What Happens If I’m Injured in an Uber or Lyft Accident?

What happens when you are injured in a car accident and you were riding in an Uber or Lyft car? That is the very question that Miley Cyrus and friend Cody Simpson are wondering after being involved in a recent fender bender in an Uber SUV outside a Los Angeles nightclub.

Uber and Lyft are two examples of taxi-like businesses that capitalize on today’s smartphone culture to offer on-demand for-hire rides around town. Unlike conventional cab companies, Uber and Lyft employ amateur drivers using their own personal vehicles to transport passengers from location to location. The cars are generally not obviously marked, although some Lyft drivers place a pink mustache on the front of vehicles.

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Car AccidentBy Barry Goldberg

Truck Accidents Are On The Rise, Here’s Why…

Accidents involving commercial or “big rig” trucks are on the rise, largely due to the tires installed on big rig trucks. Most tires on big rig trucks are not designed to function properly at speeds over 75 miles per hour and no tire has been rated in excess of 81 miles per hour. Yet, due to time pressures and other aspects of their jobs, drivers may exceed the recommended speeds, leading to serious accidents.

Truck accident statistics

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Car AccidentBy Barry Goldberg

Labor Day Weekend and Drunk Driving Accidents

For many, the upcoming weekend signals the end of the summer. For others, Labor Day Weekend is the perfect reason for a three day party. In a community like the San Fernando Valley, where public transportation is not the first choice for many party-goers, this means more drunk drivers on the road. If you or your loved one are injured in an alcohol or drug related auto accident, know that the law is on your side.

Alcohol impairs one’s ability to operate a motor vehicle, such as a car or motorcycle, and is the reason for many serious auto accidents. According to recent statistics from Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) drunk driving fatalities are on the rise.

  • 867 representing 28.9% of all total traffic deaths, a 4.6% increase from last year.
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Car AccidentBy Barry Goldberg

Common Causes of Slip and Falls

It might sound surprising, but with over 1 million people visiting emergency rooms due to slip and fall injuries each year, falls are the leading cause of personal injury accidents in the country, and the San Fernando Valley is certainly no stranger to these often serious accidents. While some related injuries can be minor, such as skinned elbows and knees, others are much more life-threatening, including traumatic brain injury and spinal injuries.

There are many factors that can lead to a slip and fall accident, and sometimes, no one is to blame. However, there are many instances in which a slip and fall accident was the result of another person’s or business’s negligence. In these situations, accident victims need to know that California law is on their side.

Common causes of slip and fall accidents

The most common causes of slip and fall or trip and fall injuries in the San Fernando Valley include:

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Slip and FallBy Barry Goldberg

Catastrophic Injuries and Your Potential for Financial Recovery

A catastrophic injury is a severe injury to the spine, spinal cord, brain, or skull. It can also include the loss of a limb, severe burns, or a severely damaged organ. These injuries can happen as a result of a number of personal injury accidents, including auto accidents, slip and falls, motorcycle accidents, and pedestrian accidents. Catastrophic injuries are generally permanent or long-term and affect the injured person for the rest of his or her life. More often than not, these traumatic injuries leave a devastating emotional and financial imprint on the victim’s entire family as well. Because of the high financial costs associated with a catastrophic injury, it is important to hire an experienced personal injury attorney who has experience and a proven track record of success handling these types of cases. It is crucial that you or your loved one receive the financial compensation their injuries deserve.

What makes catastrophic injuries different from other personal injuries is the amount of physical, emotional, and financial devastation they can cause. When an innocent accident victim is facing a lifetime of assisted care, physical and emotional therapy, follow-up surgeries, and more, it is often impossible to move forward without the help of a supportive family as well as financial compensation from the person or entity who caused the injury.

What Are My Options After A Catastrophic Injury?

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Personal InjuryBy Barry Goldberg

Even the Smallest Dog Bites Can Cause Serious Injuries

Dog bites don’t have to be gruesome to be deadly. In fact, according to health experts, even the smallest injury from a dog bite can be fatal. How so? The high risk of infection due to the type of bacteria that may live in a dog’s mouth (side note: human bites can carry a greater risk of infection than dog bites). This means that if you or your child were bitten by a dog, it is imperative to seek medical help, even if the bite does not appear to be deep.

What’s more, dog bites can cause significant damage beneath the skin, causing an injury that cannot always easily be appreciated or even seen by the untrained professional. Cuts or lacerations have a higher risk of infection than scrapes and puncture wounds caused by dogs with especially strong jaws are considered to have the highest risk of infection. To learn more about what can happen when a dog bite goes untreated, click here. The bacteria that causes serious infection may come from the animal’s mouth or may be present on victim’s skin. As the bacteria multiply, the body’s immune response causes common symptoms of infection (swelling and inflammation, for example). If you see any signs of infection following a dog bite, seek immediate medical attention, even if you have already visited a doctor relating to the bite.

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Dog BiteBy Barry Goldberg

“Baby You Can Drive My Car—Yes I’m Gonna Be a Star”

Woodland Hills personal injury attorney Barry P. Goldberg is regularly consulted on accident cases where the driver involved is driving someone else’s vehicle.  “Baby you can drive my car” might have some unexpected consequences.  After an accident, consumers always ask “Does the Automobile Insurance follow the car or the driver?”  The answer to this question…

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Bike Accident, Car Accident, Motorcycle Accident, Pedestrian Accident, Personal Injury, Uncategorized, Uninsured MotoristBy Barry Goldberg

Summer is Over for Kids, But Bike Accident Season is Still Here

While for many kids, ‘summer’ has come to an end, it is still sunny and ‘light till late’ in the San Fernando Valley! This means many of are children are coming home from school and spending time outdoors, riding their bikes and enjoying the sunshine. As a parent, it is important to note that August is the most dangerous time of year for children, with nearly 3
million medical emergencies and 2,550 deaths because of accidental injuries. Thanks to texting and driving and other forms of distracted driving, bicycle accidents involving children make up a large number of these injuries; with some of them fatal. If your child has been injured in a bike accident, contact an experienced personal injury attorney.

A recent report shows that the states that reported the largest number of bike-related fatalities were California, Florida, Texas, New York, Illinois and Michigan. This means that many innocent children are killed by the negligent driving of another. The report goes on to say that almost 2/3 of the bike accident deaths involved cyclists not wearing helmets. Wearing a helmet while riding a bike is a wise safety precaution.

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Bike AccidentBy Barry Goldberg

California Supreme Court More Liberally Defines a “Dangerous Condition” of Public Property

Woodland Hills personal injury attorney Barry P. Goldberg id careful about lawsuits and claims involving alleged dangerous conditions of public property.  Proving a “dangerous condition” is not always easy even if the condition actually caused or contributed to the plaintiff’s injuries.  In order to sue a public entity, the plaintiff has the burden to establish…

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Bike Accident, Car Accident, Motorcycle Accident, Personal Injury, Uninsured MotoristBy Barry Goldberg