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at fault for hitting a pregnant driver

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anil123

Junior Member
What is the name of your state? california
My husband was just in a car accident where he was at fault (ran a red per police report) and hit another car that had a 6month pregnant driver. She was able to get out of car and appeared ok, they took her via ambulance to the hospital. A couple days later she called us and said she and the baby were ok, her back her some and "we will see when the baby is born". She was concerned about getting her car fixed.
The next day he called her and she said she just left her lawyers office and is no longer able to talk to anyone.
Of course we want to take responsiblity of anything we have really caused. My biggest fear at the time was preterm labour and the baby dying or having severe long term health issues.
Now that that is not the case I am wondering what they can blame on the car accident after the baby is born? and for how long do we have to worrry. IE when the child is 2 years old and not talking can they say it was the car accident?
Our insurance only has minimal bodily injury 15,000 dolars. So my questions are what can we be sued for? How long do we have to worry about being sued? and can we loose our house? we were about to add on but my husband wants to put a hold on everything until we find out if we can loose it all. Is there something we should due to financial protect ourselves.
Also should we be calling our insurance to find out what it going on or should we just lay low?
Thankyou for your replys as i am also 5 months pregnant you can image how upsetting this has been for us.
 


teflon_jones

Senior Member
Your husband can be blamed for lots of things, but legally can only be held liable for any health issues that can be medically proven to be a direct result of the car accident he caused. If the woman and her unborn child were checked at the hospital and everything was ok, there's very little that could be attributed to the accident after this. I say very little because there could have been something that wasn't immediately discovered at the hospital, but within a relatively short time (weeks) from the accident will have appeared.

Your husband can be sued for anything. What the other party can actually prove is an entirely different matter.

You shouldn't worry, it sounds like everything is fine. If the other party or their lawyer contacts you any more, refer them directly to your insurance company.
 

I AM ALWAYS LIABLE

Senior Member
anil123 said:
What is the name of your state? california
My husband was just in a car accident where he was at fault (ran a red per police report) and hit another car that had a 6month pregnant driver. She was able to get out of car and appeared ok, they took her via ambulance to the hospital. A couple days later she called us and said she and the baby were ok, her back her some and "we will see when the baby is born". She was concerned about getting her car fixed.
The next day he called her and she said she just left her lawyers office and is no longer able to talk to anyone.
Of course we want to take responsiblity of anything we have really caused. My biggest fear at the time was preterm labour and the baby dying or having severe long term health issues.
Now that that is not the case I am wondering what they can blame on the car accident after the baby is born? and for how long do we have to worrry. IE when the child is 2 years old and not talking can they say it was the car accident?
Our insurance only has minimal bodily injury 15,000 dolars. So my questions are what can we be sued for? How long do we have to worry about being sued? and can we loose our house? we were about to add on but my husband wants to put a hold on everything until we find out if we can loose it all. Is there something we should due to financial protect ourselves.
Also should we be calling our insurance to find out what it going on or should we just lay low?
Thankyou for your replys as i am also 5 months pregnant you can image how upsetting this has been for us.

My response:

First, driving anywhere in California with only 15/30/5 is sheer financial suicide. Your husband is correct. Secondly, even if your 15K would have been enough for a woman who wasn't pregnant, it certainly won't be enough where a pregnant plaintiff is particularly sensitive or susceptible to pain or emotional trauma. (E.g., pregnant woman who is involved in a vehicle accident might suffer even more, and severe, emotional distress from fear that accident may have caused a miscarriage or other harm to fetus.

That's just her general damages (pain and suffering). Then, there's the issue of the baby once there's a live birth. Those Constitutional rights cannot be abridged. However, a special statute of limitations applies for injuries to unborn children: Suit by or on behalf of such child for injuries sustained prior to or in the course of birth must be brought within six years from the date of birth; and the Ca Civ Pro § 352 tolling provision is expressly made inapplicable. [Ca Civ Pro § 340.4]

Not a comfortable situation.

To drive in California, particularly the larger cities; e.g., San Francisco, Los Angeles, Sacramento, San Diego, etc. is foolhardy to do with a policy less than 500,000/1,000,000. Financial ruination takes but a moment.

Additionally, it gets even worse if your husband had any alcohol.

IAAL
 
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I AM ALWAYS LIABLE

Senior Member
anil123 said:
Thankyou for the replys.
If we are sued can they take our house?

My response:

Sure could. File a Homestead with the County Clerk's office. At the very least, if she does go after your assets, like your home, you will be able to protect (I believe it's) $150,000.00.

Do you know if she had insurance?

IAAL
 

I AM ALWAYS LIABLE

Senior Member
anil123 said:
Yes she had car insurance, and she has medical insurance (kaiser).

My response:

My point for asking if she had vehicle insurance was to see if she could have been a Proposition 213 driver. If she was uninsured, then she couldn't obtain General Damages from you; she could only obtain actual, out-of-pocket expenses; e.g., her car damages, her loss of earnings, and her medical bills. But, now, she'll be able to obtain all that PLUS General Damages.

You can believe that her vehicle insurance company will be coming after the two of you once the 15K is exhausted, and her medical insurance will also be knocking at your door for reimbursement.

Your insurance company attorney will fill in all the details.

IAAL
 

anil123

Junior Member
What does it mean to "homestead" your house?
Should we be checking in with our insurance company to see what it going on or should we wait to be contacted? Is there anything else we should be doing now as far as our assests go?
Thankyou for your help (although you are scaring me I need to know these things to prepare for our future)
 

I AM ALWAYS LIABLE

Senior Member
anil123 said:
What does it mean to "homestead" your house?

MY RESPONSE: It's too long and complicated to explain; however, in a nutshell, when you bought your home, you and hubby were automatically protected by the Homestead Act. However, if you record an actual Homestead Declaration with the County Recorder's Office, your protection increases to, I believe, double the amount or $150,000.00. I'm not sure of the exact amount because it keeps increasing each year. Suffice it to say, it won't keep you from losing the house itself, but it will keep any creditors from taking all of its value, giving you and hubby another chance to rebuild your lives.




Should we be checking in with our insurance company to see what it going on or should we wait to be contacted?

MY RESPONSE: Sure, you can ask if a claim is being made against your policy. I sure hope you've reported this accident to your insurance company by now.




Is there anything else we should be doing now as far as our assests go?
Thankyou for your help (although you are scaring me I need to know these things to prepare for our future)

MY RESPONSE: There's not much, if anything, you can do. Some people close down accounts, sell off properties, try to hide property, etc., but there's always a paper trail. The old saying holds true, "You can run, but you can't hide." Any conveyances of property, both real and personal can be traced back to you and legally reversed. So, Quit Claiming your home to Uncle Ned will do you absolutely no good.

IAAL
 

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