anyone have experience with personal injury lawyers and insurance companies?

[jetmal]

Hi,

I was wondering if anyone here can relate to my story. Last July I was rear-ended by an uninsured motorist. I did not have alot of damage to my car, but I did go to the hospital for whiplash and lowerback injuries. I had to go to a chiropractor 3 xs a week for months, and then we slowly reduced the visits until I was down to once a month...and my chiro "released" me in April.

I was given a permanent disability index rating of 28% for my neck, and 26% for my lower back. The chiro said that I had reached a maximum point of medical improvement. Meaning that I will need to go to the chiro for a long time...and I may not ever get back to pre accident status.

Since the lady that hit me was uninsured, my insurance company is paying for this. They paid out $2000 in my med pay...and now they''ve stopped paying until I got released from the chiro. They hounded me every 3 weeks to see if I was done with treatment yet. Now they are in the very slow process of getting all my medical records and they will review them and then make me an offer for settlement. With that settlement I will need to pay all my bills, and then there should be some for pain and suffering, etc....

Here is the thing. I dont know if I should retain a lawyer or not. I mean, I have some issues, such as limited movement in my neck, aches and pains, etc...makes driving an issue, lifting, or working out, I have to modify stuff so I can do it..... but it does not keep me from functioning....I am not dibilitated...like a lost leg, or anything. So, I dont know if I should pursue this, or just take whatever the insurance compnay offers....

I do not even know what to expect from them...or what would be a fair settlement....
then, most lawyers seem to take 30%. from the case...so I dont even know if what they could get me would be worth giving up the 30%????

not sure what to do ....please share your stories !

 

[jetmal]

anyone????

any lawyers out there???
if I do retain a lawyer....are there any certain "things" I should look for???

 

[strmrdr]

It is tough getting anything out of insurance companies.
Dont accept the final offer without it being in writing and having an attorney review it.
You want the right to reopen it at a latter date.
For now I would see what they offer and if they are making a good effert to settle fairly leave a lawyer out of it but buy an hours time to have a lawyer go over the settlement offer with you when the time comes.

 

[Gypsy]

Okay. So here's my advice, if it were ME, I'd get a good lawyer. Now how to find one... when I was looking for a personal injury lawyer (don't need one anymore) I went through the phone book and did cold calls. Getting 'vibes' from people. There were a TON of bad ones. Only one good one and HE worked for insurance companies. Which was perfect. I asked him for the names of two attorneys that had beaten him and that he respected. Sure enough when I spoke with them, they met or exceeded my expectations.

See if you can find a solo or two partner firm that works for the insurance companies in your area. Ask for the names of lawyers on the other side they respect. Seemed to work for me.

Oh www.martindale.com is also good. Or call your local ABA for recommendations.

 

[Shay37]

Date: 6/7/2006 8:14:25 AM
Author:jetmal
Hi,

I was wondering if anyone here can relate to my story. Last July I was rear-ended by an uninsured motorist. I did not have alot of damage to my car, but I did go to the hospital for whiplash and lowerback injuries. I had to go to a chiropractor 3 xs a week for months, and then we slowly reduced the visits until I was down to once a month...and my chiro ''released'' me in April.

I was given a permanent disability index rating of 28% for my neck, and 26% for my lower back. The chiro said that I had reached a maximum point of medical improvement. Meaning that I will need to go to the chiro for a long time...and I may not ever get back to pre accident status.

Since the lady that hit me was uninsured, my insurance company is paying for this. They paid out $2000 in my med pay...and now they''ve stopped paying until I got released from the chiro. They hounded me every 3 weeks to see if I was done with treatment yet. Now they are in the very slow process of getting all my medical records and they will review them and then make me an offer for settlement. With that settlement I will need to pay all my bills, and then there should be some for pain and suffering, etc....

Here is the thing. I dont know if I should retain a lawyer or not. I mean, I have some issues, such as limited movement in my neck, aches and pains, etc...makes driving an issue, lifting, or working out, I have to modify stuff so I can do it..... but it does not keep me from functioning....I am not dibilitated...like a lost leg, or anything. So, I dont know if I should pursue this, or just take whatever the insurance compnay offers....

I do not even know what to expect from them...or what would be a fair settlement....
then, most lawyers seem to take 30%. from the case...so I dont even know if what they could get me would be worth giving up the 30%????

not sure what to do ....please share your stories !

absofrigginlutely!!!!!! I am a court reporter. I see this crap all the time. The Insurance company''s job is to low ball you on the settlement. You need counsel to advise you. That is their job. Please do not accept or reject anything without an attorney. There could be long-term issues you need to think about that you haven''t yet.

Good luck.

shay

 

[codex57]

Date: 6/7/2006 4:27:38 PM
Author: Gypsy
Okay. So here''s my advice, if it were ME, I''d get a good lawyer. Now how to find one... when I was looking for a personal injury lawyer (don''t need one anymore) I went through the phone book and did cold calls. Getting ''vibes'' from people. There were a TON of bad ones. Only one good one and HE worked for insurance companies. Which was perfect. I asked him for the names of two attorneys that had beaten him and that he respected. Sure enough when I spoke with them, they met or exceeded my expectations.


See if you can find a solo or two partner firm that works for the insurance companies in your area. Ask for the names of lawyers on the other side they respect. Seemed to work for me.


Oh www.martindale.com is also good. Or call your local ABA for recommendations.

Excellent post. I''m still up in the air about martindale. I''m assuming you''re saying it''s useful because some attorneys are rated. I''m undecided how reliable those ratings are. I am a lawyer (not PI tho altho I do have experience in the insurance industry/work comp/etc) and while I only know (or bothered to check) a few rated attorneys on there, I''d agree with the ratings on only a couple (who both happen to have the top rating).

 

[jetmal]

thanks everyone for your input, I really appreciate it.

I made some calls today...it seems like the few I talked to (most of them all I get to talk to is a legal secretary..who just takes some info and then advises me to set up a meeting with one of their attorneys) seem confident to take the case. No one will really say though what kind of potential my case has....I don''t want to waste anybody''s time..or my own....


I am alittle worried that without an attorney''s help that this will take the insurance company FOREVER to settle with me. I have already noticed how much they are draggin their heals.....telling me they never got my medical release documents...which I first signed electronically and sent in an email. They never got it...so then I faxed it...they never got it! So then I mailed the actual copy to their office.....my adjustor still couldnt "open" the file on his computer....the document got mailed to their head office in another state, where they scan it and make it a "file"....so I get all bent out of shape and tell him there is no possible way he could not have gotten it, etc..so he then sets up a time to personally come over to my house and watch me sign it and take it with him.....well, on the day he was supposed to come over, he called and by some freak of nature, he has found it!

So, I''m wondering if a little nudge from am attorney might help them along????

Another reason I am so nervous to deal with an attorney is the costs involved. I know they are a contingency fees....they only get paid if they win....but some of them have said that its the 30% of the settlement, plus any costs accured...such as fees for obtaining copies of my records, etc.... I am just terrified that I wont get a settlement, but that I''ll owe them something...therefore taking even more out of my pockets than there already has....
Am I just worrying too much???

There was one more situation I feel that I must tell you all about...its another reason why I am so nervous......ok, this accident where I got these injuries from was not my fault...I was rear-ended....BUT about half a year later...I was involved in another accident, which was mostly my fault...I got the citation for failure to yield...(its a long story, but I swear I saw no one coming before I left the parking lot!!!) SO, I am worried that my insurance company is going to be really cheap with their settlement offer, becuz I''m sure they realize that I am costing them 2 accidents worth....

gosh, I am such a mess, hey?

 

[Gypsy]

Okay. Well, I am a lawyer. Left that out before. This is why maybe it was easier for me to weed out the bad ones. First, you can be ADAMANT that your time is valuable to the secretaries and that you INSIST on speaking with the attorney before you make an appointment. This is a good test too. If a lawyer doesn't want to take the time to talk to you over the phone and let you feel him out, you don't want him anyway.

In BIG HUGE firms, the best managing partners (people making ENORMOUS sums of money with serious clout) will answer their own phones when they can. These are the ones who got where they are for a reason.

Let me tell you, my case-- I KNEW from researching it myself before the cold calls-- had a 50-50 percent chance of success because me case is like a law school exam question. It's ridiculous... and I am grateful that I wasn't injured worse and that my injuries will heal on their own so that I won't have to pursue this... but in you case... let me just explain something...

EVERY bad lawyer I talked to either said that my case was a winner (these said, in the same breath as that declaration, that I should come in for an appointment right away) or a loser straight up. In the first case, they were lying, in the second they didn't want to deal or were ignorant. Only the good lawyers commented on the complexity of it and how it was an interesting case without guaranteeing me success or failure.

There is a reason for this. As a lawyer let me tell you something... most of the time when you ask a GOOD, KNOWLEDGABLE lawyer a straight up question the answer get back will be a variation on 'it depends.' This is what non-lawyers, in my experience, find the most frustrating and therefore go for with a lawyer that told them what they wanted to hear. But as frustrating as it is... a good lawyer will not be able to answer your questions immediately. They will tell you that 'it depends' on x, y, z factor... that's becuase the law is usually not black or white on these issues, so anyone who gives you a black and while answer within 2 seconds of conversation is not worth your time.

As for Martindale.. yes it has ratings... but I actually just meant as a starting point to find solo practitioners or small firms (2 lawyers) that represent insurance companies... and take it from there. Do not give them the name of your insurance company.

ALSO, if you live in Ocean County NJ... I can give you the information for the one I would have picked. LOL.

 

[jetmal]

thanks Gypsy,

unfortunately I am in WI, not near NJ

I see your point.....a good lawyer should not be able to tell me anything until all the records have been reviewed, etc.......

I will look on that martindale list and look for some firms that represent the insurance companies and give them a call to ask for names from the "other" side. I will feel alittle akward doing it....but I will do it! I need to.

I''ll keep ya posted....and thanks again for the insight.

 

[Gypsy]

Not just your records, these cases are settled according laws that are usually unclear or open to interpretation... or have been interpreted to mean a certain thing and well... let me put it this way, it's rare that an insurance company would jerk you around if they were completely without legal backing-- in other words, they have teams of lawyers whose job it is to keep everything they do legal... but profitable. So, it's not likely that a lawyer is going to be able to say... "they are clearly wrong, look at this law, we'll get them." More likely what a good lawyer will tell you is, "well, they have this and this on their side, we have this and this on ours... IT DEPENDS on x, w, and g. Let's see what we can do."

Does that make sense?

As for feeling awkward... that's okay. Just be brazen and bold. You'll never talk to these people again, no worries! Keep us updated! And good luck.

 

[jetmal]

Gypsy,

one more question... do you recommend that I go with a private or smaller firm rather than a big law firm that specializes in personal injury only?? We have quite a few of them around here that you hear of on tv constantly about how they specialize in p.i. cases....firms with like 10 attorney''s, etc...

I talked with one attorney today who seemed to be throwing off a good vibe, but he told me that he does about 20% of personal injury in his business....

should I look for someone who deals with it more?????
thanks

 

[Gypsy]

That's hard to say.

What does he deal with the other 80% of the time? And what is his track record with Personal Injury? Personally I'd want someone with more of thier practice devoted to PI. Can you tell him you'd feel comfortable with someone who does it more often and get a recommendation for another attorney?

As for a big firm devoted to PI.. there are pluses and minuses... some are ambulance chasers-- we have one around here and I didn't want to deal with them because I wasn't comfortable. I would call the ABA and ask them about any firm like that and see if there have been any complaints filed against them.

 

[CaptAubrey]

The Capt. advises that you stay away from the PI mills that advertise on TV, billboards, buses, etc. Many of them stay in business by processing as many low-ball settlements as possible at a minimum of time and effort. The insurers know who these guys are and know they can get out of the case more cheaply than usual.

 

[codex57]

Date: 6/8/2006 12:48:24 AM
Author: Gypsy
let me put it this way, it''s rare that an insurance company would jerk you around if they were completely without legal backing-- in other words, they have teams of lawyers whose job it is to keep everything they do legal... but profitable.

Actually, this is the one area of insurance law I can comment on since I have personally seen it (at least in health insurance and workers'' comp). That''s absolutely not true. They may have lawyers who say, "We can''t do that, that''s not legal." Then, the insurance executive will say, "Ok, the lawyers say we can''t do that. I want to anyways. Go find the accountants and see if they can calculate how much we can save by screwing people vs. the lawsuits likely to come out of it. Don''t tell the lawyers any of this."

 

[jetmal]

ok..I have an update......


I think I may have found an attorney that I would like to retain....

she is a private practice attorney....she used to work in favor of the insurance companies, so she knows both sides of the fence so to speak.... she specializes in litigation, and it takes up a major portion of her practice.....she has also had a neck injury, so she can empathize with me......she is right in my home town, so there would not be traveling issues....
she has a contengency fee of 25% if settled out of court, 30% if it goes to court

she spent over a half hour on the phone with me last night and was very informative. She said she would like to meet with me to go over more details, and then make up a "game plan" for me. Then if I like what she has to say I can retain her, etc....

she seemed really down to earth and "normal"....not so stuffy and pushy as most of the bigger firms lawyers....and all of which were males.

what do you think????

 

[Gypsy]

I'm not sure if the 25% is standard or not where you are... I'd call the ABA in your area and ask about that. I'd also ask them about her, if she is in good standing, if she's ever had a complaint filed against her and so forth. If all of it checks out and your comfortable with her... go to the meeting, see what she has to say, and make a decision from there.