Accident Overview:
Husband and Wife Awarded Insurance Policy Limits in Fatal Three-Car Collision
About the Case
Our client was driving her Dodge Charger, taking her husband to work. She was in the Westbound #1 lane on I-80 at the El Portal under crossing in Richmond, Contra Costa County, in the early morning hours. Suddenly, she was confronted with a vehicle, a Honda Accord, stopped, facing toward her, billowing smoke, in the #1 lane. Our client applied her brakes and swerved, but could not avoid a collision with the Honda. The force of the impact caused our clients’ Dodge to careen across the #2, 3, and 4 lanes, coming to rest against the barrier wall on the right shoulder. The driver of a third vehicle, a Toyota Prius, following the Dodge, was able to reduce his speed and change lanes to avoid a collision. Passing the stalled Honda, the Prius collided with an object in the roadway, which was later identified as the deceased driver of the Honda.
Case Facts
Both our clients were taken by ambulance to Kaiser Permanente Richmond. The wife was seen in the emergency department where she was diagnosed with fractures of the sternum, wrists, and several ribs, bruised lungs, and four hematomas. She was transferred to John Muir Medical Center Walnut Creek so she would have the benefit of more medical specialties.
Her husband sustained neck muscle strain, chest wall contusion, and left ankle tendon strain. When the couple retained GJEL ACCIDENT ATTORNEYS they asked:
- Could GJEL help determine which, if any, of the owners/drivers of the cars involved in the accident caused the collision?
- Could our clients be compensated for their medical expenses and other costs?
Based on the CHP accident report, Attorneys Andy Gillin and Jim Larsen, after investigation and analysis, established and obtained the agreement of the attorneys of the other parties that the deceased driver of the Honda Accord caused the accident when she lost control of her vehicle, colliding with the center barrier wall, and spun out, coming to rest facing on-coming traffic. Because the economic value of the claims arising from the accident exceeded the limits of the Honda driver’s insurance policy, the GJEL Attorneys established the relatively greater extent and severity of our clients’ injuries and damages in comparison to damages sustained by the others involved. Attorneys Gillin and Larsen then negotiated significant reductions to the medical liens incurred by our clients’ hospitalizations and treatments. Finally, the GJEL ATTORNEYS obtained a settlement that provided the maximum benefit to compensate for our clients’ loss.
| Insurance Company Names: | CSAA (all 3 automobiles) |
| Police Report | CHP |
| Vehicle Types | 2002 Honda Accord 2010 Dodge Charger 2009 Toyota Prius |
| Accident Locations: | I-80 nr El Portal OC, City of Richmond, Contra Costa County, CA |
| Hospitals and Medical Centers Visited | Kaiser Permanente, Richmond John Muir Medical Center, Walnut Creek, CA Kaiser Permanente, Oakland |
| Types of Injuries (Specific as possible) |
Andy Gillin received his Bachelor’s Degree from the University of California at Berkeley and his law degree from the University of Chicago. He is the managing partner of GJEL Accident Attorneys and has written and lectured in the field of plaintiffs’ personal injury law for numerous organizations. Andy is a highly recognized wrongful death lawyer in California.