Should I get a lawyer, or deal with the insurance company?

My 13 year old daughter was hit in a crosswalk. She was slightly injured. Road rash, goose-egg on head, some superficial cuts. The bills are only about 2,000 at this point. The Driver of the Car that hit her' is wanting to settle. Should I get a lawyer for such a small case? How much should I expect??

First of all, I'm glad that your daughter is okay. Accident's can be stressful enough when you're in a car.

Pedestrian accidents are taken very seriously by insurance companies. If you have had your daughter checked out at the hospital or doctor's office and the injuries are not traumatic and can be managed at home and with reasonable cost, there is no need to involve an attorney. Even if you or the insurance company wants a court approved settlement because your child is a minor, they will pay for that. Most states do not require a court approved settlement, unless the amount of settlement exceeds a certain amount, or sometimes the company will do that to protect the terms of the settlement for the sake of the minor.

The insurance company will want to resolve this claim amicably with you, but don't let them push you into a quick settlement. Make sure that your daughter's treatment has been completed and that you are certain that she will not suffer any longterm affects from the injury.

Gather all of her bills and medical records, take pictures of her injuries, right now, and also when they have had time to heal to document any scarring as this could affect the value of your claim. Once everything is ready, submit this to the company with your request for settlement. Preferably in writing and you can call to follow-up. Make sure to document if your daughter missed out on any physical activities or other hobbies, interest etc. that she normally participates in but was unable to because of the injury and for how long. It's difficult to say how much you will receive as I don't know how much longer she will treat, the full extent of the injury by review of all the medical info, knowing if there are or will be short term disabilities or longterm problems, what venue (city, state) you're in, etc. This is hard to predict on the fly.

Remember as you communicate settlement discussions with the company, always request offers in writing, as well as a final settlement agreement letter with yoru release. Make sure the adjuster explains the offers and release to you in full. If the driver was 100% responsible, you should be looking for full recovery of your medical expenses and something for pain and suffering that is a fair and agreeable amount decided between you and the insurance company. Do not be affraid to negotiate. The company will likely have a set range, if you have provided them with all the necessary information and you should be able to come to a fair compromise within or at the limit of that range.

Good Luck! ~J~

a lawyer may be costly,but you could have a look in your local phone book for a injury lawyer.

I assume you basically want the driver to pay the medical bills and aren't seeking more than that. If that is so, then your biggest risk is that you would settle now, and some latent medical condition would arise later -- and you could not go back to them for more.

For that reason, I think you should ask the insurance company for a draft of a settlement agreement, but do have a lawyer review that for you. Since you are not planning to sue (and good for you on that score, btw), you don't need to pay a 40% contingency or some big sum like that. Just 30 minutes or so of their billable time -- $100 or $200, just to make sure the details are okay.

Good luck.

If you can't afford a lawyer and your insurance co. won't pay up you may want to look for a Legal Assistance Group in your area. Dealing with any insurance company is like knocking your head against a wall. And if you hurt your head on the wall, they won't pay for that either!!!

I had a claim of $3,400 that my insurance co. would not pay. They claimed the procedure was not "pre-approved." Well it turns out that it was pre-approved twice, once by my doctor, the second time by the hospital. When they realized the were caught in a lie, they said, well that procedure could not be covered in THAT hospital, huh? So why did they not tell me that prior? However, they paid for blood work, EKG, etc and paid the doctor and anesthesiologist.

Finally, a doctor I knew said try NYLAG, New York Legal Assistance Group. I did, I had fought by myself for over a year, NYLAG got them to pay in less than 2 months,

I now have a copy of the check for the hospital framed, and above my desk. It is one of the lovliest pieces of art that I own!

See what's available in your area, I wish you much luck, glad your daughter is okay!

I hope you daughter is recovering well. Poor Baby! Do make sure you exhaust all the medical resources available to make sure that she will be well and to fully discover the extent of the injury.

Yes, get a lawyer of course. Everyone else involved has retained one or more and they will all be interested in having you sign some legally binding documents. You will be acting in yours and your daughters best interest, unless you can possibly foresee all the potential implications.

It depends on what you want to do. If you just want your medical bills paid, a lawyer may not be necessary. I would not settle the case until you know your daughter has no other injuries. If you want more money than your bills, you may consider hiring a lawyer. Some may think that it is unethical to sue over minor injuries, but there are other reasons for punitive damages besides the money - it can be used as a deterrent. Hitting a child in a cross walk is irresponsible, and unacceptable.

Do what you think is right, but do not give up your ability to collect more if there are other injuries that are currently unknown.

Good luck, I am glad your daughter is ok.

to be safe go see personal injury atty
they work on 40% consignment and you then just worry about your daughter not having any special future injurys...

Don't settle until you are absolutely certain that there is no trauma or damage that might show up later. I am hoping that the driver was insured. You may wish to interview a personal injury attorney or three. Ask then for their estimate of the settlement and also what their fees are and how the fees are calculated. Any settlement that your daughter receives should, after paying the bills associated with her injuries and the attorney, go into a Trust until she is of legal age (preferably until she is 25-18 year olds should NEVER have access to large sums of money).

Sorry to hear about your daughter. That sounds terrible, but you seem to be taking it in stride.

I'd warn you about advice on this site. Most so called "experts" are insurance agents, they sell you insurance, and most of them have never worked for an insurance company. Most of the time I find they give poor advice. I guess itвЂ™s the nature of sales to be "always selling" even if they have limited knowledge of the subject.

I've spent my entire career working for insurance companies in a variety of areas: claims, marketing, and underwriting and product management. That being said, you have to take everything I say with a grain of salt.

I will tell you this, an insurance company pays 80% of a claim on expenses (attorney fees) and only 20% on the injury itself. In most cases, claimants are better off dealing with the insurance company directly as they would keep higher percentage of the injury payment. Out of the 20% paid, the attorney will keep on average 30%.

Most insurance companies handle their claims in fair manor, and they pay what they owe. In most cases, getting an attorney only reduces your payout by thirty percent. But not all insurance companies are fair. A good rule of the thumb: if they are company you recognize, then their practices should be fair. Research the company youвЂ™re dealing with to find out if they high levels of claim satisfaction. Also keep in mind that every claim adjuster is human. I could give four different adjuster the same claim, and all of them would give me a different liability decision and payouts. In short, itвЂ™s not just the company, itвЂ™s the person youвЂ™re dealing with as well.

First, does this person have insurance? If no, then you may want to seek an attorney (and be mindful of how willing they will be to take your case when they don't have an insurance company to pay them, chances are they won't take the case unless you pay a retainer fee up front). If he does have an insurance company, then you have to ask why he wants to negotiate with you directly. I think this is a red flag. Anyone willing to pay out of pocket for claim that is at least $2000 doesn't make economical sense. Their premiums would not be increased that much over three years. The person who hit your daughter may have a history of reckless driving, and if that's the case, hitting your daughter maybe more servere than you first might think.

This could raise the cost of the claim. A person who drivers irresponsibly, with a record of injury citizens, raises their liability. For example, they may have a history of DUI, or maybe older with bad reflexes and reaction times. In short, driving is a responsibility not a privilege. Your daughter may have been injured by a party that knows that they should not be driving.

Talk to the individual and ascertain why they want to settle, but also get his insurance information as well. Let him know that if you find his offer unfair then you will submit a claim directly to his insurance company.

Then you want to do find out what insurance company you are dealing with. Research the company, and if you deem them fair, proceed to the claim adjuster. If you feel they are not fair, then seek an attorney.

Next, talk to the adjuster. What are they offering? Do you feel like you can negotiate with this person in a fair manor? If their offer is too low or you don't feel the adjuster is being reasonable, seek an attorney.

What you can expect in payment is about the price of this claim. It does not seem that your daughter was severely injured. Some pain and suffering could be expected. Keep in mind, judges and juries don't take kindly to drunks or irresponsible people hitting children in crosswalks, nor should they. Also keep in mind that if you deal without an attorney, many companies will offer you an amount of pain and suffering, knowing that if you are satisfied, then they will not have to pay all the attorney fees (theirs and yours).

I added a link to iii, they are an impartial third party, that is, they donвЂ™t want to sell you something, nor do they work for the insurance company, and the "mission of the Insurance Information Institute (I.I.I.) is to improve public understanding of insurance, what it does, and how it works."

The link is to their "ask an expert". ItвЂ™s the best place to get an objective answer. Their experts are highly qualified professionals. Keep in mind they will give you a standard answer that will exclude them from liability. They won't talk out the side of their mouths, but they probably wonвЂ™t be as frank as I have.

Good luck and I hope your daughter is doing well.

I would not deal with insurance company in any cases. insurance is not your friend! anyways.. if she was hurt and the medical bill alone came 2000 dollars at this point. ( btw if she was moved to emergency room at the scene you are looking at about 3-4 bills total to be mailed to your house.. and this usually takes forever ) no matter small the accident was if she was hurt you can claim pain and suffering.. i am not saying take advantage of this accident but if you just deal with the insurance company by yourself without a lawyer they will send you back home with ice pack and couple of bandages.. there is lawyers at low cost and most lawyers will not ask you for up front money for such a sure case... good luck!

I would recommend, always obtaining legal advice from an attorney. There is great legal public reading material out there, just for such a case, written by attorney(s). Nolo Press in CA has wonderful reading materials, if you are in CA. If not, check with your Courts to see if there is an "In Pro Per Clinic" or "Court Facilitators Office" that may assist you in preparing forms or negotating settlement.
Hiring a attorney is always a smart thing to do, if you do your due diligence in checking him/her out. See if they specialize in personal injury, that's what I would be looking for. Read the contract well and just don't listen at his/her words. Check the % of compensation for drafting and filing documents or makinb a settlement offer. I always look to see if he/she are going to file documents, even though the statue of limitation, isn't upon us. Most time their fees goes up from 331/3 to 40% and some 50% and then they may throw in a special fee for artbitration. You just have to weight it out. Are you a person that loves reading and can understand well, what you're reading? Can you talk well for yourself and not be intimidated by others? Can someone, easlily smoother you in conversation? Can you get in a heated debate and win? I would never argue, it gets you no where. Can you refrain sentences to your advantage? The insurance agents are just like collection agency people and are train very well. Some of them have been beat. Just be careful of stalling tactics (i.e I'll get back to you, I'm going on vacation, I'm not assign to your file and can't help you, that agent has moved to another department and they misplaced the file, etc.) . If you're like me and have the gift of gab, you will do find.

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