Car Accident Lawyer Woodland Hills

The Howell Firm has helped many Woodland Hills clients get the justice they deserve by ensuring their rights are protected, filing claims in a timely manner, and using our expertise to negotiate with insurance companies. We are passionate about providing personalized attention to each case and ensuring our clients receive the maximum compensation they are entitled to.

If you are looking for a car accident attorney in Woodland Hills, reach out to The Howell Firm. We understand the complexities of auto accident law and how stressful the process can be — so let us help guide you through it.

Contact us today and one of our experienced attorneys will review your case and provide legal advice. Read more below to get a general idea about the legal issues surrounding personal injury claims in Woodland Hills.

Common Causes of Woodland Hills Car Accidents

The following are just a few of the common causes of car accidents in Woodland Hills. Whether or not you see the cause of your accident, our team can help.

Distracted Driving

Distracted driving is one of the leading causes of car accidents, with 46% of all crashes caused by distracted driving in 2019, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).

This includes any behaviors that take away a driver’s focus from the road, such as texting/talking on a phone, eating, playing with the radio, or anything else that takes their attention away from safely operating the vehicle.

Alcohol/Drugs

Driving under the influence is a serious problem in Woodland Hills and nationally — consider that 26.3% of all California traffic fatalities in 2019 involved a driver impaired by alcohol or drugs, according to Responsibility.org.

This is nearly 2 points less than the national average, but even one alcohol-related traffic fatality is too many — this is an entirely avoidable accident. If you are involved in a car accident with a drunk driver in Woodland Hills, contact our firm as soon as possible to begin building your case today.

Speeding

Speed limits in Woodland Hills are set to ensure the safety of everyone on the road, and when these laws are ignored it can be very dangerous — especially when other drivers, bicyclists, or pedestrians are involved.

Many people overestimate their ability to handle a vehicle at high speed, including their reaction times, their control over the vehicle, and their vehicle’s ability to drive at speeds above a road’s designated limit.

Reckless Driving

This includes any behavior that endangers other drivers, such as swerving in and out of lanes, running red lights/stop signs, tailgating, and more. These behaviors are unfortunately common in Woodland Hills.

Sharing the road with a reckless driver can be intimidating and distracting, and this type of selfish behavior can lead to serious injury or death if an accident occurs.

Weather Conditions

As a coastal city, Woodland Hills is subject to many different weather conditions that can put drivers at risk — from rain and fog to snow and ice. These weather changes can make road conditions more dangerous, so it is important for everyone on the road to be cautious and prepared for whatever Mother Nature throws their way.

While nobody can control the weather in Woodland Hills, they can control whether or not they drive in it, or at least how they drive in it.

Vehicle Failure

While it’s rarer than the other causes on this list, vehicle failure (such as tire blowouts or brake malfunctions) is also a potential cause of accidents — especially when the vehicle is not regularly serviced or maintained.

Determining the cause of the failure is one of the first steps in the claims process for this type of Woodland Hills car accident, and then identifying the liable party comes next. It may be the driver, but it may also be any number of other parties, including the auto manufacturer, a mechanic, a parts supplier, or others.

Common Car Accident Injuries

The following injuries are just a few of the many types of injuries a person may suffer after a car accident in Woodland Hills.

The impact of these injuries can range from minor to severe and the severity will depend on many factors, such as the type, speed, and angle of the impact.

Whether or not you see your injuries listed below, contact our firm as soon as possible to schedule a free consultation with a personal injury attorney.

Woodland Hills auto accident attorneys have years of experience quantifying car accident injuries and fighting to get their clients the money they are owed to move forward with their lives.

Whiplash

Whiplash is a common car accident injury that occurs when the head and neck are forcibly whipped backward and then forward, leading to strains on the muscles, ligaments, and tendons.

This motion can cause tears to these soft tissues as well as misalignments of the cervical vertebrae in the neck.

Treatment for whiplash may include bracing, physical therapy, and chiropractic treatments, but in some cases, the victim may require surgical intervention to mount a full recovery.

Neck Injuries

Neck injuries are another common car accident injury and can range from a mild strain to a more serious cervical fracture or spinal cord damage.

Symptoms may include pain, stiffness, headaches, ringing in the ears, dizziness, blurred vision, difficulty thinking clearly, and numbness/tingling sensations.

Treatment will depend on the severity of the injury but may include immobilization with a neck brace and physical therapy.

Back Injuries

Back injuries are also common in car accidents and can range from strains/sprains to herniated discs or even broken vertebrae.

Symptoms can include pain, tenderness, tingling sensations, numbness, and difficulty moving.

Damage to the spinal cord can lead to paralysis, and depending on where along the spine the injury occurs, the victim may suffer either partial or complete paralysis — the loss of control and sensation in the body below the site of the injury.

Head Injuries

Head injuries can range from mild concussions to more serious traumatic brain injuries, depending on the impact of the crash and the force of the collision.

Depending on the severity of the injury, victims may suffer from confusion, memory loss, dizziness, fatigue, headaches, blurred vision, and more — all symptoms that should be discussed with a doctor immediately following an accident.

Bruises/Lacerations

Bruises and lacerations are common car accident injuries that can occur from the impact of airbags and debris flying around during a crash. Common symptoms are pain, swelling, and bruising.

These types of injuries are to be expected after any sort of collision, but if your bruising continues to swell and spread, or it feels as if the injury is deeper than just a superficial bruise, see a doctor immediately.

Seeking Compensation After a Woodland Hills Car Accident

A Woodland Hills car accident attorney from The Howell Firm can help you determine if any other parties are responsible for the injuries incurred in an accident so that you get the compensation you deserve.

Car accident damages are “compensatory” damages, meaning that they are meant to compensate a victim and restore what they have lost. These are then divided into two categories: economic and non-economic damages.

While both are equally important, they each require different approaches to calculate them appropriately.

Economic Damages

Economic damages can be quantified and are reimbursable after a Woodland Hills car accident. These include medical bills, lost wages, property damage, cost of any future care, and loss of future earning capabilities due to accident-related injuries.

While this sounds like a fairly straightforward process for determining economic damages from car crashes, the truth is that there are many different losses or impacts that may be overlooked or that a victim might not realize can be attributed to the car accident.

A skilled car accident attorney will be able to take a comprehensive look at your case and determine the most accurate way to calculate economic damages to get you the compensation you deserve.

Non-Economic Damages

Non-economic damages cannot be easily quantified but are no less serious or impactful to a victim’s quality of life. They do not have set or measurable dollar values associated with them, which makes it difficult to assign them a number. Examples of these types of damages include pain and suffering, mental anguish, humiliation, and loss of consortium.

Insurance companies understand that these types of damages can be confusing. They are quick to either dismiss them outright or make very low offers knowing that a victim likely has little experience with these matters. Your car accident attorney will handle this process on your behalf, as well as the negotiations that are almost certain to follow their initial offer and counter-offer.

Punitive Damages

There is a third type of car accident damage that is entirely separate from compensatory damages. These are known as punitive damages, but they are rarely awarded in car accident cases. Punitive damage awards are issued by a court of law to punish particularly egregious acts and help discourage similar behavior in the future.

A Woodland Hills car accident attorney from The Howell Firm can review your case to determine if this type of compensation may apply to you. However, we will not figure this possibility into any settlement negotiations, and cannot request these damages. If your lawyer believes your Woodland Hills car accident warrants punitive damages, they may decide not to pursue an out-of-court settlement at all and instead file a lawsuit in the California courts immediately.

Contact The Howell Firm in Woodland Hills For a Free Consultation Today

If you or a loved one has been involved in a car accident in Woodland Hills that someone else caused, contact us as soon as possible to request a free consultation. We can discuss the specifics of your situation and explain more about how we can help you move forward with an accident claim or lawsuit.