Occupy Nationwide

I am not a lawyer and I am not a medical expert, but I did spend eight long years fighting my own insurance company in person, in mediation and in court, because an uninsured motorist hit us from behind injuring both myself and my passenger and totaling our vehicle. I won my case against the insurance and this victory is a matter of public record, which anyone can check and consider that if you were in a car accident, which was NOT your fault, you will beat any insurance in court. How can you do this, is the subject of this website. Follow these links for questions on: car accidents | adjusters | lawyers | courts.

I hope this website is helpful to you and I hope you win. Godspeed!

If I Start Feeling Better Should I Discontinue Medical Treatment?

FORWARD: You should always follow your doctor’s orders and the following advice is just that, advice, and not to be considered over any doctor recommendation.

Let me put it in short words, NO!

If you abruptly discontinue medical treatment because you think you are better, you could be wrong. The thing with soft-tissue injuries or whiplash is that they are very misleading. You feel okay one day and then all of the sudden your symptoms can come back. And they can come back worst than before with symptoms of migraines and/or circulation problems that you would never imagine.

Now, of course you can re-seek treatment; however if you want your insurance to pay, your chances have gone down because they will argue that your injuries related to the auto accident are healed and what you are seeking treatment for now is different and not related to the wreck.

It is my opinion that the best thing to do is gradually discontinue treatment so you can make sure you are restore. Yet, Uunfortunately after any type of injury this restoration will not be complete.

Top 3 Months in which Insurance Adjusters are Swamped and Want to Settle

There are two times a year that the adjusters are swamped. November/December due to Christmas and March because lawyers have to pay taxes. Everyone wants to settle before Christmas, so they can spend more on the holidays. Taxes are due in April, so lawyers want to settle more cases to pay their taxes due in April.

So if an adjuster gets say an average of 25 cases to be settled a month, the number could double during those months. Also in November/December, adjusters like everyone else wants time off for vacation, holidays etc, so could limit the time they have to review their claims or have someone else try and pick up the slack. And as MSAD stated, it depends on the type of case, injuries etc that they review.

Some cases may have to go through several people for authority and that adds time, since until management reviews, then nothing can be done to make an offer or reject it. But you have one thing in your favor and that is that most companies want to close as many claims by the end of they year and they push the adjuster to do so. But that does not mean that the offer could come before Christmas, only that an offer could be made and the check does not come till after the 1st of the year, but then the case is closed and off the books.

Also, say the adjuster calls the lawyer on Wednesday, but they play phone tag back and forth, could be another week before they actually talk to each other. Then the lawyer calls back and once again, phone tag back and forth. Your lawyer will call you when they make an offer, since by law he is obligated to do so. good luck

Importance of Going to Reputable Doctors After a Car Wreck

A few of the main reasons it is crucial to get an honest reputable doctor when dealing with getting compensation for medical bills after a wreck is that a doctor who is dishonest might:

Falsify Reports: For instance, your doctor might put in his daily report on your treatment that you are getting better to make him look like he is actually treating you successfully. I personally encountered this where I told the doctor I was experiencing a pain level of 7 and he reported that I said a 5. This could come back to haunt you when attempting to reach a settlement, because if an official doctor’s report says you are better, your word that you are still in pain is not taken seriously.

TIP: ALWAYS CHECK WHAT THE DOCTOR’S REPORT SAYS. ASK FOR A COPY EVERY NOW AND THEN. IT IS YOUR RIGHT!

Rack-up Medical Bills: Simply because a doctor knows that you are not self-pay and an insurance company is paying, they will try to get the most out of the situation. This may include charging for services never rendered or giving you too much treatment that is not really beneficial to your health like seeing you five times a week instead of three.

TIP: BE THE CONCERNED PATIENT & ASK WHY YOU ARE RECEIVING A CERTAIN COURSE OF TREATMENT.

If something like this were to happen your insurance company may refuse to pay and stick you will the bills or they make attempt to call the doctor behind your back to negotiate you bill which makes for a very uncomfortable situation when you to go back and see this doctor.

If the doctor is unethical he/she may be passive aggressive about the occurrence which could lead to mistreatment or loss of medical records as in my case. So even though you are not paying your bills, it is a good idea to keep up-to-date on what services and products your doctor is charging you.

Won Treat Need Properly: When all you might need is a few minor services or medications your doctor may order un-needed expensive tests which are not conducive to your health.

Waist of Time and Money: If your doctor is not concerned about your health and doesn’t listen to your pain, then you are loosing out on a small window of opportunity in which you are more susceptible to achieving a full recovery. This is something no amount of money can compensate for. Only go to a doctor who listens to you and is willing to treat your need and not his/her needs.

TIP: IF SOMETHING IS FISHY ABOUT THE WAY DOCTOR IS TREATING YOU, MAKE SURE YOU ASK FOR ALL MEDICAL RECORDS BEFORE ACTUALLY DISCONTINUING SERVICE, BECAUSE AFTER YOU ARE NO LONGER A PATIENT THEY WILL NOT BE AS WILLING TO WORK WITH YOU.

12 Things to Consider When Seuing Your Own Insurance Company

1. Even if their slogan says they are on your side, they truly are not when you are asking for a settlement.

2. Insurance companies are financially able to hire the best of the best legal counsel, but this should not intimidate the honest people who are truly deserving of a fair settlement offer.

3. Suing on your own is probably not the best idea if you want to be taken seriously.

4. Going up against a large corporation may take a lot of time to get a settlement. The longer they keep their funds, the better off they are with their financial investments.

5. Your insurance premiums may go up even though they are not supposed to.

6. You might need to look for different insurance coverage due to them having the right to drop you as a customer.

7. They may have you go to an independent medical representative to consider if your injuries are real or not.

8. If you do not have an official police report saying the fault was an uninsured motorist they may attempt to find you at fault.

9. Be assured they will attempt to limit your medical coverage at all cost. However, you do have the right to see whichever doctor you prefer even if this includes a chiropractor.

10. It is always a good idea to make sure you see an MD as part of your initial treatment as they are viewed as more reputable by the insurance companies.

11. They may even refuse to pay certain bills without you knowing, which results in damaging your credit due to being turned over to a bill collector.

12. Insurance companies are professionals when it comes to dealing with being sued and they do not easily admit fault. They will use whatever bad fair tactic to get what they want including low balling, intimidation not to pay bills, false threats, delay of communication, etc.

Top 10 Tips to Choosing a Personal Injury Lawyer

You could always check with the American Bar Association, but asking a friend of their recommendations is always a plus. However, if you do ask a friend make sure you get specific details on why they are recommending a certain lawyer.

Ask:
1) What was the type of claim (will this lawyer work for your need)?
2) What was the outcome (was it out of court or not, was the settlement satisfactory)?
3) What is the lawyer’s percentage and arrangement for costs (do they come out of settlement or paid upfront)?
4) Was there a workable relationship between lawyer and client (listening, working for your need, returning calls, communication, etc.)?
5) Are you related or friends with this recommended lawyer? Continue reading Top 10 Tips to Choosing a Personal Injury Lawyer

How Do I Make Sure a Doctor is NOT a QUACK?

So if you are not quite certain which doctor to go to, make sure you check them out before you trust your wellbeing to just anybody. There is a LOT OF QUACKS out there unfortunately.

ASK A FRIEND or someone who has gone to the doctor you are looking into seeing if they had a good experience with their treatment.

CHECK out their HISTORY on Better Business Bureau or do a quick web search. Make sure you check if your doctor is legit having a current license to practice and board certification. Where to find this info depends on what state you are in, but you could probably find this info on your state’s department of health website. It is public record if a doctor has any pending lawsuits against their practices.

However, it is quit unfortunately that even after you have done all of these preventative measures you still may find yourself in a non-working doctor-patient relationship. My advise to you is the quicker you get out, the better.

To Sue or Not To Sue?

If you are the person who is struggling with whether of not to sue an insurance company there are a few things you can consider.

First, you have to get over any negative feelings you might have towards lawsuits. Unfortunately, the way the system is set up, at times there are no other options, but to bring suit in order to be compensated at all.

If the insurance company is not willing to work with you and are not even willing to cover your medical expenses, they leave you with no choice. You should consider suing if you feel like you have tried all attempts to get the insurance company to work with you and they are not.

If you feel you have just cause with proof you are the victim you should considering suing. If you are suing because you are greedy, you should be ashamed and this will more than likely bit you in the butt. You should never sue because of greed. The system is thankfully set up to weed out this type of scam artist.

Is Lexapro a Drug of Choice for Whiplash Injuries?

Shortly after the auto accident and meanwhile being treated for whiplash, loss of curve in neck, bulging disk in back, lower back problems, headaches, you name it, I began to notice numbness and was referred for treatment with a neurologist. This doctor recommended I take Lexapro; a antidepressant none the less. Continue reading Is Lexapro a Drug of Choice for Whiplash Injuries?

3 Effective Ways To Deal With An Insurance Adjuster

1. Take notes – you can be legally liable if you RECORD the conversation in audio or video format, but you are free to keep notes. In my case, once I felt like I was being jerked around by the insurance adjuster dealing with my case, I began a journal recording all conversations, phone conferences, meetings, numbers, expenses, keeping all receipts and so-on. No one else will do it for you and you will be in big trouble if you need to recollect a certain detail one day and have no record and/or receipt of it in your notes. Simply said, you cannot remember it all, but you better believe when I tell you that you will need all the details you can recall.

2. If the insurance people seem to be difficult from the very beginning, please understand for your own sake, that it will only get worse. Get a lawyer. Continue reading 3 Effective Ways To Deal With An Insurance Adjuster

10 Benefits of Handling Your Own Personal Injury Claim

1. No lawyer will ever know your case better than you do
2. Only you can know the extent of loss and suffering
3. No one is going to fight harder for your case than you
4. You can give your case top priority regardless of how big or small it may be
5. You won’t have to worry about working with an incompetent or dishonest person
6. You know that your best interest will be top concern
7. The middleman is cut out and you won’t have to wait on back and forth communication
8. Delay tactics of lawyers are no longer
9. You won’t have to worry about being stuck in a non-working relationship
10. You don’t have to pay any attorney fees!!!!!