legal advice/suggestions

C.Berry

C.Berry

Bad News
Joined
Aug 10, 2008
Location
Blacksburg, Va
So my mother and two nieces were rear ended in hardeeville SC on the interstate at dead stop one the 1st of this month, my younger nieces has neck and back injuries nothing life threatening but injury none the less my mother had a abnormal ct scan and is having major headaches after this accident and ventricle is swollen I believe is what dr said! My question is how to go about taking the womans insurance to court they have tried to settle the second day after it happen for my youngest niece $500 and they hadn’t even made it home to dr! My mother on other hand has to have a mri to make sure everything’s ok bc of abnormal scan and geico is trying to settle with her before she even gets checked out!! Pisses me off honestly I’m not good with this stuff I’ve been hit 3 times in last 3 years and never had to go to court bc I’m not the take a settlement and cash in kinda person I guess, but her bills are going to be astronomical after this not to mention the money spent on rental their whole week vacation they were on ruined and all spent at rental place and or on phone with insurance!

Not sure where to start I’m paying for my moms lawyer so want to get the ball rolling before she starts gettin billed and stressed out over this bs! Any helps appreciated! Mom claims her insurance said they weren’t suppose to be involved kr some crap so not sure where I’m suppose to going with this! Thanks in advance
 
I'm no legal expert but I would get a really good lawyer since in the end the other person will be footing the bill since they were at fault. Obviously they want to settle because they know it is a lot cheaper. Let the lawyer handle the legal stuff and you handle your loved ones. Some injuries will take months to notice because people just blame it on being sore from the accident and that it will get better.
 
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Call Handel on the law so we can be entertained.

You will need an ambulance chaser attorney for sure. Don't do anything before finding a good one. They will probably take it free up front and want a third of the settlement, if the case is good. It really sucks but I don't know another way around it. This is what we did when my father was killed in 2010. 99% sure it will settle and not go to court- and your family won't be happy with the amount but the lawyer probably will.
 
I was assuming I’d have to pay for lawyer before settled which I’m ok with going to start searching for lawyers I reckon this shit sucks woman said she looked down but her phone flew out car when she hit em so yeah looked down at phone probably... smdh
 
Why would you be wanting to pay for your mom's lawyer? She would be the one filing suit. Just curious.

She would have the option of paying an ungodly hourly rate or a portion of the settlement at the end. If it's her choice, why wouldn't she choose to have you pay it so she can keep the settlement? I don't know your family but I am close with my mom. I'd offer her advice if asked but that's it. Not financial as much as it is the fact that she's an adult and can make adult decisions on her own.

You might rethink being willing to pay for a lawyer when you see what they charge...

Oh, and no, she'd better be planning to keep her day job. This will be a far cry from hitting the lottery.
 
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broncosbybart said:
Why would you be wanting to pay for your mom's lawyer? She would be the one filing suit. Just curious.

She would have the option of paying an ungodly hourly rate or a portion of the settlement at the end. If it's her choice, why wouldn't she choose to have you pay it so she can keep the settlement? I don't know your family but I am close with my mom. I'd offer her advice if asked but that's it. Not financial as much as it is the fact that she's an adult and can make adult decisions on her own.

You might rethink being willing to pay for a lawyer when you see what they charge...

Oh, and no, she'd better be planning to keep her day job. This will be a far cry from hitting the lottery.
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Well my mother just retired this year and the money she gets from that and ss leaves her with $1k a month to survive while raising my 15&17 yr old nieces...

so her money is tight to say the least! I would just be giving her the money for the lawyer if up front costs are needed and I’m aware if lawyer has fees it’ll be expensive but it’s my ma and I have the extra to help so I will... no ones trying to “hit the lottery” I want her bills paid for this shit and to make sure she’s ok long term... none of my family has ever drawn unemployement, disability or taken easy way out! Not starting it now, most of us have all worked our ass off for what we have!
 
Gotcha. Makes a little more sense. Not trying to bash you for helping them out but practically speaking, I don't think it will be possible unless you have a 20% down payment on a nice house to burn.

Just have her call a few different lawyers and do an initial consult with them. For cases like this the consult will be free any you can discuss courses of action, etc.

Lawyers are sharks in dress clothes. If they can smell money they will do whatever it takes to get it. That doesn't mean they'll be fighting for you- they just want to snag the payday. That's how our experience was.
 
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That’s what I’m finding, but some lawyers have out of pocket fees and that’s what I was offering to pay so she wouldn’t have to spend h er cash until settlements or whatever’s over with
 
I’m w/ @broncosbybart. If a lawyer decides to take your case, it will be with no money up front and then they will take their 33% of whatever the settlement is.

Not sure if you have to have a SC lawyer or not, but if you do I can ask my wife if she knows any good ones. She’s a shark in dress clothes ;).
 
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Lawyer, immediately. Don't let any of the parties involved say anything to the offending insurance company at all. They record everything and if you any one of them accepts anything, they will use that when you try to get paid back for all your medical visits. You will most likely have to pay out of pocket for these expenses and settle with the insurance company down the road. A friend of mine went through this with his wife a couple years ago. It sucked and took almost a year to get everything settled. But lawer lawer lawer, The insurance companies know what they are doing and will take full advantage of any ignorance or lack of knowledge on your part.
 
Don't ask none of us dumb asses for legal advice.

Matt
 
Car accidents suck. I've been in a few.
What Ive learned from it:
Call a lawyer but don't expect to get an honest one. However, it takes a buttload of strain off of you.
1/3 goes to medical bills, 1/3 goes to lawyer, and <1/3 goes to P&S. Don't expect any compensation for at least a year after the accident and/or last trip to the doctor.
Whatever the value of the totalled vehicle is worth, the insurance company doesn't care and will write a check for whatever they feel like.
Best of luck.
 
If you got to deal with a lawyer, get a good one! I'm not one to sue either but the other car's insurance will try to rip you off. Get some advice from your insurer too, and don't sign or take anything from the others insurance company until you have your lawyer.
 
Lizooki said:
Don't ask none of us dumb asses for legal advice.

Matt
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Shit man NC4x4 is where I’ve learned most the good stuff I know since 06 lol
 
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Thanks fellas I’ve informed ma to not talk with geico any more they’ve harassed her since accident happened to settle without even knowing they are actually ok! I can’t do any talking bc I have no fuse and the way the ladies insurance has handle this has me furious while in georgia they had to wait 7 hours at rental place to get a vehicle that wouldn’t hold all their luggage and pets then had to find locate a rental out of state to switch vehicles again bc geico apparently sucks..? I’m working on finding a lawyer but most seem like rip offs local or fresh put college kids that only settle and never been in court room! Talked with one guy and asked if he’s actual trial lawyer for personal injury cases his response was I’ve won every case in settlements... smdh
 
Not surprised. The lawyer is just looking for a fat check for as little work as possible. On the flip side, why would you want your family to go to trial?
 
broncosbybart said:
Not surprised. The lawyer is just looking for a fat check for as little work as possible. On the flip side, why would you want your family to go to trial?
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Don’t want them to go to court, but I do want her to have a lawyer that can hold their own in court if it comes down to it!
 
I've been in both situations. Got t boned and lawyered up, and got rear ended and passed on the lawyer. First thing is to seek and medical attention you need. Their insurance will provide claim number/address and you can forward any bills directly to geico. If they even hint at not being fully responsible, cease communication and lawyer up. All medical services should be told up front that injury is due to accident. They will then expect that payment will be delayed and all that goes with such claims. This allows them to document notes as it relates to MVC injury and assures they will get payed fully.
They settle property and injury separately. If car is totaled they will likely try to get this settled soon to keep from running up rental fees. Your body shop will handle all this and deal with amendments as car is repaired. I was in rental for 3 months after the rear end incident. Met life was screaming towards the end, but they payed.
Your unlikely to receive compensation for the frustration and pain in the ass this situation is. It sucks all around.
If your moms busy and could use a hand sorting this out, a lawyer will provide a claim legal assistant, that will receive medical bills and manage communications with geico.


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Don't worry about court and suing now, focus on medical treatment and getting everyone healthy. 99.9% accident cases get settled outside of court. They will pay 100% of medical and property damages and Drs and hospitals know that it might take a year for the claim to get payed out, so don't sweat a stack of bills. They have a algorithm for the pain suffering part, might be 800-1000 for adult visit to hospital and pay 500 for the kids. Document any follow up visits, any lost wages etc.. all that has stuff has a place in the equation. Lawyer just keeps track of it better.
When I got t boned I had a lot of visits to chiropractor. When it was all settled, I figured I got payed my hourly wage for time at the Drs office.
Hope they get better soon.


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Thanks everyone for advice! Well so far she’s been able to not pay out of pocket for ct scan and or for mri wed! Youngest niece still has some back pain and neck with pain below collar bone I’m assuming from seat belt? Only thing I feel like ma should get money back for is the money wasted on their vacation and the money spent having to stay 3 days extra waiting for an adjuster! Not to mention I have to drive to Georgia apparently to pick her car up bc they won’t tow to VA, It’s gonna be a pita but hopefully al works out I’ve been sick to my stomache since it happened over abnormal ct scan hopefully mri comes out good wed! Prayers are welcome!
 
Insurance is going to say no to everything at first. Tell them you can’t settle with them on the car until it’s at your local Preferred shop. If they won’t have a tow truck cross state lines tell them to figure it out but your gonna need a rental till they get it figured out. They will tell you no because if you say okay it’s a cost they don’t have to pay.


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Loganwayne said:
Insurance is going to say no to everything at first. Tell them you can’t settle with them on the car until it’s at your local Preferred shop. If they won’t have a tow truck cross state lines tell them to figure it out but your gonna need a rental till they get it figured out. They will tell you no because if you say okay it’s a cost they don’t have to pay.


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So far Rentals taken care of but she has to call and update some bs every 3 days to keep the rental which in insane to me, her paid off equinox wasn’t totaled but had air bag lights on and a knocking noise in engine bumper was smashed up but didn’t do major damage considering speed she was hit at, the woman who hit her was in 2018 Honda and it was totaled block was bleeding oil..
The police officer told her to not drive it bc of fire hazard so it’s in Georgia! Still on search for lawyer seems I can get one from up here even if accident was in SC tho but not certain! Thanks I’m of no help to her at this point legal reps gonna have to do the talking
 
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