Just a short drive from Los Angeles, Rancho Cucamonga provides many people with the opportunity to own their own homes, send their kids to highly-rated schools, and enjoy the busy Southern California lifestyle. Unfortunately, the city contains a number of hazards that can result not only in injuries but also in death. The traffic is often heavy and the roadways are frequented by distracted, impaired, and speeding drivers. Many of the city's buildings contain dangers that can lead to slip and falls, fires and other accidents. Even some of the products that local consumers rely on each day can have defects that can result in fatal accidents.
When someone dies as a result of another's negligence in Rancho Cucamonga, there is often a family left behind who must endure unexpected expenses and profound losses. California's laws allow the family members of individuals who die due to the carelessness or recklessness of others to seek compensation for their financial and emotional losses through the wrongful death claims process. An experienced Rancho Cucamonga wrongful death lawyer can help family members to understand how they can benefit from this process, and can also explain to them the services that a wrongful death attorney can provide to assist them as they seek the compensation they need to move forward from the loss.
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When a person is injured, they can seek compensation by filing a personal injury claim. A wrongful death claim is a similar process, except it deals with the losses incurred by the decedent’s family members. The family members who are eligible to file the claim include in order of priority:
In order to be eligible to file the claim, family members — with the help of their wrongful death attorney — must be able to prove that someone else was liable for the accident. Liability is proven by showing that the at-fault party had a duty to take reasonable actions in order to avoid causing harm to others; the duty was breached by the at-fault party’s careless or reckless actions, and the breach resulted in an accident in which their loved one died.
California’s wrongful death claims process initially involves submitting a claim for the value of the family members’ expenses and emotional losses to the provider of the at-fault party’s relevant liability insurance policy. This can be an auto liability policy, a homeowner’s or renter’s policy, or an insurance policy for a business or property. When the insurance provider who services the policy receives the claim, they will conduct their own evaluation to determine whether their insured was liable and how much is owed to the claimant. They can then either accept the claim, deny the claim, or offer to settle the claim for less than its value.
A wrongful death attorney is able to negotiate with the insurance provider in order to convince them to increase their settlement offer to a level of compensation that fairly compensates the claimant for the expenses and impacts of their losses. If such an offer is made, the claimant can decide to accept the offer and the claim will be considered resolved. However, if the insurance provider fails to compensate the claim, it can be filed as a wrongful death lawsuit.
Wrongful death claimants in Rancho Cucamonga have two years from the date of the decedent’s death to file their claim in court. This deadline is known as the statute of limitations, and allowing the deadline to pass without filing a lawsuit will generally result in the claimant no longer having the right to seek compensation for their losses through the court process.
The expense and uncertainty of litigation is the main reason why insurance providers choose to settle wrongful death claims out of court. Without the claimant’s ability to sue the at-fault party if the insurance company fails to compensate the claim, most insurance providers will not engage in settlement discussions. One of the important services provided by a wrongful death lawyer is to ensure that all of the claimant’s options are available to them by filing the lawsuit within the statute of limitations. It should be noted that a settlement offer can still be made and accepted even after the lawsuit has been filed, and at any time before the court renders a decision on the matter.
Rancho Cucamonga wrongful death claimants can seek compensation for the financial losses they incurred as a result of the decedent’s death, such as loss of support and services provided by the decedent, loss of gifts and other benefits the claimant would have obtained from the decedent through the course of their life if they had survived the accident, the costs of the decedent’s final medical expenses, and a funeral service and burial or cremation.
Claimants can also seek compensation for emotional losses that occurred due to the death, such as the loss of society, companionship, affection, protection, moral support, and guidance that was afforded by the decedent to their loved ones. The spouse or domestic partner can also seek compensation for the loss of sexual relations.
Losing a loved one unexpectedly can have a significant impact not only on the finances of the family they’ve left behind, but can also leave an emotional hole that is impossible to fill. While obtaining compensation won’t bring your loved one back, it can provide the financial means necessary to give the family time to learn to move forward. The Kash Legal team is committed to providing compassionate and quality services to assist you in this endeavor.
Let our Rancho Cucamonga wrongful death lawyer help you gain a better understanding of the process and the important role a wrongful death attorney plays in helping you obtain the compensation you need after the death of a loved one. For your free case evaluation, contact us online or by calling (888) 527-4128.
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