Is California Considered a Fault or No-Fault State for Car Accidents?

Is California
Considered a
Fault or No-
Fault State For
Car Accidents?
Report
Greg Kirakosian
Founder, Attorney
Raffi S. Batanian
Associate Attorney

Introduction
The location and State of a car accident
can greatly impact your personal injury
case against the at-fault driver. Some
States follow “no-fault” auto insurance
laws while others don’t. Both systems
have their own pros and cons, but
since “no-fault” laws can greatly impact
your benefits and your right to sue, it
important to know the difference.

Difference between
Fault or No-Fault state:
In the at-fault state, each party and
their respective insurance company
pays for the damage suffered in
accordance with their degree of fault.
The person who is accountable for an
accident is held responsible for all the
damages to whosoever is injured, and
it is up to the limits of their insurance
policy. In other words, if you were
involved in an accident and it was not
your fault, the at-fault party will be
required to pay for your personal
injuries and property damage.

Difference between
Fault or No-Fault state:
The no-fault states require each driver
to carry their own insurance to cover
their injuries, regardless of who is at
fault. These states require drivers to
purchase “personal injury protection”
(PIP) as part of their policies.
Therefore, in no-fault states, if you
were involved in an accident and it was
not your fault, your insurance will be
required to pay for your personal
injuries and property damage. Only
under certain conditions that relate to
the severity of the injuries and
disabilities will you be allowed to sue
the at-fault party.

Difference between
Fault or No-Fault state:
California is an at-fault state.
Therefore, if anybody was involved in
an accident in California, your first call
should be to a personal injury
attorney, NOT the insurance
companies.

Payment for injuries
after an accident:
One of the important things is that all
drivers must be insured before driving
on the roads of California because in
case an accident takes place then both
the drivers need to exchange their
number, insurance policy number, and
other details.Being a driver in an atfault
state makes you liable to make
the payment of all the damages after a
collision, you will have to compensate
the victim for damages that occurred
to him.

Process of claiming
accidental Insurance in
California:
After an accident, you should ideally
hire a personal injury attorney in Los
Angles who will immediately notify
your insurance company and the atfault
parties’ insurance. You are eligible
to file against the at-fault driver for any
injury and losses incurred to you.

Process of claiming
accidental Insurance in
California:
Since California is a fault state, proving
the other driver is at fault is obviously
key. Sometimes, proving fault can be
very complicated. Therefore, it is a
must to have a car accident attorney
who is experienced in handling
car/motorcycle accidents and can
manage comparative negligence
issues.

Process of claiming
accidental Insurance in
California:
Since it is the insurance companies
incentive to pay as little money as
possible, they employ specific tactics
and questions to try their best to lower
your claim amount. Therefore, car
crash attorney in Los Angeles,
California will be invaluable to defend
you from these tactics and will help to
maximize your claim amount.

Insurance
requirements:
The copy of insurance should be
carried by the drivers in California all
the time and it should be produced at
below instances:1)When renewing the
registration of Vehicle2)Whenever a
vehicle is involved in a traffic
collision.3)When it is requested by law
enforcement

Types of
acceptable Insurance:
Cash deposit of $35,000 with DMV
(Department of Motor Vehicles)Self-
Insurance certificate issued by
DMVMotor Vehicle liability Insurance
policyCompany which are licensed to
do business in California will issue
surety bond of $35000

Types of acceptable
Insurance:
As per California Insurance Code
§11580.1b, below are minimum liability
insurance requirements:-
$5,000 for any damage caused to
property.
$15,000 for any bodily injury/death
of one person.
$30,000 for any sort of bodily
injury/death of more than one
person.
Liability Insurance provides
compensation to the person other
than the insurance policyholder.

Documentation
required to prove Fault
It is important for you and car accident
attorney in Los Angeles, California to
collect more and more evidence and
witnesses to claim and get the
maximum amount from the insurance
company. This may include, but is not
limited to:-Photographs and video of
the accident venue-Medical reports-
Police reports-Eyewitnesses of the
evidence–Vehicle number, registration
number, driver’s contact details, etc.-
Bill of the properties damagedThe
above details can help to settle down
at a maximum claim amount.

Contact Us
KIRAKOSIAN LAW APC
HISTORIC ENGINE CO. NO. 28
644 S. FIGUEROA ST.
LOS ANGELES, CA 90017
213-986-5389
GREG@KIRAKOSIANLAW.COM