Personal Injury Lawsuit

Personal injuries caused by the negligence of others may be compensable. Personal injury claims include wrongful death, motor vehicle accidents, medical malpractice, and product liability. Texas law provides for recovery of past and future medical expenses, physical pain and mental anguish, loss of earning capacity, disfigurement, and physical impairment. Begin by looking for an attorney that has represented hundreds of personal injury victims and in the event you have been injured, the attorney can certainly provide you quality representation and years of experience.

When looking for a qualified attorney, your attorney should also be certified by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization in personal injury. In order to be Board Certified in Personal Injury, the following requirements must be met.

* Licensed to practice law for at least 5 years

* Substantial involvement and special competence in Texas personal injury trial law for at least 3 years

* Devoted a minimum of 25% of the law practice to personal injury trial law

* Must have tried as lead counsel at least 10 contested civil cases (5 of which must be personal injury)

* Attended personal injury trial law continuing legal education seminars regularly to keep legal training up to date

* Been evaluated by at least 3 Texas attorneys

* Passed a day-long written examination

The majority of personal injury claims involve motor vehicle accidents. In the event you are the victim of a vehicular crash, you should stay at the scene and call the police. Seek immediate medical treatment and do not admit any responsibility for the accident. Usually, the investigating police officer will ask if anyone is hurt. People have a natural tendency to minimize their injuries due to embarrassment or the shock of being involved in an accident. Because of that, people involved in accidents many times tell the police they are not hurt even though they are. Some victims do not realize they are hurt until hours after the accident. It is important to be conscious of your personal injuries. Telling the police at the scene of a collision you are not injured when you are can cause difficulties later when a claim is made to the insurance company. When you tell the investigating officer you were not injured, he or she checks a box on the back of the police report indicating you stated at the scene you were unhurt. There is another box for the police officer to check indicating you are “possibly” injured. If you are absolutely sure you are injured, by all means, say so to the investigating officer. If you are unsure or actually hurt, tell the officer you are injured or that you are possibly hurt.

If you are injured in a collision, you need to seek medical attention as soon as possible if for no other reason than to document that you are hurt. Many times aches and pains caused by a minor impact will resolve on their own within days without the need for medical treatment. However, it is always better to go to a medical doctor for a physical examination and medical diagnosis and treatment, if necessary

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A British fraudster who took his council to court has seen the tables turned. David Cairns said it was a slip and trip due to uneven paving which caused his ankle injury in the year 2000, but Cairns had actually suffered the injury during a game of football. According to The Telegraph.co.uk: “David Cairns received a £9,200 compensation payout from Wigan Council in Greater Manchester for his false accident claim.” However it is now, years later that his lies have been confirmed and he will almost certainly face jail.

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Insurance companies that are dealing directly with whiplash victims straight after an accident has happened, are set to be investigated after allegations were made that they are placing undue pressure on people to waive their right to compensation or to make settlement for claims for less than they should be.

The Financial Services Authority (FSA) were handed a file from trade unions and claimant lawyers with alleged evidence of such action taking place. One of the trade unions, Unite, highlighted the names of insurance companies who had tried to settle applications from injured people before they had the opportunity to seek independent legal advice. This practice, known in the industry as ‘third party capture’ included one accident victim being offered £4,000 by insurance company Zurich in a ‘full and final settlement’, only for the case to be eventually settled for £35,000.

Further evidence included in the dossier handed to the FSA was submitted by The Association of Personal Injury Lawyers (Apil) who told of an extreme case where bereaved parents who had lost their three children in a road traffic accident were only offered £21,000 by Irish company Quinn Direct. The claim was later settled for £60,000.

Unite and Apil underlined their concerns about insurance companies who employ the tactics of representative’s cold-calling ‘third party’ victims almost immediately after an incident.

An example of this included in the report was the story of a lady who had been in a road traffic accident with a learner driver who had driven into the back of her car. Both she and her son suffered whiplash as a result of the collision. The day after the incident the lady was visited at home by a representative from an insurance company asking if she would like the use of a hire car and if she was planning to make a claim in the next six months. The form was signed and in turn the lady had unknowingly waived her right to compensation. Her lawyer later advised that the waiver was not effective.

The claimants’ solicitor, Jason London commented, “A considerable amount of pressure was put on my client. Visiting an accidents victim’s house in the after math of a car crash is clearly outrageous.”

Despite being unsure as to whether there is the need to close an apparent regulatory gap, an FSA spokesman said, “We are continuing to investigate the extent of the alleged customer detriment. To reach an informed conclusion, we shall have to gain a better understanding from insurance companies themselves of how they treat third-party claims and we are considering how best to go about this.”

Unite’s deputy general secretary, Graham Goddard is convinced that they have put forward a strong case to the FSA for them to take action to bridge the gap in the regulatory regime. He said, “Accident victims are losing out because if they aren’t receiving truly independent advice, they don’t know the true value of the claims. Our evidence is that sometimes they are being told they don’t have a good case when they do.”

But Malcolm Tarling, a spokesman for the Association of British Insurers hit back at the claims. Whilst acknowledging that ‘third-party capture’ is becoming an increasing part of an insurers business model, this he argues is a direct response the rise in costs of processing claims. By going directly to the accident victim, they are simply bypassing the expensive middle-man; the lawyer. He says, “No insurer wants to be accused of pressurising claimants into accepting compensation payments. Insurers want to identify those claims they believe are straightforward, where liability may not be in dispute and injuries are relatively minor. They want to settle these cases as quickly as possible.”

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