Car Accident Lawyer for Los Angeles and Orange County

A car crash takes about three seconds. What comes after can drag on for months: the tow yard, the rental, the ER bill, the adjuster who keeps calling. Fred Yadegar represents drivers and passengers hurt in collisions across Los Angeles County and Orange County. He handles the insurance companies so you can handle your recovery.

Who pays after a California car accident

California is an at-fault state. The driver who caused the crash is responsible for the harm, and in practice that means their liability insurance pays. The problem is how little coverage many drivers carry. The state minimum rose on January 1, 2025 to $30,000 per person and $60,000 per accident for injuries, plus $15,000 for property damage (Ins. Code §16056, SB 1107). One ambulance ride and an overnight hospital stay can burn through $30,000. Plenty of drivers in Los Angeles carry exactly that minimum, and plenty carry nothing at all.

That’s where your own policy matters. Uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage (UM/UIM) steps in when the at-fault driver has no insurance or not enough (Ins. Code §11580.2). Medical payments coverage (MedPay) can cover early bills regardless of fault. Part of Fred’s job is finding every policy that could pay, including ones you didn’t know you had.

What your claim can include

Damages in a car accident case fall into two groups. Economic damages are the numbers: emergency care, follow-up treatment, physical therapy, prescriptions, future medical needs, lost wages, and lost earning capacity if you can’t return to the same work. Non-economic damages cover pain, lost sleep, anxiety behind the wheel, and the things you can’t do anymore. California puts no cap on either category in an ordinary injury case. Punitive damages are rare and reserved for malice, oppression, or fraud, such as a drunk driver (Civ. Code §3294).

Your vehicle damage is a separate claim with its own three-year deadline (Code Civ. Proc. §338). Your medical bills and lost wages are part of the injury claim, which has two years.

Fault is not all-or-nothing

Adjusters love to say “you were partly at fault” as if that ends the conversation. It doesn’t. California follows pure comparative negligence (Li v. Yellow Cab, 1975): your recovery is reduced by your percentage of fault, and that’s all. A driver found 20 percent responsible still collects 80 percent of their damages. Fault gets argued from the police report, the physical evidence, the witnesses, and increasingly from dashcam and intersection video. The earlier that evidence is preserved, the harder it is for the other side to rewrite the story.

Deadlines, and a trap called Prop 213

Most injury lawsuits must be filed within two years of the crash (Code Civ. Proc. §335.1). If a government vehicle or a dangerous road condition is involved, you have six months to file a written government claim (Gov. Code §911.2). Exceptions exist, so call before you assume you have time.

Then there’s Proposition 213 (Civ. Code §3333.4). If you were driving without insurance when the crash happened, you generally cannot recover pain-and-suffering damages, even if the other driver was 100 percent at fault. You can still recover your economic losses: medical bills, lost wages, vehicle damage. There is an exception when the at-fault driver is convicted of DUI. Prop 213 has exceptions and edge cases, and adjusters raise it more often than it actually applies, so call before you assume it applies to you.

What to do right now

• Get medical attention today, even if you feel okay. Adrenaline hides injuries, and a gap in treatment becomes the insurer’s argument.
• Get the police report number. In the city of Los Angeles that’s LAPD; on the freeway it’s CHP. Request a copy as soon as it’s ready.
• Photograph both vehicles, the intersection, skid marks, debris, and your injuries.
• Collect names, phone numbers, and insurance information for every driver and witness.
• Report the crash to your own insurer. Your policy requires it.
• File the DMV SR-1 form within 10 days if anyone was hurt or damage exceeds $1,000 (Veh. Code §16000).
• Do not accept a quick check or sign a release. Early offers are made before anyone knows what your injuries are.
• Save everything: bills, receipts, mileage to appointments, and a daily note on how you feel.

Crashes with extra layers

Some collisions bring in more than one insurance policy. A crash with an Uber or Lyft driver depends on whether the app was on and whether a passenger was aboard. A crash with a delivery van or a company car brings in the employer’s coverage. A crash caused by a road defect or a city vehicle triggers the six-month government claim. And when the injuries are severe, a surgery, a brain injury, or a death, the case has to be built around future costs, not just the bills so far. Those cases are covered on our serious injuries page.

Why call Fred

Fred Yadegar represents people hurt in car accidents across Los Angeles and Orange County, and he knows what the adjuster on the other end of the phone is trying to accomplish. He takes injury cases on a contingency fee, so there is no upfront cost and no hourly bill. If you don’t get paid, we don’t get paid. Tell us what happened, and we’ll tell you honestly whether you have a claim worth pursuing. If your fight is with your own insurance company, see our insurance company disputes page.