How much should My settlement amount be?

[Indiana_Dem]

I was in a wreck in June. Someone tried to pass at an intersection while I was turning left. My total medical/work lost came to close to $5000.00. I had a compression fracture in my back and I now take anti-anxiety pills in order to drive out of town, in the dark or in the rain. They offered me $7500.00. I was told if you get a lawyer it is usually 3 times the amount of the hospital bills. In effect, I am getting $2500 for pain & suffering. My daughter was also in the accident, too, but refused treatment for a head injury. Should I be happy with this amount? I was thinking it would be more around $10,000 total ($5,000 for pain & suffering). What does anyone think?

[E_Zapata]

1. You need a lawyer...........

You really really really need a lawyer.

The insur companies are geared to screw the unrepresented. They say rates are high because of lawsuits by lawyers, but it's because a person HAS to get an attorney to get a fair settlement.

You are going to have problems for the rest of your life (I hope not.......but even in old age.....arthritis can set into those old fractures).

Get an attorney.......today!

Find a reputable plaintiff's attorney ...... (you want an attorney that that the insur cos don't hate). Even those attorneys who advertise on TV can be quite good.....

I would say your settlement should be closer to $50,000 plus future medical bills paid (cause you don't really KNOW what your future medical will be). Seriously.

[E_Zapata]

3. Btw........

I WORKED for insurance defense attorneys for many years.

And if you have an injury that can show up on an x-ray.....that is all the better. Those soft tissue injuries (though real) come down to perceptions...and the insur cos capitalize on that.

[radwriter0555]

2. I got offered a mere $3000 for not being able to work for 4 months,

being rear ended, the other car demolished (I was in my truck).

I went to 4 different doctors and suffered permanent nerve damage to my hands and wrists, and suffer continuous pain DAILY from this event over a year ago.

$3000.

That's IT. Oh and that is WITH AN ATTORNEY representing me. A sucky one, apparently.

Take the $7,500.

[E_Zapata]

4. That is a sucky settlement.

4 months out of work. Amazing! No compensation for your lost wages? WOW.

And that's the problem.....when you are injured, you can't really be a hero to your cause.....

But hey, this person, at the least, can get $7500......why not TRY to get a fair settlement.

Just because you got screwed (and that you did) doesn't mean that others shouldn't try to get their needs taken care of. Sorry,.....but you have dispensed very bad advice!

[radwriter0555]

8. Yup and the attorney wants $7000 up front to take it to court.

I got screwed HUGE.

But it was explained to me that the insurance cos are simply not putting up with it any more, no matter what the attornies on the teevee commercials are saying.

They can simply, as they did with me, not LIKE the fact I lost 4 months earnings, and simply say NO. And THEN tell me to back up my claim by forcing me to into court. And who can cough up $7000 grand to take it to court?

See, I wasn't hospitalized. I didn't bleed or break anything. I didn't lose a limb. I have soft tissue damage, which is invisible, and you can't see nerve damage either. There is no way to actually measure pain. So it's up to me to prove to them I'm IN pain.

They got us by the balls. My advice is based on experience.

[E_Zapata]

11. I swear, your advice is based on not going to the right lawyer......

NEVER does a plaintiff's attorney who handles PI make the plaintiff pay for the trial. Never.

And the insur co would have to pay for an independent medical examination to a specialist agreed upon by all parties.

You went to the wrong attorney. I am so sorry.

PI attorneys work on contingency.

And, yes, soft tissue injuries are a bitch to prove.....but they are equally difficult to disprove -- ESPECIALLY if you had to lay out of work for 4 months.

I am soooooooo sorry...........I hope somehow you get justice. In some fashion.

For the pain.......try a homeopathic cream called Traumed. They even have it at the big grocery stores in the natural sections.

[nothingshocksmeanymore]

15. My advice based on experience is to get a different lawyer and if you

are in the LA area I know many GOOD ones. TV lawyers are for shit and use paralegals in order to be paper mills for settlements. based on what you are saying you might also have a case for legal malpractice.

It is NOT up to you to prove it except to get a competent physician with an OUNCE of credibility to evaluate you and comment on your injuries as I have framed them below.

Please do NOT advise the person above to settle for such a menial amount for a fairly significant injury such as a compression fx of the spine, based on your bad experiences with what sounds like an incompetent lawyer.

There are LOTS of us good folks who advocate and negotiate powerfully for our clients.

[Padraig18]

5. Get a GOOD lawyer

You have a crushed vertebra and other permanent injuries; $2500 for your 'pain and suffering' isn't anywhere NEAR what your case is worth! Hire a lawyer specializing in personal injury; if you don't know one, call your local bar association or ask someone whose legal judgment you trust for a referral.

[Indiana_Dem]

6. I want to tell the adjuster

that they are telling me the pain & suffering of me & my daughter's welfare is valued less than that of replacing my car. Would that be a good argument.
Plus, as a nurse, I know that arthritis can set in on old injuries when older.
I believe I have an argument. I just don't want to hire an attorney where he will get a big chunk of it. I want to barter myself but i will get an attorney if I have to. I believe I have a legitimate complaint.

[E_Zapata]

12. Trust me.....there will be no chunk to share

If you don't have an attorney.

They don't care about your 'arguments'.

They had a claims adjuster meeting.....went over your case and set the ceiling. It might be $10,000.....and you could inch it up from the $7500.

The minute you get an attorney.....that ceiling rises.

If you have a reputable attorney, s/he will gauge the case for you and will work to make sure that his/her settlement demand gets your needs and the attorney's fees paid.

[Indiana_Dem]

7. One other thing...

I released my medical information to them because I talked to a tax lawyer friend of mine that said if it goes to court they will request it anyway. Fortunately, I have no history that documents any back problems.....

[Padraig18]

9. Have him/her refer you to a personal-injury specialist!

A good friend of mine is a paralegal for a firm that does PI work, and she says most people who don't use an attorney 'net' substantially smaller settlements than people with a competent PI attorney, plus receieve no legal protection should the current injuries worsen.

[E_Zapata]

13. wow, you released your complete medical history?

Yes, you need an attorney simply because you are very naive (as well you should be......we shouldn't have to know about legal strategies to get through life).

And depending on what else you have given the insur cos, you may very well not find an attorney who wants to UNDO the possible legal damage you have caused. Hopefully you haven't.

Like in one state...the ONLY medical records an insur company can get are those relating to the injured area of the body. And that's a NICE thing for plaintiffs. Very nice.

[Indiana_Dem]

18. Yes but

I have nothing to hide. I'm a nurse and I know what the reports of xrays said. I know what minimal bulging and wedging mean in the report, I know what it said, and I know there isn't anything in the past they can refute. I've never had any other mental problems with the anxiety thing either. They have nothing to find on me. That's why after talking to the lawyer I went ahead and did it. Now if i threaten a lawyer into the case, I know I will have some leverage.

[nothingshocksmeanymore]

21. To be perfectly honest

A GOOD lawyer will get you FAR more than what you are being offered based on your injuries and the fact that you are a nurse which can be a fairly physical job. You need an evaluation by an expert tying ALL your injuries together including documenting ANY FUTURE manner in which these injuries MAY affect your livelihood.

Compression fractures are micrfractures which lead to premature arthritic changes in your spine.

I strongly encourage you either through word of mouth or the local bar to find a good lawyer in your area. Many states have some form of certified EXPERTS in various aspects of law. That is the caliber of lawyer you want for your injuries.

Even if you DO have a past medical history it is the carriers's BURDEN to prove that it in any ay was symptomatic but for the injury however, they will attempt to manipulate regardless.

Threatening then with getting a lawyer might get you a couple thousand buck more but NO WHERE near the potential value of your case.

Do what you will but know you are handing them a valentine if you accept an offer that is even within 10,000 of what they are currently offering you.

[Indiana_Dem]

22. Thanks for your advice

I will take it and let you know what happens later. It might be awhile.

[nothingshocksmeanymore]

24. no worries and I did not mean to be flippant

it is an occupational hazard in law...people ask for advice, then don't follow it..then get screwed...I didn't mean to imply that that is what you are doing. I DO wish you the best and hate to see people with ACTUAL injuries for which they should be compensated adequately get screwed...it's just in my nature :D

[nothingshocksmeanymore]

10. A piece of crap lawyer will attempt to settle for three times your medical

bills. A good lawyer will get a GOOD medical expert ( board certified orthopedic surgeon, preferably an academic as well as treating doctor) to determine your loss of property, diminished earning capacity, medical bills both in the past and in the future, pain and suffering and any retraining you may need in order to compensate for diminished earning capacity. From there a more adequate settlement can be negotiated.

You daughter should also be entitled to a settlement for her injuries.

[Padraig18]

16. Exactly!

:thumbsup:

[Indiana_Dem]

19. I am listening to you!

Thank you for your advice. I need to digest all the answers I'm getting. Don't take me as not listening!:yourock:

[E_Zapata]

14. I don't know........seems you just really want to handle this

all by yourself.

And that's fine. But.....in a few years time......when you are in bad physical shape.....you need to take responsibility for not using the only system that is designed to get you what you deserve and need.

[nothingshocksmeanymore]

17. I'm actually used to people asking for decent legal advice on this board

and then not listening. I don't know why I bother.

[Indiana_Dem]

20. Frankly....

I'm a little hesitant to get a laywer at this time because my husband's plant is closing and he will be unemployed soon. I need to hang on to all of my extra money I can right now. Unless I can find a laywer that you don't pay unless they get a settlement I guess.

[nothingshocksmeanymore]

23. Most lawyers work on contingency in this field

and if your husband may soon be out of work that is EXACTLY why you should not short change yourself. What if your symptoms increase and render you unable to work?

[DoNotRefill]

25. Get a lawyer NOW.

if you had a compression fracture, you should get a HELL of a lot more money.