The sudden loss of control, terrifying collision, and painful aftermath of a car accident are traumatic experiences that have lasting emotional and financial effects as well as physical ones. While no legal process can erase the harm caused by a car accident in La Crescenta-Montrose, a successful car accident compensation claim enables the accident victim to move forward with fewer concerns related to the accident and a sense of justice.
Contact our La Crescenta-Montrose personal injury attorney to learn more about your legal rights and options for recovering compensation in a California car accident claim.
Why Choose Onyx Law Firm as Your La Crescenta-Montrose Car Accident Lawyers?
A car accident disrupts all aspects of life. One of the first steps toward regaining control is a successful car accident claim against the responsible party. With Onyx Law Firm, you’ll find the following advantages in your claim:
- Over two combined decades of experience, knowledge, and resources
- A personalized strategy based on the unique circumstances of your case, rather than a formulaic approach that may not recover the maximum compensation available to you
- A team of compassionate, driven legal advocates working to protect your best interests
Onyx Law Firm does not charge upfront fees to car accident victims or their families. Instead, our contingency-based payment system allows a lawyer to work tirelessly for you and only get paid after recovering compensation for you.
What are the Common Causes of Car Accidents In La Crescenta-Montrose?
Under California’s pure comparative negligence system, it matters who caused the car accident. Under California Code CIV 1714, the responsible party is liable for the injury victim’s damages. In some cases, multiple parties could share liability. Common causes of car accidents in La Crescenta-Montrose include the following:
- Distracted driving
- Speeding
- Failing to yield the right of way
- Tailgating
- Unsafe lane changing
- Improper merging
- Unsafe passing
- Impaired driving
- Aggressive driving
- Fatigued driving
In some cases, entities other than drivers cause or contribute to car accidents. For example, the manufacturer of a defective part, a negligent road maintenance agency, or a road construction contractor.
What If I Am Partly at Fault for a Car Accident In La Crescenta-Montrose?
The state’s pure comparative negligence system works favorably for a California car accident victim who is partly responsible for a crash, allowing them to recover a portion of their damages minus their percentage of fault. In other words, if a tailgating driver hits the rear-end of a car in front of them, they may seem 100% at fault for legal negligence, but what if the front car didn’t have its lights on, and it was a foggy morning? In this case, the insurance adjuster assigned to investigate could assign 75% fault to the rear driver and 25% to the front driver. If the front driver’s injury claim adds up to $100,000 in damages, they could still recover $75,000.
Unfortunately, this system gives an insurance company a strong incentive to assign fault to an injury victim with a substantial claim, even if the fault is undeserved. A California car accident lawyer safeguards a client against these and other common tactics used against car accident victims.
How to Protect Yourself After a Car Accident In California
You may be unconscious or incapacitated after an accident and utterly reliant on others to help you, in which case, the police report of your accident is the most critical evidence in a claim. In many cases, however, as an injury victim, you can use a cell phone to protect your physical safety and financial future at the accident scene by doing the following:
- First, call 911 to report the accident
- Then, use the phone’s camera to snap photos of the damaged vehicles before emergency responders move them from their positions
- Photograph the accident scene and anything relevant
- Add the other driver’s contact information to your phone
- Add the contact information of witnesses to the accident
Witnesses can be crucial in accident claims when an accident happens in a location lacking traffic cameras or nearby security cameras. Unfortunately, they sometimes leave when the police arrive and fail to leave a name.
After the accident, it’s crucial to go to a hospital for treatment for any emergency injuries and to diagnose injuries with delayed symptom presentation, such as internal injuries, a traumatic brain injury, or whiplash. Your medical report and medical bills, receipts, and invoices are essential to prove your physical and economic damages, while the police report and evidence from the accident scene help prove the at-fault party’s liability.
Common La Crescenta-Montrose Car Accident Injuries With Damages
Seatbelts inarguably save lives, but they cannot prevent all injuries as the crash force propels the body against the seatbelt and then snaps it back, impacting the body’s spinal column. At the same time, the car’s hard surfaces crash inward and cause blunt force trauma. Common injuries in car accident claims include the following:
- Traumatic brain injuries (TBIs)
- Bone fractures
- Neck injuries
- Back injuries
- Internal organ damage and internal bleeding
- Soft-tissue injuries like sprains and tendon damage, often to the knees, shoulders, wrists, and ankles
- Burns
- External head, facial, and dental trauma
- Spinal cord injuries
- Lacerations, abrasions, and contusions (cuts, scrapes, and bruises)
- Traumatic amputations
Even minor injuries are expensive, but more severe or catastrophic injuries leave victims facing financial hardship and an uncertain future. A successful claim against an at-fault driver or other liable party relieves economic damages and provides compensation for intangible personal losses, pain, and suffering.
What Damages Can I Recover In a California Car Accident Claim?
Car accident injuries quickly become expensive, as well as painful and disruptive to your work ability and daily routine. A successful claim relieves financial stressors by recovering injury-related damages, such as the following:
- Reimbursement for medical expenses you’ve already paid
- Compensation for anticipated future medical care costs related to the injury
- Out-of-pocket costs for medical equipment and travel expenses to visit specialists
- Lost wages
- Future income loss/diminished future earning ability
- Compensation for pain and suffering
- Compensation for catastrophic injury damages is available in some cases, for example, for disfigurement, disability, loss of limb, or loss of enjoyment of life
If a car accident caused by someone else results in a motorist’s death, California’s wrongful death laws allow a family member to claim compensation from the at-fault party.
Call La Crescenta-Montrose to Speak to a Car Accident Attorney About Your Case
The days, weeks, and even months after a serious car accident can feel like a rollercoaster ride of medical procedures, painful recovery periods, and legal entanglements. Contact Onyx Law Firm for representation in your La Crescenta-Montrose car accident case at (844) 669-9529. Then, let your attorney navigate the difficult legal aspects of recovering the compensation you need and deserve so you can focus on healing.