Can I claim anything on a car accident if I was a passenger but the accident was the fault of the driver in whose car I was in?

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Can I claim anything on a car accident if I was a passenger but the accident was the fault of the driver in whose car I was in?

Asked on September 10, 2015 under Personal Injury, California

Answers:

S.L,. Member, California Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney

Answered 8 years ago | Contributor

If you were injured in the accident, you would file a personal injury claim against your driver's auto insurance company.
Notify your driver's auto insurance company in writing that you will be filing a personal injury claim.  When you complete your medical treatment and are released by the doctor or are declared by the doctor to be permanent and stationary which means having reached a point in your medical treatment where no further improvement is anticipated, obtain your medical bills, medical reports, and documentation of any wage loss.  Your personal injury claim should include these items.
Compensation for the medical bills is straight reimbursement.  The medical reports will document the nature and extent of your injury and will be used to determine compensation for pain and suffering, which is an amount in addition to the medical bills.  Compensation for wage loss is straight reimbursement.
If the case is settled with your driver's auto insurance company, NO lawsuit is filed. If you are dissatisfied with settlement offers from your driver's insurance company, reject the settlement offers and file a lawsuit for negligence against your driver.  If the case is NOT settled with your driver's insurance company, your lawsuit for negligence against your driver must be filed prior to the expiration of the applicable statute of limitations or you will lose your rights forever in the matter.


IMPORTANT NOTICE: The Answer(s) provided above are for general information only. The attorney providing the answer was not serving as the attorney for the person submitting the question or in any attorney-client relationship with such person. Laws may vary from state to state, and sometimes change. Tiny variations in the facts, or a fact not set forth in a question, often can change a legal outcome or an attorney's conclusion. Although AttorneyPages.com has verified the attorney was admitted to practice law in at least one jurisdiction, he or she may not be authorized to practice law in the jurisdiction referred to in the question, nor is he or she necessarily experienced in the area of the law involved. Unlike the information in the Answer(s) above, upon which you should NOT rely, for personal advice you can rely upon we suggest you retain an attorney to represent you.

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