An estimated eight million people visit Santa Monica each year to enjoy the sites and sunshine around the Santa Monica Pier. They arrive to attend conventions and enjoy the upscale shopping and dining.
Each day the stream of rental cars and shuttle buses from LAX merges with the traffic of locals who work, go to class, and enjoy full lives in Santa Monica.
Residents contend with tourist traffic, rideshare and delivery traffic, and the usual rush-hour motorists, and in this mad rush, dangerous accidents can occur.
Contact a Santa Monica Car Accident Attorney for a Free Consultation
After you’ve been in a serious car crash in Santa Monica, you should be allowed to focus on healing without the worry of how you and your family will pay recovery bills.
Before talking with any insurance representative, take advantage of a free case consultation with Maison Law of Santa Monica. This evaluation comes with no obligation to you or your family. Discussing what happened with a skilled attorney gives you a clear understanding of your options so that you can get the most out of your Santa Monica car accident injury claim.
Santa Monica Car Accident Injury Claims Process
Traffic Accident Dangers in Santa Monica
Santa Monica’s Tourism site promises visitors over 280 days of beautiful sunshine each year. Weather is a big reason tourists and businesses flock to the city. Playing in the sand and surf, and strolling by Muscle Beach are better in the sun. There are plenty of tourist attractions and yet there are plenty of people who live their everyday lives here as well. They work and raise their families in Santa Monica.
These year-round residents likely already know the dangers to be found on local freeways and boulevards. They know to avoid the busiest Santa Monica intersections at certain times of the day. They find ways to miss traffic jam-prone places like Olympic Boulevard and 14th Street or Hollister Avenue and Neilson Way.
Yet, there is little safe drivers can do to totally avoid careless and reckless drivers who put everyone around them in danger. California’s Transportation Injury Mapping System (TIMS) recorded 445 vehicle accidents involving injuries in Santa Monica across 2021. According to their data, three tragic deaths were caused by those crashes and over 600 people were hurt.
What To Do After a Santa Monica Car Accident to Get the Most Out of Your Injury Claim
Defensive driving and total focus on the lanes aren’t always enough to protect you or a loved one from suffering an injury in a traffic accident. And consequences may not be temporary. Victims may not fully realize the effects a major injury will have on their lives in the months to come.
That’s why any settlement offer from an insurance company must factor in what lies ahead. It’s a Santa Monica personal injury lawyer’s job to make sure car accident compensation matches what the victim has gone through and will go through.
To leave insurance companies little opportunity to find ways to dismiss your injury claim, you’ll need the best evidence you can find. Some of this evidence will be readily available on your Santa Monica car accident scene.
If you or someone with you is strong enough to move about, try to secure these details at the site of your car crash:
- Give a full report to 911 dispatchers and Santa Monica police or the California Highway Patrol.
- Take photos. Document the scene. Show lane markings and traffic signs and the damage to the vehicles involved. Take photos of any injuries that are visible and any damage to clothing.
- Get contact information from witnesses.
- Don’t make any statements about the accident to the other drivers involved. Don’t discuss how bad your injuries are or who is at fault. You likely won’t know the answer to either question until days later. Any speculation you offer will be used by insurance companies to hurt your case down the road.
- Get checked out by ambulance crews and your own doctor. Get everything documented and follow all medical advice you receive.
- Keep any damaged clothing and personal items. Don’t throw evidence out.
What Type of Compensation Can I Expect After a Santa Monica Car Accident?
You may have been hurt in a car accident or a loved one may have been badly hurt or been killed in a collision. When a careless driver’s mistake is to blame, California allows victims and their families to seek financial help.
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 you leave off the list can’t be reimbursed and will probably have to come out of your own pocket.
These are just some of the losses you’ve experienced that your Santa Monica personal injury 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 pain that may be present in the years to come.
- Past and future lost income.
- Damage or destruction of property.
- Wrongful Death Benefits. Families can file this civil claim to ask for support for burial costs and remaining medical bills. They’ll also earn support for the guidance and lost income the deceased will no longer be able to provide to the family.
These losses and more will be considered as your personal injury lawyer negotiates to get the most possible out of a car accident settlement agreement. 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.
Our Santa Monica Clients Frequently Ask...
The statute of limitations on your car crash injury is two years. If you wait longer to file a claim with an insurance company, the insurer is usually allowed to reject it. Your recovery bills will be yours to pay.
Yes. You can file a claim against the city if you’ve been injured by a city bus or a government vehicle driven by a city employee. Injury claims filed against city departments will have stricter deadlines, so you must act quickly.
Don’t agree to make recorded statements. When the at-fault driver’s insurer calls you, only give basic information. They’ll try to get a recorded statement about what happened. Decline. These statements can be used against you.
Contact a Santa Monica Car Accident Lawyer
Contact Maison Law of Santa Monica to schedule a free, no-obligation consultation. We want to hear what happened to you. We’re going to answer your questions and make sure you are fully aware of the insurance tactics you’ll face. These shady practices are meant to limit the money you receive. Avoiding these pitfalls will be key to earning what’s fair for your Santa Monica car accident injury claim.
Martin Gasparian, the founder of Maison Law, has worked for major corporations and dealt with some of the biggest insurers in the world. He now uses his inside knowledge to make sure Santa Monica victims aren’t taken advantage of by corporate lawyers and insurance adjusters.
