If you were injured in an accident in San Bernardino — on the I-10, the I-215, or anywhere in the city — you may have the right to recover compensation for your injuries, medical bills, and lost wages. The Law Offices of Mann & Elias represents personal injury victims throughout San Bernardino and the Inland Empire. Call (323) 857-9500 for a free consultation available 24 hours a day. No fee unless we win.
San Bernardino’s Freeway System and High-Accident Corridors
San Bernardino sits at the convergence of two of the Inland Empire’s most heavily traveled freeways. The I-10 enters the city from the west before splitting from the I-215, which runs north toward Riverside and south toward Perris. That interchange is one of the most accident-prone in San Bernardino County, concentrating commuter, commercial, and freight traffic at a complex series of exits and merge points.
Beyond the freeways, San Bernardino’s major surface corridors generate a high volume of serious injury cases. Highland Avenue, Waterman Avenue, Baseline Street, and E Street (the city’s segment of Historic Route 66) carry a mix of heavy commercial traffic, transit vehicles, cyclists, and pedestrians. Arrowhead Regional Medical Center on Waterman Avenue is the county’s primary trauma center, and its surrounding corridors see disproportionate accident activity.
California State University San Bernardino and Campus-Area Accidents
Cal State San Bernardino brings tens of thousands of students, faculty, and staff to the University Parkway and Northpark Boulevard corridors on the city’s northwest side. Rideshare concentration, pedestrian crossings, and bicycle traffic near campus create recurring accident patterns. Young adults — many without significant driving experience in dense traffic — are disproportionately represented in accident data around university campuses statewide.
Personal Injury Cases We Handle in San Bernardino
- Car and truck accidents on I-10, I-215, and SR-30 interchange corridors
- Commercial vehicle and big rig collisions on freight routes through the city
- Pedestrian accidents on Highland Avenue, Baseline Street, and E Street
- Rideshare accidents near Cal State San Bernardino and downtown corridors
- Slip and fall and premises liability at commercial properties, shopping centers, and public facilities
- Construction and worksite accidents in San Bernardino’s active redevelopment zones
- Public transit accidents involving Omnitrans buses and connections
- Motorcycle accidents
- Wrongful death arising from any of the above
Where San Bernardino Cases Are Filed
Personal injury cases arising in San Bernardino are heard at the San Bernardino Justice Center at 247 West Third Street — the main civil courthouse for San Bernardino County’s central district. Our attorneys are familiar with the court’s procedures and the civil judges assigned to personal injury cases in this district. For cases involving the western part of the county, the West Valley Justice Center in Rancho Cucamonga may also apply.
Claims Against the City of San Bernardino or San Bernardino County
San Bernardino is home to numerous city- and county-owned properties, roadways, and public transit systems. If a dangerous condition on public property — a pothole, a broken crosswalk signal, a flooded underpass, a defective bus — contributed to your injury, the claim process is different. Under Government Code § 835, a public entity can be held liable for dangerous conditions on its property. However, you must file a government tort claim within six months of your injury under Government Code § 911.2 before you can file a lawsuit. Missing this deadline ends your right to sue the government entity. Call us immediately if a public agency may be responsible for your injuries.
Deadlines for San Bernardino Injury Claims
Under California Code of Civil Procedure § 335.1, most personal injury victims have two years from the date of injury to file a lawsuit against a private party. Government entity claims require the six-month administrative notice. Wrongful death cases carry a two-year statute running from the date of the decedent’s death.
Frequently Asked Questions
I was injured on the I-10/I-215 interchange. Multiple drivers were involved. How do I know who to sue?
In multi-vehicle accidents, liability can be distributed among several drivers based on each one’s share of fault. California’s pure comparative fault rule allows you to recover from each responsible party proportional to their share of fault in the accident. Our attorneys conduct thorough accident investigations — including obtaining CHP reports, witness statements, available traffic camera footage, and expert reconstruction analysis — to identify every responsible party and build the strongest possible liability case.
The accident happened near a city-owned intersection with a broken traffic light. Can I sue the City of San Bernardino?
You may have a valid claim against the city under Government Code § 835, which provides liability for dangerous conditions on public property when the entity had notice and failed to act. However, the six-month government claim filing deadline under Government Code § 911.2 is strict and must be met before filing suit. We can file that claim on your behalf quickly and investigate whether the city had prior notice of the signal malfunction through prior complaints or maintenance records.
I was hit by an Omnitrans bus in San Bernardino. Is this treated differently than a car accident?
Yes. Omnitrans is a public agency, which means the six-month government tort claim deadline applies. Beyond that, bus operators owe a heightened duty of care to passengers and to others on the road because they are common carriers. Evidence from the bus — including onboard cameras, the driver’s log, and dispatch records — must be preserved immediately. Call us as soon as possible after a public transit accident.
Free San Bernardino Personal Injury Consultation
Call (323) 857-9500 — available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. No fee unless we win. Se Habla Español. Our Irvine office serves San Bernardino and the Inland Empire directly.
