You may be wondering, “What happens if a cop hits your car?”
Accidents involving a police vehicle can be complicated. If you have been involved in an accident with a police vehicle, your case will involve unique laws and liability rules. For example, a police officer may be exempt from traffic laws while they are pursuing a criminal suspect. In addition, the time limit to file claims may be different when government agencies are involved.
It is not uncommon for confusion to exist in these cases regarding liability, insurance and legal processes.
- These cases can be complicated because:
- The claims process will often be different since police departments are often self-insured regarding accidents
- Police departments might not wish to admit that negligence was committed by their officers
- Special insurance issues and government rules might apply
If you got hurt in the crash, you might have legal options. Consult with a personal injury lawyer in order to learn more regarding your options and rights.
Call us today for a free consultation if you have been injured in a police car crash in California. Our legal team can clear up any confusion for you, and can help you recover compensation for your medical bills, lost wages, pain, suffering and more.
Knowing Your Rights in a Cop Car Accident
If your car is hit by a police car, you could qualify for financial compensation. However, it may be difficult to obtain this compensation. Police departments aren’t going to want to admit to being at fault, and the process of filing an insurance claim may be complicated.
Because of the California Tort Claims Act, you have the right to recover compensation if you are injured due to the negligence of the government.
Police officers can sometimes act outside of the rule of law in emergencies, but they aren’t automatically exempt from liability when they hit your car.
Accidents involving police officers are similar to accidents involving civilian drivers. Generally, when police officers are negligent, they are able to get held liable for accidents. However, some complexities exist regarding these crashes, like government immunity.
For this reason, the experience of a lawyer will become invaluable to you. Nadrich Accident Injury Lawyers can help you to navigate California law’s nuances to figure out your best course of action.
Important things to remember:
- You can file claims when officers are negligent
- You need to act fast – government claims have shorter deadlines than regular accident claims
- Police departments may try to deny responsibility, so it’s important to gather strong evidence
What To Do If a Cop Hits Your Car
If your car is hit by a police car, you need to prioritize safety, then make a call to the police and make sure the accident is documented.
- Prioritize safety: Ensure the safety of your self and others who were involved in the crash.
- Report your accident: If a police car hits your car, call 911 and make sure a police report gets filed. Ask for a copy of the police report.
- Document your accident: After police car accidents, collect information and take pictures. Note the identification number of the police car as well as the badge number of the officer. Take photos of the scene of the accident from numerous angles. Include traffic signs, road conditions, skid marks and vehicle positions. Take photos of any injuries, like lacerations or bruises. Get the contact information of witnesses so you can obtain eyewitness testimony. If you can, sketch how your accident happened.
- Seek medical care: If you’re hurt in an accident with a police officer involved, check for injuries and, if needed, get treatment.
- Contact your insurer: You need to let your insurance company know about your accident. Check your policy to see what the time frame is you have to report any accident.
- Keep conversation to a minimum: Keep conversation to the bare minimum necessary to exchange details like contact information, insurance information, etc. Refrain from giving recorded statements.
- Consider hiring an attorney: An experienced attorney can help you through the process of filing an insurance claim and, if necessary, a lawsuit.
Who Is Liable If a Police Officer Hits Your Car?
If it is found that a police officer is at fault for an accident, meaning the officer driving the law enforcement vehicle was reckless or negligent while driving, the officer may be held liable for any damages caused, just like other drivers, and may get sued for financial compensation by any injured part.
You’ll need to be able to prove negligence, meaning you’ll need to prove that an officer breached the duty of care they had to other users of the road. However, it can be difficult to prove that a police officer was negligent because of possible legal protections which depend upon the jurisdiction and situation. Police departments and officers are protected by laws which can make it difficult to make sure they’re held accountable.
Many parties can be held liable in these cases, including:
- Police officers, especially when they are off-duty
- Police departments
- Federal, county, city or state governments
- Fleeing suspects
Key points to keep in mind:
- No immunity regarding negligence: While those driving an emergency vehicle like a cop car might have a bit of leeway when they respond to an emergency, they aren’t immune to liability when accidents are caused by their negligent driving. Government agencies are protected from legal action, unless they provide consent, by sovereign immunity, which means that very few agencies will agree to getting sued. However, California has enacted a law granting an exception to sovereign immunity when there is negligence involved.
- Proving fault: In order to establish fault on the part of a police officer, you will need to prove that their actions, like distracted driving, running a red light or speeding, were unreasonable, directly contributing to your accident.
- Emergency situations: An emergency situation may make a police officer exempt from some traffic laws when they respond with sirens and lights, but they’re still required to safely operate their vehicle and exercise reasonable care.
- Legal process: Should you get involved in an accident involving a police officer, it’s vital to collect evidence like witness statements, a police report and photos, and consult with car accident lawyers to understand the legal options you have.
- Settlements: Most of these cases end in settlements being reached, meaning lawyers for both parties come to agreements. If negotiations should fail, your attorney can end up filing a lawsuit on your behalf.
Can You Sue a Police Officer for a Car Accident?
In cases involving accidents with police officers, you may consider suing numerous parties. You could consider suing a police officer or a police department.
If you were hit by a police officer acting within their employment’s scope, you need to sue their employer, meaning the government.
However, if it can be shown that an officer was acting outside of their employment’s scope when the accident occurred, you can sue the police officer. It might still need unique circumstances to demonstrate that an officer acted outside their employment’s scope when they hit you, like if the officer was using their police vehicle for a personal reason, or was acting with gross negligence.
Typically, you will not sue police officers personally. You’ll typically file a lawsuit against their employer, like a police department or city department. You may have a valid lawsuit if, for example, a police department failed to supervise or train an officer.
What If the Police Car Was Responding to an Emergency?
There are traffic law exemptions in most states regarding emergency vehicles. As an example, emergencies can require police cars, ambulances or firetrucks to speed or pass vehicles in an illegal manner when lives are at stake.
Police officers may be exempt from some traffic laws when they are:
- Responding to emergencies when accidents occur
- Pursuing criminal suspects
- Driving emergency vehicles
- Using emergency sirens and lights
Police officers aren’t allowed to violate laws without valid reasons. When police officers drive recklessly when no emergency exists or cause accidents because of distracted driving, they can get held liable for any damages.
Filing a Claim Against a Police Department or City
One important thing to keep in mind when filing claims against government entities like police departments or cities is that you need to file these claims within six months of the date of the accident. Failure to do this may forever bar you from recovering financial compensation for your injuries.
Steps to file a claim:
- Gather evidence
- Submit a written claim
- Wait for a response – for the government agency to accept, deny or ignore the claim
- If denied, file a lawsuit
How Much Is a Cop Car Accident Settlement Worth?
The compensation you will be eligible for will depend on the damages you suffered. If you have been injured in an accident involving a cop car, our law firm can help you recover compensation for the following damages:
Medical Bills
We can help you recover compensation for all past and future medical expenses related to the injuries you suffered in an accident with a cop car.
Lost Wages
If an accident involving the police causes you to be hurt too badly to work, or causes you to miss work because you needed to get your injuries treated, we can help you recover compensation for the lost wages.
Loss of Earning Capacity
If you’re left disabled by an accident involving a police car, we can help you recover compensation for the loss or reduction of your earning capacity that results.
Property Damage
If a cop car strikes your vehicle, we can help your recover the cost to replace or repair your vehicle.
Pain and Suffering
If your vehicle is struck by a cop car and you’re injured, we can place an accurate value on the physical pain and mental suffering you endure as well as make sure you’re fairly compensated for it.
Wrongful Death
We can file a wrongful death lawsuit on your behalf if you lose a loved one in an accident involving a police car. This lawsuit can recover compensation for things like funeral and burial costs, your loved one’s pain and suffering, your loved one’s medical bills, and the loss of your loved one’s income, love, companionship, household services and spousal benefits.
How a Lawyer Can Help If a Cop Hits Your Car
Hiring the correct law firm can hugely impact what will happen after a cop strikes your vehicle. We know the stress which comes along with an accident involving a police car and what challenges you might face when seeking financial compensation. We can help you recover compensation by providing:
Legal Guidance
We give all possible clients free consultations. Our legal team is experienced in personal injury law, which includes cases which involve accidents with cop cars.
We’re always ready to go over your case and provide guidance which is tailored to the situation you’re in. We will help to come up with a legal solution which aligns with your needs and plans.
Evidence Collection and Investigation
Our legal team will thoroughly investigate the circumstances around your accident. We’ll do everything we can in order to collect vital evidence to strengthen your claim.
This might include obtaining witness statements, accident reports, expert testimony and surveillance footage. We approach evidence collection meticulously in order to strengthen your case and establish liability for the most compensation possible.
Negotiations with Insurance Companies
It can be daunting to deal with insurance companies. It can be especially daunting when you face claims involving government entities like police departments.
Our lawyers are skilled at negotiation and handle all negotiations and communications with insurance companies for you. We tirelessly work to secure fair settlements which adequately compensate our clients for losses, damages and injuries.
Representation in Court
While almost all of our cases settle out of court due to our reputation for success, negotiations with insurance companies sometimes fail, so our lawyers are ready to represent you in court.
We have over 30 years of experience handling car accident litigation and will advocate aggressively for you in court. We will use each and every legal avenue available to seek the compensation and justice you deserve.
Contact a California Car Accident Attorney Today
Call us today for a free case evaluation if you or a loved one was injured in an accident involving the police.
We have been handling car accident cases involving the police since 1990 and have recovered over $750,000,000 for our clients. Our extensive experience in handling these cases will allow us to recover the most money possible on your behalf.
If you can’t afford to have your injuries treated after an accident involving a cop, we’ll get you to doctors who won’t charge you until your case is over. Doctors do this for us because of our reputation for success.
We won’t charge you any fee to handle your police car accident case until and unless we recover compensation for you. Our only fee is a portion of the money we recover for you.
Call us today for a free consultation, text us from this page or fill out this page’s free case evaluation form.
