Uninsured Motorist Lawyer in Pasadena

You did nothing wrong, and now the other driver has no insurance. Or the driver has a policy so small it will not cover your surgery. Or the driver hit you on Lake Avenue and kept going. Plenty of people assume they are out of luck. You are not. If you carry uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage, known as UM/UIM, your own insurer owes you money. The catch: your own insurer now sits across the table, and it can argue about fault, injuries, and deadlines like any other opponent. Moe Abdallah Law, P.C. represents people in Pasadena who need to make a UM or UIM claim. Attorney Moe Abdallah takes your call himself, any hour, and the consultation is free. You pay no fee unless he wins. Below, you will find the three kinds of UM claims, the short deadlines, and how Pasadena's roads and agencies fit in.

Uninsured, underinsured, or gone: three different claims

One phrase covers three different problems. An uninsured driver has no liability policy at all. An underinsured driver has a policy, but its limits fall short of your losses. A hit-and-run driver leaves before anyone learns who they are. Each one takes a different path through the same UM/UIM coverage. California requires every auto policy that covers bodily injury to include UM coverage unless you agreed in writing, on the statutory form, to drop or lower it. UIM comes bundled with it. The limit cannot fall below the state minimums, which are now $30,000 per person and $60,000 per accident (Insurance Code 11580.2 and Vehicle Code 16056). For an underinsured claim, the at-fault driver's policy must pay out first, and what you collect from that driver is subtracted from your UIM limit. One exception matters in Pasadena: a government-owned vehicle does not count as an uninsured vehicle (Insurance Code 11580.2(b)). If a city truck or other public vehicle hit you, the claim runs against the public entity, and for the City of Pasadena it must be presented to the City Attorney's Liability and Claims office within six months (Government Code 911.2). You also need your own policy's declarations page to learn your limits. Most drivers never read theirs. Moe pulls the policy, finds every layer of coverage, and tells you what the claim can reach before you settle for less. Do not treat your insurer's first reading of the policy as final.

Where Pasadena drivers get hit by people with no coverage

We could not find a published uninsured-driver rate for Pasadena, so we will not guess at one. The record does show plenty of crash risk. The 2023 state rankings placed Pasadena 7th of 62 comparable cities for total fatal and injury victims, 5th for pedestrian victims, and 14th for bicyclist victims. The city's own review of 2020 to 2024 collisions found that 13% of its roads account for 80% of fatal and serious-injury crashes, including Lake Avenue, Washington Boulevard, Orange Grove Boulevard, and Colorado Boulevard. The city's safety plan also lists community-requested projects on Sunset Avenue and Allen Avenue. A crash on any of those streets can become a UM claim if the at-fault driver has no policy or leaves. The I-210 Foothill Freeway, the SR-134 Ventura Freeway, and the end of the SR-110 Arroyo Seco Parkway at Glenarm Street add fast traffic. A driver who hits you at speed and keeps going can be gone in seconds. If an uninsured driver hit you while you were walking or riding a bike, bring your own auto policy to the review anyway. Moe will check whether its UM coverage reaches you.

Hit-and-run in Pasadena: the 24-hour report and the 30-day statement

A hit-and-run UM claim has strict steps. The injury must come from physical contact between the other vehicle and you or your car. You must report the crash within 24 hours to the city police, or to the sheriff or CHP in unincorporated areas. Then you must give your insurer a sworn statement within 30 days (Insurance Code 11580.2(b)). In Pasadena, the Pasadena Police Department takes reports for crashes on city streets, and you can request a copy through its public records page on the City of Pasadena website. The CHP normally handles the I-210, SR-134, and SR-110. We could not confirm current phone numbers or fees because the city's site blocked our review. Call from the scene if you can. If the driver vanished and you reported late, do not give up. Call Moe right away so he can see which options remain. In one past case, a woman was rear-ended by a driver who fled. There was no police report, and other firms had turned her down. Moe recovered the $100,000 UM policy limit for her. Past results do not predict a similar outcome.

Your own insurer is now your opponent

This part surprises people. You pay your insurer every month, and when you make a UM claim, that same company decides how much to pay you. It may question whether the other driver truly was uninsured. It may say your injuries came from an earlier problem, that your treatment cost too much, or that you were partly to blame. California follows pure comparative negligence, so your award shrinks by your share of fault but does not disappear (Li v. Yellow Cab Co.). Adjusters also ask for recorded statements and broad medical releases. Do not sign or agree to anything before you speak to a lawyer. One more trap: if you settle with the at-fault driver or take a claim to judgment without your UM insurer's written consent, you can lose your UM coverage (Insurance Code 11580.2(c)(3)). For an underinsured driver, you must also promptly send your UIM insurer a copy of any lawsuit filed. A copy of the Pasadena Police Department or CHP report helps answer the insurer's first question, whether the other driver really had no coverage. Moe manages those notices, deals with the adjuster for you, and builds your claim from your medical records. He also keeps you from saying anything that hurts it.

The two-year UM deadline, arbitration, and Proposition 213

Two clocks matter. The usual two-year limit to sue the at-fault driver for injury runs under Code of Civil Procedure 335.1. Your UM claim has its own two-year rule. Within two years of the accident, you must sue the uninsured driver, settle the amount with your insurer, or start arbitration by sending written notice by certified mail with return receipt requested (Insurance Code 11580.2(i)). Miss all three and the claim does not accrue. Once arbitration starts, it generally has to finish within five years. If a UM claim is pending, the insurer must warn you in writing 30 days before the deadline, and if it fails, the period extends 30 days from when notice is given. That notice is not required once you have a lawyer. Proposition 213 adds another limit. If you owned an uninsured vehicle, drove without financial responsibility, or were convicted of DUI for the crash, you generally cannot recover pain and suffering damages (Civil Code 3333.4). An uninsured owner hit by a convicted drunk driver is excepted. If a Pasadena city vehicle played a part, remember the six-month government claim runs far faster than this two-year UM rule. Moe checks these rules on day one so none of them catch you off guard.

Huntington Hospital, the Pasadena Courthouse, and how Moe handles UM claims

Huntington Hospital at 100 W. California Boulevard in Pasadena says it is home to the only Level II trauma center in the San Gabriel Valley. Keep every record. Your own insurer will not take your word for your injuries, so proof drives the claim. Follow your doctor's plan and tell each provider how the crash happened. Cases that need a lawsuit go to Los Angeles County Superior Court. The Pasadena Courthouse is at 300 East Walnut Street, but its page does not say whether civil injury cases are heard there, so we check the court's locator before filing. UM disputes often end in arbitration rather than a jury. Moe works your claim from first call to final payment. He keeps you updated by call and text, collects the medical proof, and demands what your policy owes. In one case he recovered $105,000 for an uninsured client with a broken sternum, and in another $75,000 after an insurer offered $900. Past results do not predict a similar outcome. You owe no fee unless he wins.

Talk to a Pasadena uninsured motorist lawyer

Call (323) 716-1992 for a free, no-obligation case review. You pay nothing unless we win, and we'll handle the insurance companies for you. Learn more about our uninsured motorist representation →

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