Who Pays After a Hit-and-Run in Van Nuys?

Arya Firoozmand, Esq.

Local Van Nuys Injury Attorney · UCLA Law

Arya Firoozmand is the founding partner at L&F Brown. He grew up in Woodland Hills, graduated from El Camino Real High School and UCLA Law School, and practices regularly at the Van Nuys Courthouse where most Valley injury cases are heard.

Someone hit you in Van Nuys and drove off. Maybe it happened on Van Nuys Blvd near the Civic Center, or on Sherman Way heading toward the 405. Either way, you're standing there with a damaged car and possibly real injuries, and the person who did it is gone. The first question most people ask is obvious: if they can't find the driver, who pays?

The answer is more complicated than it should be, but there are real options. Here's how it works.

Your Own Insurance Is Usually the First Source of Payment

This surprises a lot of people. In a hit-and-run where the other driver is never identified, your own auto insurance policy is the most likely source of compensation. Specifically, two types of coverage matter:

Uninsured motorist coverage (UM). Under California law, every auto insurer must offer uninsured motorist coverage. If you carry UM coverage, which most policies include by default unless you actively waived it, your own insurer steps into the shoes of the driver who fled. This covers your medical bills, lost wages, and pain and suffering up to your policy limits.

Here's the part most people don't realize: a hit-and-run driver is treated as an uninsured motorist under California Insurance Code Section 11580.2. You don't have to prove the other driver had no insurance. The fact that they fled and can't be identified is enough to trigger your UM coverage.

Medical payments coverage (MedPay). If your policy includes MedPay, it pays your medical bills regardless of who was at fault. This kicks in immediately, no investigation needed. It's usually a smaller amount, often $5,000 to $10,000, but it covers expenses while the larger UM claim is processed.

What If You Don't Have Uninsured Motorist Coverage?

If you waived UM coverage when you bought your policy, your options narrow significantly. This is one of the most frustrating situations in personal injury law, and it happens more often than you'd think.

Without UM coverage, you may still recover through health insurance for your medical bills and collision coverage for your vehicle damage. But pain and suffering, lost wages beyond what disability covers, and other non-medical losses become much harder to recover without an identified defendant.

This is why filing a police report matters. If LAPD identifies the driver later, you can pursue a claim against that person directly. Even months after the incident, a driver identified through surveillance footage near Van Nuys Blvd or license plate tips from witnesses creates a viable claim.

Filing a Police Report with LAPD Van Nuys

LAPD handles hit-and-run investigations on Van Nuys city streets. If the crash happened on the 405, CHP takes jurisdiction instead. Either way, you need a police report filed as soon as possible.

For Van Nuys hit-and-runs, you'll deal with the LAPD Van Nuys Division. The report number becomes the foundation of every insurance claim and any future legal action. Without it, your UM carrier will push back hard.

California Vehicle Code Section 20002 makes hit-and-run involving property damage a misdemeanor. Section 20001 makes it a felony if someone was injured. That criminal classification matters because law enforcement takes felony hit-and-runs more seriously in terms of investigation resources. If you were injured, make sure the report reflects that.

Evidence Moves Fast in Van Nuys

Van Nuys has a lot of commercial surveillance cameras, especially along Van Nuys Blvd between Victory and Sherman Way, and near the Van Nuys Civic Center. If a camera caught the other vehicle's plates or the crash itself, that footage needs to be preserved immediately.

Most commercial businesses overwrite their camera systems every 7 to 14 days. If your hit-and-run happened near Brent's Deli or the retail corridor along Sherman Way, those businesses may have footage, but only if someone asks for it before it's gone.

A Van Nuys hit-and-run accident lawyer can send preservation letters to nearby businesses and request traffic camera footage through LADOT within the first few days. This is one of the strongest reasons to involve an attorney early in a hit-and-run case. The window for useful evidence is measured in days, not weeks.

What Compensation Covers

If you have UM coverage or the at-fault driver is eventually identified, compensation in a Van Nuys hit-and-run case can include:

Medical expenses. Emergency room visits at Valley Presbyterian Hospital, follow-up care, physical therapy, and any future treatment related to the crash. If you were treated at Valley Presbyterian after the incident, your medical records from that hospital become central to the claim.

Lost wages. Time missed from work due to your injuries, including reduced hours during recovery.

Pain and suffering. The physical pain and emotional toll of being hit by someone who didn't even stop. Courts and insurers recognize that hit-and-run victims often experience heightened anxiety and anger beyond what a standard collision produces.

Vehicle damage. Covered through your collision coverage if you carry it, or through the at-fault driver's liability policy if they're identified.

The UM Claim Process Is Not Simple

Filing a UM claim feels like it should be straightforward. Your own insurance company should be on your side, right? In practice, UM claims are adversarial. Your insurer owes you coverage under the policy, but they also have every financial incentive to minimize what they pay.

UM claims in California can go to arbitration if you and your insurer can't agree on the value. That arbitration hearing would be handled through the Los Angeles County court system, with the case originating from the Van Nuys Courthouse on Sylmar Ave. An experienced attorney knows which arbitrators tend to handle Valley cases and what settlement ranges look like for the types of injuries common in hit-and-run collisions.

Here's the honest truth: insurance companies treat UM claims differently when there's an attorney involved. The adjuster assigned to your claim handles dozens of files. Represented claimants get more attention and better offers because the insurer knows the alternative is arbitration, and that costs them money too.

California's Victim Compensation Board

If you have no UM coverage and the driver is never found, the California Victim Compensation Board (CalVCB) may cover some of your costs. This is a state-funded program that helps crime victims, and a felony hit-and-run qualifies. It covers medical bills, lost wages, and mental health treatment, though the amounts are limited and the process is slow.

CalVCB requires a police report, so that's another reason to make sure LAPD has documented your case.

What You Should Do Right Now

If you're reading this shortly after a Van Nuys hit-and-run, here's the priority list. First, get medical treatment. Valley Presbyterian Hospital on Vanowen St is the closest major facility. Second, file a police report with LAPD Van Nuys Division if you haven't already. Third, contact your auto insurance company to open a UM claim and a collision claim. Fourth, talk to an attorney before giving your insurance company a recorded statement about your injuries.

Our Van Nuys personal injury team handles hit-and-run cases on a contingency basis, which means no upfront cost and no fee unless we recover money for you. If you want to understand your options, the consultation is free.