough money to protect you in the event of an auto accident.

You might think the Federal, State or Local Government will protect you in the event your car accident insurance company runs out of money. Unfortunately, this is also not always true. As experienced auto accident lawyers, we have witnessed many insurance companies file bankruptcy (meaning, they do not have any money and are out of business).

Who is going to pay your losses now? Some of these auto accident insurance companies may have started business by offering affordable insurance rates (perhaps those that seemed “too good to be true”) to get more business, only for it to backfire because they were not making a profit. Believe it or not, as experienced auto accident attorneys, we have seen insurance companies set up their business overseas and then go out of business, keeping their customers’ money.

As a California driver, what can you do you to protect yourself from bad auto accident insurance companies?

You can ask your insurance salesperson or broker how long this insurance company has been in business, if it is making a profit, and if it has enough money to stay in business.
Ask if this insurance company is a “California Admitted Car Accident Insurance Company.” If it is, this means that the State of California — with certain financial guidelines — will assist customers with pending auto accident claims if their auto accident insurance company goes out of business or is bankrupt.

Remember, this is also not a sure thing. For example, if the State of California goes bankrupt, you would have a big problem. It will probably cost a little more to purchase a California Admitted Car Accident insurance policy; however, as auto accident attorneys, we think it is well worth the extra costs.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident lawyer at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

INSURANCE CLAIMS

Who Pays For Your Car Accident Injuries?

Often times when people are injured in an automobile accident, they are reluctant to make any type of claim because they do not want to hurt the person that caused the accident or do not want to be involved in a lawsuit. An injury claim with an automobile insurance company is very different from going after the responsible party personally.

When an injured person makes a claim with an insurance company for reimbursement for medical bills, bodily injury, pain and suffering or lost earnings; assuming there is insurance coverage with enough limits, the insurance company pays for the settlement — not the responsible party.

California law requires a driver to purchase and carry automobile liability insurance. Liability insurance is required so a person injured in an auto accident has an avenue of recovery aside from filing a lawsuit or personally going after the responsible party.

In the context of a car accident injury, an injury claim is simply an application or request made with a person’s auto insurance company for money. An insurance claim does not involve the court system, trial or any part of the formal litigation process. More importantly, the person who is responsible for the accident does not pay the settlement, their insurance company does.

In conclusion, the big consideration for many people is that the injured person gets one settlement which, as car accident lawyers, we refer to as your “one chance for justice.” That settlement occurs at the very end of the claim. If an injured person should sign a paper called a General Release of all Bodily Injury Claims for a certain amount of money and later discover that there were other or more injuries, then another claim cannot be made. This is why insurance companies are eager to settle claims as soon as possible. An experienced auto accident attorney could help you avoid this costly mistake.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident lawyer at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

How Long Does It Take to Get Paid After a Car Accident?

Many clients often wonder, “How long will the entire process of settling a claim take, from the time I hire a car accident attorney, to the time I receive my settlement check?” There is no set or easy answer because all people, accidents and injuries are different.

As your car accident lawyer, here are several steps that we will take in order to properly settle your auto accident claim, including:

Performing a car accident investigation.
Obtaining important documents.
Professionally presenting your accident to the responsible party’s auto accident insurance company.

We will then do our very best to settle your auto accident insurance claim for the maximum amount of money.

Just know that we cannot begin to settle your auto accident claim until you have finished ALL medical treatment, and we are able to determine, with reasonable medical certainty, what treatment you might require in the future, including pain shots or even surgery. All cases are different, and we have found that there is no an average treatment time period as such a professional demand, to pay you for your injuries, is made.

Once the car accident insurance company receives the necessary information, we can begin negotiating a good car accident settlement on your behalf. Again, the amount of work necessary to complete negotiations, and agree on a final settlement amount, varies greatly depending upon the severity of the car accident, the injuries and the particular insurance company.

We will never accept a settlement amount without your verbal and written approval. Once a settlement is reached, our job is not finished until all the outstanding bills have been handled appropriately. We will prepare a full financial accounting (called a disbursement memorandum) for your review and approval.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident lawyer at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

How Long Do I Have To File a Car Accident Claim/Lawsuit?

In our opinion, the statute of limitations (the amount of time in which you have to file an auto accident claim) is the most important reason to hire a car accident attorney. The information below is very general and should not be relied upon. Instead, we strongly recommend that you consult with an experienced car accident attorney as soon as possible as the facts may change and others might be responsible for your car accident.

The Statute of Limitations refers to California law that set the deadline (the last day) for filing a formal lawsuit against the person responsible for a car accident. If a person fails to file a lawsuit by the legal deadline (before the Statute of Limitations passes), then the injured person’s right to sue (file a lawsuit) or make any claim against the responsible party is gone forever. It does not matter how terrible the car accident was or how badly you were injured.

There are several exceptions (and even exceptions to the exceptions) to the Statute of Limitations which may make the time deadlines shorter or possibly longer:

The person responsible was working for any governmental entity (i.e., utility workers, state social workers using their own cars, etc.) at the time of the car accident (a government claim for an auto accident [link to What Are the California Government Claims & Auto Accidents?] must be timely filed which is governed by a separate set of rules).
The responsible person passes away (even if it is not a result of the accident).
The injured person is a minor.
The injured person is making an uninsured/underinsured motorist car accident claim.

Due to the complexity of these exceptions, we believe it is extremely important that you immediately consult with an experienced auto accident attorney after a car accident in order to make sure that your legal rights are protected.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced auto accident attorney at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

MEDICAL TREATMENT

What Happens If I Am Injured in a Car Accident and Do Not Have Health Insurance?

Who gets charged with the medical bills if you are involved in a car accident that is not your fault, you or the responsible car accident driver? You might think you nothing wrong, so why should you get all of the bills? The hospital and other medical providers will send all medical bills directly to the person injured in the car accident, even when they were not at fault. This can be very confusing and can make a lot of injured people very mad.

If you are hurt and have health insurance, the retail hospital charges are reduced because most healthcare providers have pre-set billing (known as prearranged contractual billing) for each medical service. Meaning, those with health insurance pay much less. It is like having a medical care discount card.

On the other hand, if the injured person in the car accident has no health insurance, this usually means that person either does not have a job that pays benefits or as much money as the person that has health insurance.

In this year alone, there were about 50 million uninsured people in the U.S. These uninsured people pay the retail amount for health care, which is sometimes up to nine times greater than what health insurance would cost. In addition, clients at our auto accident attorney law firm have told us that they believe they did not get the same level of health care as if they had health insurance, such as x-rays, MRIs, and possibly overnight stays in the hospital for further observation.

As car accident lawyers, we handle these types of cases all the time. New California laws may assist some in this situation, but the unfair two-level treatment still continues. California still has two medical prices:

For those with health insurance, which you might call “wholesale prices” for auto accident medical care.
Retail prices for auto accident medical care for those without health insurance.

The challenges do not stop with unfair health insurance costs. Your car accident claim may be affected by your health insurance or the fact that you do not have any health insurance. For example, the car accident insurance company may input the retail or the wholesale figures when figuring out a fair financial settlement for you.

As experienced car accident attorneys, we are aware of the latest California laws to make sure that you get the most amount of money for your past, present and future medical bills, loss of earnings and human pain and suffering, even if you do not have health insurance.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident lawyer at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

What Happens If I Do Not Have Medical Insurance and am Injured in a Car Accident?

Suppose you are injured in a car accident and are one of millions of people without health insurance. How can you get the medical treatment you need? What will it cost you? What if you need x-rays, CAT SCANS, MRIs, or other medical studies? The answer to these and many other related questions may be possible with a medical lien.

There are many types of liens. A medical lien usually is a document signed by your doctor/medical provider, your car accident lawyer and you. It states that the healthcare provider will be paid for the services at the conclusion of the car accident claim.

The lien may provide a way for you to receive medical treatment without having to pay some or all money up front. The cost of the medical treatment is still your responsibility, but with a signed lien, you are able to receive the medical treatment you need right away. The lien is the doctor’s right to recover payment out of the auto accident settlement.

Another type of lien that is often seen in automobile accident injuries is a statutory or legal lien. This type of lien typically occurs with hospital or emergency services, provided within 72 hours after a car accident, and enables hospitals to recover a portion of the car accident if certain requirements are met.

Medical liens do not equal free medical treatment. The services you receive will have to be paid for at a later time; however, the advantage of a medical lien is that you are able to receive immediate medical attention, and the medical provider will get paid out of the auto accident settlement, not your own pocket.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident lawyer at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

What Are Automobile Accident Medical Records?

Medical records are important for proving what happened to an injured person due to a car accident. Medical records not only can help an injured person document all injuries, but insurance company car accident attorneys and claims adjusters usually carefully read some or all of your private medical or other records to determine whether or not the injured person has told the truth. The following records are very important:

Emergency room records and what the injured person either filled out in writing or told a healthcare provider right after an accident.
What the injured person writes down before seeing a doctor (such as your car accident history or medical history).
All doctor’s information and notes.

Medical records and billing are essential to proving an injured person’s claim or lawsuit. Medical records enable a person to present a successful personal injury claim because they help prove through the doctor’s records (medical testimony). Here are the relevant parts:

The injuries suffered as a result of the car accident.
The doctor’s recommended treatment.
The length of time it took to recover from the car accident.
The pain level while receiving medical treatment.
Any possible future medical treatment.
The reasonable and necessary cost of all medical treatment; and other important considerations.

Accordingly, as experienced car accident lawyers, we find it very difficult to recover money for your car accident injuries without receiving an injured person’s medical records and billing to document all of their costs and injuries.

Unfortunately, medical records may often contain information that may be harmful to you. It is important to remember that the insurance company’s car accident attorneys and claims adjusters will usually review all of the details of an injured party’s medical records when they are analyzing an auto accident. This detailed analysis will include reviewing the medical intake sheet that the patient fills out for the doctor before an examination. All people who are injured in car accidents should keep this in mind when discussing their injuries and/or filling out documents for doctors or others.

That said, an injured person should always be truthful with their doctors and not exaggerate the facts of the car accident, how they were injured, and or any other part of their injuries. A clever insurance company auto accident attorney will usually find these statements in the medical records and may use them against you when deciding how much money to pay you.

If you have been injured in a car accident, it is very important to also discuss any earlier car accidents and injuries, even if they were not due to a car accident. The insurance company’s auto accident attorney and others will usually find out about your medical history. Moreover, which many people do not understand, as it is complicated, previous problems which were made worse by this auto accident may even make your injury claim worth more money.

Please contact us for a free consultation with a car accident lawyer at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

How Can a Car Accident Attorney Help With Unreasonable Medical Charges?

The dollar amount you are billed for medical treatment, due to a car accident, will probably depend upon whether or not you have personal health insurance. Think of health insurance cards as a discount card for health care. Most hospitals and physicians have pre-negotiated medical billing rates for medical treatment as a result of a car accident.

Here are two examples:

A person is involved in a major automobile accident that was not the injured person’s fault that incurs about $40,000 in trauma costs. The health care providers (the ambulance, hospital, emergency room physician, trauma surgeon, laboratories, x-ray charges, MRI charges, CAT Scan charges) have auto accident medical billing codes that all correspond to what are believed to be fair and reasonable charges where the charges were incurred. Think of these billing codes as a “price list.” There is no special requirement or data base that sets these charges. Instead, the health care providers make up what they believe are fair community charges.
That same person that incurs $40,000 in trauma costs from a major automobile accident but has health insurance (generally speaking, it does not matter what type of health insurance, such as Blue Cross, Kaiser or Tri-Care). In this situation, the charges are all predetermined and negotiated with the major health insurance providers. Usually this means you pay a certain amount every month whether or not you receive medical treatment.

Having health insurance will usually result in significant savings in the medical billing for your car accident injuries. In our experience, people injured in auto accidents with health insurance often receive more comprehensive medical treatment from medical providers.

What does all of this mean? There are generally two extremes. Not having health insurance will usually mean you end up with the higher medical charges for your auto accident injuries. If these bills are not paid, expect the medical providers to send your bills to a collection agency who will then likely try to interfere with your credit and add on interest to the charges. Having health insurance will usually result in benefiting you when you are involved in a car accident because the medical charges are subject to the pre-negotiated and/or predetermined charges.

Even if you do not have health insurance, an experienced car accident attorney may be able to help with your outstanding medical bills. Car accident attorneys usually have many resources at their disposal to help with medical bills.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced auto accident attorney at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

How Can a Car Accident Lawyer Help Me with Inaccurate Emergency Room Records?

As experienced car accident lawyers, we know that medical records consist of the following:

Documents filled out in your own handwriting.
The rest of the medical records, documents that are filled out by other people.
Many of the emergency room personnel are in a hurry when filling out the documentation, so mistakes frequently occur.

What if you were in a terrible car accident and taken to a hospital? You may not be able to write anything without the help of others because you are in shock and pain, and these medical records may be considered your personal car accident history. These records are usually given more consideration because they were taken soon after the car accident. Auto accident insurance companies — depending upon what the records state — call them the undisputed truth.

These are some of the challenges that car accident lawyers face in getting to the truth:

What if you or a loved one does not speak English very well? Many times, emergency room personnel do not speak your own language and may not fully understand what happened to you in the car accident. Instead, they might write down what they think you or others said about the car accident. Again, remember that the at-fault person’s car accident insurance company may be carefully looking at these records.
What if you do not complete your own medical paperwork for your car accident? When most people go to a hospital or doctor’s office, they receive paperwork to complete. Some people complete the records themselves, while others need help to complete them. How do you know that the person helping you accurately wrote down what happened in the car accident? What if you are not able to review the answers to your medical paperwork? You are the only person that may know what happened because you were at the scene of the car accident. Remember, everything you say is written down in these records and will probably be used against you by the at-fault person’s car accident insurance company when it comes time to evaluate your claim.
What if the police come and interview you in the hospital while you are medicated? Car accidents often cause serious injuries that require strong medication. If — after the car accident — a police officer comes to interview you while you are in the hospital, you will likely not be able to give accurate information, and the police may write a report based on bad information.
What if the emergency room is very busy on the day of your car accident? Will your car accident information be accurately written down?

The bottom line is that it hard enough to represent yourself, let alone in situations where your medical information is inaccurate. Remember that car accident insurance companies will do anything they can to put the blame on you and minimize your injuries. An experienced car accident lawyer should be able to help you even when your emergency room medical information is inaccurate.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident lawyer at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

How Can a Car Accident Attorney Help Even When Medical Records Are Not Readable?

Not only do most auto accident doctors have poor handwriting, but many use abbreviations in your medical records which can be hard for others to understand. When you are injured in a car accident, you may see several doctors, physical therapists, and others experts that will each have to read and understand what the others wrote in each medical chart. Of course, this is not a problem if your doctor dictates your records into a typewritten document or if your doctor is able to type your car accident medical records as you provide information. As experienced car accident lawyers, we have reviewed and read (or tried to read) thousands of pages of medical records (for all of our clients over the past 20 years), and we understand how confusing your auto accident medical reports may be.

Here is an extreme example. Perhaps an injured person only has a primary care doctor treat them, and this doctor’s records are hard to read as none of the car accident records are typed. What if the car accident insurance claims adjuster cannot read the medical records? Indeed, many auto accident personal injury claims adjusters just input information into a pain, suffering and injury computer software program. What if a major part of your case is overlooked, such as a scar or a long-term problem requiring future medical treatments? How can accurate information about everything you suffered be input into a computer if the records are incomplete or unreadable?

Most people involved in a car accident want to feel better and get the financial part of the case over with. However, confusing medical records can prevent or delay you from recovering a fair financial settlement. In fact, it can be necessary to take the deposition (sworn testimony) of your doctor in order to figure out his medical notes.

As automobile accident attorneys, we have books and many reference tools available to make sense of medical abbreviations and terms. If necessary, we may make a phone call to your doctor to get a better understanding of what happened to you in the car accident.

In a perfect world, medical abbreviations such as “BP” for blood pressure would be eliminated, as this term can have several interpretations. However, because this is not a perfect world, it is important to have an experienced car accident lawyer on your side to help make sense of hard-to-read doctor notes and reports. We understand how car accident insurance companies evaluate auto accident claims, and we will make sure that you do not get a low-ball offer simply because the insurance adjuster could not read the doctor’s notes.

Please contact us for a free consultation with a car accident lawyer at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

PROPERTY DAMAGE

How Can I Recover My Property Damage Deductible Due to a Car Accident?

Property damages deductible concerns usually only occur in one of the following conditions:

Vehicle owner.
If there is a collision/property damage claim with your own car accident insurance company.

The deductible is the amount you are responsible to pay in addition to what your own insurance company will pay to repair your car. Alternatively, if your car is not able to be repaired (total loss), it is the amount of money which is subtracted from what your own insurance company will pay you for the loss of your car. If you or the driver or your automobile were at fault for the car accident, however, you will likely be unable to recover your property damages deductible.

If the driver of the car was not at fault for the auto accident, then you will probably have the option of using your own insurance company to repair your vehicle or alternatively, using the responsible party’s car accident insurance company. However, you have to be careful as you do not want to take too long to do your car accident repairs (link to “Mitigation of Damages”). Remember, if you would like to make a claim for loss of use of the damaged car, then you should not wait too long to repair the damaged car.

Therefore, if it is faster and more convenient to use your own automobile insurance company even though you have to pay a property damage deductible, even though the driver was not at fault for the accident. But if there are minor damages to your car, and a qualified expert has assured you that your car is safe to drive, you may want to not repair it and just keep the money paid by any car accident insurance company.

The good news is that your car accident insurance rates should not go up. Car insurance rates are based upon many factors, namely who was at fault for the car accident. Of course, the final determination is up to your insurance company, but you may ask for reconsideration if an unfavorable decision is made. If you have any concerns, your own car accident insurance representative should be contacted.

Should your own car accident insurance company recover the money to fix your car, they will attempt to recover money from the responsible party to pay you back for your car accident property damage deductible.

There are certain situations where you may not get your deductible back, for example when an accident is caused by an unidentified uninsured motorist. For this reason, many insurance policies offer something called an uninsured motorist property damage deductible waiver. It is a good idea and usually very cheap to purchase this car accident insurance coverage which is discussed in a different article.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident lawyer at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

Can I Get a Rental Car after an Automobile Accident?

There are usually two ways to get a rental car.

The faster way is if you had rental car coverage from your own car accident insurance company. If so, they will usually pay up to their stated money limit for a rental car.
Another way is to get one from the insurance company for the person that caused the car accident. This method is much more common, as most people do not have rental car coverage with their own car insurance company.

With both examples, you are generally not able to get extra car insurance, only the money for the rental car. As car accident lawyers, we assist our client so they do not get charged money that cannot be recovered.

Often times, a car accident leaves a person trapped without a car to drive. Not having your car can only cause major problems, if you depend upon your car to drive to school, work and run personal errands. Therefore, it is important to get a temporary, rental car.

Because of this special problem, we are going to take a moment to discuss your rights to a rental car when you are involved in a motor vehicle accident that is not your fault in California. If your vehicle is damaged and you are unable to drive it, you are entitled to be put in a similar make or model car by the person responsible for the auto accident. This simply means they only are required to pay for you to get a rental car that is similar to the car you own.

If the person responsible for the accident has automobile insurance, they will be responsible for assisting you in securing a rental vehicle. Unfortunately, insurance companies often drag their feet in helping you get your rental car, most of the time, because they do not have enough people to timely investigate car accident insurance claims. The insurance companies often take their time in determining who is at fault for a car accident; even if there is a police report, most insurance companies want to do their own investigation if they believe that their customer is not the cause of the car accident, which can take more time as witnesses may have to be located and cooperate in giving information.

Finally, it is important to know that securing a rental car or recovering money for a rental car is part of your property damage claim. This means you can recover these costs, or secure a rental car without affecting your personal injury settlement.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident lawyer at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

What Is a Property Damage Claim Due to a Car Accident?

If your car is damaged in an auto accident, one of the first problems that must be addressed is the repair of your car. With auto accident insurance, property damage is typically defined as damage to your car, truck, motorcycle or other motor vehicle. It is important to know that property damage in California also includes the cost of a rental car while your damaged motor vehicle is being repaired and damage to your personal belongings.

A property damage claim is the formal request for reimbursement. It is made to an insurance company so your car accident repairs are covered or you are compensated for the full value of your car if it is completely destroyed or declared a total loss (see below for definition of total loss).

In most car accidents, you will have the option of presenting your property damage claim to one of three different parties:

The responsible person’s automobile insurance company.
Your automobile insurance company if you carry collision coverage on your insurance policy.
The person responsible for the accident (this method can require extensive investigation and be quite time consuming).

In general, California Law values your damaged automobile in two different ways. California Law states you are entitled to recover either the cost of repair to your car or the fair market value of your car, whichever costs less. An important fact to remember is fair market value is not the Kelly Blue Book (which is used for making car loans) but is best represented by what your vehicle is worth in the area that you live. Whether the insurance company offers to repair your car or pay you money for the full value of your car will depend on a few different factors:

If your car can be repaired, you are entitled to either have your car repaired or be compensated the money for the value for those repairs.
If your car can be repaired, but the costs of repair exceed what your car is worth, the vehicle will be deemed a total loss and you are only entitled to the fair market value of your car.
If your car sustains a large amount of damage, you are entitled to recover the fair market value of the vehicle.

It is important to know that your property damage claim is separate from your bodily injury claim. This means you can have your vehicle repaired or be compensated for the full value of your car without affecting your right to pursue a claim for your bodily injury.

Remember, you should consult with an experience automobile accident attorney for more information about property damage claims, and how to make sure you are fully compensated.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident lawyer at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

Can I Recover Extra Money for My Repaired Car as It Is Not the Same?

Diminution of Value or Diminished Value is the legal claim presented when a person seeks to recover money for the reduced monetary value of a car because it was damaged in an automobile accident. Often times, repairing a car does not mean it has returned to its pre-auto accident condition, or worth, even if it was repaired correctly.

If a car has a history of being wrecked, it may now be worth less if you had to sell it. This is the difference between a car’s fair market value before and after a car accident. To pursue this claim, one needs to present evidence of the vehicle’s re-sale value before the accident as compared to what it will sell for now, after it has been damaged and then repaired.

A successful diminished value claim will depend on a number of different variables, including:

Age of the vehicle.
Physical condition of the vehicle before the accident.
Presentation of an automobile expert’s opinion.

We recommend that you immediately contact an expert automobile attorney if you are considering this type of claim. Knowing that this particular type of money loss is very difficult to recover, and many times is just not worth it, we can help you make an informed decision in this regard.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident lawyer at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

What Is Loss of Business Profits Due to Property Damage?

In a car accident, you are entitled to recover for the cost of repair or replacement of your automobile. This is called a property damage claim. In California, you may also be entitled to recover for the loss of use of your car. In most situations, loss of use will be calculated as the reasonable rental value of a similar car. It is important to note that loss of use must be for a reasonable time period (i.e., the time it takes to fix the vehicle) or a reasonable time to find a new car if the vehicle was declared to be too expensive to repair, sometimes referred to as a total loss.

If you use your car for work (e.g. limo/car service, hauling, street sweeper, long-haul trucking, and pool cleaning business), you may also be able to recover for the loss of use in the form of lost profits in addition to the reasonable rental value.

Making a claim for loss of profits will allow you to recover for the money that you would have made, had your car not been damaged. This claim must be supported by evidence, such as:

Your car’s uniqueness
Testimony of the owner
Financial statements
Invoices
Any other applicable documents.

Furthermore, the law also requires that you do everything possible to mitigate your damages. In other words, do not make your damages worse. Many times this will mean contracting or hiring another work automobile so that you do not lose all of your profits. It is also important to note that you may not be to recover for both reasonable rental value and loss of profits. Instead, you are allowed to choose which option will better compensate you for your losses.

An experienced car accident attorney can further help you if your case involves a property damage claim.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident attorney at (800) 655-6585 or click here to submit your case for a free review.

TRIAL

Why Might Your Auto Accident Attorney Suggest a Trial?

As automobile accident attorneys since 1989, we have found that those cases that go to trial are the cases that some might consider a close call, meaning, how much money the injured person should be paid is unclear.

Here are some general examples, which are incomplete and in no specific order, of when an auto accident lawyer might have to go to a trial:

The money offer from the responsible party’s auto accident insurance company is too low and is not fair to our client.
It is not clear who caused our client’s automobile accident.
The responsible party’s car accident insurance company might think that the injured person is either not telling the truth or might be exaggerating his injuries.
The responsible party’s car accident insurance attorney might believe that our client, the injured party, is completely making up an injury claim. One good example, an injured person claiming that their tooth was injured in a minor car accident, when all they suffered was severe whiplash.
The damages to either person’s car in a car accident appear to be minor so that a jury might determine that the car accident damages were inadequate, in their minds, to have caused injuries.
The responsible person’s car accident insurance company may believe that their insured driver was not actually insured at the time of the accident. This is called a reservation of rights.
It might be argued that our client made his own car accident injured worse by not protecting himself, such as not wearing a seatbelt, riding in a car that was driven by a teenage or adult drunk driver (DUI).
Too much time has gone by since the date of the car accident until now.

Call us now or click here for a FREE CONSULTATION with an experienced automobile accident attorney as to how we may help you at 1-800-655-6585. We look forward to providing good advice to help you make smart decisions about your case in either English or Spanish.

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LAW OFFICES OF MICHAEL PINESPersonal Injury, it's all we do.

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LAW OFFICES OF MICHAEL PINES
Personal Injury, it's all we do.