Glendale Passenger Injury Attorneys
If you were hurt as a passenger in a car crash in Glendale, you may be able to get compensation for your injuries. Seek the assistance of a dedicated Glendale auto accident attorney at (818) 550-1111 for a free consultation on your case.
Advocating for Glendale Car Passenger Injury Victims
With over 40,000 accidents a year in Los Angeles County, it’s inevitable that many accidents will involve vehicles carrying one or more passengers. When a car accident leads to serious injuries, the family is emotionally devastated, concerned and fearful. In the most tragic cases, a loved one cannot survive the injuries and passes away.
How Can a Glendale Passenger Accident Lawyer Help?
If you were a passenger in a car that was involved in an accident and suffered injuries as a result, you may have the right to seek compensation. Filing a compensation claim is a complex process; it requires gathering and preserving evidence to support the claim, as well as identifying the insurance company or companies relevant to the accident, whether it belongs to the driver of the car you were in, another driver, or its your own insurance company. Your personal injury attorney can then file a claim to pursue all damages, including lost income from work, medical and hospital bills, pain and suffering, and others.
Contact Aratta Law Firm at (818) 550-1111 to discuss your case as soon as possible after the accident.
Steps to Take Immediately After the Accident
After a car accident, follow this series of steps that could be helpful when seeking compensation for all damages:
- Move to a safe location away from moving traffic, if possible.
- Call for emergency medical help to assist an injured passenger.
- If you do not believe you are injured, ensure you see a medical doctor for an assessment of your condition. Injuries to the back, neck, organs, or brain can be serious, but may not be noticeable immediately.
- Call Glendale law enforcement or LAPD for assistance. They can handle the accident scene safely, and they are trained to perform a professional accident investigation. Their report will include information that would assist insurance companies in determining fault and other factors related to the loss.
- Take photos of the accident and obtain scene photos. Clearly show the position and condition of the vehicles, including plate numbers, any tire marks on the street, all the vehicles involved, and the interiors of the vehicles. Remember, this information will be used by your attorney’s office as part of the evidence in your case. Collect as much evidence as possible.
- If your vehicle was equipped with a dashcam, make sure the device is turned off so that the data is not lost after the incident. Be sure to inform your attorney that you had a dashcam in your car. Do not share the dashcam footage with anyone except your attorney’s office.
- Get legal advice immediately so that you understand the process of seeking compensation, what to expect from insurance companies, your options for pursuing compensation. Make the call as soon as possible so that your attorney can begin investigating while the facts are still fresh in people’s minds, and witnesses are still available.
- Do not speak with an insurance company representative without speaking to an attorney first. Insurance companies are profit-based and use various strategies to attempt to pay out as little as possible for claims. The agent may sound friendly, concerned, and helpful, but these conversations can affect the value of a personal injury claim. Even though you may think your own insurance company is on your side, many times this ends up being not the case.
Compensation for Damages in a Passenger Injury Case
People are most frequently passengers with people they are close to — family members or friends. A passenger may feel hesitant to file a claim against a friend, colleague, or family member to be able to recover compensation for damages. This is understandable. If this is your situation, the fact is that the claim is filed against the insurance company, not your friend or family member. That person bought insurance for losses where they cause injuries to their passengers. The compensation can cover the costs associated with current and future medical expenses, lost wages, pain, and suffering, and more.
Cases of Wrongful Death
When a loved one dies as the result of injuries sustained as a passenger in a car collision, the close family has the right to file a wrongful death claim. No amount of compensation can make up for the loss of a loved one but provide financial support for those who depended on the deceased. The wrongful death claim can seek compensation for a range of losses:
- Economic Damages: The financial losses experienced by the family, including the income the deceased family member provided, the costs of medical care prior to death, funeral, and burial costs, among others.
- Non-Economic Damages: The losses experienced by the family are far more than financial, and include the loss of companionship, loss of guidance, love, and nurturing, and a spouse’s loss of consortium, among other intangible losses.
Those who have the right to file a wrongful death claim may include the surviving spouse or registered domestic partner, or the children of the deceased.
Why Choose Us?
The path to fair compensation for an injured passenger can be achieved with the assistance of an experienced car crash lawyer who cares about your case. Many firms use cookie-cutter techniques that end up hurting your case in the long run. When you reach out to our firm, you speak to the attorney directly. Timely communication with an attorney allows for meticulous care and attention to be invested in our clients. Reach out to us to speak to an experienced attorney at Aratta Law Firm at (818) 550-1111.