Hit and Run on Ventura Blvd in Studio City: What to Do

Brian Liu, Esq. — Founding Partner

Local Studio City Injury Attorney · UCLA Law

Brian Liu is a founding partner at L&F Brown. He previously lived in Studio City and knows the Ventura Boulevard corridor and surrounding neighborhoods firsthand. He graduated from UCLA Law School and has spent his career representing injured clients across Los Angeles.

Ventura Blvd is Studio City's main commercial artery, stretching past some of the most popular restaurants, shops, and entertainment venues in the San Fernando Valley, including the Tujunga Village area. With high vehicle volume, busy intersections, frequent lane changes, and the added complexity of double-parked delivery vehicles and Uber and Lyft pickups, it is unfortunately a place where hit-and-run accidents occur with some regularity.

If a driver hit you on Ventura Blvd and drove away, your instinct may be to freeze or panic. Instead, take these steps as quickly as possible.

Step 1: Do Not Chase the Fleeing Driver

It is understandable to want to follow the car that hit you, but pursuing a fleeing driver on a busy road like Ventura Blvd creates additional danger for you, other drivers, and pedestrians. Stay where you are and focus on evidence gathering instead.

Step 2: Call 911 and Report the Hit-and-Run

Call 911 immediately and describe what happened. LAPD North Hollywood Division handles hit-and-run incidents on Ventura Blvd and other Studio City streets. Provide as much information as you can about the fleeing vehicle: make, model, color, direction of travel, and any portion of the license plate you observed. An officer will respond to take a report. Getting a report number is critical because a police report is required to make an uninsured motorist claim.

Step 3: Gather Evidence at the Scene

Ventura Blvd is lined with businesses that have exterior surveillance cameras. Banks, restaurants, pharmacies, and retail stores along the corridor frequently capture activity in the street. This footage can identify the fleeing vehicle and driver. Your attorney can send preservation letters to these businesses immediately to prevent overwriting, but this must happen fast because most systems save only 24 to 72 hours of footage.

Photograph your vehicle, any debris from the other car left at the scene, your injuries, and the surrounding area. Talk to bystanders and witnesses who may have seen the vehicle before it fled. Get their contact information.

Step 4: Seek Medical Attention

Even if you feel relatively unharmed, see a doctor. Valley Presbyterian Hospital at 15107 Vanowen St in Van Nuys is the nearest major emergency facility. Adrenaline after an accident suppresses pain, and injuries like whiplash, spinal damage, and head trauma often present fully only after a delay. Medical documentation starting from the day of the crash is essential to your claim.

Step 5: Contact a Hit-and-Run Lawyer Before Calling Your Insurer

You will need to make a claim through your own uninsured motorist coverage. But before you start those conversations, contact a Studio City hit-and-run accident lawyer. Your insurer will approach your UM claim as a cost-minimization exercise. An attorney ensures you are pursuing the full value of your coverage and that all claim procedures are followed correctly.

Contact L&F Brown's Studio City team immediately after your Ventura Blvd hit-and-run. The free consultation costs nothing, and every hour of delay puts evidence at risk.