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Insurance Settlement Offer... Advice Needed


the_rev

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In April of 2008 I was involved in an accident that forced me to miss a week of college, purchase a new car, left with a bruised vertebrae, memory loss (even still to this day) and other various ailments.

I recently received the Insurane Companies offer for a settlement and I think it is rather low, maybe I'm wrong, but they offered me $5,000.00

I'm wondering if this is a bit low or what I should do from here, should I counter offer?

I made a post a while back about this issue and finally a resolution is coming fruition, here is the thread I started a while back: [url="http://www.phatmass.com/phorum/index.php?showtopic=80921&hl="]http://www.phatmass.com/phorum/index.php?s...c=80921&hl=[/url]

Your advice in this situation would be greatly appreciated so I am not taken advantage of.

Thanks,

Ed Looney

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My concern about accepting a judgment that you feel is too low, is that the kind of injury that you received, can get worse, or escalate later. I was injured in 1991, but didn't end up in a wheelchair because of it until 1996. I worked full time for the first year, and the brain injury went down hill until I was basically unable to work at all by 1994. I don't feel like I really began to recover from the brain injury and get better until just a couple of years ago. Everyday, I start to feel more like my old self, but I still have limits.

Have you consulted an attorney? You can get a free consultation, and they would be much more up on what the maximum you could expect by taking it to court. Even giving half of any future settlement to the lawyer, you may end up coming out on top. Plus, you could get a provision in the settlement to revisit the amount in case of future complications. I'd be surprised if 5000 would even really cover your actual monetary damages.

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Did you have medical expenses?

I understand you missed a week of school and were forced to buy a new car, but I'm not really sure if insurance is supposed to compensate you for that.

I would look at these factors... What exactly is your insurance covering and what would be an objective, fair amount?

If your bruised vertebrae is pretty bad and you sought medical attention, $5,000 might be low...

One last thing... keep your eye on the limitations period. In Texas you only have 2 years after the accident to file suit. It may be different where you live, but there is a time constraint. If you're nearing that line and haven't reached an agreement, file a suit if only to hold your options open. You can file a suit without a lawyer btw... but I wouldn't suggest actually trying it without one...

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I don't understand how you still owe so much money on your new car unless you bought a new car that was significantly more expensive than the car you had. In this case, it would not be the fault or responsibility of the insurance company.

So, with the car a non issue at this point (since they already paid for your old car), you would only be trying to get injury related expenses. Have your medical bills exceeded $5000 yet? Will they?

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Dont settle. It is the aim of insurance companies to get you to take the quick out so they don't really have to pay what is coming to you justly. Get a lawyer immediately and let him be your advocate.


In Christ,

Fr. Pfex

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Get a lawyer.

How much is it worth to you? I know everyone is out to get everything they can. Is what you suffered worth more than $5000? Do you feel it is justified? It isn't necessary too always get the other guy for whatever you can. I think that is probably too low of an amount, but that is my opinion solely based on what you said.

That being said, my hubby went through something like this. He was rear ended, and was in physio for over a year. He couldn't even pick up his 6 month old daughter for a while.

The insurance company offered him $5000 (maybe that is a standard amount). He went and got a lawyer. He was told to do certain things (keep a daily diary of pain levels and how the accident has affected his life, etc.), continue with physio. etc.

The thing is, at least in Alberta, if you have a lawyer, they will not take the other party to court until ALL of the injuries are completely healed. If that takes 5 years, it will take 5 years to settle (at least).

I know a lot of people may think I am crazy, but I really think that too many people are too greedy about stuff like this, and in the end, they end up unhappy, and we all pay for the greed in increased rates. I TOTALLY think that law suits and things are necessary, I just think sometimes people get caught up in the "how much can I get" and lose sight of the "how much was my loss worth?".

Good luck! :)

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I have to agree with prose on this one.

$5,000 may be too low, but you know your injuries. On the other hand, be fair. Think of it this way: if you took your case to a jury what would they think is fair for you. If the insurance is offering something near this amount, take it and avoid the legal fees.

I'll give an example. I saw 4-5 personal injury cases this summer. The insurance company won every single one, and the plaintiff got nothing. Maybe thats the juries in Houston... but I really think the point is that asking for too much offends the average person, and you won't get anything. So be fair... whatever your medical expenses are should be included in the settlement. Maybe a little bit of pain and suffering, but don't push it too far...

I mean really the purpose of lawsuits is to put you back to how you were before the accident, not a get rich quick thing.

Edited by rkwright
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I'd say ask for more than $5k. If you had to take out a $9k loan, you need to have at least $10k minimum. I might add that I have no legal experience, etc...

Edited by scardella
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One more thing to remember, lawyers charge upwards of 30-40% of your settlement. So if you settle for 10 000 you will only really pocket 6000-7000.

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[quote name='dUSt' post='1682589' date='Oct 21 2008, 10:12 AM']I don't understand how you still owe so much money on your new car unless you bought a new car that was significantly more expensive than the car you had. In this case, it would not be the fault or responsibility of the insurance company.

So, with the car a non issue at this point (since they already paid for your old car), you would only be trying to get injury related expenses.[/quote]

Yup.

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Yes, I did buy a car that was significantly more than the value of my old car. That was essentially because my old car was a 1998 Sunfire, and in order to buy a car that would have been covered completly I would have had to buy a car that was both older than my 1998 car with more miles than my old car had, thus I upgraded.

I don't seek for the insurance settlement to cover that, but rather use any settlement towards paying that off. I am not saying I need to get X amount in order to pay my car off, I'm saying, what were my expenses that I had incurred and the pain and suffering and how might that pay off or significantly pay down my car loan. Today I owe 7,000 dollars on my car. I would however like to eradicate my credit card debt which is 2,000.00 so after that is taken care of I will then apply any surplus to the car loan. With 5,000; 3000 would be applied to the loan.

But, another thing that I've said to be, is I do not seek to be opportunistic, I don't think getting a lawyer would be helpful, I think I will counter the offer sometime this week, but also ask for clarification on what he is offering me is actually for, does that include me missing a week of a private college education? Because if it does, then we should be looking at a higher figure.

Thanks for the advice thus far.

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Whatever they offer you is the total. Once you agree to settle, there is no turning back. So if you agree to $5000, that is what you will get a cheque for, and you can no longer sue for anything more.

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[quote name='the_rev' post='1682631' date='Oct 21 2008, 01:13 PM']Yes, I did buy a car that was significantly more than the value of my old car. That was essentially because my old car was a 1998 Sunfire, and in order to buy a car that would have been covered completly I would have had to buy a car that was both older than my 1998 car with more miles than my old car had, thus I upgraded.

I don't seek for the insurance settlement to cover that, but rather use any settlement towards paying that off. I am not saying I need to get X amount in order to pay my car off, I'm saying, what were my expenses that I had incurred and the pain and suffering and how might that pay off or significantly pay down my car loan. Today I owe 7,000 dollars on my car. I would however like to eradicate my credit card debt which is 2,000.00 so after that is taken care of I will then apply any surplus to the car loan. With 5,000; 3000 would be applied to the loan.

But, another thing that I've said to be, is I do not seek to be opportunistic, I don't think getting a lawyer would be helpful, I think I will counter the offer sometime this week, but also ask for clarification on what he is offering me is actually for, does that include me missing a week of a private college education? Because if it does, then we should be looking at a higher figure.

Thanks for the advice thus far.[/quote]

I have two more thoughts...

First is the concept of insurance settlement. The insurance company is basically 'buying you off' so that you don't file a lawsuit. The purpose of the lawsuit is to make you whole, put you back where you were before the accident. Now when you say that you want to use the money for credit card debt or payment on the new car, a part of me does cringe. I guess, to me, it seems like thats not how the system should work... but then again I'm sure insurance has screwed many people, and after all you paid in so you deserve some of the money back when you're in need... do you see the underlying problem though? Oh well... they're offering it so take it I guess?

Second, I don't know all your financials, but make sure the settlement is for your injuries for tax purposes. IRS Code §104(a)(2) says..

(a) In general
Except in the case of amounts attributable to (and not in excess of) deductions allowed under section 213 (relating to medical, etc., expenses) for any prior taxable year, [b]gross income does not include—[/b]
(2) [b]the amount of any damages[/b] (other than punitive damages) [b]received (whether by[/b] suit or a[b]greement[/b] and whether as lump sums or as periodic payments) on account of [b]personal physical injuries[/b] or physical sickness;

I've never actually seen an insurance settlement, but if for some reason it wasn't for personal injuries you wouldn't want to get hit by the IRS at the same time.

Although I'm kinda a noob at tax law...

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For the record, I don't think you are being greedy at all. I think it is reasonable and responsible to use any settlement money for debt repayment. If it is enough to pay off your car, great!

If I were you, I would contact a lawyer before going any further. It doesn't cost anything, and it may save you a lot of headache in the long run.

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