Insurance Legal Questions

This is a classic problem with comparative negligence claims. Unless you get someone to agree with you, your remedy may be to file suit against the guy, present your case to a judge and see what he says. Problem is this is not a clear case, so you never know what wil happen, hence the arbitrary 50% value. It also sounds like you dont have collision insurance on your car or have a high deductible, you may need to change this as relyng on other people to pay for your damages is ALWAYS super risky,... Read More

First, you should read your insurance policy. In most cases the answer to this question depends on how much you owe on the car. If you owe more than the market value of the car your insurance will only pay the loan off pursuant to your gap insurance. If the market value is more than what you owe, your insurance will pay off the loan and give you the balance.   This response is general in nature and is not legal advice. No attorney client relationship is formed by it. Further, the response does not represent the opinions or views of LexisNexis or its affiliated companies.  ... Read More

The key here is the distinction that she was "tricked" as opposed to made a poor decision. The obvious question is if she doesn't understand english, how or why was she involved in negotiating an injury settlement in the first place, and why was she signing things that she obviously could not understand due a to a language barrier. If she truly could not have understood what she was doing and was mislead, it may be possible to set aside the settlement. It may be much harder if its a situation where in retrospect, with the child having worse injuries, the settlement was simply a poor decision. ... Read More

Sorry to hear about the damage to your garage.  It is fairly normal for insurance companies to request these types of documents.  Often times they request cell phone records also (mainly if there is a fire investigation).   Insurance companies in general are just difficult to deal with.  While it is a pain, I'd consider providing them with the documents they request so they can conclude the investigation and hopefully pay your claim.  If they continue to delay the claim and request more documents that seem irrelevant, it may be time to seek assistance from a local lawyer in your state.  Best of luck! NOTE:  This response is general in nature and should not be considered legal advice.  No attorney-client relationship exists or is formed by this response. ... Read More

The liability of the transportation company will likely be tied to thier liability, which you said is none. Also sounds like you already have a lawyer handling your case and its not good idea to get off the cuff "second opinions" on complicated matters like yours here. I would discuss these issues with your current lawyer. You can also contact our office for a free consult is you'd like if your in the Tampa Bay area.... Read More

I am sorry to hear about this.  You should find a doctor who is willing to give you an MRI.  If the doctor you are currently seeing is unwilling to order an MRI for you, you should consider getting a new doctor.  If you are saying you were denied by your insurance company, you need to find out why and see what you can do to get approval.  If they still deny you, you may want to consider getting the MRI anyways, and paying for it out of pocket, and then later submitting for reimbursement.  You may not be reimbursed but if you really need the MRI for your medical treatment, you should consider getting it and paying for it out of pocket if possible. I hope you can get something worked out. Best of luck! NOTE: This response is general in nature and should not be considered legal advice.  No attorney-client relationship exists or is formed by this response. ... Read More

While not going so far as to state that it is normal to have this in a letter, I cannot say that you should be offended.  This section states "4.  If any employee persists in an unsanitary or injurious practice that imperils or retards his or her recovery, or refuses to submit to such medical or surgical treatment as is necessary to promote his or her recovery, the employee's compensation may be reduced or suspended."  Very simply, malingering can be a basis for reduction of industrial insurance benefits.  While the system provides compensation pending recovery, efforts by the employee to not get better will not be rewarded.  However it is not an allegation made as against you and should not be taken personally.... Read More

Dear Ashley:  When you suffer damage to your automobile as a result of an automobile accident, the at-fault party is responsible for repairing your vehicle or paying to you the fair market value of the vehicle as of the date of the collision, whichever amount is less.  This is regardless of what it will cost you to buy another vehicle, how much money you owe on the vehicle, etc.  If you believe that the insurance company is not offering you fair market value for the vehicle, then you have the option of suing the at-fault driver for the amount that you believe the vehicle is worth.  As to the rental vehicle, the at-fault party's insurance company only has to provide you with a rental vehicle up to the time that they offer you fair market value for the vehicle and delivered the check to you.  If you refuse the offer of fair market value, then they may terminate the rental vehicle at the time of your refusal or after a reasonable period of time after the offer.  Also, if your vehicle is totalled, the insurance company must pay the sales tax if you purchase another vehicle within 30 days of receiving the check for your property damage.  However, the insurance company must only pay the sales tax up to what a comparable replacement vehicle would cost.  So if you purchase a brand new vehicle, they only have to pay the sales tax on the amount which is equal to what it would have cost you to buy a similar car of like year, model, make, etc.  You have to purchase the vehicle within 30 days of receiving the check and provide proof of the purchase to the insurance company within 35 days of receiving check.  If you fail to purchase the vehicle within 30 days or provide proof within 35 days, the insurance company does not have to pay your sales tax. Best of luck to you.... Read More

I think this is a decision for you to make.  It would depend on how much pain you were in and how much your medical bills were, how much insurance coverage is available, etc.   I believe that this is a decision that you should make on your own (and/or with your family and friends).  Best of luck! NOTE:  This response is general in nature and should not be considered legal advice.  No attorney-client relationship exists or is formed by this response. ... Read More

This problem happens all too frequently.  You need to notify the Hospital to provide you with all records showing their timely submission of the claim to the insurer.  You need to notify the insurer that you will require proof of the untimely submission of the bills and waiver by the Hospital.  Should any legal action be brought, both the insurer and the hospital should be parties to the same proceeding.... Read More

No. Let the  lawyer do his/her job. Your calling will not get the money any faster.  If you were in litigation, the lawyer will file a motion with the court to enforce the settlement and seek interest, etc. If not in suit, the lawyer will threaten to file suit to enforce the settlement  the seek interest and fees. It will hardly ever come to that. Probably just an overworked adjuster/attorney.  Please understand. I do not know the facts of your case and can only give a general answer. Speak with your lawyer about what  is  going on.... Read More

I think your answer would depend on the exact terms of the settlement/check.  Was there any kind of release included or langauge about what the money had to be spent on?  For example, did the letter or release say the money had to be sued to pay hospital bills and if not,  ___ would happen?  I would read the letter more carefully and see if there is any language like this in there.  If there was no such language then it is likely that the payment was not conditional (didn't have to be used to pay the hospital bills) and was maybe only to help with the bills.  If so, it is likely that nothing will happen except that your husband is still responsible for his outstanding medical bills.  If those are not paid it is possible that his wages could be garnished and/or that they will go into collections and could affect his credit score, etc. Best of luck! NOTE:  This response is general in nature and should not be considered legal advice.  No attorney-client relationship exists or is formed by this response. ... Read More

I am sorry to hear about this.  Unfortunately, if the person who caused the damage does not have any insurance, then it is likely that you may not be able to recover from him.  Your best bet is to check and see if your insurance will cover the damages.  Best of luck! NOTE:  This response is general in nature and should not be considered legal advice.  No attorney-client relationship exists or is formed by this response.... Read More

The law of Ohio is that the insurance follows the vehicle, not the driver.  So, if you have the vehicle insured, your stepdaughter should be covered by your insurance while she is driving your car.  However, many insurance policies provide exclusions for coverage if the person is a resident-relative (i.e., a person related to you by blood or marriage that resides in your home).  Similarly, some insurance policies exclude coverage for drivers not listed on the policy if a vehicle is available for that person's regular use.  You should review your insurance policy carefully to ensure that your stepdaughter is covered. If she is a resident in your home (even part-time) and/or regularly drives your vehicle, it would be best for you to add her as an insured driver on your policy, or have her purchase her own automobile insurance, before letting her drive your vehicle. If she has her own insurance, and your insurance did not cover her, then her own insurance would step in and provide coverage. If she has no insurance herself, and your policy excludes coverage for her, any person injured if she would cause an accident could potentially come after you for negligent entrustment of a vehicle (i.e., you knew or should have known that she had no insurance and was not covered by your insurance, but you let her drive the vehicle anyways).  And because you would essentially have no insurance coverage, your personal assets could be attached to satisfy a judgment.  Additionally, your policy may exclude coverage for your property damage, meaning you would be responsible for repairing/replacing your own car. Best course is if she is going to regularly drive your vehicle, you should have her added as an insured under your policy of automobile insurance, or have her purchase her own insurance.... Read More

I am sorry to hear about your vehicle being stolen.  It is often common for insurance companies to request phone records.  They are likely trying to determine if any fraud was involved.  Of course you don't have to give them the records, however, they may not proceed any further with the claim without the records.  However, you should also note that some states and/or phone carrier will not release this information without a court order or subpoena.  So you should call your carrier and see how you can obtain the records and how much it would cost.  If it will cost a significant amount of money, you can request that the insurance company pay for them or reimburse you.  Also if they are requesting the records for a long period of time, you can maybe ask the insurance company to cut back on the period of time they are requesting the records for.  Hopefully this will cut down on some of the time, effort and cost related to this.   Like I said, they are not necessarily required but it seems like they are still trying to decide whether or not your claim is payable and they may be considering the issue of fraud.  Thus, if there is nothing to hide and it isn't too expensive, I'd go ahead and get them the records they are requesting so you can go ahead and have the claim moved along.  Best of luck! NOTE:  This response is general in nature and should not be considered legal advice.  No attorney-client relationship exists or is formed by this response.... Read More

Depending upon all of the facts, if your Dad died after his Mom, and never changed the beneficiary, then the place to start is with his Mom's estate. DId she have a will? If so, it is possible the money passes under that will. You are going to have to hire an investigator to get to the bottom of this.   We are here to help if you'd like.... Read More

If they don't have car insurance, then you will likely not be successful in obtaining any funds from them.  You should check with your  insurance carrier and see if you have any uninsured motorist coverage.  If you do, this is exactly what this type of coverage is for - it is to protect you in the even that you are in an accident with an uninsured driver.  Thus, if you have the coverage, you should be able to get compensation from your own insurance company (and there should  not be any type of penalty).  Check with your insurance provider.  Best of luck! NOTE:  This response is general in nature and should not be considered legal advice.  No attorney-client relationship exists or is formed by this response.... Read More

1.  No, you do not have to report your own "accident" to your automobile insurance company, since it was your property that was damaged.  So long as no other third party claiming damages, there is no need to report the claim to your insurance company.  Similar to a rock hitting your windshield while driving, you don't have to make a claim if you don't want to.  If there was damage to a third party, then you would have to report pursuant to your insurance contract. 2.  Because the accident was on private property, it is not a violation of any Ohio traffic law, so it cannot be reported as an infraction with the Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles.  So it will not appear on your license as an accident.  However, if you report it to your insurance company and make a claim for the damage to your car, it will be listed as a comprehensive claim on your insurance report, which can raise your premiums, depending on your insurance company and the number of claims you have had in the past.  This will also be visible to any other insurance company that you apply for coverage with. If you do want to make an insurance claim, most policies require that you report the claim to them as soon as possible so that they may conduct an investigation into the claim.  If your claim is not made timely, the company could deny the claim for breach of conditions precedent, including the duty to timely report and the duty to cooperate.  Read your policy to determine the duties and time limits applicable to you.... Read More