What Is a Personal Injury Claim? (PI Claims in California Explained)
Were you or a loved one seriously injured in an accident caused by someone else?
Are you wondering ‘what is a personal injury claim‘ and if it can help with medical bills or mental anguish?
Our personal injury attorneys have a long record of successful case results. And in this article, we explain:
- what a personal injury claim is, and;
- what an injured party needs for a successful personal injury case.
Let’s begin.
Personal Injury Claim Explained (California)
A personal injury claim is the legal process to seek compensation from the person(s) whose actions caused your injuries.
There are many types of acts that can lead to a personal injury claim, including medical malpractice, dog bites, and even defective products. Complex claims from serious injuries often result from accidents such as motorcyclists being hit by a car, and major multi-car truck accidents. The most common claims however, arise from injuries due to car accidents.
The claim process involves:
- taking the facts of what happened;
- applying the relevant laws, and;
- adhering to formal legal procedures.
Here’s the bottom line.
You’re claiming someone else’s actions (or inactions) caused your injuries. And in order to get paid for the damages they caused, you must pursue an insurance claim.
In many cases, your accident claim becomes a personal injury lawsuit if a settlement with the insurance company cannot be made pre-suit. This does not mean your lawsuit will go to trial.
Many personal injury lawsuits settle during the litigation phase. However, it does mean going to trial is a possibility.
This is why having a skilled personal injury lawyer is so important.
You need an attorney that is experienced in handling insurance adjusters, and in securing compensation from powerful insurance companies.
You also need a personal injury attorney that knows how to identify all of your damages.
Here’s why properly calculating personal injury damages is so important.
Both economic and non-economic damages are losses you suffer because of your injury. An experienced injury lawyer will make sure all of your damages are accounted for so you are fully compensated.
Examples include:
- Bodily injury.
- Medical bills from the injury.
- Property damage.
- Medical expenses such as having to hire a nurse or ongoing medical treatment.
- Missed time from work and/or couldn’t earn a living.
- Physical pain.
- Emotional distress / pain and suffering.
- Unable to do the things they used to do.
- Funeral costs due to a wrongful death.
There are many types of personal injury damages. All of these losses are entitled to compensation in California.
However, it’s not as simple as being entitled to compensation. Your personal injury attorney will have to overcome legal hurdles to be successful in your accident claim.
This is what the law requires.
What’s Needed to Succeed with a Personal Injury Claim? (Understanding California Personal Injury Law)
For an injury victim to succeed with any type of personal injury claim, the following elements of negligence must be proven:
- A legal duty of care was owed.
- The legal duty was breached.
- The breach was the proximate cause of the injuries.
- The injuries caused the damage.
Now, what are legal duties?
Legal duties are created by law. The appropriate legal duty is what a reasonable person would have done under similar circumstances.
For example, if you were a pedestrian hit by a car while the driver was texting and driving, or drinking and driving, they legally breached their duty drive safely.
Lastly, your attorney must prove that your injuries are a direct result of the breach and a foreseeable consequence of their conduct.
For example, a reasonable person is expected to know that speeding is dangerous and could cause a car accident. In this example, the speeding driver would likely be found at-fault for the accident.
Fault in California is different than many other states. California follows the rule of pure comparative fault.
This means fault for causing injuries apportions among the responsible people or entities. Each at-fault party is only liable for their percentage of fault.
That’s right.
Even if you’re at partial fault for causing the accident, you can still obtain partial compensation.
As long as you’re not 100% at fault, compensation for an injured person would be for the percentage of fault attributed to the others.
California Personal Injury Statute of Limitations
Personal injury claims must be made within a certain time period – called a statute of limitations.
Your right to make an injury claim expires in California after two years from the date of the injury.
When the injury is not discovered until sometime after it occurred, the time limit you have is one year from the date the injury was discovered.
Contact Us Today For Help With Your California Personal Injury Claim
Making a personal injury claim initiates the legal process. Succeeding with a personal injury claim requires legal knowledge and advocacy skills.
Our personal injury attorneys have developed these skills with years of experience. We have over 100 years of combined experience handling personal injury claims.
No matter your type of injury, contact our law firm today and schedule your Free Consultation. Our lawyers can provide you with the legal advice you need to move forward. We work on a contingency fee basis, and only get paid if we win for you.