Dockless scooter companies have taken over the streets of Orange County with their convenient and efficient idea of transportation. Although electric scooters are a fun way for pedestrians to get around town, they’ve proven to come with many risks. These scooters can travel at a maximum speed of twelve miles per hour and, when safety precautions aren’t taken into consideration, severe injuries can occur.

If you’ve been injured in a dockless scooter accident, our team at Kohan & Bablove, Injury Attorneys can help you pinpoint the liable party. We’ll assist you in pursuing legal action so you can recover the compensation you deserve for your damages. An Orange County dockless scooter accident attorney will support you throughout the legal process as you seek justice and focus on a full recovery.

Investigate Your Accident

The first step to take after getting injured in an Orange County dockless scooter wreck is to investigate your accident. By investigating, you’ll collect key information regarding how your accident occurred, why it occurred, and who’s ultimately responsible.

If a vehicle hit you while riding your scooter, you can try to get the police report to obtain details about the colliding driver. If your accident happened because of a scooter malfunction, you may need to get the scooter examined for a record of the defects. Your medical records and any documentation about financial losses you’ve suffered will also be helpful in supporting your case.

Prove Negligence Against the Liable Party

Once you’ve investigated your accident with the help of an experienced attorney in Orange County, you can pinpoint the liable party in your case and prove negligence against them in court.

If a driver hit you on your scooter, your investigation may have uncovered that the driver was distracted, speeding, or driving under the influence. As long as you have evidence such as witness testimonies or video footage to support your case, you’ll have a solid chance of winning a settlement.

If a scooter malfunction caused your injuries, an examination of the scooter and proof of the malfunction should be sufficient proof to sue the scooter company and recover compensation in court.

Calculate Your Settlement

When calculating your overall settlement, you’ll want to include all the damages you’ve suffered. You can include both financial losses and ways in which the accident has affected your overall lifestyle in your claim.

Financial losses, also known as economic damages, may include medical expenses, lost wages, and property damage. Effects to your lifestyle, also known as non-economic damages, may include pain and suffering, loss of enjoyment of life, scarring and disfigurement, or emotional distress.

Contact an Orange County Dockless Scooter Accident Attorney

You may feel hesitant to pursue a lawsuit for your scooter accident when there haven’t been many scooter accident cases in the past to compare to. Our team at Kohan & Bablove,Injury Attorneys has an in-depth understanding of personal injury litigation and we’re confident that we can apply the law to your accident. We’ll do our best to maximize your claim and secure you the compensation you deserve.

To discuss your case in greater detail with an Orange County scooter accident lawyer, fill out the contact form below or call 1-844-404-2400 to schedule a free, no-obligation consultation.

When you are injured in a car accident in California and someone else is responsible for the collision, you have the right to file a car accident lawsuit against the liable party and obtain compensation for any damages you’ve experienced. Usually, the first thing you’ll be worried about is covering your medical expenses and any other financial losses you’ve suffered.

What many injured victims are happy to find out is that their attorney can help them win other damages for the ways in which the accident has affected their lifestyle. These damages are known as non-economic damages. Both economic and non-economic damages are common in car accident lawsuits, but punitive damages are awarded only in rare circumstances.

At Kohan & Bablove, Injury Attorneys, we’ve helped clients recover all sorts of damages from their cases. If you believe you should be awarded punitive damages after a wreck, an Orange County car accident lawyer from our team can investigate your accident and negotiate on your behalf in the courtroom.

How Punitive Damages Differ from Compensatory Damages

Compensatory damages is the overarching term used for both economic and non-economic damages.

Punitive damages differ from compensatory damages in that they can only be awarded by a judge and they’re only awarded in circumstances where the defendant has shown particularly harmful behavior or blatant negligence. Often, a judge will award punitive damages in order to set an example.

California’s Law on Punitive Damages

California’s law on punitive damages, also known as exemplary damages, is stated in California Civil Code Section 3294. The code states that punitive damages can only be awarded when the defendant is proven guilty of oppression, fraud, or malice with clear and convincing evidence. It also says these damages will be awarded for the sake of example or as a way of punishing the defendant.

The code defines malice as intentional injury to a person or disgraceful behavior with a deliberate disregard for safety. The code defines oppression as disgraceful behavior that subjects a person to cruel and unjust suffering with mindful disregard to the person’s rights.

When Punitive Damages May Be Awarded for Car Accidents

In order for punitive damages to be awarded in a car accident in California, the accident needs to be severe and the negligent driver needs to be proven particularly harmful in their actions.

For example, if you’re hit by a drunk driver who’s facing their second or third DUI offense, punitive damages may be awarded. If your accident was caused by a driver who experienced a fit of road rage and cut you off, then this would also be considered malicious and may be eligible for punitive damages.

Reach Out to an Orange County Car Accident Attorney

An investigation of your car accident will need to be performed in order to determine whether blatant negligence occurred. If the negligence can’t be considered oppressive, fraudulent, or malicious under the law, you’ll still have a chance of receiving compensatory damages for your wreck.

At Kohan & Bablove, Injury Attorneys, we’ll do our best to maximize your claim and convince the judge that you deserve this recompense. If you’d like to speak with an Orange County car accident lawyer about your case, call 1-844-404-2400 or fill out the contact form below to schedule a no-obligation consultation.

Whether you want to head out for a night on the town or don’t have transportation of your own, rideshare services like Lyft and Uber can be a convenient solution. But with the increasing popularity of these services, the number of accidents involving them has spiked.

Unfortunately, filing a claim for compensation against Uber or Lyft can be quite complicated, and when you’re still recovering from your injuries, the last thing you need to be dealing with is the difficulty of such lawsuits.

Fortunately, with the help of an experienced car accident lawyer in Orange County, you can obtain the compensation that is rightfully yours. Read on to learn more about how to bring a civil lawsuit against a rideshare company and how much you can expect to recover when you win.

Bringing a Claim Against a Rideshare Company

When you’ve been injured in an Uber or Lyft accident, it can be difficult to figure out who should be responsible for your damages. Both rideshare companies are insured, but the circumstances of your collision will determine how we proceed with your claim.

If your Lyft or Uber driver was negligent in some way, we may be able to file a claim with the rideshare company that employed them and bring a claim against the driver or their own insurance policy. This is true whether you were a passenger in the rideshare car or were hit by someone transporting passengers through Uber or Lyft.

Exactly how we proceed with your case will depend on the details of your unique situation and the insurance policies of the driver and company in question. Filing a civil lawsuit against a national corporation can be intimidating, which is why having a seasoned attorney on your side can be so helpful.

You’re Entitled to Full Repayment of Your Damages

No matter who is responsible for covering the costs of your losses, you are entitled to maximum compensation for your suffering. Some of the various damages we will consider when determining how much your rideshare accident claim is worth include the following:

Medical expenses, healthcare equipment, and installation fees
Lost wages and reduced earning capacity
Pain and suffering
The impact of disfigurement or scarring
Mental anguish
Loss of enjoyment of life
Loss of household services
Property damage

There is no reason you should be compelled to cover the costs you’ve incurred when you weren’t responsible for the accident you were involved in. An Orange County car accident attorney can make sure you don’t have to. We’re here to help you get the most out of your injury claim.

Reach Out to an Orange County Car Accident Lawyer for Help

When you’re ready to go up against a large rideshare company like Lyft or Uber, get in touch with an experienced Orange County car accident lawyer at Kohan & Bablove, Injury Attorneys. Our team of highly trained attorneys will do what it takes to recover full compensation for your damages.

We are proud to offer car accident survivors a free consultation. During your claim assessment, we can further discuss the details of your crash. You can claim your free consultation by filling out the convenient contact form below or giving our office a call at 1-844-404-2400.

No one ever said dealing with the insurance company was going to be easy—except for the insurance company. Insurers often masquerade as being on your side and make promises of looking out for your best interests. Unfortunately, this is rarely the case.

When it’s time to settle a claim, whether it’s their own policyholder or a claimant, insurance providers will often do everything they can to decrease or even eliminate the amount they should pay on a claim. Below, we discuss the different strategies insurance companies use to minimize the amount they’ll be required to settle for, and what you can do about it.

Insurance Tactics to Reduce Your Settlement

It happens more often than you might think: After you file a car crash claim, the insurance company is giving you the runaround or even completely ignoring you. This unscrupulous tactic can be quite effective, especially when claimants get tired of reaching out and hearing nothing back. The insurance provider does this to get out of compensating you for the damages you have endured.

But, this isn’t the only strategy insurance companies use. They’ve been known to make insultingly low offers when they see how much your damages are actually worth. The insurance adjuster knows you’re desperate for your money, and they think by making you a quick offer, they’ll avoid paying out the true value of your claim.

Insurance adjusters have even been known to twist your well-intended statement to make it appear as though you’ve assumed liability for the cause of the accident. This can significantly decrease your settlement amount.

Each of these tactics make it a little easier for the insurer to pay you as little as possible. So, what can you do?

Let Your Attorney Handle Them

Fortunately, your California lawyer has little tolerance for this, and they are prepared to take legal action against them by bringing your auto accident claim to court. In most cases, even the threat of going to court is enough to convince the insurance adjuster to see reason. This process typically involves several negotiations before your lawyer can secure the settlement you deserve.

If the insurer refuses to continue negotiations, we are ready to bring them to court for the compensation that is rightfully yours. The insurance company thinks they can manipulate claimants and minimize the amount they’re obligated to pay, but when your attorney steps in, they will be forced to deal with someone who knows how to circumvent these underhanded tactics.

Schedule Your Free Claim Review Today

Insurance companies have a reputation for ignoring and manipulating claimants and policyholders alike. Your car accident lawyer at Kohan & Bablove, Injury Attorneys will be ready to take them on so you can receive your fair settlement and move forward with your life.

Our firm proudly offers California auto injury victims a free claim review so we can further discuss your accident. You can give our office a call at 1-844-404-2400, or you can fill out the online contact form located at the bottom of this page to take advantage of this opportunity.

In California, it is not uncommon for individuals and businesses to be impacted by devastating wildfires. More than 7,000 wildfires were reported in 2017, with over 500,000 acres of land destroyed.

More recently, the Mendocino Complex Fire has destroyed more than 360,000 acres and countless homes as of the time of this writing. A firefighter tragically lost his life while fighting the fire, and there’s no doubt that many other injuries have occurred. This fire is now considered to be the largest in California’s recorded history.

For victims, wildfires may bring up concerns about recovering financial compensation for injuries related to the fires. Can injury claims be filed for wildfires? Below, we discuss what you should do if you suffer a wildfire injury and how you can obtain the compensation you’ll need to move forward.

Going Through Your Insurance Company

When you are injured during or because of a wildfire, you should first seek medical attention for your injuries. Once you are out of harm’s way and stable, reach out to a personal injury lawyer who can review the details of your case and determine who is liable for your damages. You’ll more than likely need to begin by going through your own insurance company.

Homeowners insurance will often cover injuries that occur due to accidental house fires, but wildfires are often excluded from policies—particularly in fire-prone areas like California. This is why it’s important to check your policy even if a wildfire isn’t currently threatening your home. Find out whether you’ll be covered now to save hassle and stress later.

Even if wildfires are covered in your insurance policy, the insurer may still try to deny your claim. When that happens, it may be time to contact a qualified attorney. An experienced lawyer can help you negotiate or file a claim against your insurer.

Filing a Civil Suit Against the At-Fault Party

California wildfires are often caused by a combination of dry vegetation and extreme heat, lightning, and human action (such as flicking a burning cigarette, kids playing with matches, downed power lines, and arson).

In cases where human negligence is responsible for causing the injuries you sustained, you may have the opportunity to recover your damages when you file a civil claim against the person who is responsible for starting the fire.

Your attorney will help you determine the financial value of your medical expenses, pain and suffering, lost wages, disfigurement or scarring, damage to your earning capacity, loss of enjoyment of life, property damage, and other frequently sought losses. This will help ensure that you receive maximum compensation for all you’ve been through.

Speak with an Experienced Orange County Personal Injury Lawyer

Being exposed to a wildfire can be traumatizing. It can be even more difficult to overcome when you endure a severe injury that could have been prevented if it weren’t for the negligent actions of another person. When you’re ready to pursue the compensation you’re entitled to, speak with a qualified Orange County personal injury lawyer at Kohan & Bablove, Injury Attorneys.

Our firm is passionate about helping injury survivors pick up the pieces of their lives. You can schedule your free case review today by calling our office at 1-844-404-2400 or by filling out the quick contact form we’ve provided below.

You’ve been injured in a vehicle wreck in California. You don’t know what to do to recover the monetary losses that have been forced upon you because of someone else’s negligence. You may think you can just file an auto injury claim on your own, but doing this without legal help is rarely a good idea.

If your vehicle wreck was especially serious, you really need to contact a lawyer who can help you obtain the compensation you need for all of the damages you’ve endured.

Here are five reasons to work with a lawyer after a car crash.

1) Investigates and Proves Your Case

One of the most difficult steps in any injury claim is gathering evidence and proving your case. Without proof, you won’t be able to win your case. No insurance company or court will award you damages unless you can show that you deserve them.

You likely need an attorney to investigate and prove your claim if you want a shot at getting the fair compensation you need for your losses after a car crash.

2) Knows All the Legal Jargon

Filing an injury claim for an auto crash is a legal process. There are laws that govern this process with a whole lot of rules for filing paperwork, time frames, and other legal issues that are often best left to the legal professionals.

Trying to figure all of this out on your own is like trying to perform your own root canal. Is it possible? Maybe, but it’s not really advisable.

3) Handles the Paperwork

No one likes doing paperwork, and car accident claim paperwork is the worst. If you don’t complete everything perfectly, your claim is likely to be denied.

You need to receive a settlement for your auto wreck injuries, so you need to be able to trust a professional to help you complete the paperwork. A lawyer will do everything possible to make sure you get your money sooner rather than later.

4) Negotiates with Insurance Companies

Dealing with insurers is a tedious process, but someone has to do it. That someone doesn’t have to be you. Your attorney understands how to deal with insurance companies and knows what an unfair settlement looks like. You can avoid the headache and hassle of dealing with auto insurance by working with a lawyer.

5) Fights for You in Court

Most car crash cases will not need to be taken to court, but some claims must be battled in the courtroom. Don’t you want a lawyer with you when you face the court? Probably. Your lawyer will fight to ensure that you win the money you need to pay for all of your auto accident damages.

Meet with an Orange County Car Accident Lawyer

Auto injury claims are complicated and stressful, and dealing with this on your own after being seriously injured in a vehicle crash isn’t the greatest idea. You need to be concentrating on your recovery—not tracking down witnesses and arguing with money-hungry insurance companies.

We discussed five reasons to work with a lawyer after a car crash. There are many more reasons, and you can discuss them during a free claim evaluation with our firm. Reach out to Kohan & Bablove, Injury Attorneys today. Complete the form at the bottom of this page or dial 1-844-404-2400 to get a lawyer on the phone.

Self-driving cars may not have hit the roads for everyday use yet, but they’re no longer the stuff of science fiction stories. Vehicles in Google’s Waymo project have racked up more than 4 million miles on actual roads, while many other companies (including Audi, GM, Mercedes, Uber, and even Apple) have some kind of autonomous vehicle research initiative underway.

Car manufacturers continue to slip new technology that comes out of these programs, such as autonomous emergency braking, into their latest models while others continue to work toward the release of a fully autonomous vehicle.

Every safety improvement and advance is welcome, but every once in a while something happens that should make us all stop and ask what’s going to happen—and who’s going to be responsible—when something goes wrong with one of these vehicles.

Crash Raises Questions

The dramatic rear-end crash of a Tesla Model S into a parked fire truck in California earlier this year raises these kind of alarm bells. Fortunately, there were no injuries. The driver of the Tesla said he was using the car’s Autopilot feature (although this has not yet been confirmed), which should have prevented such a crash. An incident in Florida in 2016 led to a driver’s death when Autopilot failed to detect a tractor-trailer truck crossing the highway.

Tesla touts Autopilot as if it is already a fully self-driving system, but the fine print notes that not all features are available or allowed for use because of regulatory considerations. It’s not yet clear if the California crash can be blamed on the system having weaknesses, the features being used improperly by the driver, or some other issue.

Currently all these self-driving and driver assist features are meant to be used only as instructed. Tesla, for example, tells drivers to only use the system on limited access highways and to stay alert, and the system warns drivers when their hands are off the wheel for more than a few seconds.

Responsibility a Work in Progress

Who has legal responsibility when one of these systems fails still needs to be worked out. Existing law would hold the operator or driver responsible, but it seems more likely that liability could be parceled out to owners, manufacturers, and even programmers.

Personal injury and product liability law could both come into play. In a bold step, Volvo has already declared that it will accept full liability for its self-driving vehicles when they hit the streets (which might be as early as 2019). Not all manufacturers have taken this step, and few laws have yet addressed the issue.

Orange County Car Accident Lawyer

The ongoing debate over the liability issues surrounding autonomous vehicles is something that most people don’t spend much time thinking about, and when you’ve been hurt in a car crash, that kind of thing is not what you want to focus on.

That’s the kind of detail you leave to the attorneys at Kohan & Bablove, Injury Attorneys, who put all their time and energy into understanding all the issues of automobile accident law—so you don’t have to.

When you need help with your car accident case, call our experienced team at 1-844-404-2400 or contact us online to schedule a no-cost, no-obligation consultation to discuss your case. We’ve helped hundreds of clients reach successful settlements, and we can help you.

Two different crashes in Desert Hot Springs in little more than a week recently claimed the lives of two area motorcyclists. The occupants of the other vehicles were not injured. Police have not yet released a certain cause for either crash, but it appears from reports that at least one may have been due to a common oversight by car and truck drivers that puts bikers at risk.

Two Collisions, Two Deaths

The first crash happened around 2:30 in the afternoon on Route 62 at Mission Creek Road. The motorcyclist, a Palm Desert resident, survived the initial crash but died several hours later from his injuries. No specific details have been made available, but it appears that drugs and alcohol were probably not involved. The crash was serious enough that a three-mile stretch of southbound Route 62 (Twentynine Palms Highway) was closed for more than eight hours.

On Friday morning, January 5, a second fatal crash took place on the other side of the city, near the intersection of Dillon and Mountain View. In that incident, a local man was thrown from his motorcycle when it collided with a pickup pulling a trailer. The victim died at the scene.

Left Turn Danger Highest for Motorcycles

In the second crash, the driver of the pickup is reported to have taken a left turn across the main road from an unpaved side road, putting his vehicle into the path of the oncoming biker. While the maneuver may sound relatively innocuous, this specific type of crash—caused when a vehicle takes a left turn across the path of a motorcycle—is both very common and very dangerous.

Intersection crashes account for close to 40 percent of all crashes in the United States, and potentially more than one-fourth of all crash fatalities. And in one analysis, crashes while turning left outnumbered those while turning right by more than eighteen to one. Several reasons are cited, but high on the list are falsely assuming that another driver will see you and react appropriately and simply misjudging the speed of an oncoming vehicle.

This is no surprise to bikers: It’s been recognized since the early 1980s that the most frequent multi-vehicle crash configuration for a motorcycle is a car taking a left turn across its path. The most recent data support that. In 2015, 41 percent of fatal motorcycle crashes involving another vehicle happened when the other vehicle turned left into a motorcycle.

Riverside, California Motorcycle Accident Lawyer

At Kohan & Bablove, Injury Attorneys, our team of experienced attorneys understands all aspects of California automobile accident law. When you’ve been in a crash, whether as a driver, a passenger, or a pedestrian; whether in a car, a truck, a bus, or on a motorcycle; give us a call. We offer a free, no-obligation consultation in our Orange or Riverside County offices. You can reach us today at 1-844-404-2400 or contact us online through the form below at your convenience to learn more about how we can help.

A twenty-one-year-old woman from San Pedro remains in the hospital with severe brain injuries more than two weeks after a drunk driver ran a red light and crashed into the car she was in. There’s a sad irony here as the victim and a friend had been out drinking that night but did the right thing by calling an Uber to get home.

Unfortunately, the driver who caused the crash was not as responsible. He had reportedly also been drinking that night and was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence after the crash.

Multiple Injuries, Multiple Charges

Since the crash at Artesia Boulevard and Aviation Way in Redondo Beach around 2:00 a.m. on December 22, the victim has undergone multiple surgeries but at last report was still unconscious and in intensive care. The other passenger in the Uber also suffered serious injuries and spent more than a week at the hospital, although he was expected to leave soon. The Uber driver and the driver who caused the crash were not seriously hurt.

The drunk driver submitted to a blood test for alcohol at the scene, and while the results have not been made public, he was arrested on several charges, including at least one for driving under the influence and causing injury, an offense that assumes a driver has at least a 0.08 percent blood alcohol content.

Just a few minutes before running the light and causing this crash, the driver had also crashed into a nearby building and left the scene; that led to a hit-and-run property damage charge being included.

He pleaded not guilty to all charges several days after the crash but was being held on $250,000 bail. If convicted on the charges already filed, he could face up to fourteen years in prison.

Highest Risk for Brain Injury

Sports- and military service- related injuries have grabbed most of the headlines about traumatic brain injury (TBI) in recent years, but the truth is that a person is more likely to suffer one as the result of a car crash.

Motor vehicle accidents are the third leading cause of fatal TBI, and the number one cause of TBI hospitalizations for those between the ages of ten and fifty-four.

The most recent data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show that TBI is involved in around 30 percent of all injury deaths in the United States.

Long Road to Recovery

There’s no simple or reliable way to predict how any victim of a TBI will recover. Some regain full function in a short time while others are afflicted with life-long problems.

We hope that the young woman affected in this crash can complete her final year of college and that she’s able to pursue her goal of attending nursing school. Her friends have set up a fundraising effort for her.

Orange County Brain Injury Lawyer

When you or someone close to you has suffered a serious injury, such as a brain injury, because of the negligence or reckless act of another, it’s important to take all action possible to make sure that justice is served. The damage can be severe and long-lasting, and the expense of care, recovery, and lost wages and income can run high.

You can turn to the experienced brain injury attorneys at Kohan & Bablove, Injury Attorneys for help. Call us today at 1-844-404-2400 or contact us online through the form below to discuss your case, free of charge, and to learn more about the options open to you.

There’s good news for workers in California: Serious illnesses and injuries on the job declined last year, hitting the lowest rate in at least a decade. For every 100 full-time workers in the state, there were a total of 3.7 cases of some occupational injury or illness. Overall, there were 466,600 such cases reported in California in 2016—slightly better than 2015 but not a recent record. On average, about 2.2 employees per 100 had to take time away from work because of an injury.

Different Risks

Despite the good news for the overall average, many kinds of jobs are much less safe than others. Those in some office occupations, as you might expect, are at the lowest risk: architects and engineers, financial services workers, and those in legal, computer, and mathematics jobs.

On the opposite end of the scale, workers in construction, maintenance and repair, and building and grounds cleaning work had the highest rates, approaching three times the average. For every 10,000 workers in building and grounds cleaning and maintenance, more than 284 incidents led to lost work (compared to only about five for computer workers). The statewide average for all occupations was 103.

Same Old, Same Old

This year’s report, issued by the California Department of Industrial Relations largely using data collected by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, found that both the types of injury and their causes have remained much the same in the years they’ve been issuing this report.

Overexertion was the main cause of injury, followed by contact with an object and then falls, trips, and slips. Combined, these three categories were responsible for the vast majority of injuries. Exposure to harmful substances, transportation accidents, and violence accounted for nearly all the rest.

Most of the injuries were sprains, strains, and tears, which made up a bit more than a third of recorded injuries. But the types of injuries workers fell victim to were varied: cuts, punctures, bruises, burns, broken bones, and even amputations made the list.

Orange County Construction Accident Lawyer

Close to half a million California workers were injured on the job in 2016, but some groups of workers fared even worse. Last year’s data aren’t available, but in 2015, 388 men and women were killed while on the job here.

Most work accidents are preventable, and while most injuries are minor, some can leave a worker with lifelong effects. That’s why, when you’re injured on the job, it’s important to talk with an experienced personal injury firm like the team at Kohan & Bablove, Injury Attorneys. We have an in-depth understanding of workplace injury law, including construction accidents and many other on-the-job injuries.

Call us at 1-844-404-2400 or fill out the form at the bottom of this page today to schedule a free consultation.