by acedoc » Sun May 29, 2011 07:17 pm
Hi im a Solo practice Veterinarian in Georgia, on Fri 5/20 I was hit from behind while stopped, by a young lady on a cell phone, fortunately I was in a larger vehicle( Escalade Truck with $5500 worth of damage, currently @USAA approved repair shop, received a rental) she was in a honda civic that peeled like a sardine can with air bag deployment .police report stated she was inattentive and driving too fast for conditions. As she approached I looked up in the mirror tensed up and as a result hurt my shoulders, with the R being hurt worse.Rode ambulance to ER, took a few xrays ER Doc DX shoulder sprain, given injection for pain, Flexarill and couple scripts for pain. Started hurting worse Sat/Sun. Called Orthopedist early monday morning , was examined around 8:00 a.m. (luckily I treat his pets :o)) DX Shoulder impingement and possible AC joint injury due to clicking heard with movement. Cortisone injections in both bursa and shoulder joint(whew,hurt like hell!!) MRI scheduled @ hospital and recheck in 10days. advised not to perform surgery , move arm much and lift dogs for a week ( impossible for a vet) I had to cancel appointments and surgeries, loss about $15,000 for the week,I can document via tax returns for last 5 yrs, and total daily reciepts for weeks prior via my computer program, arm feels better probally 80%, had MRI dont know results yet, I have State Farm,and my PIP is covering my medical, dont want to be excessive but would like to cover my real losses, because I still had payroll,lights,etc and other business expenses, have not hired a lawyer,wondering if I should?
Posted: Tue Sep 20, 2011 05:57 am Post Subject:
just putting a letter in to state farm for a UIM claim and and asking them to allow me to accept check
There should be no issue on State Farm's part over this aspect of your loss. A quick phone call to them should resolve that question.
really clueless on how much to ask for from UIM
Uninsured motorist is usually divided into two parts -- property damage and bodily injury. When you say you have $100,000 for "UIM", does that mean 50/100 or 100/200? Georgia uses what is known as split-limits for personal injury -- the maximum amount per person, and the maximum per accident. Property damage liability is a single figure.
Your UMBI will pay the difference between what the other party's coverage limit is ($25,000 as you indicate), and your own policy limits.
So if, for instance, your UMBI limits are 50,000/100,000, and your total loss, including wages, etc., exceeds $25,000, but not more than $75,000, you will be fully indemnified by your insurance company, based on what they accept as a covered claim. If your total loss exceeds $75,000 (in this example), you would receive your policy's limit of $50,000.
If 100/200, then you have coverage up to $125,000 total loss ($25,000 from the at-fault party, $100,000 from your own insurer).
"Stacking" does not allow you to combine coverage from your five vehicles to cover one claim (at least as I read GA law, but I could be wrong), it only allow you to recover more than the at-fault party's coverage when your damages exceed that amount. This has only been the case in Georgia for a little more than two years.
You are entitled to make a claim for "general damages" such as pain and suffering, loss of consortium/loss of affection. But those amounts are harder to establish (they are subjective, not objective -- you have no bills to support your claim), and your insurance company will probably fight you some on most of them. But never be afraid to ask!!
Hoping for the best outcome from your surgery! Looking forward to hearing about the final resolution of your claim. But don't forget that any amounts paid by your health insurance will have to be reimbursed to them from your claims moneys.
Posted: Fri Dec 16, 2011 04:02 am Post Subject: Uim
Ok Im done looking at the settlement checks in disbelief!!! Its been about 3 months since I last wrote in , I just wanted to give a heartfelt thanks to Maxherr and Tcope! !Kudos to you guys for what you do,and the confidence you give us laymen rookies. I received the $25,000 full policy limits from USAA in September after writing the demand as you guys said would happen , over the last 3 month I have been rehabbing from surgery , and going to PT, arm is starting to feel better. Im back at work and able to perform surgery again, and do just about all the things I could do before the accident. just can't lift really heavy dogs yet. I also wrote a intent to pursue my UIM to state farm and have been corresponding with my adjuster for last few months. It has gone quite smoothly except for one hiccup . My first UIM agent was just mean and Nasty and a Liar! I got fed up with it and wrote her boss, who called and apologized . He assigned me to a new agent who was willing to actually do her job and was a joy to work with. I also read every thing and went to every site that spoke about how to handle a claim. So after several letters,and many sleepless nights Im happy to say state farm said my demand of $250,000 was not unreasonable and gave me a settlement of $250,000 and waived my pip !! whoopee Im still in disbelief and I still never went to see a lawyer ,not even for a consultation (I was scared I might give in and sign with them)I had a couple in mind though just in case things got rough! again thanks two hundred and seventy five thousand times guys, keep doing what you do! encouraging people from the trenches because it really does help!!!! :0)
Posted: Fri Dec 16, 2011 08:54 am Post Subject:
Good for you . . . persevering and handling this on your own. Now you are an "expert" at navigating the claims routine!! You can share your experience with others and show them that unless you come to an absolute impasse with an insurance company, there is often no need to obtain the services of an attorney. By handling this one on your own, you've come out at least $90,000 ahead.
Considering the amount of time you spent on this, the things you've learned and the confidence you've gained to stand up to an insurance company, that $90,000 probably represents $500 per hour, if not more, for your effort. An attorney would not have done any better than this, but would have pocketed that $90,000 without giving it a second thought.
Well done! Now it's time to celebrate a Very Merry Christmas! as you continue to heal and get better.
Posted: Mon Dec 19, 2011 04:31 pm Post Subject:
not all insurance companies give you such a hard time with claims. find decent auto insurance quotes from decent providers
savetodayautoinsurance.com/
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