Get hurt, miss work? Call Bob Loblaw! (Do I need a lawyer question)

milehigh

Not going to give too many details here, but I (my car, with me in it that is) got hit by a drunk driver this weekend and now have some injury concerns. Several people at work have advised me to get a personal injury attorney before talking with my insurance guys even if I don't know the extents of injuries and am still working with my doctor.

Wondering if anyone has any prior experiences and advice or recommendations on if I should lawyer up, or just work with the insurance company and assume that the process will not screw me over (which was my plan initially).

schuss

The main thing here is documentation. You don't have to lawyer up immediately, as Insurance co's are often very effective at getting payments. The important thing is to go to a doctor and get things documented. Did you take a ride in the ambulance?

milehigh

No, which I regretted almost immediately on my way home and went to the urgent care at my normal Dr's office (where I actually got to see my regular doctor) as soon as they opened.

iRevert

Ianal

Talk with your agent and tell them you are seeing a doctor for this, get it on paper now and not down the road.

schuss

Also note that your insurance will be very helpful, as when it's not your fault, they delight in getting you as much money and care as possible.

Jebus314

schuss wrote: »

Also note that your insurance will be very helpful, as when it's not your fault, they delight in getting you as much money and care as possible.

Yeah that has not been my experience at all. Generally they want to get everything settled as soon as possible, which consists of them trying to force some shitty deal on you so that they can close the case. I've seen several instances, including one where my brother's car was hit whilst parked legally with no one in it, where the insurance company on the victims side was like "well yeah, but really it was kind of your fault too so let's just call it even and everyone pays their own bills".

Thanatos

schuss wrote: »

Also note that your insurance will be very helpful, as when it's not your fault, they delight in getting you as much money and care as possible.

This is true, right up until they discover that the person whose fault it is is either un- or under-insured. Then, you have to turn around and put a UIM (un-/under-insured motorist) claim in with your own insurance (assuming you have that coverage).

But yeah, while IANAL, I don't think you need a lawyer yet. You don't even know what the particulars of the case are (how much you're injured, what the other guy's policy limits are, etc.). There is no harm in taking a free consultation with a reputable lawyer, though if that will put your mind at ease.

mts

shame you didnt go to the Er, that there is worth about a grand worth a pain and suffering assuming full tort. you don't need a lawyer until the other peoples insurance people try to dick you around. just go to the doctor save all your receipts etc.

i have gone through this 3 times already in the past 2 years. no need for a lawyer unless you completley disagree on things with their insurance

Mad Jazz

Taking an ambulance ride doesn't equal $texas from accidents. That's a very common misconception that I wish would get corrected. Seeing your doc asap should be plenty fine, documentation wise, since a lot of injuries don't manifest immediately anyway. IANAL, but I am a paramedic, so I've seen this plenty of times from the medical side.

milehigh

Yeah, got ahold of a lawyer and was basically told that until things go bad I don't need any representation and usually the insurance will resolve everything. Particularly because this case was so blatantly clear. So yeah, good knowledge to have (that will hopefully never be needed). Just need to make absolutely sure everything gets documented.

MrDelish

Yeah when I had a minor accident (I got knocked over on my scooter) the insurance agent from the at-fault party just threw money at the settlement when I told him I went to the doctor over pain in my thumb that was likely just a jam (it was). YMMV on the insurance company you deal with, of course.

schuss

MrDelish wrote: »

Yeah when I had a minor accident (I got knocked over on my scooter) the insurance agent from the at-fault party just threw money at the settlement when I told him I went to the doctor over pain in my thumb that was likely just a jam (it was). YMMV on the insurance company you deal with, of course.

As someone who analyzes insurance litigation - throwing 1-2k at someone to get a release is worth it 100% of the time when there's any potential for soft tissue damage or rehab.

zepherin

Also you can ask your insurance company to negotiate and advocate on your behalf. They will likely get you a better deal than you by yourself. Other general things you should get as a matter of course. A copy of their insurance information. A copy of the police report. XRays of your back, neck and knees.

Dr. Frenchenstein

if you let your insurance company do anything, make sure it's a good company. I had Erie when i got rear ended and they forced me to make a claim through them and subrogated. They took this opportunity to be completely unhelpful and screw me over. There was $10k in damage (i was uninjured) and the car was worth 16k, they repaired it and scoffed when i mentioned diminished value. I'm 99% sure any other company would have totaled it and i would have been a happy camper. instead i had to separately sue the cab company for it, almost 3 years later i JUST GOT THE MONEY.

i hear people have mixed experiences with Erie so YMMV, and the guy's (cab driver) insurance was terrible to work with. Apparently they are all self insured for the most part. I probably would have had a worse time trying to get the claim worked out by myself, but still. You'd think if you are subrogating, you'd want to make YOUR client as happy as possible, since you are probably getting all that money back.

zagdrob

Mad Jazz wrote: »

Taking an ambulance ride doesn't equal $texas from accidents. That's a very common misconception that I wish would get corrected. Seeing your doc asap should be plenty fine, documentation wise, since a lot of injuries don't manifest immediately anyway. IANAL, but I am a paramedic, so I've seen this plenty of times from the medical side.

Yeah, I've seen this misconception a lot.

People think that getting injured in an accident is like winning the lotto, which is almost never true*.

In most cases you are going to get your medical expenses paid. Maybe some lost-time and rehabilitation claims, and reimbursement of the deductible you paid your insurance company. The situations where people get any significant amount over and above their medical expenses, you are talking major lost time from work, permanent disabilities, as well as major vulnerabilities (repeated drunk driver, previously cited commercial driver, etc).

Remember, the people you see on the ambulance chaser ads are paid actors, and the results are not typical. You don't see the person who actually got the $800K settlement - they aren't some pretty young actress, they are paraplegic and still re-learning how to speak.

*Provided you aren't committing insurance fraud and not receiving the care you are billing for.

milehigh

Update on shenanigans, talked to the insurance company. They looked at and then towed my car to pull some panels, but they're 95% sure they're going to total it and I should start looking for a new one. (which, looking at it makes me feel better since there's buckling in the frame that's nowhere near the impact).

This deal was a hit and run, however the guy was followed by several witnesses and called in. It was also on an interstate with my speed being around 60 and his (I'm told) being significantly higher then that, so it was a pretty nasty high speed crash and with all the cars on the road its incredible it wasn't much worse.

Scary stuff, but it seems I've been doing things the right way, just hoping there's no long term damage and I can get back to life soon. I can't workout at the moment and I'm realizing just how big of a stress reliever that was for me o_0 Starting physical therapy today and hopefully they'll give me clearance to at least do some type of exercise...

Also just for the record I wasn't looking for a cash grab here. I just wanted to make sure taking the right steps that if any major damage was done I'm not left with a nasty injury in 1/5/10 years and no way to pay for treatment.

bowen

Sometimes a cash grab is the right answer. You may find out that your health has been severely impacted that you may need to buy things later in life to augment it to a reasonable level again. That's generally why they award lots of money in cases like this.

Tox

Personal Injury lawyers can be amongst the worst caliber of people.

So...be prepared to want to take lots of showers to try to scrub off all that filth.

That said, they do get the job done, usually.

Tox

Yeah cash grab may feel slimy, but you may thank yourself in a decade when you're still unable to work out as much as you did before this because of some random knee/back/shoulder/hip pain that you can't get rid of.

iRevert

milehigh wrote: »

Update on shenanigans, talked to the insurance company. They looked at and then towed my car to pull some panels, but they're 95% sure they're going to total it and I should start looking for a new one. (which, looking at it makes me feel better since there's buckling in the frame that's nowhere near the impact).

This deal was a hit and run, however the guy was followed by several witnesses and called in. It was also on an interstate with my speed being around 60 and his (I'm told) being significantly higher then that, so it was a pretty nasty high speed crash and with all the cars on the road its incredible it wasn't much worse.

Scary stuff, but it seems I've been doing things the right way, just hoping there's no long term damage and I can get back to life soon. I can't workout at the moment and I'm realizing just how big of a stress reliever that was for me o_0 Starting physical therapy today and hopefully they'll give me clearance to at least do some type of exercise...

Also just for the record I wasn't looking for a cash grab here. I just wanted to make sure taking the right steps that if any major damage was done I'm not left with a nasty injury in 1/5/10 years and no way to pay for treatment.

I do want to point this out, if you feel like something is "off" with your body go see a doctor. Don't write it off as oh I just slept funny and that's why my back hurts, go see a doctor and explain what the issue is and get it checked out. You've taken the right steps so far but seriously don't neglect yourself and take chances when it comes to your health, play it smart and consider a dash cam for next time so you can get some sweet sweet youtube money for your video.

schuss

iRevert wrote: »

milehigh wrote: »

Update on shenanigans, talked to the insurance company. They looked at and then towed my car to pull some panels, but they're 95% sure they're going to total it and I should start looking for a new one. (which, looking at it makes me feel better since there's buckling in the frame that's nowhere near the impact).

This deal was a hit and run, however the guy was followed by several witnesses and called in. It was also on an interstate with my speed being around 60 and his (I'm told) being significantly higher then that, so it was a pretty nasty high speed crash and with all the cars on the road its incredible it wasn't much worse.

Scary stuff, but it seems I've been doing things the right way, just hoping there's no long term damage and I can get back to life soon. I can't workout at the moment and I'm realizing just how big of a stress reliever that was for me o_0 Starting physical therapy today and hopefully they'll give me clearance to at least do some type of exercise...

Also just for the record I wasn't looking for a cash grab here. I just wanted to make sure taking the right steps that if any major damage was done I'm not left with a nasty injury in 1/5/10 years and no way to pay for treatment.

I do want to point this out, if you feel like something is "off" with your body go see a doctor. Don't write it off as oh I just slept funny and that's why my back hurts, go see a doctor and explain what the issue is and get it checked out. You've taken the right steps so far but seriously don't neglect yourself and take chances when it comes to your health, play it smart and consider a dash cam for next time so you can get some sweet sweet youtube money for your video.

Yes. Document Document Document. If you can, get an ortho or similar appointment so you can do range of motion, discuss possible future issues and everything else. The insurance co. has no issue going after someone for this stuff, but they have to know about it, otherwise it can be written off as "Oh, he injured it AFTER the crash".

Mad Jazz

Like I said, it's very common for injuries to manifest themselves significantly after the accident. There's a lot of muscle soreness that comes with being thrown around, and that can hide some more serious stuff. That said, if you're going to PT and keeping on your followup appointments with your doc, you're doing it right. A good physical therapist should be able to see if you have some sort of hidden injury that's throwing off your balance or movement, even if you don't know about it. Just remember to follow all of their instructions, no matter how boring or trivial they may seem; PT doesn't work if the patient doesn't comply.

mts

yea the first thing the PT will do is check range of motion etc, at least a decent one

milehigh

Another update. I have a follow-up with my doc today, went to PT on Wednesday and am going to continue to do so and keep up with all the stretches they've prescribed. I'm documenting absolutely everything and talking with all my docs, and am keeping up to date with an attorney.

In good news, his insurance claimed 100% responsibility and the insurance adjuster totaled my car yesterday, hoping to get a new one this weekend so that's a big step.