A personal injury demand letter is a written document you send to the at-fault party's insurance company that describes your accident, your injuries, your financial losses, and the specific amount you are demanding to settle the claim. It is the formal opening of settlement negotiations, and a well-built demand [...]
After a car accident in California, one of the most important questions you face is a simple one: was the other driver insured, and for how much? The DMV Form SR-19C, officially the Financial Responsibility Information Request, is how you find out. Filing it lets you request the other driver's insurance information, [...]
A car rolls over when its center of gravity shifts far enough sideways or forward that gravity carries the vehicle past its tipping point. This can happen when a tire strikes a curb, when a driver overcorrects a swerve at highway speed, when a tire blows out, or when a top-heavy vehicle takes a sharp [...]
The three-second rule is the practical standard for safe following distance while driving in California. To follow it, pick a fixed reference point on the road ahead (a sign, a tree, a lane marking). When the vehicle in front of you passes that point, start counting: "one-thousand-one, one-thousand-two, [...]
Yes, lane splitting is legal in California. California is the only U.S. state where motorcyclists can lawfully ride between rows of moving vehicles at any speed. The law is set by California Vehicle Code section 21658.1, which took effect January 1, 2017 after Assembly Bill 51 was signed the year before. The statute [...]
The CHP 555 Traffic Collision Report is the official accident report created by California Highway Patrol officers when they respond to a traffic collision. It documents the parties involved, the vehicles, the scene, witness statements, a diagram of what happened, and the officer's determination of the primary [...]
Under California law, a hit and run is any accident where a driver fails to stop at the scene, exchange information, and (in cases involving injury) provide reasonable assistance. It is a criminal offense governed by California Vehicle Code section 20001 when someone is injured or killed, and Vehicle Code section [...]
The SR-1, officially titled Report of Traffic Accident Occurring in California, is a DMV form that California law requires most drivers to file within 10 days of an accident. It is separate from the police report and separate from your insurance claim, and neither of those satisfies the requirement. Many drivers have [...]
Around 3:30 a.m. Thursday, a pedestrian was hit and killed by a hit-and-run driver. The incident occurred on Orangethorpe Avenue and Harbor Boulevard. The male victim was pronounced dead at the scene. Almost 45 minutes after the incident, police a white Ford sedan having major collision damage. A woman, 24-years-old [...]
A Man Was Fatally Struck on the Northbound Lanes of Interstate 15 South of Wildomar Trail A man was fatally struck on the northbound lanes of Interstate 15 south of Wildomar Trail on Monday. According to officers, the man had been standing on the shoulder of the freeway for a period of time before [...]
