Hi. I’m Ed Smith, a car accident and personal injury attorney. One town I am proud to serve is Hidden Valley Lake. I work every single day to represent people who have been injured in a car accident or other accidents. People just like you.

Hidden Valley Lake is a gated subdivision that was built in the late 1960s around a 100-acre lake. Initially, Hidden Valley Lake was a recreational retreat area, centered around the Billy Bell golf course and nearby country club. People came to the area to play golf, relax, and get away from hectic city life. However, by the early 1970s, the first homes were getting built, initially as vacation retreats but soon as year-round abodes.

Today, over 5,000 people call Hidden Valley Lake home, attracted to the safe neighborhood and glorious natural views. Though the community is tucked away from most of the world, California State Route 29 does run through the outer limits of the community, bringing a steady stream of visitors each day. We welcome everyone to Hidden Valley Lake, one of the true gems in California.

Though the neighborhood might seem idyllic, car accidents can and do occur in Hidden Valley Lake and with some regularity, too. Lake County as a whole saw 445 fatalities and injuries, making the state the 32^nd most dangerous in the state.

Unfortunately, one cause of injuries was drinking, with five people killed or injured by underage drinkers, and another 19 harmed by drivers aged 21-34 who had been drunk. Other causes of car accidents include driving too fast for conditions, carelessness, and reckless behavior.

No matter how an accident unfolds, injured victims can face the daunting task of trying to pay unexpected expenses tied to their injuries. For example, many victims need tens of thousands of dollars to cover:

• Surgery
• Rehabilitation
• Prescription and over-the-counter drugs
• Mental health counseling
• Doctor’s visits
• Tests and bloodwork

They also need to have their cars repaired. Even low-speed crashes can cause thousands of dollars, which might not be covered by a motorist’s insurance. In more serious crashes, accidents can completely total a vehicle, leaving a person stranded without transportation.

I’ve also seen badly injured clients be unable to return to work. Instead, they are stuck at home, losing out on thousands of dollars of income. Whether you work for a wage or are self-employed, the loss of income can be particularly devastating.

This is where my team and I come in. As an experienced Hidden Valley Lake personal injury lawyer, I have helped our clients receive the money they need to cover their expenses and daily bills.

We only accept cases where clients have suffered serious injuries. I have represented clients involved in collisions involving the following:

• Trucks
• Motorcycles
• Bicycles
• Pedestrians

We are also ready and willing to assist people victimized in other types of accidents, including:

• Slip and falls
• Trip and falls
• Dog bite cases
• Defective product accidents
• Wrongful death

I’ve focused my cases on the clients who present the most severe injuries, including broken bones, traumatic brain injuries, and spinal cord damage. If you’ve suffered soft-tissue or more moderate injuries, we’ll be happy to refer you to a different Hidden Valley Lake personal injury attorney who can represent you.

California is drowning in lawyers. But not every lawyer is right for your case. If you’ve suffered a serious injury, you need serious representation, but you’ll need to dig to find the right Hidden Valley Lake auto accident attorney.

We've worked with thousands of clients, and many of them chose us after doing the following due diligence:

• Check out the law firm’s website. Every lawyer should have a website today, and it should contain important and helpful information that shows the attorney keeps up with the law. If the site looks unprofessional or has grammatical errors, then you can expect the lawyer to be careless as well.
• Read online reviews. Yelp, Google, and other sites have made it easy for a customer’s voice to be heard. Go online and check out what people are saying. Of course, anyone can write a negative review, and those who are unhappy might be more motivated to complain. But check out trends or themes in the reviews. If everyone is complaining that a lawyer doesn’t return calls, there might be a problem there. I take pride in the reviews that my firm has received, and I encourage you to read them carefully.
• Choose someone experienced in the field. Any lawyer can handle a car accident case if they have a bar license in good standing. But not everyone can provide the level of service and attention to detail that my staff and I can. We’ve dedicated a large portion of our caseload to car accidents, and we’ve built up the know-how that few lawyers in Hidden Valley Lake have. I’ve written articles on car accident and motorcycle accident cases to share my knowledge with other lawyers and the public, which you can read online.
• Meet with the attorney. You’ll want to hire a lawyer who is a good “fit,” and the only way to know that is to meet with them. I’m proud to offer a free consultation where we can talk about your case and

The video below will further explain how to really choose a personal injury lawyer for your case.

The steps you take and the choices you make can dramatically alter the amount of money you receive in compensation. I've seen some motorists make critical errors in the hours and days following a car accident. These mistakes cost my clients money, and in a few cases, my clients have forfeited their right to adequate compensation entirely.

Do the following:

• Call the police. You need to report any accident that causes bodily injury or causes $1,000 in damage. An officer can visit the scene and draft a police report, which you will need for your insurer.
• Swap insurance information with any driver involved. Also make sure to get details like the driver’s phone number, address, and the car license plate number.
• Take pictures—if you can. You might be too injured and need to wait for an ambulance. If you can move around, get a few snaps of the vehicles involved, especially where they were impacted. The other driver might get their car repaired quickly, so you want documentation.
• Don’t say anything! Well, that’s a bit of stretch, but you don’t want to say anything incriminating. Don’t apologize or give any impression that you are to blame for the crash.

Finally, get medical help and follow your doctor’s advice. You aren’t a medical professional; your doctor is. I’ve seen clients not follow their doctor’s advice and lose out on compensation for that reason.

I’m Ed Smith, a Hidden Valley Lake personal injury lawyer who handles car accident and other personal injury cases. If you’ve suffered a serious injury in a car crash, or if someone else’s negligence has injured you in any way, we can help. For free and friendly advice, call me at 707.564.1900 or 800.404.5400. You can also submit to our online contact form.

For more information on our firm as well as what our clients are saying about us, check out the links below:

• Verdicts and Settlements
• Google
• Yelp
• Avvo

I'm a member of the Million Dollar Advocates and the National Association of Distinguished Counsel.

Photo by Chetan Vlad from Pexels

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