by Floyd Little » Tue Apr 27, 2010 03:56 am
Hello everyone, I'm new here and looking for help!
My wife was hit by a car going 5 MPH in a crosswalk. The other persons Insurance wants to pay Med bills of 11,300.00 and give my wife 1,700.00 for her pain and loss wages and mileage. Please help, what should be the right amount? I'm thinking of taking it to court.
My wife was hit by a car going 5 MPH in a crosswalk. The other persons Insurance wants to pay Med bills of 11,300.00 and give my wife 1,700.00 for her pain and loss wages and mileage. Please help, what should be the right amount? I'm thinking of taking it to court.
Posted: Sun May 02, 2010 07:25 am Post Subject:
Hello, I'm writting back regarding the "Help with Insurance Issue" I hope to give you some more information regarding the car the hit my wife in a cross walk. Okay this is what happened. After my wife was hit people called 911 and called for an ambulance and police. They looked over my wife and asked if she wanted to be transported to the hospital but a friend from work had seen my wife sitting on the street as they were both on their way to work in the morning. My wife's friend stopped her car and pulled over to take my wife to the hospital and the police and ambulance people said it was okay for her to go. after my wife was taken to the hospital they did x-rays and looked her over and told her nothing was broken and gave her pain meds and sent her on her way. The following day she went to her pcp and she looked her over and went through the hospital notes and gave her some antiflamitory pills and set her up with theraphy and this lasted for up to three months of treatment-soft tissue type injury along her back down to her hips. My wife said she could not take anymore time off work due to all this trouble plus take me to my Dr. Appt's due to me being disabled, it was all to much for her so she stopped and told them at the therapy that she would do her own therapy at home. The hospital attnery sent in their bills including therapy, all which came out to 11300.00 then the insurance company offered my wife 1700.00 for pain and time to and from work and therapy and wages, my wife told the insurance no way to little and they came back with 16000.00 with hospital bills included, so she would get 4700.00 or less, I don't have the numbers right on but close. I wanted to see if this was the amount she should be getting due to the hospital bills being so high and all the trouble and pain she still having every day and what she went through! Should I ask for a little more or just take what their giving her? 4 thousand something. Oh yea the lady that hit my wife called her at work and asked for her to sign a compromise and my wife said no. whatever that is. Do you have any advice on this issue? my e-mail is floydlittle@q.com Randy
Posted: Sun May 02, 2010 07:53 am Post Subject:
all the trouble and pain she still having every day
This would worry me. She is still having pain from the accident? How long ago was the accident? If the accident caused "soft tissue damage" it can still take a year or longer to resolve. You don't want to rush this. The goal isn't to hurry this thing through. The goal is to get your wife better. Find out what your state statute of limitations are for personal injury cases. In California, for instance, it's two years. Use that time to get your wife better. With your disability, life could be miserable if you can't get her back up to par.
Does your wife have medical insurance with a primary care physician (PCP) who knows her? If she does, he should be coordinating her care. If therapy isn't working, he can try something else or send her somewhere else. I know it's not easy, but she needs to have the attitude that she deserves to get better. No settlement amount will make up for messing her up for life, so get proactive on the medical front. In my opinion, she should not abandon care if she is still having pain.
You asked about the value of a settlement. In my opinion, unless you are reaching the statute of limitations on the accident, it is premature to accept any amount of money at this point. If they offered $20K I'd turn it down. How can you talk settlement when your wife is not better? How do you know what kind of treatment may be needed to get her moving in the right direction?
That's just my opinion. Others may have more for you. I do wish you and your wife the best and I hope you can talk with a doctor who can point her in the right direction regarding her care.
-Dave
Posted: Sun May 02, 2010 12:28 pm Post Subject:
Floyd, you can't determine the amount of pain and suffering money your wife is owed based on the amount of med bills she has. I could go to the doc/hospital today and easily run up 20k in bills with nothing being wrong with me. Diagnositc tests are expensive, and in no way tell you what an injury is 'worth'.
You don't say how long ago this occured, if your wife has any pre-existing injury(s) etc. I do agree with Dave in that if she's not better..why not? what needs to happen to make her better? Is she as 'healed' as she's going to get? Is her injury limited to a simple soft tissue injury that will ultimately resolve it's self? You need to think these things through, before you talk settlement.
Again, no one can tell you what your wifes settlement should be, or is worth...only she (and you I guess to some degree), can say.
Posted: Sun May 02, 2010 05:27 pm Post Subject: Insurance Issue
Thanks Dave and Lori for your response. The accident happened in Oct. 1st of 09, and yes my wife has her own insurance. I just can't believe the amount of money they offered her being hit by a car! I mean the car was not going 35mph only around 5mph to maybe 4mph while the other person was making a turn at the lights. The other driver said the sun was in her eyes and she didn't see my wife until she came up on her when she hit her brakes, the other driver said she didn't hit my wife with the car that hard. My wife is only 4 feet 9 inches tall and only weigh's 110lbs! the other driver hit my wife on her back side.
Posted: Sun May 02, 2010 07:21 pm Post Subject:
The other driver said the sun was in her eyes and she didn't see my wife until she came up on her when she hit her brakes, the other driver said she didn't hit my wife with the car that hard.
A beloved long time police man was killed in my home town, from the exact thing...My wife is only 4 feet 9 inches tall and only weigh's 110lbs
Well she's just a little cupcake of a thing isn't she?the other driver hit my wife on her back side
well better there than her head :wink:The point is you don't want to talk settlement until she's as 'well' as she's going to get. If she is still suffering then don't settle...find out what your statute of limitations are, and wait until close to that, 'if' you think she is still injured.
If on the other hand it's a simple soft tissue...well...frankly she should've been over that by now...what do her docs say?
It's rather odd that they would jump from 1700-4700.00 in one hit...something is not stirring the kool-aid on this one.. :?
Posted: Sun May 02, 2010 07:26 pm Post Subject:
The accident happened in Oct. 1st of 09
Oh, this thing is still in its infancy! Be patient. :)
yes my wife has her own insurance.
Has your wife seen her Primary Care Physician (PCP) about her injuries? Did her PCP advise this particular therapist? Did her PCP advise that she stop treatment? Did she see her PCP when she stopped treatment? In my opinion, if she is still hurting, she needs to see her PCP ASAP.
Also, did your wife sign any of the medical releases that the insurance company asked her to sign? If so, they have complete access to her medical records and will be looking for possible preexisting conditions, previous injuries, mental illness, etc.
I just can't believe the amount of money they offered her being hit by a car!
Depending on what information they have, they may see your wife as someone who was -- before the accident -- unstable, already hurt, not really harmed in this accident and just looking for a payout. If that is the case, they will not offer much at all. Even if your wife has a legitimate claim, they will still try to payout as little as possible.
In my opinion, early settlement only benefits the insurance company, not you or your wife. I would advise that you shift your focus to getting your wife better. Dealing with the insurance company is an adversarial process. They are well represented and have professionals who have settled thousands upon thousands of cases. Only you can decide if you are comfortable taking that on yourself or not.
At the very least, push the doctors to get your wife better. Then, even if you get nothing other than her medical bills payed for, she can continue about her life normally.
-Dave
Posted: Tue May 25, 2010 05:19 pm Post Subject: Insurance Issues
Hi,
I do not know your age, but AARP has lawyers that will give you free consultation. They also reduce their fee for seniors. I filed my claim PROSE. Simply told the truth in court with documentation and the judge awarded me my claim. Insurance companies hate going to court, but will fight you to the end to prove you are faking it. My PPO/HMO doctor released my personal files without my knowledge. There were no preexisting conditions in my file. Did you do not have the time, talk with an attorney and weight your options. There is one thing I can assure you of and that is insurance companies monitor these type of web-site. Good luck to you and your wife hope and pray she gets to felling better soon. I hope it is not GEICO, they will fight you to the end. That little lying Lizard need to be off TV.
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