Monday, June 1, 2009
Should've used an attorney
A friend of mine, wanting to save money, and believing he could negotiate with anyone, tried to settle his own auto accident case with the other person's insurance company. Fred was rear-ended, went to the hospital and then because of continuing back pain, went to a chiropractor. The other person's insurance company called him and told him they would pay his medical bills and give him $2,500.00. He agreed. About two months after he finished his treatment with the chiropractor, he got a bill from the chiropractor for over $5,000.00. He ignored it, thinking the insurance company was going to pay it. Turns out, the insurance company only paid his hospital emergency room bill, and that was it. The insurance agreement included that Fred sign a document, called a Release, and it didn't say anything about paying his bills. So, now Fred is in collections and he is being sued by the chiropractor. He recently got engaged and they bought a house, and he has no money to pay the chiropractor's bill, much less the interest, court costs and attorney's fees in the lawsuit against him. Further, to make matters worse, when I looked at his case, it appeared that the value of his case was probably somewhere between $10,000.00 to $15,000.00, so even after a lawyer's 1/3 fee, he would have been far better off using a lawyer. He didn't do himself any favors and he didn't save any money. This is unfortunately a familiar scenario in car accident cases. Insurance companies try to settle quickly with the victims and they truly screw people.
Labels: accident, insurance companies
posted by Paul A. Samakow, P.C. at
Thursday, May 7, 2009
Insurer Adjusters are really so full of it
An auto accident case I am now negotiating with a major insurance carrier's adjuster emphasizes for me the need for lawyers in these cases. This is so aggravating, even for me, so I could imagine how my client would feel if she heard this from the adjuster directly.
A "witness" claims my client was not in the car when the accident happened. The adjuster won't identify the witness. The police got to the scene about five minutes after the accident. The officer's report indicates my client was the driver. There is chemical air-bag residue on my client's shirt. My client went to an emergency clinic about 1 hour after the accident, and the report of the doctor there indicates her complaints of injury are consistent with those that would normally come from being involved in an accident.
So the adjuster only wants to give me 50% of the value of this claim. I told the adjuster to go fly a kite. Either pay nothing on the theory that my client wasn't in the car, or shut up with the ridiculous argument and pay the full value of the claim. It remains to be seen what will happen here. My bet is the adjuster is going to call me next week and increase the offer. AAAGGGHHH! I just love some of the fine folks who work for insurers.....
Labels: accident, insurance companies
posted by Paul A. Samakow, P.C. at
Monday, April 27, 2009
Insurers are not your friends
Imagine driving home on a Friday after work, after a hard day, but excited about the weekend with family and friends, and the party on Saturday night to celebrate something of importance in your life. Out of nowhere, a drunk driver slams into your car. You wake up in the hospital the next morning. The hospital administrator wants your health insurance information. Your family are at your bedside and that the doctors said you'll be okay, that your boss offered his best and hopes you'll be back soon, and that the car was destroyed. An insurance representative is outside of the room and wants your "recorded statement". The representative comes in and has tons of questions, and then tells you at the end that they have to further investigate and they don't know yet if they will pay for the car or your bills. This type of scenario happens all of the time. Lesson: Don't ever speak to insurance representatives until you've consulted an attorney. That "recorded statement" could be the basis for the insurer denying your claim, when all you did was tell them the truth!
Labels: accident, injury, insurance companies
posted by Paul A. Samakow, P.C. at
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Watch what you sign -- Medical payment benefits
The Virginia Supreme Court recently ruled that an auto accident victim, who signed a "Consent to Treatment" form at the hospital emergency room, after being taken there from the accident scene, could not later "revoke" the provision in the form which assigned insurance benefits (medical payment benefits) to get the money directly. The hospital sought to enforce the assignment, to thus get paid from the victim's insurance company, and the victim wanted his insurance company to pay him, and not the hospital. No way said the Supremes. The victim signed a form assigning the money to the hospital, and the hospital gets it.
Morale: Watch what you sign. There is noting inherently wrong with assigning benefits. And not doing so doesn't mean the hospital won't give you care. They are required to provide emergent care. But, later, if you're out of work because of accident related injuries, you might need that money to help make ends meet until you get back to work.
Labels: accident, insurance companies
posted by Paul A. Samakow, P.C. at
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Read your auto policy
The Virginia Supreme Court recently ruled that a gentleman who pled guilty to Reckless Driving could not get the "medical benefit" payments on his automobile policy. Pleading guilty equated to an admission that he did something illegal, i.e., driving recklessly, a Class 1 Misdemeanor. The insurance policy stated that it did not cover losses resulting from the covered person committing an illegal act.
While most individuals, and even most lawyers, generally believe that the medical payment provisions of a policy cover the insured and any passengers regardless of fault, this case makes clear that in order to assure coverage, if you are charged and go to traffic court, plead "not guilty".
Labels: insurance companies
posted by Paul A. Samakow, P.C. at
