Maison Law represents people who are hurt in Riverside car accidents due to another driver’s mistake.
Our Riverside personal injury lawyers aggressively seek compensation for our clients from reckless drivers and their insurers.
Please contact us for a free, no-obligation consultation for all local injury victims. It’s a no-risk opportunity to find out what your injury may be worth and how to hold insurance companies fully responsible for recovery costs.
How Do I Know If I Need a Lawyer After a Car Accident?
If your injuries are very minor, such as a sprain or just bruising, or your accident doesn’t involve an injury, only car body damage, you may not need the help of an attorney. But when something as serious as a broken bone or a head injury is involved and someone else caused your accident, victims often have to fight insurance companies to get fair treatment and support.
High medical bills and lengthy recoveries tempt insurance companies to look for ways to reject your claim. They may try to blame you for your collision or try to claim your injury isn’t as bad as your medical charts report. Your Riverside car accident lawyer fully investigates your incident and collects powerful evidence to make sure at-fault parties and their insurers can’t escape responsibility. Then your lawyer demands the maximum in compensation available so you can pay your medical bills and rebuild your life.
Riverside Car Accident Claims Process
Drivers who use busy Riverside routes like the Riverside Freeway or Van Buren Boulevard know they have to remain on alert at all times. They must watch for the careless actions of reckless drivers no matter where they travel.
Speeding drivers on the 215 can lose control and send several other vehicles into collisions.
Distracted drivers on Magnolia Avenue can be worried about a text and not see the light change to red ahead of them. This might sent them at full speed into the back of other drivers that did stop.
In 2023, the California Transportation Injury Mapping System (TIMS) documented 1,799 car accidents involving injury in Riverside. At least 33 people lost their lives in those accidents.
Riverside County was second only to Los Angeles County among California counties when totaling accidents that involved fatalities and serious injuries in 2023.
When occupants involved in these crashes suffer injuries, the cost of care can go well beyond one night in an emergency room. Victims may need multiple surgeries and weeks of physical therapy. But victims shouldn’t have to worry over the cost as they try to get better.
At-fault drivers and their car insurance companies should be fully responsible for these expenses. A skilled car collision attorney is the best way to hold car insurance companies 100% liable for the driver’s actions.
What Should I Do After Being Involved in a Car Accident?
Accident victims should be ready to act quickly on the scene of an accident so that valuable evidence doesn’t disappear once the scene is cleared.
If victims are left strong enough after an impact, they should complete a few tasks to make sure they have a strong case. There are also some actions victims should avoid.
Try to follow these steps at the site of the accident:
DO’S
- Call for Riverside Police or the California Highway Patrol. Call 911 no matter how minor your accident appears. Alert officers to every detail you can remember leading up to the crash. Allow an ambulance crew to check out every pain you experience and go to the hospital if necessary.
- Gather evidence. When the scene is secure, get out of your car and start taking photos of the scene. Show car damage, license plates, traffic signs, lane markings, and any visible injuries. Get contact information from witnesses and driver’s license and insurance information from other drivers.
- See your doctor. The shock of being in a traffic accident can hide the pain from injuries. You may not know how badly you are hurt until a day later. Have your physician examine all the discomfort you feel. Save your medical invoices.
- Talk to a qualified Riverside Car Accident Lawyer. Even if you don’t think you need a lawyer, at least take advantage of a free consultation. You might be throwing away your opportunity to hold a reckless driver’s car insurance company accountable for your rising medical bills. You’ll also learn about the pitfalls to avoid when dealing with insurance adjusters.
DON’TS
- Don’t offer statements. On the scene of your crash, don’t discuss how badly you are hurt, and never accept blame for an accident. Keep this in mind when an insurance adjuster for the at-fault driver calls you in the days that follow. Adjusters will ask for a recorded statement about what happened. Refuse and only give basic information. These statements can be twisted to hurt your injury claim later. Refer them to your Riverside Personal Injury Lawyer.
- Don’t post on social media. It’s natural to want to share your bad luck with friends and vent a little, but be cautious. Insurance adjusters will be checking your feeds for pictures and comments describing your collision. These posts can be used against you later.
- Don’t sign off on any settlements. If an insurance company offers you a quick settlement offer for your injury, you should be suspicious. Without knowing the extent of your injuries and your recovery, you could be accepting a “lowball offer” that leaves you footing more than half of your medical bills. Once you sign it, you won’t be able to return to the insurance company to ask for more when your recovery takes longer than expected. Have a car accident attorney at your side throughout any settlement negotiation.
What Is My Riverside Car Accident Injury Claim Worth?
It would be difficult for an attorney to offer you an accurate estimate on your settlement check until sitting down with you and hearing about everything that happened.
Your lawyer would also need to investigate the crash and look into the driver’s record.
There are several factors that greatly affect how high your car accident settlement payout should go.
The car insurer should consider the severity of your injury and how long it takes you to heal.
The paychecks you miss out on at your job would also be another damage that must be totaled and fully compensated.
After such a traumatic event, you’ll need to account for every bill you’ve received and the emotional hardship you’ve faced in order to be compensated.
These damages must be listed when you file an injury claim with a car insurance company. Anything expense you leave off the list can’t be reimbursed and will probably come out of your own pocket.
These are just some of the losses that your Riverside Car Accident Lawyer will help you list and provide documentation for:
- Hospital and medical expenses.
- Estimates for the support you could need over a lifetime after suffering a permanent physical disability.
- Emotional distress, such as anxiety and PTSD symptoms you experience due to the trauma of a car crash. The depression you face during a long and difficult injury rehabilitation also factors in.
- The physical pain you endure and the chronic pain that may be present in the years to come.
- Past and future lost income.
- Damage or destruction of property.
These losses and more will be considered as your personal injury lawyer fights to get the most out of a car accident settlement agreement. The negotiation skills and experience of your attorney also play a big role in the compensation you can expect to see. The size of car accident settlement checks can vary greatly and having a skilled attorney fighting on your behalf is the best way to avoid losing out on valuable support.
Frequently Asked Questions
Two Years. California allows accident victims to wait up to 24 months to file an injury claim against an at-fault driver’s car insurance provider. Waiting beyond this deadline usually means the case will be thrown out.
You won’t need any upfront money to hire a Maison Law attorney. We don’t get paid unless we win your case for you. Then, our fee is paid out of the settlement money a car insurance provider awards you and your family.
Yes. Families who lose a loved one to a tragic accident can file a wrongful death claim to ask for support for burial costs and remaining medical bills. They’ll also earn support for the guidance and income the deceased will no longer be able to provide to the family in the future.
Contact a Riverside Car Accident Attorney
After getting injured in an accident, don’t talk to the opposing insurance company without first speaking to a Riverside car accident lawyer here at Maison Law. We’re pleased to offer free consultations and case reviews to all Riverside County victims.
Tell us what happened and how your injury has affected your life. We can answer your questions too. There’s no obligation for this case review.
We’ll help you determine what your case is worth and who should be held responsible. Our objective will be to obtain the highest settlement or award possible so that you can rebuild your life.
