Geoffrey E. Schorr
While reading a blog page for Texas Trial Lawyers, I recently learned about a disturbing trend regarding settlements for personal injury claims. With millions of Americans feeling the economic strain from the global recession that is occurring, many insurance companies are taking advantage by making quick settlement offers to injured victims that, in many instances, are extremely small, and don’t fully compensate victims for their losses. People who are hurting financially are more tempted to accept these small settlement offers, without hiring an attorney. Many insurance companies realize this reality and quickly put nominal offers of settlement on the table, and, unfortunately, many of these small offers are being accepted.
The retention of an experienced personal injury lawyer does not increase the value of every personal injury claim. However, some suggest that non-represented claimants typically settle claims for one-third of what they would have received had they been represented by an experienced personal injury lawyer. In an extreme example I read an article where an injured claimant was offered less than $4,000.00 to settle an injury claim, and, after retaining an attorney, the claim was settled for approximately $200,000.00. Obviously lawyers can’t make this type of difference in all cases, however, experienced personal injury lawyers understand how to value cases, and understand the types of damages that are available to claimants.
In many cases, an insurance company will not take a claimant’s claims seriously without an experienced personal injury attorney representing the claimant. Without such representation, many insurance companies see very little exposure, if any. The problem is that without an experienced personal injury lawyer, the claimant’s claims may not be adequately preserved and/or prosecuted, and insurance companies understand this problem.
Therefore, if you or a loved one has been injured and an insurance company adjuster is attempting to offer a quick settlement, take time to contact an experienced personal injury attorney in your area. It is important that the insurance company adjuster understands that you, and your attorney, take your claim seriously. Retaining an attorney, in most instances, will likely increase the value of a claim. If it doesn’t appear that an attorney will add value to a claim, most personal injury attorneys, like me, will advise potential new clients that they would be better off settling the case without an attorney.
If you or a loved one have been injured, Contact Schorr Law Firm for a free consultation by calling toll free at 1-866-456-0100 or Visit Schorr Law’s Website
Posted in
Automobile Accident,
Insurance,
Personal Injury
Tags:
Injury Settlement
Geoffrey E. Schorr
The American Association for Justice has just reported that a Dallas area man received a verdict of $84.25 million dollars as a result of a personal injury lawsuit. Mr. Waldrip, a 73 year old resident of Dallas County, rented a moving truck from U-Haul to help his daughter move. After parking the U-Haul truck, Mr. Waldrip set the parking brake and exited the vehicle. Because of an alleged failure in the parking brake, the truck rolled backward, over Mr. Waldrip. Mr. Waldrip suffered severe personal injury and is now permanently disabled because of the personal injury.
The U-Haul truck was 18 years old with almost a quarter million miles. Mr. Waldrip alleged that U-Haul failed to properly maintain the vehicle. Mr. Waldrip’s attorneys introduced evidence at trial that six previous users complained about the parking brake, and that the complaints had been reported to U-Haul. Mr. Waldrip claimed, among other things, that U-Haul was negligent in maintaining and repairing its vehicles. U-Haul claimed that Mr. Waldrip was negligent, and denied that its trucks were unsafe.
The American Association for Justice reports that the Court reduced the punitive damages award from $63 million dollars to $26 million dollars to comply with the Texas State law that caps punitive damages. It is also reported that U-Haul plans an appeal.
If you or a loved one has been injured as the result of someone’s negligence, contact one of our personal injury attorneys at 1-866-456-0100.
Posted in
Personal Injury
Tags:
Negligence,
personal injury
During the holiday season it is important to remember that car accidents occur at an alarming rate, and are especially prevalent during the holidays when many people travel out of town, and hurry around town in their vehicles running errands. Last year there was an estimated 6.2 million car accidents reported in the United States, with approximately 2.2 million reported injuries. Car accidents remain the number one cause of death for U.S. citizens between the ages of 4 and 34, and there are on average 40,000 car accident deaths reported per year. According to the NHTSA, in 2005 Dallas was rated the sixth most deadliest city for car accident related deaths. These above statistics make it likely that every year you, a relative or someone you know will be involved in a car accident.
Car accidents typically occur due to a driver’s negligence. A driver can be negligent in many ways, including: driving too fast, driving while intoxicated, driving recklessly, or by failing to pay attention while driving. Drivers are becoming more distracted while driving, especially with advances in technology. Many drivers operate their vehicles while eating, while talking on the phone, while texting, while watching television and by surfing the internet. Failure to timely react while operating a vehicle can lead to car accidents. If a driver is distracted, his or her reaction time may not be sufficient to avoid a car accident.
For car accident avoidance, drivers must adhere to the laws of the road, and keep distractions while driving to a minimum. To protect against injury in the event of a car accident, drivers and passengers must always buckle seatbelts, and consumers should purchase vehicles equipped with safety equipment, such as airbags. Also, it is imperative that children be placed in approved safety seats, and are properly restrained.
In the event of a car accident immediatley contact 911. If possible, safely remove your vehicle from the roadway. Make sure to get the other driver’s contact and insurance information. You should proceed to the nearest emergency room to make sure you or any passengers are free of serious injury. Finally, contact Dallas car accident attorneys at Schorr Law Firm, and we will assist you with your claims.
Contact Schorr Law Firm toll free at 1-866-456-0100 or Visit Schorr Law’s Website
Posted in
Personal Injury
Tags:
Car Accident,
personal injury
