Overcoming a Negative Police Report

Case Description

In 2013, our client was driving home from the beach with his family. He approached an intersection near his home and waited at the green light for oncoming traffic to pass so that he could safely make a left turn. He began to make it just as the light turned yellow. Unfortunately, a car coming from the left ran a red light and smashed into the side of our client’s vehicle.

The police responded to the scene. They only spoke to our client for a brief minute, but spent a long time talking to the other driver, a young woman. The client’s car was damaged beyond repair, and his neck and back were badly injured. He began seeing a chiropractor for weekly treatment.

He contacted the woman’s insurance company but they refused to pay for his car, or for any of his medical bills or other losses. They stated that the woman claimed that he had run the red light, not her. Also, the police officer had stated in his report that the man had admitted running the red light, which was not true.

The Result

Our client realized that he needed help to force the insurance company to pay for his damaged vehicle, his medical expenses, and his pain and suffering. He knew he needed a good personal injury law firm, so he called us. After we met with him we believed he was in the right and set out to prove that the other driver had been at fault.

We found witnesses who were driving behind the client that agreed that the other driver had run the red light, not him. However, the insurance company still refused to accept responsibility. We believed the client deserved financial compensation for his injuries and that he was being taken advantage of by the insurance company so we filed a lawsuit on his behalf. The case was tried before a jury in Snohomish County Superior Court in December 2015.

Even though the defense attorneys had the police officer testify against our client, we had prepared a strong case. The witnesses who were driving behind him when the accident occurred told a very different story than the police officer. After a four-day trial and two years of fighting, the jury found the other driver at fault for the accident and our client won the case. He received compensation for his medical costs, pain and suffering and property damage.