Hit and Run on Ventura Blvd in Encino: What to Do Next

Arya Firoozmand, Esq. — Founding Partner

Local Encino Injury Attorney · UCLA Law

Arya Firoozmand is the founding partner at L&F Brown. He grew up in Woodland Hills and knows the 101/405 interchange and Ventura Boulevard through Encino firsthand. He graduated from El Camino Real High School and UCLA Law School and has spent his career representing injured clients across the San Fernando Valley.

You were on Ventura Blvd in Encino. Maybe you were near the Encino Marketplace, or heading toward Balboa Blvd, or sitting at one of the lights near Woodlake Ave. A driver hit your car and kept moving. No stop. No exchange of information. Just a disappearing vehicle in traffic.

If that sounds like what happened to you, stop here. The next few hours matter more than almost anything else in your case.

Ventura Blvd through Encino is a dense commercial corridor covered by business cameras, witnesses, and foot traffic. The evidence that identifies the driver who fled is almost certainly out there. The problem is it will not last long.

Why Ventura Blvd in Encino Is Different From a Freeway Hit-and-Run

When a hit-and-run happens on the US-101 or I-405, you are dealing with CHP jurisdiction, high-speed traffic, and limited camera coverage. When it happens on Ventura Blvd, you are in a different situation entirely.

Ventura Blvd between White Oak Ave and Balboa Blvd runs through the heart of Encino's commercial zone. There are banks, restaurants, pharmacies, gas stations, car washes, and retail shops on nearly every block. Almost all of them have exterior security cameras pointed at the street. Gas station cameras, ATM cameras, and restaurant cameras mounted over drive-through lanes frequently capture both directions of traffic with enough resolution to read partial plates.

That is your best tool for identifying a driver who fled. But commercial security systems typically overwrite footage within 24 to 72 hours. Once it is gone, it is gone permanently.

This is why moving fast matters so much after a Ventura Blvd hit-and-run.

Step-by-Step: What to Do After a Hit-and-Run on Ventura Blvd

Step 1: Get safe and check for injuries. If your car can move, pull into a parking lot or side street. Turn on your hazard lights. Check yourself and any passengers for pain or injury. If anyone needs immediate medical attention, call 911 first and ask for paramedics. Do not try to chase the fleeing driver.

Step 2: Call LAPD, not CHP. Ventura Blvd is a surface street within the City of Los Angeles. That means LAPD handles collisions here, specifically LAPD Valley Traffic Division. CHP handles the US-101 and I-405 in Encino, but not Ventura Blvd. Call 911 or the LAPD non-emergency line. Tell them a hit-and-run occurred, describe the direction the vehicle fled, and provide whatever you remember about the make, color, or plate. You need a police report number for your insurance claim, and the LAPD report is the official record of the crime.

Step 3: Write down everything you remember about the vehicle. Do this immediately, before your memory fades. Color, approximate make or model, body style, and any fragment of the license plate, even one letter or one digit, can help law enforcement narrow the field substantially. Note the direction the driver fled and any unusual characteristics of the vehicle such as damage, stickers, or a missing bumper.

Step 4: Talk to everyone nearby. Witnesses on Ventura Blvd are your second most valuable asset. Pedestrians on the sidewalk, drivers stopped at the light, delivery workers, and people sitting outside restaurants may have seen more than you did from your car. Get names and phone numbers. Ask specifically: did you see the car? Did you catch any part of the plate? Did you see which direction they turned?

Step 5: Identify every business with a camera in view of the collision. Walk the scene before you leave. Note the exact location of your vehicle when impact occurred. Look at the facades of surrounding buildings and identify cameras. Gas stations and ATMs mounted facing the street are particularly reliable. Note the business name, address, and approximate camera location. Your attorney or the police can send a formal preservation letter to each one today.

Step 6: Get medical attention at Encino Hospital Medical Center. Even if you feel okay right now, go to the emergency room at Encino Hospital Medical Center (16237 Ventura Blvd, Encino) as soon as you leave the scene. Adrenaline from a crash frequently masks pain, and injuries including whiplash, soft tissue damage, and concussion often do not produce symptoms until 24 to 48 hours later. A same-day medical record creates the direct evidentiary link between the collision and your injuries. Gaps in treatment give insurance adjusters a reason to deny or reduce your claim.

Step 7: Notify your own insurance company the same day. Do not wait. Call your insurer, tell them a hit-and-run occurred and that you have a police report number, and state that you are preserving your right to file an uninsured motorist claim. Do not agree to a recorded statement yet. Just report the loss and get the claim number.

Step 8: Contact an Encino hit-and-run attorney before giving any statement. Once you have reported the claim, speak with an attorney who handles hit-and-run cases in Encino before you say anything more to the insurer. What you say in those first conversations gets documented and can be used against you later in the claims process.

LAPD and the Criminal Investigation

Leaving the scene of an accident is a crime in California. Under Vehicle Code Section 20001 (for injury accidents) and 20002 (for property damage), a hit-and-run driver can face criminal prosecution. LAPD Valley Traffic Division investigates these cases, and when there is camera footage or partial plate information available, the clearance rate on hit-and-run cases is meaningful.

You do not have to wait for the criminal case to resolve before pursuing a civil claim. Both processes can move at the same time. If the driver is identified and charged, your attorney can coordinate with the criminal case to preserve evidence and build your civil claim simultaneously.

If the driver is never found, which does happen, your claim shifts entirely to your own insurance company through your uninsured motorist coverage.

Uninsured Motorist Coverage: Your Primary Path to Compensation

California law requires insurers to offer uninsured motorist (UM) coverage to every policyholder. Many drivers accept the minimum or decline it to lower their premium, and only discover they have no UM coverage after a hit-and-run. Check your declarations page now.

If you have UM coverage, it works like this: your own insurance company steps into the shoes of the driver who fled and pays your damages up to your policy limits. That includes medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering, and property damage. The coverage kicks in even when the other driver is never identified, as long as there was physical contact between your vehicle and the other car, which there was in a hit-and-run.

Even with UM coverage in place, insurers do not simply write checks. They investigate, they dispute medical bills, and they frequently make low initial offers. An attorney who handles UM claims in Encino knows how to document injuries, counter lowball offers, and demand arbitration if the insurer refuses to pay a fair amount.

What Compensation Is Available?

Depending on your injuries and available coverage, compensation in an Encino Ventura Blvd hit-and-run case can include:

• Medical expenses: Emergency room treatment at Encino Hospital Medical Center, imaging, specialist referrals, physical therapy, and any ongoing care linked to your injuries.
• Lost wages: Income you could not earn while recovering, plus reduced earning capacity if injuries are lasting.
• Pain and suffering: Physical pain, emotional distress, and reduced quality of life, particularly important in cases with meaningful injuries.
• Property damage: Repair or fair market replacement of your vehicle, plus rental car costs during the repair period.

Settlement values depend on injury severity, available insurance limits, and whether the driver is identified. L&F Brown has recovered between $100,000 and $450,000 for clients in similar hit-and-run situations.

The Camera Footage Window Is Closing

Ventura Blvd in Encino has better camera coverage than most streets in the San Fernando Valley. The evidence that identifies the driver who hit you is very likely sitting on a hard drive somewhere between White Oak and Balboa right now. But that drive will be overwritten within 24 to 72 hours unless someone formally requests preservation.

If you have an attorney, they can send preservation letters today. If you are handling this yourself, walk into each nearby business in person today, ask for the manager, describe the date and time of the collision, and ask them to save and preserve their exterior footage. Get a name and write it down.

Waiting until next week means that footage is gone. Move fast.

L&F Brown represents hit-and-run victims throughout Encino and the San Fernando Valley. All cases are handled on contingency, meaning you pay nothing unless we recover for you. Learn more about your options on our Encino personal injury page, or call us today for a free consultation.