Articles Tagged with San diego car accident attorney

Car accidents happen much too often in and around San Clemente, and these accidents can have many different causes. Often, motor vehicle collisions result from another driver’s negligence, and it may be possible to file a lawsuit against that negligent driver. At the same time, car accidents can have other causes, so it is important to work with a Southern California car accident attorney to determine liability. In some cases, you may be able to file a claim against multiple parties. Consider some of the following ways in which different parties can be responsible for injuries in traffic collisions.

Driver Whose Negligence Caused the Accident

Whenever a driver gets behind the wheel of a car or truck, that driver owes a duty of care to other motorists on the road. That driver must behave reasonably behind the wheel, and that driver can be liable for any accidents and injuries resulting from careless acts or omissions. Some of the most common sources of driver negligence include distracted driving, drunk or intoxicated driving, aggressive driving behaviors, failing to obey traffic rules, and fatigued driving.

Motor vehicle collisions in San Marcos and throughout Southern California can be devastating, whether they occur on a freeway or on a neighborhood street. In the immediate aftermath of a crash, it can be difficult to think about anything other than getting the medical treatment you need and healing enough to return to work. Yet once you have begun to recover from your injuries, or once you realize that your bills are piling up because of your inability to get back to your job, you should begin thinking about filing a car accident claim. Who can you sue for injuries you sustained in a traffic collision? 

The answer to that question will vary depending upon the particular circumstances of your case. Our San Marcos auto accident lawyers want to provide you with more information about parties that may be liable.

Negligent Motorist

Traffic crashes can happen in San Marcos and throughout Southern California for a wide variety of reasons, from distracted and aggressive driving to intoxicated or impaired driving. A recent study conducted by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) addressed collision rates following the legalization of marijuana in California and several other states. While the study revealed that the legalization of recreational marijuana in various states did lead to a “statistically significant increase in injury crash rates,” the beginning of marijuana sales in those states did not correspond with any additional increased risk of a collision. Accordingly, the study suggests that marijuana legalization may lead to an increase in traffic collisions at the outset, but further access to marijuana through retail sales does not result in any additional rise in accident rates. 

Car Accident Data and Marijuana Legalization in California

Recreational marijuana has been legal in California since 2016 with the passage of the Adult Use of Marijuana Act (AUMA). In the recent IIHS study, researchers looked at traffic accident rates in five states that legalized the recreational use of marijuana between 2012 and 2017, including Colorado, Washington State, Oregon, California, and Nevada. The researchers looked at car accident data in the immediate aftermath of the legalization of recreational marijuana in these states, followed by accident data in the period immediately following the start of recreational marijuana retail sales. Those dates are as follows for the states involved in the study:

Personal injury law is a broad area of the law that can include many different kinds of accidents and injuries, including car accident cases and other motor vehicle collision claims. While car accident cases are certainly one type of personal injury case that a person might file in order to seek financial compensation for a serious injury, people often hear that auto crash cases are different from other types of personal injury cases. To be clear, there are a variety of distinctions among each type of personal injury case, from the theory of liability to the essential elements an injury victim must prove in order to win a damages award. Yet car collision cases are distinct in that they almost always begin with an auto insurance claim as opposed to a lawsuit against the at-fault driver, although many of these cases ultimately end with a civil lawsuit. Our Carlsbad car accident attorneys want to provide you with more information about the key distinctions in a motor vehicle injury case. 

Deciding Which Type of Auto Insurance Claim to File

Unlike many other types of accidents in Carlsbad and throughout Southern California for which injury victims must file a lawsuit against a liable party in order to seek financial compensation, car crash cases already have an established system for seeking compensation through California’s auto insurance laws. 

When most of us think of speeding and car accidents, we think about drivers who are traveling at a speed well beyond the posted speed limit and often behaving in other aggressive ways. Yet speeding does not have to mean just driving beyond the posted speed limit. When there is inclement weather or there are poor driving conditions, motorists need to behave reasonably and need to recognize that they owe a duty of care to other drivers and passengers on the road. As such, even if a motorist is traveling at a speed below the posted speed limit, that motorist still may be unlawfully speeding—and thus may be responsible for injuries in an accident—if the speed is too fast to be considered safe for the conditions. 

When Traveling Below the Speed Limit May Still be Speeding

According to California Vehicle Code Section 22350, which is the speeding law in the state, “no person shall drive a vehicle upon a highway at a speed greater than is reasonable or prudent having due regard for weather, visibility, the traffic on, and the surface and width of, the highway, and in no event at a speed which endangers the safety of persons or property.”

nabeel-syed-2856-copy-300x200If you were injured in a car accident in San Marcos or elsewhere in Southern California, it is essential to know how to file an auto accident claim. Every car accident case will have its own particular set of facts, but we want to provide you with more information about the claims process and the ways a San Marcos car accident lawyer can help. 

Gather Information to Support Your Claim

You will need to gather information and evidence to support your car accident case. This process starts at the scene of the accident, where you should take photographs of the scene on your smartphone. You should also obtain contact information for anyone else involved in the collisions as well as witnesses who may be able to support your version of the events. Beyond the initial scene, it is also important to get medical attention as soon as possible. By seeing a doctor quickly, you will be able to prove that your injuries resulted from the car accident, and your medical records will become important evidence in your case.

lance-asper-pAWY7xrsLwc-unsplash-copy-300x169If you live in Encinitas or in another part of San Diego County, you have likely been staying home as much as possible for the last number of weeks. All Californians are required to stay home “except to get food, care for a relative or friend, get necessary health care, or go to an essential job,” according to the state’s stay-home order. The order is in place until further notice, and it first took effect on March 19, 2020. While anyone who has an essential job—and thus must drive to work—or needs to leave the house for food or medicine is still at risk of being injured in a motor vehicle crash, it looks like that risk is significantly lower. Indeed, according to a recent article in the Los Angeles Times, since the stay-home order took effect, motor vehicle collision rates have dropped significantly. 

We want to say more about the lowered risk of an auto accident during the pandemic, and to discuss what you should do if you are involved in a crash at this time.

Fewer Motor Vehicle Crashes With Lower Traffic Rates

sara-the-freak-v4lRAcrhBr8-unsplash-copy-300x200When you are driving in San Clemente or elsewhere in Southern California, are you at greater risk of being involved in a car accident than you think? Most San Diego County or Los Angeles County residents do not get behind the wheel with the expectation of suffering injuries in a serious motor vehicle collision. Many drivers have a false sense of security when it comes to driving and auto accident risk. According to a recent article in the Patch, a high percentage of Southern Californians are “in denial about safety” based on information from a recent study. We want to tell you more about the study and discuss actual car crash risks in Southern California. 

Driving is King in Southern California

More than in most other major urban areas of the U.S., driving remains the preferred mode of transportation in Los Angeles County and San Diego County. Indeed, in Los Angeles County, according to the article, “private vehicles are used at more than twice the rate of the second-most popular transportation mode, ride-hailing.” To put it another way, more than double the number of people drive than use Lyft or Uber.

nabeel-syed-2856-copy-300x200Pedestrian accidents happen a lot more frequently than they should in Encinitas, according to a recent article in The San Diego Union-Tribune. The city recognizes the particular risks for pedestrians who walk along El Camino Real, and the city is taking steps to try to make this stretch safer for anyone who is on foot. The city recently hired an expert to conduct a “walking audit” of El Camino Real with a group of participants and to make recommendations for preventing a pedestrian accident and improving safety in general for pedestrians in the area.

What can the city do to make Encinitas a more pedestrian-friendly place?

The “Walking Audit” and its Outcome

bethany-legg-14229-copy-300x200For residents of Vista, California who regularly commute to work in San Diego County or have teen drivers on the road, it is extremely important to be aware of the dangers of distracted driving. As a fact sheet from the National Safety Council (NSC) explains, April is distracted driving awareness month. It is always a good idea to think about how distracted driving can impact our lives and to discuss safe driving and car accident prevention tips with your teen drivers. What else should you know about distracted driving and the risks of a crash in Southern California?

Using Technology to Prevent Distracted Driving in Vista

We often link technology with the increased risks of distracted driving. For instance, according to statistics from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), texting or talking on a cell phone while driving can greatly increase the risk of a serious motor vehicle crash. However, sometimes technology can actually help when it comes to distracted driving prevention.

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