Legal Question in Personal Injury in California
Towing and Storage
I was a passenger in a car accident a few days ago and my mom was the driver. It was a hit and run incident but they driver of the other car left their wallet with their driver's license. The police says they are still not done with the case report. They towed our totaled car away and it's been in storage for a few days and they won't let us take it out without paying cash of money that we don't have. Meanwhile, the cost of storage is going up everyday and I was wondering what we should do - Leave it there and try to take the driver of the other vehicle to court for the costs or try to scramble up money to take it out now and pursue the case later on.
3 Answers from Attorneys
Re: Towing and Storage
If your car is totalled, why are you worrying about retreiving it? Contact your insurance company to have them deal with the car and replacement; that is their job. However, take thorough pictures of it for use in a lawsuit if needed. If either of you was injured, then you should make a claim on the other driver and the registered owner of that car. If they have no insurance you have a problem. If injured, feel free to contact me for help in this.
Re: Towing and Storage
Talk to your own insurance company and see if they'll help out with the towing and storage.
Re: Towing and Storage
Before I begin, I am going to give you a quick tip. The next time you're involved in a car accident where your car needs towing, have the tow truck take the car to your home instead of allowing the tow driver to take your car to a police impound. It is always a losing deal.
In order to determine whether or not to bail your car out of impound you should consider its value vs. the cost of repairs and towing (The total bill). But be careful and first find out that, if the tow yard auctions your car off to pay all the fees whether or not you may be stuck with the unpaid balance of the storage bill. Next, if you do decide to let your car go to auction, FIRST GET PHOTOS OF THE CAR � IT�S EVIDENCE!! You will need photos if you want to go forward with a lawsuit against the guy who hit you, or your uninsured motorist policy (Assuming that you have an uninsured motorist policy). Next, if your car is late model, contact your insurance company immediately and find out the scope of your policy, or read your policy. Depending on your coverage, they may reimburse you for what you paid for storage and towing. If your car does have value, you should get the car out ASAP because storage fees build up really quickly.
In any event, if you and/or your mother were injured, please feel free to contact me for a free consultation at 818.943.0462.
Best regards,
David B. Lupoff, Esq.
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