Question 1

What do you do following an accident?

Accepted Answer

The actions that you take immediately following an accident can weigh heavily on the success or failure of your personal injury litigation. This fact applies to any accident regardless of whether your injury was caused by a motor vehicle accident, a slip and fall accident, as the result of equipment or product failure, or in any other way. The fact is that by the time that you are asked at a deposition or other proceeding to recall information regarding your accident and your injury, many months, if not years will have passed. We are human and so our memories will fade. Unfortunately, you will forget many crucial pieces of evidence that may have significantly assisted you in your action. Therefore, what you do following an accident is of the utmost importance.

Immediately following any accident or incident, you must be sure to be as perceptive as possible and to concentrate on the events following the accident. This includes observations as to time and distances, the name and addresses of the people around you who may have witnessed any part of the accident, and statements made by any people including the potential defendant and his or her employees. If you are able to do so, write down your observations as soon as possible after the accident has occurred. It is wise to carry a camera and a notepad in your car so that you may take photographs of the accident scene and your car, and so that you may take notes as to the identity of witnesses and/or anything else that you think may be important later. Also, with the advent of camera cell phones, you should take photographs of anything that you believe might be important. For example, if you have fallen on something, it will be very informative and helpful if you were to take a photograph of whatever it was that caused you to fall. As another example, if you are injured by a product or equipment failure, it is very important that you take photographs of the product or equipment, paying special attention to any warnings, markings or instructions.
Also, keep in mind that in the days following your accident, representatives from insurance companies may contact you to discuss your accident or even to provide a statement. These people may identify themselves as being from the insurance company, or as having no such affiliation.
 
Regardless of their affiliation and if you intend to retain counsel, never discuss with these people how the accident happened or how you feel. Rest assured, that any information that you provide will most certainly be used against you and your matter. It is also important to remember that you should never sign any documents as you will not know what rights you are signing away.

Question 2

Do I need to hire an attorney after an accident?

Accepted Answer

In some instances, you are more than capable to protect your own interests without the assistance of any attorney. For example, if you are in a motor vehicle accident and have only sustained property damage to your vehicle and no damage to your person, you may not need the assistance of an attorney. You need only make a claim through your own insurance company under your collision coverage. If there is a party to blame, your insurance company will retain their own attorney to recover from that party the money which was paid out. Even if you pay a deductible, the attorney retained by the insurance company will recover that amount as well. This is called a subrogation claim. If you were to retain an attorney, the repair of your vehicle would occur much later and the attorney would recover half of whatever was paid out for the repair. This would mean that you would be responsible for a portion of the repair costs. This is a relatively simple that does not require an attorney and would result in you receiving less than what your owed.

However, in instances of personal injury caused by any event, it is most often better to retain counsel. Make no mistake about, the insurance companies do not want to pay anything and will only do so when they feel that they must, and even then will want to pay as little as possible. The insurance company may propose a settlement, but more often than not, the amount that they propose is less than that which they would have suggested to an attorney. The insurance company realizes that this may be the first time that you have been involved in an accident where you have been injured and that you will simply not know the full extent to which you are entitled to be compensated. For example, imagine that you are an art collector and that you are purchasing a famous piece of art from an individual who knows nothing about the value of the piece he is selling. Under these circumstances, it would be easier to buy the artwork at a price below the fair market value because of the seller’s lack of knowledge. Now, imagine that you are purchasing the same piece art from an art dealer like yourself. In this instance, you are more likely to pay the full fair market value for the artwork because each of you has more similar levels of knowledge.
 
The advantage of using an attorney is that he or she is experienced at obtaining a full settlement because he or she is aware of the full market value of your injury. Of course, you are responsible for paying attorney’s fees, but in most instances the amount is worth it where the issues are complicated and the insurance companies would have an unfair advantage over your lack of knowledge and experience with pursuing a claim.

Question 3

Who will pay for my medical bills after an accident?

Accepted Answer

Under the laws in both Pennsylvania and New Jersey, your own automobile insurance company is responsible for paying your medical bills, regardless of who is at fault. This is called Personal Injury Protection (PIP). However, this is not the case if you have selected your private health insurance coverage as primary in return for a reduced premium. It is better to retain your automobile insurance coverage as primary in the event of an automobile accident as it will ensure that you will obtain the medical care that you may need, and that the insurance company will pay for it.

Question 4

Who will pay for the damage to my car after an accident?

Accepted Answer

Unless the other driver is clearly at fault and if you have collision coverage, you should contact your own automobile insurance company and submit a claim. Your insurance will require an appraisal of the vehicle to determine the extent of damage and they will then pay that amount to repair the vehicle, minus your deductible.

If liability is clear or if you do not have collision coverage, then you should let your attorney contact the other driver's insurer. Alternatively, you should obtain a written estimate from a licensed auto body shop, even if your vehicle is deemed a total loss. Thereafter, provide a record of your estimate to your attorney as this will be important evidence. If the car is incurring storage charges, you should make arrangement to either repair or dispose of the vehicle as soon as possible. The storage charges can rack up quickly and you will be surprised at how much even a few weeks of storage will cost.

Question 5

My car is damaged. Can I get a rental car? Who will pay for it?

Accepted Answer

You may be entitled to the reimbursement of a rental car. However, the amount of the reimbursement and for how long will depend on your insurance coverage. Keep in mind, that in most circumstances your reimbursement may not be enough or for a long enough period of time. If you do not have rental reimbursement or not enough, you will be able to make a claim against the other person's insurance company. However, you will have to pay for the rental first, typically on a credit card, and the bill is then submitted later for reimbursement. Ultimately, you will be limited in your recovery to a "reasonable" daily rate for a "reasonable" period of time, depending on the circumstances.

Question 6

What if I do not own a car and I do not have insurance?

Accepted Answer

If you do not own an automobile of your own, a potential source of coverage may be through a resident relative's insurance. However, if there is no immediate family member in your household with automobile insurance, you are entitled coverage from the vehicle in which you were traveling in at the time of the accident. In the event that the vehicle was uninsured, then an application would be made to the Pennsylvania Financial Responsibility Assigned Claims Plan or the New Jersey Unsatisfied Claim and Judgment Fund Board depending upon where you reside.

The only time the other driver's insurance company would be responsible for your medical bills is if you were a pedestrian at the time of the accident, and there were no other sources of insurance available to you. Please keep in mind that this is only with regard to answering the question, who will immediately pay my medical bills while I receive treatment. If the other driver is at fault and even if your medical bills remain unpaid, you will be able to recover from that other driver.

Question 7

What does limited tort (in Pennsylvania) or verbal threshold (in New Jersey) mean?

Accepted Answer

If you have made this election, it means that you have paid lesser premiums, but in exchange you have forfeited some substantial rights. This means that with some limited exceptions, you are unable to recover for your pain and suffering. Whether you can recover for pain and suffering requires some analysis and will depend on such things as the extent of your injuries and/or the use of the other driver's vehicle and/or in which state the other driver's vehicle was registered.

This is an issue that you will definitely need to discuss with your counsel. Also, be sure that you fully understand the implications of this selection when you obtain your own automobile insurance policy. The money that you save in the short term by selecting limited tort (in Pennsylvania) or verbal threshold (in New Jersey), may not be worth it when you cannot fully recover for your injuries.

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