If I was a passenger in a car and another driver runs the stop sign and ran into the side of the car I was in what legal action do I take
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If I was a passenger in a car and another driver runs the stop sign and ran into the side of the car I was in what legal action do I take
If I was a passenger in a car and
another driver runs into the side of
the car I was in what legal action do I
need to take
Asked on February 18, 2017 under Personal Injury, California
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 7 years ago | Contributor
If you were injured, you would sue the at-fault driver (the one who ran the stop sign, since to run a stop sign is to drive negligently or carelessly) for any out-of-pocket (not paid by insurance) medical costs you incurred, any lost wages (if you missed work), and, if you suffered significant disability or life impairment lasting months or longer, some amount for "pain and suffering." That is the only way to get compensation, if the other driver or his insurer will not voluntarily compensate you--by suing. Since they *might* voluntarily pay you compensation, there's no harm in first asking for compensation or for their insurer's information to send a claim to the insurer, to see if the insurer will pay it; but if neither the driver nor the insurer agree to pay you voluntarily, you'd have to sue (you sue the driver, not the insurer) to get a court order ("judgment") requiring payment. Note that you can only get compensation for actual injuries or costs, so if you were not in fact hurt in any significant way and did not incur large medical costs, there's no point insuring--it would not be worth the time and cost.
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