Legal Question in Personal Injury in California

Re: Bike vs Automobile

Folks. As you can see from the replies to date it is clear you need to retain counsel to review the policies at issue and see where the money is--or if it is. Perhaps the best thing I can offer is that you should review the qualifications of the attorneys you choose and be sure that you like them and can work with them. As you no doubt surmise, this is probably a case and there is likely some coverage. Shop a little for your lawyer--not in terms of who will cut you the best contingent deal, although you should explore that too, but more in terms of who you enjoy working with. Good luck and e mail me or call if you wish to talk--free of charge naturally. Scott Righthand www.lawyers.com/righthandlaw

Re: Bike vs Automobile

The ownership statute would not apply for a permissive user of the car. I would assume the person opening the door was a permissive user and would be covered under the policy.

I am licensed and practice in California and Indiana.

Re: Bike vs Automobile

You are not being given the whole truth concerning potential insurance coverage. There may be a drop down provision in the policy of the owner of the car, but it is not necessarily present. Also there may be an agency relationship between the owner of the car and the 19 year old driver. You really need to sit down with an attorney. My office handles many similar matters. Please call at 818-760-0100 ext. 101 for further help.

Re: Bike vs Automobile

Your information is not entirely true. The owner of the vehicle is liable only to the amount of $15,000 in his capacity as a registered owner. The driver as a permissive user under the owner's policy, unless specifically excluded, can be liable to the limit of the policy. If the policy is insufficient, there may be coverage under the driver's personal policy. Moreover, if there is no such coverage, your own underinsured coverage may apply. If you want to discuss this further, you should contact an attorney. I can be reached at 818/783-3391.

Re: Bike vs Automobile

You have many options to recover for this incident. Agency relationship and negligent untrustment are a couple of them. Probably the insurance company is only telling you part of the truth. The registered owner (California law) is responsible for up to $15,000 in damages which are casued by the registered vehicle, by a permissive user. In other words the owner is liable for up to $15,000 of the driver's negligence. That is the law. However, the insurance policy, more likely than not, covers the permissive user (the driver) for the full amount of the policy. So there may be more coverage, much more. The insurance company may be trying to pull the wool over your eyes.

There are other areas I would investigate as well. The police report and the accident scene need to be reviewed for other clues as to liability (fault).

Your own auto/home owners insurance policies need to be reviewed to determine if they carry addtional and/or supplemental coverage.

This is a serious issue and needs the attention of a top notch law firm specializing in representing accident victums. Why a "top notch" firm? This may take full out litigation and you'll need a firm that can finance the case for you (advance all costs which can run $15,000 to $25,000 in a case like this)and has the manpower and stomach to go after the insurance company.

The best firms will advance all costs (some, like ours will waive all cost repayment if the case is not successful), charge no fee until money is recovered, will negotiate your medical expenses and health insurance reimbursement and will provide free consultations regarding the case (we provide free consultations anywhere in California or for any California matter). Get a top notch personal injury firm on your side. It will cost you nothing for a consultation.

I am VERY interested in consulting with you. Please call at your earlist opportunity. John Bisnar, Senior Partner, Bisnar & Chase, Personal Injury Attorneys and Counselors at Law. 800-956-0123.

Re: Bike vs Automobile

It sounds like they are giving you the run around and trying to force you to settle for a smaller amount than you are entitled to. If they give you proof that the policy limits are $15,000, than you may be out of luck as far as additional funds from that policy. There are a few other avenues you may want to pursue for compensation, ie. your husbands auto insurance, the drivers auto insurance. If you are interested in additional information regarding your husbands rights to compensation, please feel free to contact my office for a free, no obligation consultation. You can reach me by phone toll free at 877-546-9918, or by email at [email protected]. I strongly recommend that you sonsult with an attorney before settling this case so your husband is not cheated out of money he may be entitled to. I am located half way between LA and San Francisco which allows me to handle cases throughout the State of California. I encourage you to check out some of the other answers I have posted on this site, as well as my webpage on lawguru. I run a small office which enables me to deal directly with each of my clients and spend more time on each of my cases. If you find this approach refreshing I think we would work well together. I look forward to hearing from you. If I don't, I wish you the best of luck in this matter and I strongly urge you and your husband to at least consult with an attorney before signing any papers. You should also be aware that your husband only has one year from the date of the accident to file a claim. If that date is approaching you should file a lawsuit to protect your husbands right to compensation. I can help you with this also. Also, don't worry about how you are going to pay me. I handle these types of cases on a contingency basis. This means that I don't get paid until the case is settled.

Sincerely,

John Hayes, Esq.