Auto Insurance Claims: Permanent loss of mobility., whip lash, neck and shoulder pain

Question
Hello Richard,

I am a 59.5 year old airline pilot, live in San Diego Ca and was rear ended on 7 Jan 2010. I've got 5 more years to work before mandatory retirement.

My truck was a total loss and my injuries were tissue and muscular related in the form or whip lash and blunt force stretching.

I did not hurt the day of the accident, but there was lower neck and shoulder pain the day after.

I immediately saw my personal doctor (GP) three days after the accident for the neck and shoulder pain.

After almost 8 months and 6 months of professional physical therapy my Physical Therapist and Doctor (GP) think I've reached my maximum medical benefit and that there is between 5-10% loss of motion/range/recovery of the lower neck muscles and shoulder.

So far I've lost 17 days of work over the 8 month period which amounts to about 5 times the medical expenses( doctors visits and physical therapy) so far.

Though my pain is far less than original in the ensuing months after the accident, it seems now I will be left with permament aches and pain in both the neck and shoulder.

FINALLY, my question...!

In my situation is it reasonable or legal ask for future loss of income and pain and suffering since it appears now that I will have future loss of income and pain and suffering long after the settlement with the defendants insurance provider.

I am very concerned that these two specific injuries may have a significant negative impact on my ability to do the sort of work I do and would therefor severely impact my earning capacity in the future.

Sorry for the long post/question, but I wanted to give you as complete a picture of my situation as reasonable for an answer.

THANK YOU and best regards Joe  

Answer
Hi Joe,

It is certainley legal for you to ask for compensation of any and all costs and expenses resulting from the collision that was someone else's fault, and those expenses include future medical expenses, future lost wages and future pain & suffering.

However, pursuing this type of claim is not for the faint of heart. Being a pilot, I'm sure you're no faint of heart, however the process can be very time consuming and frustrating. You should have no phone conversation with the claims adjuster. All communication should be in writing and you should request they only communicate in writing. You may want to check out a website: www.collisionwizard.com . It was developed by the Better Business Bureau Video Series as a self help injury claim site. It will allow you to enter all of your information regarding your accident, car damage, injuries, treatments and expenses. It also has a built in calulator that will advise you of the high and low value of your claim. Then the system will assist you in preparing a demand package to send to the insurance company. If it all seems to be too much work you can always hire an attorney. Just be prepared that they will take 33% to 40% of the total settlement.

The claims process is very contentious. Never be fooled into beleiving the claims adjuster is on your side. The will do and say anything necessary to reduce what they have to pay. They will try to say your doctors over-treated you. They will try to say your injuries are due to age or a prior incident. They will send your medical bills to an outside review company who will also state your docyors over-treated and they will try to reduce the bills. The adjuster is a highly trained in the psychology of claim adjusting and will use many tactics to not pay you or to pay as little as possible.  Your mission, should you choose to accept it, will be to never let em get you down. Just stay calm and respond with well thought out replies that refute their attempts to minimize your claim.

I was not trying to scare you, but if I did, good. It will keep you on your toes and help you to prevail in the end.

I hope this helps
Richard Hixenbaugh