Hi Mamas,
Sept. 2 I was rear ended by an 18 yr old speeding punk who fled the scene and 'had been drinking' as it said on the police report (they found him within 45 minutes of the accident). I was okay and my two passengers were okay, meaning we all walked away but are just about finished with medical treatment. My car was totaled. So we got a mini van, '01 Dodge Grand Caravan.
Nov. 5 my mom was driving our "new" van - she was watching my 1 and 3 yr old while my husband and I were at a meeting, and we swap mini vans so she can have car seats and such when she needs to go and pick up my youngest bro. and sis. from high school. So she was driving with my kids in our new van when a armored truck pulled out in front of her and t-boned her. My mom was clearly not at fault. My kids, amazingly are fine, although my 1 yr old dd has very minor cuts from glass all over her, and my mom is seeking weekly treatment, as she is hurting pretty bad and is in a back brace. My van is totaled.
So...now we have to get a new car..again...and I'm wondering there is any pain and suffering compensation for things like this. My friend keeps telling me that I should be able to and I'm not sure. I've known of people who have gotten $1500 compensation on top of 6 weeks of medical treatment! That's crazy!
While I am obviously to very grateful that we are all okay for the most part and that a car is something easily enough replaced, if there was any compensation for pain in the a** this has been for getting a new car and going to the chiropractor 2-3 times a week and finding someone to watch my kids and then being to physically exhausted from it all and now looking for another car again...ahh!!!
Have any of you been through something like this? What did you do?
M.
Of course you can get money for pain and suffering and your medical bills in both of these cases. With that being said, you will need to hire an attorney and if you do not win attorney's fees, you will be out the money for the attorney. Also keep in mind that any money that you win or receive as a settlement is subject to repayment to your insurance company for any doctor's bills they have covered as a result of the accidents.
You can email me personally if you need to, as I need to run out the door soon. But I was in a bad accident with my two kids. My son was careflighted to Childrens as a result of being ejected. He was OK, THANK GOD! But my insurance is giving us $1000 just for the baby and the full amount for my other son because careflight alone was $15,000! Not including Children's bill. Good Luck, L.
I am an insurance adjuster working auto accidents. You can get pain and suffering and lost wages for the accident in which you were injured. Your mom can get pain and suffering for the accident in which she was injured. You cannot get pain and suffering for the hassle of being in an accident and having to replace your car twice. The law just doesn't allow for that. Pain and suffering is for just what it sounds like: the pain and suffering that you experienced from the injury itself. Someone told you to get an attorney. I think that is a waste of time and money. An attorney will NEVER get more money out of me. I, and all insurance companies, settle injury claims for what they are worth. This is largely based on the type of injury sustained and our knowledge of past jury verdicts and the type of legal venue that we work in. Basically, if I settle a claim for $1500 above medical expense and you have an attorney, that attorney will get 33% of your settlement. Without an attorney I would settle for $1500 above and you would get all of it. The only time I think that it is worth getting an attorney is if you have a lot of doctors and hospitals involved in treatment and that treatment is ongoing and will last more than say 6 months. Then it might be worth that 33% just for all the leg work that you would have to do to gather all the medical bills and deal with the billing departments of the various health professionals. Another note on attorneys, the claims I handle with attorneys always remain open longer than the ones without attorneys. I think that it must be the fact that they are handling numerous cases and don't have the time to collect your bills as quickly as you might be able to. As always it is your right to get an attorney and I am not saying that attorneys are bad, they are very good and can help at appropriate times, just that they are not always needed.
I was just on a jury panel for a similar case against an insurance company of the person at fault. I have seen so many armored cars lately pulling into oncoming traffic and nearly causing accidents. It makes me wonder what is going on with that business that they have people driving these huge trucks in this manner. I'm not kidding. In the last 3 weeks I have seen it 4 times!
Yes, you can get pain and suffering. It usually does not seem like much. What you need to make sure is that any claim that is made against the insurance company will cover not only hard costs (medical), but missed wages, if your mom was planning on traveling, the cost of changing those plans, or even the time she may spend helping others out (like watching your kids for you) that does cause some monetary strain on her and her family.
These items are hard to calculate, but if you can put a dollar amount to it, then most likely you will get what you are asking for up front. Good luck and I hope you have a better holiday season.
