California Personal Injury Case Value Estimator
This tool gives you a rough estimated range for what a California personal injury case with your fact pattern typically recovers. It uses the same variables actual insurance adjusters, defense counsel, and plaintiff attorneys weigh when sizing up a case — medical bills, lost wages, future care, injury severity, liability clarity, and defendant insurance coverage.
It does not replace a case evaluation from a licensed California attorney. When the range displays, call (310) 288-3000 for a free review of your actual facts.
Answer the eight questions below with your best honest estimate. If you are not sure about a number, pick the bracket closest to the truth. The tool runs entirely in your browser — your answers are not sent to us, not stored, and not tracked. The output is a ballpark range, not a prediction. Actual outcomes depend on venue, jury, medical records, defendant insurance, comparative fault, and dozens of other facts that only come out during discovery.
Case Value Estimator Tool
What type of case is this?
How severe is the injury?
Medical bills to date (best estimate)
Lost wages / lost earning capacity
Future medical care needed?
Liability — who is at fault?
Permanent disability or disfigurement?
Defendant’s insurance coverage (if known)
Estimated Case Value Range
$0 – $0
How the Range Is Built — Three Damage Buckets
Every honest California case evaluation starts with the same three buckets: economic damages, non-economic damages, and (in certain cases only) punitive damages. Each bucket is governed by specific California law and each one feeds the final number differently.
Economic Damages
The numbers on paper. Civil Code §3281 allows recovery for the full amount of detriment caused by the defendant’s conduct.
- Past medical bills (paid or owed)
- Future medical care
- Lost wages & benefits
- Lost earning capacity
- Property damage
- Out-of-pocket costs
Non-Economic Damages
No receipt. Juries assign a number based on severity, duration, visibility, and daily impact — typically 1.5×–5× economic damages.
- Pain and suffering
- Emotional distress
- Loss of consortium
- Disfigurement & scarring
- Loss of enjoyment of life
- Inconvenience / disruption
Punitive Damages
Civ. Code §3294 — available only when clear and convincing evidence shows oppression, fraud, or malice. Rare in standard injury cases.
Drunk drivers, employers who knew of dangerous defects, large retailers ignoring known hazards, nursing-home abuse — these are the fact patterns that sometimes support punitives.
The Medical Bill Problem — Howell v. Hamilton Meats
Under Howell v. Hamilton Meats & Provisions (2011) 52 Cal.4th 541, an injured plaintiff cannot recover the “billed” rate for medical treatment — only the amount actually paid or owed. That rule alone routinely cuts the medical-damages line item in half compared to what the hospital printed on the initial invoice. When you enter a medical-bills bracket in the estimator above, think in terms of what insurance (yours, Medi-Cal, Medicare, or a lien) actually paid or what is actually owed after write-downs — not the inflated chargemaster number that appears on the first bill.
This is one of the most frequent sources of disappointment in personal injury cases. A client with $300,000 in “billed” medical expenses often has only $90,000–$120,000 in recoverable medical damages after Howell, Corenbaum v. Martin (2013) 215 Cal.App.4th 1308, and Pebley v. Santa Clara Organics, LLC (2018) 22 Cal.App.5th 1266 are applied. Plaintiff attorneys who understand the paid-versus-billed framework build the case value around the correct number from day one.
Comparative Fault — California Is a Pure Comparative State
California follows pure comparative fault. Under Li v. Yellow Cab Co. (1975) 13 Cal.3d 804, a plaintiff can recover damages even if they were 99% at fault — the recovery is just reduced by their percentage of responsibility. That is why the liability question in the estimator matters so much.
A $500,000 case with clear defendant liability is worth $500,000. The same $500,000 case where the jury finds the plaintiff 30% at fault is worth $350,000. The same case where the plaintiff is 70% at fault is worth $150,000. Insurance adjusters know this cold. That is why the first thing they do after getting the claim file is hunt for plaintiff fault.
Example — Comparative Fault
Same $500,000 gross case. Three outcomes.
• Jury: plaintiff 0% at fault → $500,000
• Jury: plaintiff 30% at fault → $350,000
• Jury: plaintiff 70% at fault → $150,000
Insurance Coverage — The Hard Ceiling on Every Case
A case is worth what can be collected, not what a jury awards. Defendant insurance coverage sets the practical ceiling on almost every settlement. Here is how California’s coverage tiers typically shape case value.
The state auto minimum. Caps recovery at $15,000 per plaintiff regardless of injury severity. Many CA drivers still carry only this — which is why your own UM/UIM coverage matters.
Most responsible drivers carry $100K/$300K or $250K/$500K. Adequate for moderate injuries; catastrophic injuries can still exceed policy limits.
Often includes a personal umbrella policy on top of auto or homeowners. Sophisticated defendants and professional drivers frequently carry this.
FMCSA 49 CFR §387.9: minimum $750,000 (hazmat) or $1,000,000 (most commercial). Many fleets carry $5M–$10M in excess layers.
Hotels, retail chains, hospitals, rideshare in driving mode, and national property owners typically carry $1M–$25M+ with multiple excess layers.
Self-insured or excess-insured, but subject to Gov. Code immunities and a strict six-month claims deadline under §911.2. Miss that date and the case is usually gone.
What This Calculator Cannot See
An eight-question tool captures the big drivers — economic damages, severity, liability clarity, insurance coverage. It misses the case-specific factors that can swing settlement value by six figures in either direction. These are the things a real attorney review will surface.
Ready for a Real Case Review?
If the estimator gave you a range that looks worth pursuing — or if your case is complicated enough that an eight-question tool cannot capture it — a real conversation with a California personal injury attorney is the next step.
Saeedian Law Group APC offers free, confidential case reviews. No recovery, no fee. Michael Saeedian personally reviews every new case inquiry. We handle matters across California from our Beverly Hills office — auto, truck, motorcycle, pedestrian, premises, wrongful death, catastrophic injury.
About the Author
Michael Saeedian, Esq. — Founding Attorney, Saeedian Law Group (California State Bar #265470). Michael founded Saeedian Law Group in 2009 and has spent more than 16 years representing injured Californians and their families in personal injury and wrongful death matters across the state. The logic inside this case value estimator reflects the framework Michael and his team use when evaluating new cases — adjusted for the variables a web tool can reasonably capture. Content on this page is reviewed for legal accuracy by Michael Saeedian as editor-in-chief.
Legal disclaimer: This page and its estimator tool provide general information about California injury law and do not constitute legal advice. Every case is different; past results do not guarantee future outcomes. The estimator is a rough ballpark, not a prediction. Reading this page does not create an attorney-client relationship with Saeedian Law Group. For advice specific to your situation, contact our office at (310) 288-3000 or schedule a free consultation.
