Another Battle w/Insurance company thread - Need attorney referral <Long>

[911Freak]

So here we go again…. I just want to say; I hoped this whole thing could have just been handled quickly and in the best financial interest of both parties. Unfortunately it seems to me the Ins. Co have a system that encourages claimants to seek counsel which seems to always equate to higher financial costs for both families, the Ins Co. and ultimately every policy holder. Common sense and financial efficiency seems to be non-existent.

The circumstances:
My wife and I were sitting in traffic waiting for the light to change when I looked in the rear view mirror and noticed a pick up truck was closing in on us fast and not going to stop in time before hitting us. I muttered “Oh-$h@t” Then screeching of his tires followed by silence and then crash-bang! .

The driver was licensed and insured (thank God)! Come to find out he’s with the same insurance carrier as we are. I thought this was a good thing but now I’m starting to wonder if it is in fact making things more difficult!

Estimate speed at impact was 10-15 mph his truck (2wd P/up) was heavily damaged and subsequently totaled. Our car absorbed the damage as designed, however significant repairs to our car were required.

Lots of other details, however I don’t feel comfortable going into detail here…

Suffice to say we did sustain physical injuries and they are being treated which is why we need a good personal injury attorney. I have requested referrals from our family attorney but he is not local or specializes in personal-injury…

I spoke with the Ins adjuster (mistake I’m sure) requesting process for reimbursement for treatment to date and was given standard boiler plate: “you won’t get financial reimbursement prior to a settlement, if there is one, and looking at the damage to your car it’s hard to believe you’ve been injured.”

But what really made me made was the adjuster proceeds to share this tid-bit of her own insight on our situation: “I had a fender bender in my car, bent a fender and broke a blinker and I didn’t get injured or seek damages or claim medical treatment. You sound like a lot of folks who try to get a large settlement because they were involved in a minor accident.” Whaaaat???

Are you freaking kidding me!?

“So Mr. 911Freak, without submitting all of your doctors contact info, medical records, social security numbers, invoices etc we can’t even begin to assess the validity of your claim. You don’t have an attorney yet do you Mr. 911Freak?”

I can’t believe what I am hearing!

Well, I’m getting one now!

I couldn’t believe my ears; this person was equating her own personal experience with our accident and the legitimacy of our claim? How ignorant!

I know I should expect this sort downplaying damages but this level of unprofessional behavior won’t go unnoticed. I made sure to point out that elements to a collision include all vehicles, not just the vehicle that absorbed the impact but also the amount of damage of vehicle initiating the impact. Have you seen the damage to his truck Miss ignorant peon adjuster?

As you can see I’m tired, frustrated and in dire need of a good attorney. I really hoped to get this over with quick and clean and inexpensively. Just reimburse us for the medical treatment, P & S, fix our car (including diminished value) and we’ll get on with our life. But no, that's to simple, they want to do it their way, involve attorneys, pry into our lives, and snoop into our past medical history.
OK, we can oblige you, but you’ll end up paying out more now because attorneys are involved.

rant over....

So, anyone know of a good personal injury attorney out here in So-Cal? Additionally any recommendations how to go about finding a good attorney? Websites?

Tactics to watch out for coming from the Ins co as this proceeds would be appreciated as well...

Thanks in advance guys

[Oh Haha]

I'm not a lawyer but I'll give this a bump in hopes that one of our resident attorney Pelicans can get you going in the right direction.

IMO, I would let your lawyer handle any more communication on the case.

My dad was an insurance adjuster for many years. I never really talked "shop" with him, though.

Good luck.

[slodave]

I've got a number... I'll PM it to you.

[Rot 911]

The one bit of truth the adjuster gave you was this: "you won’t get financial reimbursement prior to a settlement." That is standard insurance company practice. Which really sucks when you have the potential need for future medical services for your present injuries. These cases can go on for quite some time. I don't live in your area, so I can't help with an attorney recommendation.

[911Freak]

Originally Posted by Oh Haha

IMO, I would let your lawyer handle any more communication on the case.
Good luck.

Yeah, I've stopped corresponding with them.

Thanks for the bump, looks like it working

[Laneco]

They count on you starving out and taking a cheap/easy settlement.

If you were hurt (and I believe that you were), then to hell with that. Pay out of pocket and store your righteous anger! Document everything. Every visit, every minute of lost time, every traffic jam you are stuck in on the way to a treatment, every headache, everything. Couldn't pee last night? Write it down. Missed your son's little league game because of a headache? Write it down.

Let your attorney do the talking and explain the depth of your determination and the detailed accounting of your injuries.

The point to settle politely as civilized people do has now passed. The gauntlet has been hurled by the wretched insurance adjuster. Be a big giant dickhead bastard.

angela

[911Freak]

Originally Posted by Laneco

They count on you starving out and taking a cheap/easy settlement.

If you were hurt (and I believe that you were), then to hell with that. Pay out of pocket and store your righteous anger! Document everything. Every visit, every minute of lost time, every traffic jam you are stuck in on the way to a treatment, every headache, everything. Couldn't pee last night? Write it down. Missed your son's little league game because of a headache? Write it down.

Let your attorney do the talking and explain the depth of your determination and the detailed accounting of your injuries.

The point to settle politely as civilized people do has now passed. The gauntlet has been hurled by the wretched insurance adjuster. Be a big giant dickhead bastard.

angela

Brillant! We like the way you think Angela! Permission to be a BGDH! Woo Hoo

[nostatic]

You should have asked the ins adjuster where she got her medical degree.

And tell your attorney about her comments. There likely are competent and verbally circumspect adjusters out there that would like her job. She basically accused you of fraud...sounds like something her employer might want to know about.

[Icemaster]

This wouldnt happen to be a big national company with a name that's an acronym, or another one that references a state and a farm would it?

You might consider going one step (maybe two...) higher up the food chain and discuss the adjusters behavior with a manager above her, referencing the fact that you were looking for a reasonable and rational settlement as you're one of their customers as well (something they quickly forget....) without counsel prior to her unprofessional comments. Now, not so much.... It would show a good faith effort on your part to try to be reasonable. See what happens, unless you've already done this. If so, unleash the hounds.


Another beatiful Angela quote destined for someones sig line BTW. :-)

[ramonesfreak]

im not licensed in CA but i can tell you in NY, this is totally normal. Unless you have a very very serious injury...broken bones, loss of a limb, brain damage, long hospitalization and loss of work...the adjuster will act like yours did. they want you to either go away, or settle for a nominal sum of money. they do this to minimize their loss by intimidating you. they know that those who are serious about going for a fair settlement will get an attorney.

adjusters talk the same way to attorneys. it can be difficult to get any intelligent discussion going between attorney and adjuster until the suit is actually filed and served....then they know your serious about the legal sufficiency of your case.

NY is a no-fault state and you must prove "serious" injury to sustain a claim in court...there is a legal definition regarding what a "serious injury" is in NY. Perhaps in CA too

STOP talking to the adjuster. Everything you are saying is being documented by the adjuster into his/her notes on the computer and could come back to haunt you especially during depositions

the adjuster is correct that they can not begin to assess your claim without the medical records. be careful what you tell your doctor as doctors often put in their notes things you say without any regard to the legal consequence of it......"patient reports having very little pain while fishing for yellow fin tuna during 2 week vacation. Has been enjoying gardening"...words like this are tough to deal with after the fact. In fact, NEVER tell your doctor anything personal..just describe the pain etc..in detail

if the adjuster sent you a medical authorization, it will need to be signed asap so they can get the records of the injury and treatment. Only then can they estimate what your injury is worth and begin discussions of money

it will be very helpful to have your medical records with you when you meet with an attorney so he/she can give you good advice.

good luck

[ramonesfreak]

oh, and the adjuster's manager could give a crap what the adjuster said to you. dont bother. THEY are on the same team. YOU are the opponent. DO NOT talk to the insurance company at all from now on unless you decide not to pursue the injury portion of your claim

[KevinP73]

Originally Posted by 911Freak

Brillant! We like the way you think Angela! Permission to be a BGDH! Woo Hoo

Oh like you needed Angela's permission.JK I know the Ins. company you're dealing with and it surprises me a bit. Normally they're pretty good. Good Luck with it.

[john70t]

I once had a on-job back injury and played that fking game.

The(an) insurance ajuster gave me a call 45 minutes before my visit to the spinal specialist(MD) wanting to "sit in". I recorded the call.
-After much discussion, it turned out she wanted to "advise" the doctor during my treatments.
-She was persistant.
-After questioning her, it turned out she claimed to be a "nurse", but only a LVN. She wouldn't give me her license number.
-After that I got a call from her supervisor, who was very apologetic.
-I was late for the appointment.

The "treatment" proceedures turned into a game. The insurance company sent me to 5 different "rehab" centers, which all concluded I was making it all up.
-Never mind I couldn't do dishes, or stand in a supermarker line without falling on the floor in spasms.
-Never mind that several of my disks were clearly black(dehydrated) on the x-rays.

It is a standard-proceedure game of jumping through hoops.
Don't play it.

[Brando]

I was involved in an accident this past February. I was hit on my motorcycle. I was referred to a lawyer who grew up with a close friend of mine.

The guy's name is Mick Shafer.
Shafer & Shafer Inc.
Attorneys at Law
Office: (951) 272-8357

[s_morrison57]

All insurance companies are the scum of the earth, they claim to be on your side untill its time to pay, don't ever see an adjuster with out legal counsel present for a personal injury claim and of course they are going to say you made up the injury cause its their Doc's that are saying it, let a lawyer do your talking for you

[m21sniper]

Originally Posted by 911Freak

So here we go again…. I just want to say; I hoped this whole thing could have just been handled quickly and in the best financial interest of both parties. Unfortunately it seems to me the Ins. Co have a system that encourages claimants to seek counsel which seems to always equate to higher financial costs for both families, the Ins Co. and ultimately every policy holder. Common sense and financial efficiency seems to be non-existent.

The circumstances:
My wife and I were sitting in traffic waiting for the light to change when I looked in the rear view mirror and noticed a pick up truck was closing in on us fast and not going to stop in time before hitting us. I muttered “Oh-$h@t” Then screeching of his tires followed by silence and then crash-bang! .

The driver was licensed and insured (thank God)! Come to find out he’s with the same insurance carrier as we are. I thought this was a good thing but now I’m starting to wonder if it is in fact making things more difficult!

Estimate speed at impact was 10-15 mph his truck (2wd P/up) was heavily damaged and subsequently totaled. Our car absorbed the damage as designed, however significant repairs to our car were required.

Lots of other details, however I don’t feel comfortable going into detail here…

Suffice to say we did sustain physical injuries and they are being treated which is why we need a good personal injury attorney. I have requested referrals from our family attorney but he is not local or specializes in personal-injury…

I spoke with the Ins adjuster (mistake I’m sure) requesting process for reimbursement for treatment to date and was given standard boiler plate: “you won’t get financial reimbursement prior to a settlement, if there is one, and looking at the damage to your car it’s hard to believe you’ve been injured.”

But what really made me made was the adjuster proceeds to share this tid-bit of her own insight on our situation: “I had a fender bender in my car, bent a fender and broke a blinker and I didn’t get injured or seek damages or claim medical treatment. You sound like a lot of folks who try to get a large settlement because they were involved in a minor accident.” Whaaaat???

Are you freaking kidding me!?

“So Mr. 911Freak, without submitting all of your doctors contact info, medical records, social security numbers, invoices etc we can’t even begin to assess the validity of your claim. You don’t have an attorney yet do you Mr. 911Freak?”

I can’t believe what I am hearing!

Well, I’m getting one now!

I couldn’t believe my ears; this person was equating her own personal experience with our accident and the legitimacy of our claim? How ignorant!

I know I should expect this sort downplaying damages but this level of unprofessional behavior won’t go unnoticed. I made sure to point out that elements to a collision include all vehicles, not just the vehicle that absorbed the impact but also the amount of damage of vehicle initiating the impact. Have you seen the damage to his truck Miss ignorant peon adjuster?

As you can see I’m tired, frustrated and in dire need of a good attorney. I really hoped to get this over with quick and clean and inexpensively. Just reimburse us for the medical treatment, P & S, fix our car (including diminished value) and we’ll get on with our life. But no, that's to simple, they want to do it their way, involve attorneys, pry into our lives, and snoop into our past medical history.
OK, we can oblige you, but you’ll end up paying out more now because attorneys are involved.

rant over....

So, anyone know of a good personal injury attorney out here in So-Cal? Additionally any recommendations how to go about finding a good attorney? Websites?

Tactics to watch out for coming from the Ins co as this proceeds would be appreciated as well...

Thanks in advance guys

Any personal injury lawyer on earth will see this case as the easy win that it is. You shouldn't have to pay anything out of pocket, the lawyer and the doc he sends you to all work on a contingency, it's standard fare in PI cases.

I hope you don't have limited tort.

[m21sniper]

Originally Posted by Rot 911

The one bit of truth the adjuster gave you was this: "you won’t get financial reimbursement prior to a settlement." That is standard insurance company practice. Which really sucks when you have the potential need for future medical services for your present injuries. These cases can go on for quite some time. I don't live in your area, so I can't help with an attorney recommendation.

Actually, here in Pa you get your lost wages well before settlement, or at least that's how it used to be back in the 90s.

[Groesbeck Hurricane]

Just a stray thought:

If an adjuster is diagnosing your injuries and what your treatment plan could be are they not practicing medicine?

If they are practicing medicine do they have a license so to do?

If no license are they not breaking the law?

Am I going too far here?

[911Freak]

Originally Posted by Icemaster

This wouldnt happen to be a big national company with a name that's an acronym, or another one that references a state and a farm would it?

You might consider going one step (maybe two...) higher up the food chain and discuss the adjusters behavior with a manager above her, referencing the fact that you were looking for a reasonable and rational settlement as you're one of their customers as well (something they quickly forget....) without counsel prior to her unprofessional comments. Now, not so much.... It would show a good faith effort on your part to try to be reasonable. See what happens, unless you've already done this. If so, unleash the hounds.


Another beatiful Angela quote destined for someones sig line BTW. :-)

Yep, did go higher up. they're looking into it... I know they record most of these calls as well as take notes, hopefully we can get our hands on them! State of a farm? That obvious? Jeez

[911Freak]

Originally Posted by m21sniper

Any personal injury lawyer on earth will see this case as the easy win that it is. You shouldn't have to pay anything out of pocket, the lawyer and the doc he sends you to all work on a contingency, it's standard fare in PI cases.

I hope you don't have limited tort.

I hope your right Sniper, I know I won't have to pay out of pocket for medical treatments once we get an attorney, most large PI attorney's have a line of credit, make that a rather large credit line to fund their cases. This should suffice...

Not sure about the Tort, I'll ask around