Woodland Hills Personal Injury and Car accident attorney, Barry P. Goldberg, has been a strong advocate for raising California’s Minimum Liability Auto. Call Barry P. Goldberg Today
Woodland Hills Personal Injury and Car accident attorney, Barry P. Goldberg, has been a strong advocate for raising California’s Minimum Liability Auto Insurance Limits for over a decade. As a practicing injury accident law firm, we know all too well that the State’s outdated minimum liability limits are a big problem and damage California drivers on a daily basis. Any Californian who has experienced a significant impact auto accident knows that they are likely to be short-changed on a recovery because there is simply not enough liability insurance available to fix a car or pay for bodily injuries. Anecdotally, about 50% of the cases our firm handles are either uninsured or underinsured motorist situations.
On September 29, 2022, Governor Gavin Newsom signed SB 1107 into law without much fanfare. Various consumer groups have been trying to raise the minimum liability limits for literally decades. The current minimum liability limit: $15,000 per person, $30,000 per accident, and $5,000 for property damage— was established in 1974. In fact, California essentially led the way for the rest of the country and, why not? California is the commuter capitol of the world and is synonymous with “car culture.” What is unusual is that the limit amounts have not been raised since 1974. California has now lagged to last among the 50 states!
Good news! Effective in 2025, California will once again become a leader with the passage of SB 1107— $30,000 per person, $60,000 per accident, and $15,000 for property damage. These revised amounts are expected to be adequate for most “standard” automobile accident claims—as it should be. The delay gives the insurers sufficient time to calculate rates and apply for the premium increases. Make no mistake California auto insurance premiums will be going up. The initial estimate is that rates will rise at least $400. Frankly, our office expects the rates to go even higher.
“It’s been more than half a century since California took a hard look at whether or not its insurance laws are adequately protecting drivers,” said Craig Peters, president of Consumer Attorneys of California. “As a result, low-income and even middle-income crash victims are at risk of crippling debt when the cost of recovery is so much steeper than what the negligent drivers’ insurance will cover. The Senate Insurance committee’s support brings California one step close to making sure crash victims won’t have to pay the price for someone else’s negligence on the worst day of their lives.”
Frankly, the motoring public thinks it is unfair that the driver that caused your injuries and property damage does not have enough insurance at the state minimum to take care of reasonable costs after an accident. Many consumers are simply forced to “eat” the damages in excess of the minimum.
GST taxpayers can't claim any pending input tax credit if this return is not filed by November 30, 2024 for FY 2023-24
