Lost a Loved One in a Hit-and-Run? Our Team Stands With Your Family.

What a Fatal Hit-and-Run Wrongful Death Claim Covers

A family may still have a wrongful death claim when the driver who killed their loved one drove away and was never found. Wrongful death is a claim brought because a death was caused by another person’s wrongful act or neglect. If the driver is identified, the claim can go against that driver. If the driver is not found, the family’s own uninsured motorist coverage may be the path forward.

Colvin Accident Lawyers is based in Bakersfield, California. The firm handles fatal accident claims, including car, truck, motorcycle, bicycle, pedestrian and bus crashes. Families in Kern County and nearby communities can contact the firm to talk through what happened.

Hit-and-run cases raise questions that other crashes do not. Who can bring the claim? What does the insurance policy say? How much time is there? This page answers those questions in order.

Who Can File a Wrongful Death Claim in California

Certain family members can bring the claim under Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 377.60. The list starts with the decedent’s surviving spouse, domestic partner and children. If there is no surviving issue, the persons who would inherit the decedent’s property may bring it.

Other people may qualify too. Under Code of Civil Procedure § 377.60, parents may sue as heirs by intestate succession when the decedent leaves no surviving issue. Whether or not they qualify that way, a putative spouse, children of a putative spouse, stepchildren, or parents may also bring a claim if they were dependent on the decedent. If the decedent’s parents would have been entitled to bring the claim and are deceased, the decedent’s legal guardians may bring it as if they were the parents. A minor who lived in the decedent’s household for the previous 180 days, and relied on the decedent for half or more of their support, may also qualify.

The decedent’s personal representative may also bring the action on their behalf.

The court decides how any award is divided among the people entitled to it, under Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 377.61.

Not sure your family qualifies? Share your family relationships with Colvin Accident Lawyers, and the firm can review your standing.

California Hit-and-Run Offenses Under the Vehicle Code

A driver in a crash that injures or kills someone must stop at the scene. Under Cal. Veh. Code § 20001, the driver must immediately stop and meet the reporting duties the code sets out.

If the crash results in death or permanent, serious injury, the offense is punishable by state prison for two, three or four years. It can also mean county jail for at least 90 days and up to one year. The fine ranges from $1,000 to $10,000, and the judge may impose both. In imposing the minimum fine, the court shall take into consideration the defendant’s ability to pay the fine and, in the interests of justice and for reasons stated in the record, may reduce the minimum fine to less than the amount otherwise required. The court may reduce or eliminate the minimum jail time in the interests of justice, with reasons stated on the record.

“Permanent, serious injury” means the loss or permanent impairment of function of a bodily member or organ.

Still, a police report number or criminal case number helps the civil side. Bring any numbers you have to your conversation with Colvin Accident Lawyers.

How the Driver’s Identity and Insurance Affect the Claim

If the driver is identified, the claim can go against that driver and the driver’s liability insurance. If the driver is never found, the family may look to its own uninsured motorist coverage.

California’s Cal. Ins. Code § 11580.2 sets the rules for these claims. The injury must arise out of physical contact of the hit-and-run vehicle with the insured person or with a car the insured was occupying. A crash without that physical contact does not fit this rule.

The statute also sets reporting steps. The insured, or someone on their behalf, must report the accident within 24 hours to the police department where it happened. Cal. Ins. Code § 11580.2 requires that, for bodily injury arising from physical contact with an automobile whose driver’s identity is unascertainable, the insured or someone on the insured’s behalf report the accident within 24 hours to the police department of the city where it occurred (or, in unincorporated territory, to the county sheriff or the California Highway Patrol) and file a sworn statement with the insurer within 30 days. If it happened in unincorporated territory, the report goes to the sheriff or the local California Highway Patrol headquarters. Within 30 days after that, a sworn statement must be filed with the insurer saying the insured has a cause of action for damages against a person or persons whose identity is unascertainable, with supporting facts set forth. Cal. Ins. Code § 11580.2 reads: “As used in this section, “uninsured motor vehicle” shall not include a motor vehicle owned or operated by the named insured or any resident of the same household or self-insured within the meaning of the Financial Responsibility Law of the state in which the motor vehicle is registered or that is owned by the United States of America, Canada, a state or political subdivision of any of those governments or an agency of any of the foregoing, or a land motor vehicle or trailer while located for use as a residence or premises and not as a vehicle, or any equipment or vehicle designed or modified for use primarily off public roads, except while actually upon public roads.”

If the family and insurer disagree about whether the insured can recover, or how much, the dispute can go to arbitration before a single neutral arbitrator, under the same section.

Policy wording matters. A lawyer reviews the actual policy instead of assuming coverage applies. Bring your insurance declarations page and the crash report to your conversation with Colvin Accident Lawyers so the coverage questions can be reviewed directly.

Steps to Protect the Wrongful Death Claim Now

Report the crash and the death, save names and numbers, keep records, and speak with a lawyer before you speak with any insurer. Each step helps preserve the claim.

• Report to police. Keep the report number, the officer’s name and the agency. The 24-hour reporting rule in § 11580.2 makes this time-sensitive.
• Ask that evidence be kept. Request that the scene, vehicle debris and any nearby camera footage be preserved. Write down who you asked and when.
• Collect witness details. Get names and phone numbers as soon as you can. Memories fade and people move.
• Gather medical and coroner records. Keep hospital, medical examiner and coroner documents for your loved one.
• Save financial records. Keep funeral and burial bills, receipts, and records of lost income or household help.
• Route insurer calls. Do not give a recorded statement before speaking with a lawyer. California law bars insurers from directly advising a claimant not to get an attorney, under Cal. Ins. Code § 790.03.

Families who have not gathered these items can still call Colvin Accident Lawyers. The firm can explain what to collect first.

What to Expect: Process and Timeline

The process usually starts with a conversation, then moves to investigation, insurance claims and, if needed, a court filing. Each step builds on the one before.

1. Free first consultation. Colvin Accident Lawyers offers a free first consultation that is confidential and carries no obligation to continue.
2. Investigation. The firm reviews police and medical records, identifies insurance that may apply, and works to confirm the driver or the coverage.
3. Insurance claims. The firm presents the claim to the responsible insurers and reviews every offer with the family.
4. Filing. If a fair resolution is not reached, a lawsuit may be filed. The timing depends on the court’s schedule and the case’s needs.

Code of Civil Procedure § 335.1 sets a two-year period for wrongful death actions, but exceptions such as tolling may extend it, and claims against public entities may have shorter deadlines. Under Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 335.1, the period is two years for an action for the death of a person caused by another’s wrongful act or neglect. Calling early gives the firm time to gather evidence and records.

Damages, Shared Fault and Filing in Kern County

Under Cal. Civ. Code § 1714, a person is responsible for injury caused by a lack of ordinary care, except so far as the injured person has, willfully or by want of ordinary care, brought the injury upon himself or herself. That duty appears in Cal. Civ. Code § 1714. A claim based on the driver’s conduct starts from that duty.

Insurers may dispute fault, damages or coverage. Colvin Accident Lawyers addresses those disputes on the family’s behalf. A case from Bakersfield would typically be filed in a Kern County court, and the court’s schedule sets the timing.

If you worry about how fault will be argued, raise that concern during your conversation with the firm.

Why Families Work With Colvin Accident Lawyers

Colvin Accident Lawyers is a Bakersfield, California firm that represents accident victims and their families. Donald Norman Colvin is the responsible lawyer for this page. Support staff help with records, scheduling and communication.

The firm’s practice areas include wrongful death, car, truck, motorcycle, bicycle, pedestrian and bus accidents, dog bites, premises liability, and catastrophic injury. Wrongful death cases involve many records and insurance questions, so careful review matters.

The firm’s approach is direct communication with families. It reviews coverage, evidence and records with each family before any decision. Our team works to keep families informed at each step.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does the criminal case have to finish first?

Talk With Colvin Accident Lawyers About Your Loved One’s Case

If your loved one was killed and the driver drove away, you may be facing a claim, a police investigation and insurance questions at the same time. You don’t have to sort those out alone. Reach out to Colvin Accident Lawyers at the contact page to talk through the facts of your family’s loss.