Rear end collision and insurance settlements

by ttrometer » Fri Feb 20, 2009 09:02 pm

My parents were in an accident approximately 1 year ago in St. Louis. A little over $4K in rear end collision damage done to their car. My dad's medical bills are $14K and my mothers are $13K. Both had significant soft tissue damage and were treated approximately 1 year. My dad was told he has a permanent disability related to his neck injuries by both his doctor and an independent doctor the insurance company had him go to. Insurance company is in the process of providing a rear end collision settlement. Wondering what is reasonable and if they should get a lawyer. Both are over the age of 70.

Total Comments: 47

Posted: Fri Feb 20, 2009 11:03 pm Post Subject: rear end collision

They need to find out what the bodily injury liability limits are on the responsible party's policy are. There are also a few other things to consider prior to filing a lawsuit or pursuing anything else. First, find out what the statute of limitations are in your state. You may not be able to pursue further damages after accepting their (insurance company) initial offer. After finding out whether or not you can file further damages, and the liability limits on the responsible party's policy are then you will know what you should do. If the policy has low limits, then you will be suing the other party directly and if they dont have assets or anything to pay then it would be a waste of time.

Hope this Helps

Posted: Sat Feb 21, 2009 02:48 am Post Subject: rear end settlements

I would consult a lawyer. Most of them offer a free consultation. Just be aware that if they take your case and win, they will charge a fee of 20%-30% of the rear end collision settlement amount.

Posted: Sat Feb 21, 2009 03:54 am Post Subject: rear end collision settlement

From his previous reply:

I would consult an attorney.



From this one:

I would consult a lawyer.



You should never consult an attorney until you have spoken with the insurance companies first and do some research for THIS reason...

they will charge a fee of 20%-30% of the settlement amout.

Posted: Sat Feb 21, 2009 03:59 am Post Subject: rear end collision

Yes someone seems to have a horse in this race.

lawyer

Posted: Sat Feb 21, 2009 04:05 am Post Subject:

Yes someone seems to have a horse in this race.



Funny? I was thinking the EXACT same thing lol.

Posted: Sat Feb 21, 2009 04:30 am Post Subject: rear end collision settlement

they will charge a fee of 20%-30% of the settlement amout.

How about _starting_ at 33% and 40% PLUS expenses if the case goes to trial.

This one is _my_ favorite:

Ken S

I don't know how much damage this gentleman did to your car, but I would talk with an attorney.

Posted: Sat Feb 21, 2009 06:30 am Post Subject: rear end collision settlement

First of all I would like to say I am glad to hear atleast your all alive. Secondly I have been in pretty much the same situation and all i have to say is you should at least have someone with some legal expertise look over the rear end collision settlement the insurance company is willing to give you. If you don't have a lawyer to speak to them on your behalf they will think they can get away with anything. Make sure you don't make any terms of agreement without fully understanding the terms. In your case this is a serious situation where lives have been damaged and they are going to try and make this as clean as possible without any major lawsuits. But only you know how much this has affected your life.

Make sure and i cannot stress this enough... That you have at least some sort of legal advice while negotiating rear ended settlements. But lawyers are also going to try and sucker you out too... So try and review things yourself and if needed schedule a meeting with a lawyer not hire one but just one to pay for an hour just to review the information and they can give you some help. It would be quite cheaper to hire a lawyer a few hours here and there instead of hiring one full on to handle your case. Sorry if this doesn't help...but it helped me majorly in receiving the best rear end settlements ever. Also 90% of the settlement came to me without dishing most of it out to lawyers :)

Posted: Mon Feb 23, 2009 03:03 pm Post Subject: rear end collision

any issue with my parents age? I agree, they should have a lawyer look over the paper work/settlement. Trying to figure out what they should counter, offer should come today.

Posted: Mon Feb 23, 2009 03:12 pm Post Subject: rear end collision

Statute of limitation in MO is 5 years but insurance company said it has to be settled by Feb 2010, not sure why.

How can you find out the policy limit for the driver who's responsible for this rear end collision ?

Posted: Mon Feb 23, 2009 03:13 pm Post Subject: rear end settlements

Yes, that is the best thing to do right now. Get a lawyer.

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