Copyright © 2025 Gelb & Gelb, P.C. All rights reserved.
A car accident claim against the DC government is one that our DC car accident lawyers handle regularly. It is not as unimaginable or difficult to sue the DC government as you may initially think. Although, these claims do tend to be less intriguing than the typical case for reasons we will soon discuss. There are approximately 37,000 DC government employees. While many of them are fine people, they, like anyone else, make mistakes. And when they make these mistakes within the course and scope of their employment for the DC government, the government may be vicariously liable. On the one hand, a claim against the government is appealing. They have sufficient assets to cover your damages, unlike some tortfeasors who may have lower policy limits on their insurance.
Car accident claims against the DC government are unique for several reasons. First, common law negligence is not the governing law. Instead, it is superceded by statute: The DC Tort Claims Act. This Act governs claims for negligence by nearly all DC government employees so long as that employee is acting in their official capacity. In other words, if you suffer harm from the actions of a known government employee, but it is a Saturday night and they are not on the clock, the DC government is not liable. However, if you suffer harm due to negligence by a DC government maintenance worker, police officer, plumber, administrative assistant, traffic employee, ambulance, bus, or fire truck, you have a claim against the government and the DC Tort Claims Act applies.
Consult with a DC accident attorney to understand your options and if a notice requirement applies in your case.
Below, we address why you may choose to file a car accident claim against the DC government to begin with. Causation in a negligence case is critically important. If there is no causal link between the act and your injuries, there is no case. This is where your case begins.
Whether you get into a DC car accident with a police car, a fire truck, an ambulance, or some other DC government vehicle, you can still make a claim for negligence. If the other party is at fault and you are injured, justice demands that you are compensated for your damages. Same as if it were not a police vehicle that hit you, you still incur hospital bills, physical therapy expenses, lost wages, and pain and suffering due to another party’s actions. Additionally, if the government vehicle has its sirens on at the time of impact, there is a different standard. In general, the standard is negligence. However, if the sirens are on, the standard is gross negligence. Gross negligence is a reckless disregard for the safety of others. Our car accident lawyers have had success handling both types of claims, when sirens are on and off.
However, there are a few things to be aware of. First, if there is a police report involving a police vehicle as a party to the accident, it is not uncommon for the report to favor the officer in the accident. The significance of this in court is minimal. However, a police report can have broad implications for settlement purposes. Insurance companies do consider these reports in their analysis and decision whether to make a reasonable offer. This is why you need a convincing attorney to advocate on your behalf and secure the strongest settlement or judgment available. Our legal team has successfully resolved hundreds of collisions with government vehicles, filing car accident claims against the DC government.
In any negligence claim for a hazardous condition against the DC government, we must prove that the government either knew or should have known of the hazard. The same is true for car accident claims against the DC government for poorly maintaned roads. We must be able to prove that the DC government either knew or should have known of the hazardous condition. This means we cannot prove negligence against the government for a new hazard. For example, let’s say you see a basketball in the middle of the road. Even though it is clearly a hazard and impeding traffic, that is probably not negligence. More than likely, the ball has only been there a couple hours at the most. No witness exists to testify that the basketball has been there for weeks and the government just will not take care of it.
So, what is a poorly maintained road that leads to a car accident claim against the DC government? A pothole may qualify. However, it must be such that the pothole leads to your tire popping and subsequently leading to an accident. It is not enoiugh that you run over a pothole and then lose control under your own accord. In that instance, a judge or jury may find you contributorily negligent. When you are even 1% responsible for the accident, you are unable to make a claim. Furthermore, uneven pavement, missing road signs, and other roadway hazards that may have been present for an extensive period could establish liability against the defendant.
<p>If a stoplight is not functioning correctly or road signs are missing or obscured, drivers may be misled into dangerous traffic situations. This is different from when you approach an intersection and there are flashing red traffic lights. When that happens, there is probably no negligence against the government. We can assume taht the government is on notice of the issue, but there is no negligence. Instead, it is simply a bad traffic situation. For a car accident claim against the DC government, the traffic lights need to malfunction such that you have a green light and another driver traveling in your path also has the right of way. Proving this can be challenging as it is generally an unbelievable story. However, it is possible and is certainly a negligent act by the government. The more likely scenario is there is a missing sign.
For example, if there is a missing stop sign, the DC government could eventually be liable. However, the government needs to be on notice of this hazardous road condition. And we need to be able to prove that the stop sign had been missing for an unreasonable amount of time such that the government at least should have been aware it was missing. So, if the missing stop sign is in your neighborhood and you meet a neighbor who notices it is missing and is willing to testify to that at trial, that is useful in your claim. This case is not always a slam dunk as effective defenses may be available to the government in court. This is why you need a good car accident lawyer to advocate on your behalf.
The concept of sovereign immunity protects the government from tort claims under common law. Originally, this law was rooted in the belief that the king can do no wrong, as our American law is rooted in English common law. However, this common law can be overruled in the name of justice by statute. § 12-309 of the DC Official Code (2001) provides steps for how to file a car accident claim against the DC government. We review these steps below. But first, we examine how sovereign immunity affects your claim. As common law protects the government, it is surprising we can make a claim against them at all. And because they are the ones writing the law, they still provide themselves some protection. One way the DC government disincentivizes claims against itself is by limiting legal fees.
<p>Generally for a car accident case, a DC personal injury lawyer charges one-third of the recovery in a settlement and 40% when the attorney files a lawsuit. However, in Washington, DC, § 32-1530(f) of the Code of the District of Columbia holds that the legal fee cannot exceed 20%. This is a massive disincentive for attorneys who are doing the same or more work for less compensation. Of course, this is the very reason why the law is written this way. A personal injury lawyer takes some risk in taking a case on contingency. This means the attorney gets nothing if the plaintiff does not win. § 32-1530 tips the scale against the plaintiff lawyer, discouraging litigation.
There are necessary steps you must take to file a car accident claim against the DC government. Whether it is a police car, ambulance, or some other DC vehicle, you must take the same steps. Under § 12-309 of the D.C. Official Code, you must take the following steps. It is imperative that you submit this letter to the DC government within six months of the date of incident. If you fail to do so, you lose your right to make a claim for your damages. If your lawyer fails to do so, you may have a legal malpractice case against that attorney if he misses a deadline. The purpose is to put the mayor on notice.
But of course, it is unrealistic that the mayor can or will read this letter. Thus, as of 2025, the letter should be made out to 441 4th Street, NW, Suite 800 South, Washington, DC 20001.
<p>The language in this part of your letter should be precise and it should be submitted within six months of the date of accident. Causation is a phrase of art in personal injury law. A DC car accident lawyer can assist you by writing this letter on your behalf. After we place the correct entity on notice of your car accident claim against the DC government, we must continue with our investigation and collect evidence. As the plaintiff in a car accident case, you carry the burden of proof. Our legal team will uncover necessary evidence and work with police and the city as necessary.
Filing a car accident claim against the DC government is far more complex than filing a standard personal injury claim. Putting the District on notice of your claim requires precise language. Further, even sending it to the wrong government entity can ruin your claim. This precision is something best done by a car accident lawyer who has successfully resolved hundreds of cases against the DC government. The laws surrounding sovereign immunity are meant to trip up a layperson who lacks experience in these matters. It is not subject exclusively to common law the way many other personal injury cases are. Thus, the information you read online about car accident claims against the DC government may instead apply only to regular car accident claims and not claims against the government.
Negotiating a fair settlement against the DC government can be challenging. They handle their negotiations in house, compared to how many drivers will use an insurance company to defend them. Their negotiation tactics can be tougher. And they know that a lawyer is less likely to file suit against them when the legal fee stays at 20% compared to the typical 40% fee. Thus, their settlement offers are worse. Nevertheless, a skilled DC personal injury lawyer handling your car accident can fight to get the best result possible even without going through the litigation process.
<p>If the government refuses to settle fairly, a personal injury attorney can file a lawsuit and represent you in court to seek maximum compensation. There are advantages and disadvantages to going to trial. While there is more risk, there is more upside. On the other hand, waiting to get into court in Washington, DC, is an arduous process. It can take over a year just to get into court. In preparing for trial, we may have to spend thousands of dollars in discovery. There are fees for filing a lawsuit, recording depositions, using experts even at the deposition level, serving process, and more. Once we are at trial, we must pay expert witnesses to testify to a host of different issues.
Litigating against the legal team representing the DC government is no small feat. You need a legal team with decades of experience working on your case. Attorney Roger Gelb has over 30 years of experience handling cases against the DC government and has been recognized among the very best at what he does. Our team understands how to navigate the immunity defenses the government is sure to present to the judge. Moreover, the government does not have budget concerns. They can afford to spend as much as necessary to win the case. They will weigh how much they believe the case is worth with how much it will cost them to litigate it at trial and hedge their bets. This is an analysis we can carefully wlak you through to make the most informed decision for your car accident claim against the DC government.
<p>Our goal throughout your car accident claim against the DC government is to maximize your recovery while minimizing your costs and working as efficiently as possible to get your financial compensation when you need it. Clients almost unanimously prefer to recover compensation sooner rather than later. To do this, we must settle your case. Once you complete your medical treatment, the amount of time it takes to settle can vary. During your treatment, we are simultaneously retrieving your medical records from the various providers you have visited. However, depending on when you call our office, it may require time for the hospitals, urgent cares, and private practices to send out your records.
In many instances, it can take three letters and several phone calls to get a response. Once we do get all medical records, we immediately send our demand letter, all bills, records, and a completed lost wage form to the DC government to try to settle your case. It takes the typical insurer four to six weeks to evaluate our demands. The DC government generally falls within this same range. If they flatly reject liability in the case or if they do not make a reasonable settlement offer to cover your damages, our options are to either accept the low offer or file a lawsuit. Our firm has decades of experience litigating these cases. Call our office today for a free case consultation at (202) 331-7227 to discuss your car accident claim against the DC government.
Our attorneys have decades of experience making car accident claims against the DC government. If you are in an auto accident with a DC government vehicle, we may be able to help. Contact our office today for a free case evaluation at (202) 331-7227 or by filling out a form on the sidebar.
Copyright © 2025 Gelb & Gelb, P.C. All rights reserved.