Being Too Young - Big "Sin" When It Comes To Personal Injury Cases (How your age can affect your personal injury case, by Santa Clarita Personal Injury Lawyer Robert Mansour)

My name is Robert Mansour, and I am a personal injury lawyer serving Santa Clarita, Newhall, Castaic, Stevenson Ranch, Valencia, Saugus and Canyon Country, California.  If you need a lawyer to help you with your car accident case, please feel free to call.

When I was a defense lawyer for a major insurance company, we knew that young plaintiffs had some hurdles to overcome.  First, most people automatically believe a young plaintiff caused the accident because after all, most people believe that young people are the cause of most accidents.  We all know insurance rates for young people are through the roof!   Many people believe that young people (especially teens) don't pay attention to the road, they are cocky, they think they are invincible and they simply cause trouble all the time.  Second, we would hardly ever believe that young people could be injured.  There is a misconception out there that young people are like cartoon characters.  They can get run over by a steam roller, but they simply bounce off the ground and are ready to jump aroud!  Insurance companies are very skeptical of injury claims from young people. 

I was once representing a young lady in a Santa Clarita personal injury case.  She was not the victim of the accident.  I was working for her insurance company, and I was representing her as a defendant.  She was 17 at the time of the accident. I got up during the jury selection process and asked the jury, "How many of you think my client caused this accident simply based on her age...without hearing anything about the accident?"  Almost every juror raised their hand.  They explained that young people are almost always responsible for the accident.  

When it comes to injuries, people do indeed doubt that young people can actually get injured!  Unless your car looks like a train hit it, don't expect the insurance company to believe your injuries if you are young.  They have a hard time with it.  It's just the way it is.  It's not fair, but life is NOT fair.  Given the right kind of case, we can argue around the problem and perhaps a jury will agree that injury was possible. 

What is too young?  In my experience, anyone younger than 25 years of age often has a hard time convincing others he was NOT at fault and that he was injured unless the vehicle looks like a bomb went off inside!  I hate to the the bearer of bad news, but I''m also a straight shooter.  I won't simply tell you what you want to hear!  Therefore, a younger plaintiff needs to be aware of the stereotypes out there and his/her lawyer must work hard to overcome those predispositions.    

If you've been involved in a personal injury accident in the Santa Clarita, Castaic, Valencia, Saugus, Nehwall, Stevenson Ranch, or surrounding areas, and if you want a candid evaluation of your potential personal injury case, give me a call.   I have over 16 years of experience, and I will tell you exactly what to expect.    Some lawyers will tell you what you want to hear because they simply want to get the case.  Then they give you the bad news later.  I will save you a lot of trouble.  After that many years of working personal injury cases, my gut feeling is usually correct.  I can also help you present your case in the most favorable light when things aren't going that well for you.