KTAR News, citing the Associated Press, reported that a helicopter crashed in Los Angeles on Tuesday, killing at least one person near a deadly bus crash, according to officials. The report stated that it was not immediately clear whether anyone had survived the helicopter crash, and that officials said they were still working to determine how many people were inside the helicopter. No cause has been announced, and nothing in the report establishes responsibility for either crash.
When someone dies in a crash involving a commercial carrier, an aircraft, or a public transit vehicle, Arizona law separates the claim into two parts. A wrongful death action under A.R.S. § 12-611 through A.R.S. § 12-613 belongs to the surviving spouse, children, parents, or the estate, and compensates the survivors for their own losses: lost income and support, lost companionship, and grief. A survival action under A.R.S. § 14-3110 belongs to the estate and covers what the person who died would have been able to recover, including medical expenses and conscious pain before death. Both are usually filed together, and both usually must be filed within two years under A.R.S. § 12-542. If a government entity or public employee may be responsible, A.R.S. § 12-821.01 requires a written notice of claim within 180 days of when the claim accrues, a much shorter clock and a common way families lose a case before it starts.
Who has the legal right to bring the claim in Arizona
Arizona does not let every grieving relative file. Under A.R.S. § 12-612, a wrongful death action is brought by and on behalf of the surviving spouse, the children, or the parents of the person who died, or by the personal representative of the estate on behalf of those survivors. Siblings, grandparents, unmarried partners, and stepchildren who were not legally adopted generally cannot file in their own names. If there is no surviving spouse, child, or parent, the claim runs through the estate.
The survival claim under A.R.S. § 14-3110 is different. It belongs to the estate, which means someone has to be appointed personal representative in probate court before that claim can move. Families often wait months to open probate because it feels like paperwork that can come later. It cannot. The appointment is the step that gives someone the authority to demand records, sign a retainer for the estate, and file suit.
Deadlines and evidence move faster than the investigation
Official investigations into aviation crashes and multi-vehicle transit crashes often run a year or longer. The legal deadlines do not pause for them. Two years under A.R.S. § 12-542 is the general limit, and the 180-day notice of claim under A.R.S. § 12-821.01 applies whenever a public entity or public employee may share responsibility. Waiting for an official cause determination before contacting a lawyer is one of the most common and most expensive mistakes families make.
Practical steps in the first weeks: request the death certificate and any available incident report; preserve the decedent's phone, clothing, and personal effects exactly as returned; write down the names and contact information of anyone who called you with information; keep every bill, funeral invoice, and pay record; and do not give a recorded statement to any insurer or carrier representative before you have advice. If a maintenance company, an operator, or an employer may be involved, a written preservation letter should go out early so records and equipment are not lost in the normal course of business.
More than one party can be responsible, and Arizona divides fault
Crashes that involve multiple vehicles, aircraft, or commercial operators rarely have a single responsible party. Arizona uses pure comparative fault under A.R.S. § 12-2505, which means a jury assigns a percentage of responsibility to each party, and recovery is reduced by the percentage assigned to the injured person. A family is not barred from recovering just because an insurer claims the person who died carried some share of blame. It also means that identifying every potentially responsible party, including employers, maintenance providers, and vehicle or component manufacturers, matters as much as proving the crash happened.
In fatal crashes with a commercial operator, there are often multiple insurance policies stacked behind a single event. Accepting an early offer from the first insurer to call can release claims against parties you have not identified yet.
If you lost a family member or were injured in a crash in Arizona, our Arizona car accident attorneys can walk you through the deadlines that apply to your situation.