Thanksgiving and the holidays are clearly upon us… and that means more tourists and traffic. This increase in people results in more Accidents and DUI’s. It is hard for an Accident/DUI lawyer (and victim) to find a good doctor (or lawyer) that has time to treat (represent) the client…let alone answer the phone during this time period. Many are on vacation over Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s.
Victims injured during the holidays have a difficult time finding a doctor/lawyer that will/can see them. Either doctors/lawyers are on vacation or over booked and can’t see a new patient for weeks. Over a holiday weekend, many of these medical providers will be out of the office from Fridays and will not return until Tuesday.
Many foolish lawyers don’t answer their calls until the next week leaving victims lost. Waiting two weeks to see a doctor hurts your case. The insurance company later argues “if the victim was really injured they would have treated at the ER, or Urgent Care Centers.”
Victims often think they will be ok in a day or two and/or talks to the insurance adjuster. They are damaging their case to the point that many lawyers will not accept their case. I explained this in a previous article “Mr. Gribow, Why Won’t You Accept My Accident Case?”
Victims are often afraid of costs and don’t take an ambulance or see a doctor. They don’t realize the defendant’s insurance company will pay. Most auto drivers have medical payments coverage or Health Insurance that will also pay up.
Many clients don’t know their policy limits. It is important to know this information because the other driver may not have insurance. If so we present an uninsured motorist (UM) claim against our clients own policy…if s/he had UM coverage.
Medical providers are concerned about getting paid as are hospitals/urgent care. If the injured party cannot find their policies they pay using a credit card to pay for treatment. We get treatment on a lien.
Insurance companies love holiday claims because claimants do the wrong things that ultimately reduce the value of their claim. For instance, new claimants may call the insurance company and say things they should not have said. Equally common is the adjuster writing down things they think they heard the party say.
A victim should use their cell to take pictures of their injuries/cars and take video recordings of witnesses statements, in addition to taking pictures of the driver’s insurance policy and license.
Victims don’t know they should see a doctor asap to document injuries, let alone prepare a summary of their injuries. Victims should write down their symptoms/injuries by starting with the top of their head and moving to the bottom of their toes.
The victim should see a medical provider they have not seen before. This is because their current medical providers have records that document prior injuries, alcohol or drugs issues, psych referrals, STD’s, abortions etc. Though these records may have nothing to do with the accident, many jurors will incorrectly think less of the victim on account of these issues.
I advise my clients to not post anything on social media following the accident because we don’t want the insurance company to find client’s posts of their playing tennis, golf, running in a marathon etc. Clients complain they can’t do anything because of the amount of pain they are encountering yet post pix of playing sports.
Because of the mistakes and challenges listed above it is hard to maximize the value of an accident case and these cases often result in smaller settlements. Thus many lawyers are reluctant to accept these cases.
Ideas for future columns please contact Dale Gribow 760-837-7500 or dale@dalegribowlaw.com.
DALE GRIBOW
“TOP LAWYER” – Palm Springs Life-(Accidents) 2011-18
“TOP LAWYER”- Inland Empire Magazine Nov 2016
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