Setareh Law
June 25, 2024
It’s natural for a parent to want to protect their child from harm. If your child is in a car accident, either as a passenger or injured driver, you’ll want to make sure that they’re physically and financially safe. Children can sustain various car accident injuries, such as whiplash, fractures, and head trauma. An insurance company may handle claims related to a child’s car accident injuries differently, potentially affecting the coverage and premiums.
Fortunately, there are means through which parents can help their children address car accidents throughout California.
If you want to stand with your child against a negligent driver, you can work with a California car accident attorney. We can lay out the logistics of filing a personal injury claim with your child and discuss what representation you both may need.
You Can Represent Your Minor Child in a Car Accident Case
So long as your child is under age 18, you can represent their best interests in civil court, including cases involving an injured child. Our attorneys can work with both you and your child to discuss what went wrong in an accident and how you want to present your case in court. It is important to consult a personal injury lawyer for specialized assistance to ensure fair compensation.
That said, there is a chance that your child may be called to the witness stand in a car accident case. No matter how old your child is, we can sit down with them ahead of time and make sure that they understand what questions they may be asked. It’s our job to ensure that your child comes away from their experience in civil court feeling safe and informed.
Filing a Personal Injury Claim for a Child’s Car Accident Losses
If you want to help your child recover from a car accident, you can file personal injury claims on their behalf. Civil complaints allow your child to request compensation for the losses they endured in a car accident.
Your complaint needs to be comprehensive if you want it to move past a county clerk’s desk. With that in mind, make sure you’re able to detail:
- The name of the party you want to hold liable for your child’s losses
- Evidence supporting your assertion of accident liability
- The value of the losses your child endured
- Evidence establishing the economic and non-economic costs of the accident
Our team can help you gather the information you need to summon a liable party to court. We can also help you submit your complaint within California’s personal injury statute of limitations.
Normally, this statute of limitations, California Code of Civil Procedure §335.1, would limit the amount of time in which you could file your suit to two years. However, the state extends the statute of limitations in cases involving children. Children may file personal injury complaints until they turn 20. However, anyone over the age of 18 must file without parental assistance.
You can also claim damages for medical bills through a personal injury law firm, which may help you settle the claim outside of court.
Reacting to a Child’s Car Accident Losses and Medical Bills
After your child’s car accident, you need to take stock of your minor child’s losses. These can include physical injuries, lost property, and non-economic losses like stress. It is also crucial to have adequate insurance coverage to protect against legal action, as a lack of insurance coverage increases the likelihood of facing a personal injury lawsuit. When you take these losses into account, you can more effectively prepare to request compensation for them when you file a civil suit.
You do not need your child to quantify their stress or emotional distress. Instead, our team calculates the value of these losses via state-approved multipliers. We can add up the value of your child’s economic losses and then apply multipliers to ensure your child requests as much post-accident compensation as they can.
That said, California Civil Code §3333.2 caps the non-economic damages that your child can take home from a case. You can work with an attorney to determine if you need to worry about this legal cap.
Reach Out to a California Car Accident Lawyer to Discuss Your Claim
Car accidents shake up your day-to-day life. If your child or children were involved in a car accident, it may take months for them to feel as though their lives can go back to normal. Fortunately, our team can help you address your child’s car accident losses. You can schedule a free consultation with a personal injury lawyer to discuss your case.
Setareh Law Group helps represent car accident losses in California’s civil courts. We can work together to file a legal complaint that can help your child secure the funds they need to contend with their losses. If you want to look into going to court on your child’s behalf, you can reach out to our personal injury attorneys at (310) 659-1826 or by filling out our contact form. In some cases, vicarious liability may apply, holding parents responsible for the actions of their minor children in car accidents.
