Who Pays My Damages After a Multiple-Car Pileup Crash?

 Posted on April 30, 2025 in Car Accident

Riverside County news reports often include stories about multi-vehicle collisions. For example, six injuries and one death were caused in a crash involving several vehicles in Riverside on April 16th, 2025. The Riverside County Fire Department responded to a four-vehicle collision on April 22nd, needing the jaws of life to extricate one injured victim.

In some traffic accidents, it is apparent who caused them and is liable for paying damages. When several vehicles are involved in a crash, fault and liability are not always clear. If you hope to collect the full compensation you deserve, you need the skilled advocacy of our experienced Temecula car accident lawyer.

What Are Fault and Liability in Car Accident Cases?

Car crashes can happen for multiple reasons. Most of those reasons are negligent driver errors, such as:

• Distracted, fatigued, or impaired driving
• Following too closely
• Speeding
• Failing to yield the right of way
• Running stop signs and red lights
• Improper passing or merging

These dangerous behaviors often lead to accidents. Many times, collisions happen for more than one reason. For example, a speeding driver might crash into a distracted motorist who was carelessly veering into the wrong traffic lane. In that situation, each driver is assigned a percentage of fault for causing the accident.

With fault comes liability for paying accident-related damages, proportionate to the degree of fault. For instance, a driver who is 20 percent at fault for his crash could only receive 80 percent of his total damages. However, fault is often difficult to determine in a chain-reaction crash, and insurance companies are very unlikely to pay a fair settlement amount unless you have a competent lawyer on your side.

Why Is Determining Fault in a Chain-Reaction Crash Complex?

Looking at the aftermath of a pileup collision, several vehicles can be scattered along the roadway. However, they did not all crash simultaneously. A chain-reaction collision is a series of individual impacts that happen one after another.

Sometimes, the at-fault party for the initial collision is also responsible for subsequent accidents. In other cases, other drivers could cause additional impacts. For instance, a drunk driver may approach the scene of an accident, failing to stop in time to avoid hitting the already disabled vehicles.

An investigation needs to determine the order of the individual accidents and why each one happened. Each separate impact can cause injuries and property damage, so a mild concussion sustained in the initial collision could become a life-threatening traumatic brain injury. The first impact may have slightly damaged your car, but following collisions may have totaled it. Fault will be assigned, but insurance companies often try to use the compounded effects of pileup crashes to blame another carrier for your damages. While the companies are fighting amongst themselves, you are left wondering whether you will ever see any compensation.

Your attorney will investigate your accident. If more than one party is liable for your damages, we will pursue claims against each. We will not allow the insurers to take advantage of you.

Discuss Your Case With Our Knowledgeable Riverside County, CA Car Accident Attorney

The more complex your claim, the more you need an effective Temecula, CA personal injury lawyer from Maineri Law Firm fighting on your behalf. Arrange your free consultation today by contacting us at 951-698-4200 or online.