Los Angeles car accident attorneys for the crash you did not cause.
A crash takes seconds. The claim that follows can take months, and the insurance company starts working against you the same day. We level it. One call, and the adjuster talks to us instead of you.
No fee unless we win. Free, confidential case review.
The first week decides more than people think.
What you do right after a crash shapes the entire claim. If you are still at the scene, call 911 and ask for a report. Photograph everything: the cars where they stopped, the plates, the debris field, the signal, the skid marks. Get names and phone numbers from witnesses before they drive off, because they will drive off. Exchange license and insurance information. Say nothing about fault, to anyone.
Then see a doctor, even if you feel mostly fine. Adrenaline masks injury. Soft tissue damage, concussions, and disc injuries often surface days later, and a gap between the crash and your first treatment is the first thing an adjuster will use against you. After the doctor, call us. Not the other driver's insurer. Us. A recorded statement given in that first week, without counsel, has sunk more good claims than any other single mistake we see.
Fault and what a police report actually does.
In Los Angeles, a crash on city streets usually draws LAPD or the local agency, and a freeway crash draws CHP. The officer's traffic collision report records statements, measurements, and often an opinion on who violated the Vehicle Code. That opinion carries weight with insurers, but it is not the last word. Officers arrive after the fact. They miss things. When the physical evidence contradicts the report, we pull intersection camera footage, download vehicle event data, and bring in reconstruction professionals to challenge the fault determination.
Fault matters because California ties your recovery directly to it. The state follows pure comparative negligence: if a jury finds you 20 percent responsible, your recovery drops by 20 percent, and nothing more. You can recover even if you were mostly at fault. Adjusters know most people do not know this, and they use inflated fault arguments to shrink payouts. Push back. We do it for a living.
Insurance minimums changed in 2025. They are still low.
Since January 1, 2025, California drivers must carry at least $30,000 per injured person, $60,000 per accident, and $15,000 for property damage under Senate Bill 1107. That doubled the old minimums, and it is still nowhere near the cost of a hospital stay. When a serious injury meets a minimum policy, we look for every other source of recovery: additional defendants, umbrella coverage, employer liability if the driver was working, and your own underinsured motorist coverage.
Uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage is the quiet hero of Los Angeles injury practice. Roughly one crash in our caseload after another involves a driver with no insurance or not enough. If you bought UM or UIM coverage, your own insurer stands in for the missing coverage. Your insurer will not volunteer this. Bring us your policy and we will read it.
One more rule cuts the other way. Under Proposition 213, codified at Civil Code section 3333.4, an owner driving their own uninsured car generally cannot recover non-economic damages like pain and suffering, even when the other driver was entirely at fault. Medical bills and wage loss remain recoverable. There are exceptions, so do not assume the rule kills your claim before a lawyer reads the facts.
Two clocks are running. One is short.
Most California car accident claims must be filed within two years of the crash under Code of Civil Procedure section 335.1. Miss it and the claim is gone, no matter how strong. The shorter clock surprises people: claims against a public entity generally require a written government claim within six months under Government Code sections 911.2 and 945.4. That covers a Metro bus that sideswiped you, a city truck that ran a light, or a signal that malfunctioned. Six months passes quickly when you are in physical therapy.
Evidence has its own clock. Businesses overwrite camera footage in days or weeks. Vehicles get totaled and scrapped along with the event data inside them. The earlier we start, the more we preserve, and the less the case depends on memory.
How we handle a car accident claim.
We take over all insurer contact on day one. We gather the collision report, medical records, and wage documentation, and we connect clients without health coverage to physicians who treat on a lien so care never waits on money. When treatment stabilizes, we send a demand built on records, not adjectives. Most claims settle. When they do not, we file in Los Angeles County and litigate. The same approach drives our entire injury practice, from commercial truck collisions to motorcycle crashes and Uber and Lyft cases with their own layered coverage questions.
The fee structure is simple. No fee unless we win. You pay nothing up front, and the percentages are in writing before you sign.
What crash victims ask us first.
Do I need the police report before I call a lawyer?
No. Call first. We pull collision reports from LAPD, CHP, Glendale PD, and other agencies as part of every case. If no officer came to the scene, the case does not die; it just means we build the fault picture from photos, witnesses, and vehicle damage instead.
The other driver had no insurance. Is my claim worthless?
Usually not. If your own policy includes uninsured motorist coverage, you can make a claim with your own insurer, and that claim is adversarial even though it feels friendly. We handle uninsured and underinsured motorist claims the same way we handle any other: with documentation and pressure.
What is my car accident case worth?
It depends on your medical treatment, your wage loss, how the injury changes your daily life, and the insurance available. Anyone who quotes you a number before reading your records is guessing. We give you an honest range once the facts are in, and the consultation costs nothing.
How long do I have to file after a crash in Los Angeles?
Generally two years from the crash under Code of Civil Procedure section 335.1. If a government entity is involved, a Metro bus, a city vehicle, a dangerous road, you may have only six months to present a written government claim. Do not sit on it.
Tell us about your crash.
Three quick questions. No cost, no obligation, and no fee unless we win.
Hurt in an accident? Talk to us today.
The call is free. The case review is free. You pay nothing unless we win for you.