Auto Insurance Claims: accident, good lawyer, good attorney

Question
6 months ago, I was hit head on, at midnight, by a 16 year old girl on her cell phone. We both went into the ER as trauma patients. We both had same insurance carrier. My worst injury has been the double compound fracture of my right leg. I have had surgery twice and am scheduled for another this week. I am a respiratory therapist so walking is essential to my job. My car was totaled, I lost my job of 19years ( because I was out > 12 weeks)and still don't know how long I can "tough it out". My orthoped. surgeon is amazed that i am walking as well as i am. Now, I find out that I will now be charged a "sur-charge" of some sort simply because I was involved in a payout. How is this legal? The girl/family had $50,000 coverage and does not appear to have anything of any real value. My health insurance has paid all of my medical bills(almost $70,000 so far) and i am having to use the settlement to pay my deductibles. Why am I getting the insurance increase on top of everything else? South Carolina stinks!

Answer
Lisa,

Sorry to hear about your situation.

Unfortunately, your insurance company can and will raise your premiums whenever you have a claim even if the accident is not your fault.  They basically use any excuse to raise their premiums and thus make more money - even if you were stopped at a traffic light and hit from behind.  It's ridiculous but true.

However, a good lawyer can sometimes find additional coverage.  Here's some thoughts:

1.  Do you have "underinsurance" on your own auto policy?  This is really inexpensive to add to your own policy and picks up where the other driver's auto insurance ends.

2.  Sometimes homeowner's policies contain coverage that picks up where the auto coverage ends.  You should confirm that the other driver does not have this coverage.  You usually would ask for an "affidavit of no other coverage" from the other driver.

3.  In certain rare instances your own homeowner's policy may contain coverage for you if the other driver has insufficient insurance to cover your injuries.

4.  A long shot but... was the other driver underage drinking at a bar illegally beforehand?  The bar might be responsible for serving a minor.

5.  Maybe the vehicle was serviced improperly and the service station could be held partially responsible...?

These are some of the types of things a good lawyer can help you with but your in a tough situation regardless.

Best of luck,

Ernest Ferraro