|
Posts Tagged ‘personal injury’
Tuesday, December 20th, 2011
Insurance companies exist to make a profit just like any other business that is not a nonprofit entity. Prior to sites like Facebook existing, one of the ways that insurance companies would be able to deny benefits is to follow injured workers with a video camera. They would be able to show that a worker who have been injured on the job or injured in an auto accident was not as injured as they were claiming to be.
As years go by insurance companies are now using social media websites such as MySpace, Twitter, Facebook, Youtube, etc is what is your workers are doing while they are recovering. Some courts but even ordering plaintiff’s to give up their social media sites so they can be looked at by the attorneys from the insurance companies.
Insurance companies have been pretty smart about using the sites. That even been situations where an injured worker was selling items on craigslist and eBay and receiving income and this was actually noticed by the insurance companies. The insurance company could potentially then make that person ineligible for benefits of workers compensation.
A lot of individual so please do not understand just how much personal information there is on the Internet about yourself. The information is not password-protected in most situations and is in the public domain so it is able to be used by insurance companies. Facebook now has picture tagging so individuals can find you with just your name. See really be careful about your privacy settings on particularly that website.
Here are some steps to protect yourself from the prying eyes of the insurance carriers attorneys.
1. The predominant 1st line of defense is to ensure that nothing is out there she would not want your lawyer or your mother to see on any of your social media profiles.
2. Every week or so type your own name into the search engines and see what pops up. If you see something that is unacceptable to you go and then make adjustments to either delete or alter those contents.
3. Be certain to look at the privacy settings on these social media accounts so that only your closest friends are allowed to see truly private content.
4. When you receive e-mails or phone request from people you do not know, do not accept those friend request or send back e-mails. Remember that if you are in the midst of a lawsuit, the opposing team has probably done a lot of research about you and knows a significant amount. They may send an underhanded e-mail with personal information in it giving you the impression that you know each other. Be very wary about this.
5. Set up your Facebook account so that e-mail is necessary before you will accept a new friend. Remember not to accept any friends you do not know personally.
Want to find out more about Phoenix personal injury attorneys, then visit the site of RJ Hurwitz Law ‘on how to choose the best Accident attorneys Phoenix for your needs.
Tags: accident, accident attorney, Accident insurance for auto, Auto Insurance, automobile insurance, car accident, car insurance, crash, insurance, insurance claims, lawyers, legal, personal injury, property damage, social media, truck accident, trucking, trucks, worker's compensation
Posted in Accident insurance for auto | No Comments »
Saturday, December 17th, 2011
Many people work in jobs where they need to use an automobile while working. This automatically puts them at risk for an automobile accident while on the job. If you are involved in an accident and sustain injuries that is someone else’s fault, along with putting in for a workers compensation claim is a chance you may also be entitled to a third-party liability claim. Be cognizant oh that you are not permitted to sue either your employer or a coworker for any injuries that are job-related and incurred in the accident.
After being involved in a work related automobile accident, make sure to follow the appropriate steps to file a workers compensation claim. Your employer needs to be notified in writing of the injuries from the accident, and then you need to go wherever your employer tells you to go for initial care of your injuries. This also involves filling out a claim for compensation that begins the claim process. Even if the accident was somebody else’s fault filling out this form and starting the workers compensation claim process will entitle you to immediate medical and compensation benefits available.
You may or may not know this reliability claim can take years to resolve against the asphalt insurance company. You’ll need to complete your medical treatment so that you can obtain the highest settlement possible. You should also work with a personal injury attorney who is familiar with the workers compensation system in your state.
If the lawyer has knowledge in both workers compensation and personal injury law, become impossible for the workers compensation insurer to pay your medical bills rather than requiring the personal injury settlement monies to pay for them Erie it otherwise this could be money at of your pocket because torture medical bills. Make sure to speak with a personal injury lawyer about whether or not you should see a doctor who is on your workers compensation provider agreement list.
Keep in mind that if you have a workers compensation claim along with a personal injury lawsuit, the workers compensation carrier is legally entitled to share the money that you get from liability insurer. The term for this is a subrogation lien. Still though it is better for the injured individual to have both claims going. It is actually not unusual for an individual to have two attorneys, one working on each case. It would be better however if one attorney had experience in both to streamline things.
Want to find out more about the best personal injury lawyer Phoenix, then visit RJ Hurwitz Law site on how to choose the best personal injury lawyers Phoenix AZ for your needs.
Tags: accident, accident attorney, Accident insurance for auto, Auto Insurance, automobile insurance, car accident, car insurance, crash, insurance, insurance claims, lawyers, legal, personal injury, property damage, truck accident, trucking, trucks
Posted in Accident insurance for auto | No Comments »
Friday, December 16th, 2011
Annually in the United States a motor vehicle accident occurs every 10 seconds. This adds up to thousands annually of traffic accidents that occur in America. When the vehicle sustains damage during the crash, the end result is one that has diminished value. What does this mean?
Diminished value refers to an automobile having been an accident and suffering either physical damage, structural damage, or cosmetic damage. Even if that vehicle is fixed back to like new condition and it looks and drives no different than it was before the accident it still will not be worth as much as it was before the crash. The difference between what it was worth before the accident and fully fixed after the accident is due to diminished value.
If you doubt that diminish value actually exists try and sell your vehicle after an accident and see what happens. Most states require full disclosure of all accidents that occur to a vehicle. Most buyers want a vehicle that has never been in an accident and if it has it will receive less money simply due to the fact it was in one.
There are 3 main types of diminished value that apply to claims. These consist of the following:
1. Immediate diminished value: this involves the difference between the resale value of the vehicle what was worth before simply because it was involved in an accident.
2. Inherent diminished value: this applie to the loss of market vehicle this refers of the car due to the accident. With diminished value this is the most widely recognized type.
3. Repair related diminished value: this involves the depreciated value of the vehicle because of either repairs that were done improperly or repairs that are incomplete or just not fixed. This diminished value is determined by looking at the overall quality of the repairs performed on the vehicle.
Nearly all states allow people to file a diminished value claim after an auto accident that was not their fault. Also those who carry uninsured motorist coverage may be able to file this claim under their own policy as well. The 2 types of diminished value insurance claims include first party or third-party insurance claims. First party means that the individual damaged his or her own car and has her own insurance company paying the claim. This coverage depends on what is either included or excluded in the policy. Third-party insurance claims are when the other party was at fault and hence the other insurance company pays the claim. Pretty much all state courts support claims for diminished value.
Several factors determine how diminished value is calculated including the condition of the vehicle before the accident, the vehicle’s age, the undamaged value, the mileage of the vehicle, and whether or not there were previous accidents.
It can be difficult to pursue a diminished value claims by yourself. A personal injury attorney with significant experience can help dramatically in getting you the money you deserve for diminished value. Make sure to get in touch with a personal injury attorney prior to the statute of limitations expiring in your state.
Want to find out more about personal injury attorneys phoenix az, then visit RJ Hurwitz Law site on how to choose the best Phoenix personal injury lawyers for your needs.
Tags: accident, accident attorney, Accident insurance for auto, Auto Insurance, automobile insurance, car accident, car insurance, crash, insurance, lawyers, legal, personal injury, property damage, truck accident, trucking, trucks
Posted in Accident insurance for auto | No Comments »
Wednesday, December 7th, 2011
After being a victim in a car accident, there is a “bite” taken out of your life. You will have car damage, bodily injury, and missed time from work. It may seem like a small “bite” to an insurance company, but to you it upsets your natural baseline of the world in which you were living.
The post accident existence for you will consist of physician visits, physical therapy, potentially procedures, and medical bills that continue to rise. The physical and mental injuries sustained in your accident may take years to heal.
Unfortunately you will need to deal with phone calls and estimates to body shops and auto repair centers, as well as dealing with insurance companies. Nobody would call this a fun time, and an experienced personal injury larger can help significantly with all of these issues and your case against the other party. A veteran personal-injury attorney can help recommend when would be the appropriate time to settle your case.
The question is though, do you need to wait until you are healed to seek money or is it appropriate to seek monies earlier? In reality, that is exactly what is in your best interest. Why? The problem is sometimes injuries take a while to surface, such as a long term effect of traumatic brain injury (TBI) or potentially a post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Because of this, settling too soon with the insurance company may leave additional monies on the table.
If you can be patient during this time frame it will help you to receive a higher settlement for which you will not look back on with regret. It is tough to maintain patience during this time. As a significant “bite” has been taken out of your life. But doing so in receiving a higher settlement will help make you feel more whole again.
This is one of the primary reasons insurance company may be pushing you to settle to quickly. Which you truly want to do is to reach “maximum medical improvement” before settling with them. What exactly does this mean? This is the point where the doctor reports that the maximum healing is complete and you have reached the maximum recovery as much as possible. At that point you have a really good understanding of what your care needs will be in the future and your lifelong limitations.
If you are not healed completely, there are calculations to predict future medical expenses which can be added to all of the medical expenses incurred to date. With all of that calculated, the settlement process can be initiated with more realistic figures. If you are patient enough to allow realistic settlement calculations to be accomplished, then you will have the best chance of making yourself whole again.
Want to find out more about the best accident attorneys Phoenix, then visit RJ Hurwitz Law site on how to choose the best personal injury lawyer Phoenix AZ for your needs.
Tags: accident, Accident insurance for auto, attorney, Auto Accident, Auto Insurance, car accident, insurance, lawyer, legal, personal injury, vehicles
Posted in Accident insurance for auto | No Comments »
Monday, December 5th, 2011
If you have been in an auto accident that was not your fault that resulted in medical problems such as fractures, in all likelihood you need to miss work and deal with significant pain and associated suffering. You needed to have Dr. visits, x-rays taken, physical therapy, mental counseling and probable nightmares, with all of it ending up being a very stressful time in your existence.
At some point your case will settle and all of your damages will get reduced to a money figure. Are you then required to pay taxes on that figure? It actually depends on whether or not the settlement received is due to the injuries or for the loss of economic benefit.
The premise is that basically if the monies are being received for the injury then it is not taxable. if however the money received is for loss of economic benefit than it is included in gross income and subject to taxation. If you are out of work and lost wages and part of your injury settlement replaces those amounts, you would have to pay taxes on that because you would’ve been otherwise working and paying taxes anyway. There has been some precedents with case law as to this, put it is not always clearly defined. This article also is not being written by an attorney so this does not constitute definitive legal advice!
The IRS tax code has a section dealing with certain payments for physical personal injuries and their exclusion from gross income. That is Section 104. It is not clear cut as the IRS does not provide clear guidance on the terms “physical injuries or physical sickness”. If the compensation is received for “physical injuries or physical sickness” then that amount is excluded from gross income.
There was an IRS case, LTR 200041022 where the IRS ruled regarding a woman receiving a settlement from her employer relating to unwanted physical contacts. The IRS ruled that the settlement was received not based on account of physical injuries since there was no “observable bodily harm.” Therefore, the woman needed to include the settlement monies in her gross income.
In addition to that case, there is also been a US Supreme Court case regarding tax code 104, Schleier v. Commissioner. in this case the court adopted a two-step requirement that the legal cause of action had to be a tort type action and that the settlement monies received physical sickness were on account of either or personal physical injury.
Since it is not clearly defined, individuals in this situation should talk to a competent tax lawyer to clarify exactly what should be included in gross income or excluded. Since settlements at times end up in the millions of dollars, this should be a definite prerequisite since if calculated incorrectly the IRS may get involved.
Want to find out more about Phoenix personal injury attorney, then visit RJ Hurwitz Law site on how to choose the best auto accident attorneys Phoenix for your needs.
Tags: accident, Accident insurance for auto, attorney, Auto Accident, Auto Insurance, car accident, insurance, lawyer, legal, personal injury, tax law, taxes, vehicles
Posted in Accident insurance for auto | No Comments »
Saturday, November 26th, 2011
With regards to your car insurance, two types exist – liability coverage and property damage. If the other party sustains injury in an accident that was your fault, then that coverage applies to the liability coverage. Most of these accidents should definitely be reported to your carrier, even if the damage was only minimal.
How can you know if the accident should be reported or not? If there is only property damage and no body injury, then it may be ok to withold it from the insurance carrier. You could simply pay for the damages yourself to avoid a claim on your insurance policy record.
If there is any potential for an injury however, the claim should at least be reported. For instance if you rear end another auto going only five miles an hour, you may not need to report a claim after speaking with the other driver. However, what is necessary is to at least tell your insurance company about the crash.
You should explain the details of the incident, provide them the location of the accident, the other vehicle information,the other driver’s info along with that of the passengers. It may be that you pay for some minor property damage and then nothing else comes of it. However if a few months later the driver or the other vehicle’s passenger(s) does have some pain in the back, and you have notified your insurance company about the accident, you will be covered under your policy. If you have not notified them prior, the insurance company may say they are not obligated to cover you.
Definitely report any claims involving incidents with minors, pedestrians, or cyclists. Say for instance you are backing out of the driveway and you almost hit a child on a bike. The kid is not actually injured, but his bike is hit and ruined. There is not even a scratch on the kid. Even if the parents and the child apologize big time for the incident, it should still be reported to your insurance company.
This could resolve any legal problem in the future if documented so that you are protected from any potential legal issues. You may want to still buy the child a new bicycle, but you should also notify your insurance company. They wouldn’t be obligated to defend you if you didn’t and a claim for injury ever resulted.
The bottom line is you should have a low threshhold for reporting to your carrier. When it comes to liability, you can never be too careful and discussing with your carrier and notifying them of the accident can help with their need to defend you later.
Want to find out more about auto accident lawyer Phoenix, then visit Phoenix personal injury lawyer RJ Hurwitz website on how to choose the best accident lawyers Phoenix for your needs.
Tags: accident, Accident insurance for auto, attorney, Auto Insurance, car accident, insurance claim, lawyer, legal, personal injury, personal injury lawyer, Vehicle Insurance
Posted in Accident insurance for auto | No Comments »
Thursday, November 24th, 2011
When deaths are involved, large truck accident factors are very different from cars. It has been shown that over 16% of car accident fatalities result from drug or alcohol influence, according to data produced from the Federal Motor Safety Carrier Administration. In contrast, alcohol or drugs are responsible for truck accident deaths only 1.4% of the time.
This is most likely a result of the fact that truck driving is more of a professional activity, with drug testing being prevalent and preventative, whereas with autos a lot of accidents result from a night of imbibing. Trucking is more of an employment activity, and most people who are involved take it seriously, which means not working while drinking.
At a 19% incidence, speeding is the number 1 fatal factor in car accidents. It also represents the number one factor in fatal trucking accidents at 7%. It takes a lot longer to stop a truck while speeding than an auto given they are traveling at the same speed. The reason is because of the weight and size, so a considerably larger space cushion is needed to avoid an accident in a difficult driving situation.
The 2nd and 3rd most common truck accident death factor is staying in the proper lane along with inattentiveness. This may be the result of falling asleep while driving or texting, reading, talking on the phone, working a mobile device, or applying makeup. This combines for a 12% incidence of trucking accident deaths because of inattentiveness or inappropriately switching lanes. Car accidents differ here with over 16% being the cause of death.
Reasons 4 and 5 for trucking are failure to yield right of way and failure to obey traffic signs. This causes over over 5% of trucking deaths and 11% of car fatalities. Drivers may be in a hurry and try to beat another vehicle through a yield sign, or just disregard appropriate caution signs on the highway.
The premise here is that besides alcohol and drugs being more prominent with auto accidents, the reasons for fatal accidents are the same. They are just in varying percentages. After all, people are people. One take away from this is that preventive safety measures for truck and auto safety overlap substantially. Initiatives for decreasing fatalities can therefore serve a dual function.
Learn more about car accident attorneys phoenix. Stop by Phoenix personal injury attorney RJ Hurwitz site where you can find out all about personal injury attorneys in Phoenix and what it can do for you.
Tags: accident, accident attorney, Accident insurance for auto, Auto Insurance, automobile insurance, car accident, car insurance, crash, insurance, lawyers, legal, personal injury, property damage, truck accident, trucking, trucks
Posted in Accident insurance for auto | No Comments »
Tuesday, November 22nd, 2011
There are tens of thousands of automobile accidents that occur every year in United States, and a considerable amount of the victims will end up with neck and back injuries. For most of these injuries, the pain will be short-lived and the person will be able to get back to normal activities. Typically over 90% of pain after an accident will resolve within 6 weeks.
For a few unlucky individuals, however, the pain may endure for a lifetime without proper treatment. Some of the injury conditions that may result in chronic pain are:
Calcium deposits and scar tissue buildup may end up in chronic pain and stiffness.
Disc injuries or bulging discs which put pressure on spinal nerves. This condition is usually permanent.
Long-term muscle spasm that can produce chronic pain syndrome.
Myofascial pain syndrome with painful trigger points. Trigger points are knotted muscles in severe spasm which are painful when pressed. Sometimes, trigger point injections produce relief.
Fibromyalgia, which may end up with chronic pain. Usually only six percent of the public will have degenerative changes prior to age 30 leading to arthritis. Unfortunately, almost 40 percent of accident victims will deal with neck and back degenerative arthritis.
Traumatically induced arthritis – Changes naturally occur in the neck and back bones as we age. In most people, these arthritic changes go unnoticed because they do not produce pain. This is a painful condition where the joints become inflamed and the pain can sometimes go from head to toe.
When one of these painful conditions occurs after an accident with an older victim, insurance companies may try to use arthritis as a reason to avoid paying an accident claim. What the insurance company will do is to have the victims see a doctor who can then blame all the neck or back pain on arthritis and then trying get the insurance company off the hook completely by saying that that arthritis was present before the accident so therefore the pain must’ve been present before the accident.
This is unfortunate as no medical provider can say for certain that the individual would have developed painful arthritis without the accident. There are several people who according to their radiographs have severe arthritis but are not (and will not) experience resultant pain.
If an individual has arthritis on imaging studies, that is typically visible prior to the accident. However, the accident forces from the crash make the arthritis worse and may flare up considerable pain.
Want to find out more about the best phoenix accident attorney, then visit Phoenix personal injury attorney RJ Hurwitz’s site on how to choose the best personal injury attorneys in phoenix for your needs.
Tags: accident, accident attorney, Accident insurance for auto, Auto Insurance, automobile insurance, car accident, car insurance, chronic pain, crash, insurance, insurance claims, lawyers, legal, pain management, personal injury, property damage
Posted in Accident insurance for auto | No Comments »
Sunday, November 20th, 2011
After being in a car accident that was not your fault, you may unfortunately need to deal with the at fault driver’s insurance carrier. If you then become upset with the insurance companies you will want to know if there is anything that can be done about it?
The answer is yes, you may have a claim against the insurance company for bad faith. Bad faith is when the insurance company is treating you unreasonably or outrageously. Besides the money that the insurance company already owes you, they may have to pay you more money as punitive damages as punishment for this unreasonable or outrageous behavior.
Insurance carriers tend to fight very hard against it when individuals file bad faith claims. Trying to take care of getting compensated by yourself for a bad faith claim is very difficult without a personal injury attorney. This attorney should let the insurance company know that there is a responsibility to their clients.
The primary reason insurance companies are in business is to make a profit, so they have an conflict of interest when it comes to paying out settlements. The veteran PI lawyer will contact the insurance company to put them on notice of their duty to protect client rights and obey state law.
It’s not a surprise that insurance companies will try to blame you for the accident if they can find any way to do so in order that they do not have to pay you. Here’s an example. You have an accident where the other driver turns right in front of you and the police issues a ticket to the other driver. The insurance company will frequently try to blame you for 50% of the responsibility of the accident. When you question this they may say that you failed to keep a proper lookout. After you finish laughing hysterically trying to figure out what they meant by proper lookout since there was no possible way to avoid the accident, you realize that the person on the other end of the phone is serious and then arguing with that person is not going to get you anywhere.
The issue here is that if the at fault driver’s insurance company can get you to admit some fault whether it adds to 25 or 50% they will avoid paying you. What makes it worse is that if any substantial percentage is found, your own carrier may elevate your rates. This is why in this instance a veteran personal injury lawyer can make sure this doesn’t happen to you.
Want to find out more about the best phoenix car accident lawyers, then visit Personal Injury Attorney RJ Hurwitz’s site on how to choose the best auto accident attorney Phoenix for your needs.
Tags: accident, Accident insurance for auto, attorney, Auto Insurance, car accident, insurance claim, lawyer, legal, personal injury, personal injury lawyer, Vehicle Insurance
Posted in Accident insurance for auto | No Comments »
Saturday, November 12th, 2011
In the state of California more people are turning towards pedal power. It may be thanks to the enormous rise in gas prices latterly, or it could be due to greener issues. On the other hand it may be as it gives the rider a great cardiovascular workout. Although there are more and more cycle lanes being built, there's also more traffic on California’s roads, and this increase in cycle riders along with an increase in traffic implies unfortunately bicycle accidents are commonplace. Actually statistics prove that over fifty thousand bike riders have died on America’s roads since records commenced in 1932 and the state of California has one of the highest rates of cycle based injuries in the country. As you can imagine accident lawyers Riverside who specialize in bike related injuries is kept terribly busy.
By the very nature of the way a bike is constructed suggests that when accidents do happen with automobiles they're regularly major and most wounds are caused to the head. One way that a cyclist can protect themselves is by wearing a helmet. Recent research has proven that if you're wearing a cycle helmet you cut back your possibility of significant brain injury by as much as 84% should an accident occur. So wearing the right safety equipment is important. A Riverside County accident lawyer can help if you have been mixed up in an accident, through no fault of your own, in various ways.
Firstly if the driver of the vehicle is disputed over who is to blame them a talented and experienced attorney will be able to call on a profusion of independent professionals who can look into your case. Folks such as consultant accident investigators, medical experts who can inspect you to find out the true extent of your injuries, and even safety equipment testers can all play a role in helping you with your case. From their findings your counsel can begin to build an image of events and ascertain who really was responsible.
So what will occur if the specialists notice that you were partly to blame?
This does not necessarily mean the case is lost. Instead skilled Riverside accident lawyers will register a claim under the guise of ‘comparative law’. This suggests that if an individual is partly to blame then your counsel has to decide in regards to what share of failure they are essentially responsible for. If this percentage amount is concluded in a court of law, then this is what’s awarded in damages. An example of this would be that if a court of law concluded the plaintiff was 30 percent the culprit then the amount awarded to them would be seventy percent of the whole amount of compensation possible for this sort of claim.
If you suspect other entities to blame for your accident such as a badly lit or poorly marked road, then you might be able to register a claim under a road upkeep defect. If you check with any Riverside accident lawyers they'll be able to advise you in the right way. These kind of claims can be troublesome, although not difficult to prove, and will involve filing a claim against an administration department. These types of claims come with their own mannerisms which need to be adhered to and as a consequence this isn't something you should attempt to do on your own. Instead a talented counsel who is used to handling issues like this will know the correct trail to take in order to deliver a worthy compensatory package.
Cycling at night is a perilous time for cyclists so the need to be seen is vital. Reflective jackets and strips are a smart idea, also make sure that your bicycle has lights and that they function in the correct way. In this instance, if you're in the unlucky position of being bound up in an accident at night, then the auto driver can make no excuses that they can't see you.
Cycling can be a fun and fit method to get around but just if you are safe. It's very important to have a good experience of your rights if the need become real and this is something that accident barristers Riverside can counsel you on.
Edwin Q. Jacobson is an avid bicyclist and he consulted with accident lawyers Riverside after he was hit by an auto while riding. His accident lawyers Riverside helped his family navigate through the complicated laws of personal injury accidents.
Tags: accident, attorney, auto accident insurance, automotive, cycling, insurance, law, lawyer, legal, news, personal injury, recreation, sports
Posted in auto accident insurance | No Comments »
|
| |
|