QuestionApril 4, 2008 is was driving my children to school when a small school bus ran a stop sign and t-boned my car, pushing us about 6 feet into an an adjacent yard. I was heading east with no stop sign when this occurred by the way. We were hit on the drivers side and the passenger side was pushed over a street sign almost against a tree. Myself including three children were taken to the hospital by ambulance. My oldest son required stitched in his leg my daughter had a huge knot in the middle of her head and my youngest son just had a small cut on his hand from the glass. I had a cut on my head and a separated shoulder. I was off from work for 3 months because my job requires lifting. I seen a physical therapist, chiropractor and orthopedic doctor for about 4 months. There is roughly about $7500 in medical bills my insurance has covered. And my lost wages are about $7000. My question is how much should we ask for in a settlement. I still had a lot of pain in my shoulder. It make a loud popping noise when turned a certain way. The bus companys insurance has called and left a message asking if there are any medical bills we need taken care of. Also my car that was totaled would have been paid off in August. They did already pay off the loan but I did have to get a another car and start over with a new 24 month loan.
AnswerHi Tiffany,
It is always difficult to see one's children injured, so we all hope that there is nothing of a long term nature about the injuries they suffered. Same for you: best wishes in getting your health restored. Because I think that there is a risk of serious damages here, I am going to put in over an hour to get together some free pages of insurance information Doctor Settlement teaches settlement of accident claims.
I will divide your answer into six parts.
#1. Learn about insurance settlements for children
#2. Serious injuries: DO NOT settle too soon.
#3. Learn about mild brain injury and temporomandibular joint syndrome (TMJ/TMD)
#4. Learn about valuation of injury claims
#5. Learn about how to handle your own injury claim
#6. Learn about how to communicate with the insurance adjuster.
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#1. Learn about insurance settlements for children
You cannot settle these claims for your children without a court review. That is because the personal injury claims of minor children are usually subject to review of a court and the settlement awards must be invested in a blocked account.
That does not mean that you must hire an attorney; parents are allowed to negotiate the settlement. BUT the court approval process will require an attorney. The key here is for the parent who negotiates the settlement to MAKE THE COURT APPROVAL PROCESS THE DUTY OF THE INSURANCE COMPANY.
In other words, just before you agree that the claims are settled, make sure that you have also demanded that the insurance company MUST, AT ITS SOLE EXPENSE, obtain court approval.
The expenses for attorney fees must be approved by the court, so even if you did hire an attorney to represent your children, there will be a court review process at the end to ensure that the fees the attorney proposes to charge your children are reasonable.
The claims of minors for personal injuries suffered are strictly controlled. Attorney fees are CONTROLLED BY THE COURT, not the attorney. Parents must invest the funds in the name of the child in a blocked account. Injury claims of minors http://www.settlementcentral.com/page8017.htm insurance settlement procedures.
You asked about money for the injury to your children. The claims of minors for personal injuries suffered are strictly controlled. Parents must invest the funds in the name of the child in a blocked account. Injury claims of minors http://www.settlementcentral.com/page8017.htm insurance settlement procedures.
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#2. Serious injuries: DO NOT settle too soon.
DO NOT SETTLE YOUR CLAIMS UNLESS YOU ARE ABSOLUTELY CERTAIN THAT SOFT TISSUE INJURIES WILL NOT REAPPEAR ONCE YOU OR YOUR CHILDREN STRESS YOUR BODIES WITH PHYSICAL ACTIVITIES OR JUST DAILY LIVING AND WORKING. That Plays Right Into an Insurance Tactic Regarding Inducing Early Settlement of Injury Claims.
Let's just consider this topic of early settlements so you get the full picture of the advantage to the insurance company and the risks to you. Insurance companies like to settle early because the general damages—claims for pain and suffering—are always minimal, but continue to grow with continued medical/therapeutic care over the months. Therefore, the insurance adjuster will try to settle before the claim merits a larger pain and suffering element. THAT is why they are going to ask for an early settlement. This makes good sense for the insurance company. A claim that is still active after 12 months, with an injured claimant still undergoing treatment, will settle for a lot more pain and suffering money than a claim that is settled after just four months of treatment.
In soft tissue cases such as this, the full extent of most injuries is not known immediately after finishing early rounds of treatment, because the injured person has to undergo some of the wear and tear of everyday life, including the pounding his body will receive from a day's work. Even jobs that appear not to be physically demanding can be hard on an injured body.
Aside from the lifting aspects of your job, there are so many other aspects of your work that will be difficult to adjust to without experiencing pain at night or the next day. For example, have you ever stood all day with few breaks, as a store checkout clerk or a jewelry salesperson does? Or sat all day at a computer, as a secretary or phone service center employee does? Many jobs will interfere with healing, and you have no way to know how your body will respond until you have experienced sufficient physical exposure to load-test the ligamentous scar tissue as you heal.
Plus, who will pay for all of your family accident medical care incurred AFTER you settle? What if you were to settle now and nine months later when you or one of your children are suffering and the pain starts to become too much, and you go to a doctor only to discover that you can expect a course of treatment that will cost a lot of money? After you settle your claim, all further treatment is YOUR responsibility. Except in specific, unusual situations, you cannot go back and re-open a settlement.
Here is page from my website that shows in detail why you should never make an early personal injury insurance claims settlement http://www.settlementcentral.com/page0211.htm
And, of course, once you settle, THAT IS IT: you will never see another dime in pain and suffering money. By the way, did you know that getting an early settlement is a favorite trick of the insurance adjusters? Please see my website wherein we show Insurance Claim Adjuster Secret Tactics http://www.settlementcentral.com/page0092.htm
I know that you think this is going on too far with this one topic, Tiffany, but I HAVE TO TELL YOU that this is a REAL danger that I have seen many times. So just have patience a bit longer and commit yourself to read the following:
There may be a dull ache at night following a day at work or some physical activity or pain the next morning. DO NOT LET LITTLE PAINS GO UNATTENDED SINCE YOU DO NOT KNOW WHETHER THEY WILL CONTINUE OR GO AWAY. We all hope and believe that such little pains will disappear soon. But on the other hand, we have no way of knowing since this is the way serious fractures and soft tissue injuries can behave.
So, when this happens, even if a couple months or more post-treatment, do not hesitate to SEE A DOCTOR AND ATTRIBUTE THE PAIN TO THE ACCIDENT WITHOUT EQUIVOCATION. It is NEVER TOO LATE TO REPORT PERSONAL INJURIES FROM A FALL ACCIDENT http://www.settlementcentral.com/page0104.htm
"No medicine: no money"; medical costs increase worth of personal injury insurance claims http://www.settlementcentral.com/page0045.htm
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#3. Learn about mild brain injury and temporomandibular joint syndrome (TMJ/TMD)
How hard did your daughter hit her head? It sounds like a pretty hard whack if it raised a "huge knot in the middle of her head." So, let’s first address that topic of the most significant potential injury, her traumatic brain injury. Research that term, and especially post concussive syndrome and you will see some of the symptoms of that condition. My bet is that your daughter DOES HAVE A MILD BRAIN INJURY. It is untreated for two reasons.
First off, she most likely denied any loss of consciousness, right? Second, if there is no loss of consciousness and no complaints of the symptoms of brain injury, most doctors who are called upon to treat injuries will not make referrals to have the patient tested for brain injury. This is PARTICULARLY true in the case of children, who cannot give an accurate history of what is happening in their
Let’s first examine what is a consussion and what is a loss of consciousness. Your daughter DID HAVE A CONCUSSION, that much is for sure, since she hit her head. So traumatic brain injury is in play in her claim since she suffered a brain concussion.
Post-concussion syndrome, also known as post concussive syndrome or PCS, is a set of symptoms that a person may experience for weeks, months, or even years after a concussion, a mild form of traumatic brain injury. As many as 50% of patients who have experienced concussion have PCS, and some sources say as many as 90% of patients experience post concussion symptoms. People who have had concussions may experience physical, mental, or emotional symptoms. Symptoms can appear immediately or weeks to months after the initial injury.
Physical symptoms can include:
• headache
• dizziness
• impaired balance
• nausea and/or vomiting
• fatigue or sleepiness
• inability to sleep
• decreased libido
• sensitivity to noise or light
• ringing in the ears
• double or blurred vision
• decreased sense of taste, smell, or hearing
Emotional symptoms may include:
• irritability
• anxiety
• restlessness
• depression
• lack of emotion
• emotional lability or mood swings
• lack of ability to tolerate stress or alcohol
• aggression
Cognitive or mental symptoms can include:
• amnesia or difficulty remembering things
• confusion or impaired cognition
• impaired judgment
• slowed cognitive processing
• difficulty with abstract thinking
• difficulty concentrating
• decrease in work performance
• decrease in social skills
LOSS OF CONSCIOUSNESS—not essential to diagnosis of post concussive syndrome, but sometimes the length of time unconscious will be used to judge the degree of the brain injury.
The patient is typically the primary source who is asked the most significant question: Did you lose consciousness as a result of your injury? Most of my clients who actually later recalled that they did not remember moments just after being struck in the head, AT FIRST DENIED ANY LOSS OF CONSCIOUSNESS TO THE POLICE AND TO THE EMERGENCY ROOM.
WHY? First, most people equate loss of consciousness with being unconscious for some time. But in fact, “loss of consciousness” means loss of conscious awareness. Hence, loss of consciousness can range from being briefly dazed to several days of coma. In fact, in order for a brain injury victim to answer such a question, they would have to undergo extensive examination recollecting past events. Any change in mental state can be significant in understanding a patient's condition and if loss of memory (amnesia) occurred immediately before or after the trauma.
When she struck your head on something, probably there was a brief loss of consciousness. Even if she never before reported it, now is the time to correct herr records with a letter to your doctor explaining that you DID have a brief loss of consciousness.
Loss of Consciousness http://www.settlementcentral.com/page0134.htm After Accident or Injury
How do you correct records with the medical providers and the insurance adjusters? http://www.settlementcentral.com/page7004.htm Letters to insurance claim adjuster. While this is designed for self help claims, your attorney could write the same letter, even at this late date. Better now than at trial.
This page talks about how to confirm conversations with the insurance adjuster
http://www.settlementcentral.com/page0460.htm with loss of consciousness notify the insurance adjuster as soon as you recall it. Naturally I do NOT want to second-guess your child's doctors, but I would bring up to them the fact that your daughter now recall loss of consciousness and lobby for them to let you write a correction letter to correct her records.
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TMJ—temporomandibular joint syndrome: possible source for headaches. This is another term I want you to research. When an accident victim strikes her head, there is a good possibility that the disc in the condyle, or jaw joint disc, can be displaced. One of the consequences of jaw joint displacement is headaches. All too often in my practice, the doctors treated headaches as having originated from cervical problems, when in fact, they were due to a TMJ.
http://www.lectlaw.com/med/med04.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Temporomandibular_joint_disorder
http://www.tmjdoctorofmaryland.com/
There are two at-home ways to see if your jaw joint is moving. First, find the spot in front of the little lobes on the middle of your ears. These are called “tragus”: http://www.infovisual.info/03/048_en.html
Now, put your fingers just in front of the tragus and over the jaw joint and open and close your mouth. If the disc is far out of place, you will feel a click. Better is for someone to stand behind you as you are seated and perform the same test. That person can feel the click if your jaw joint disc is far out of place.
WHAT TO DO ABOUT REFERRALS: If you feel that you or your daughter do have any of these symptoms and they are of some significance, I WOULD INSIST UPON TREATMENT for them ASAP. It is best to get your general practitioner to refer you, but you can self-refer if you have to. An attorney can also be a source of information on good specialists. Here is what you would need: a neuropsychologist to test and to treat the mild brain injury. That is where the big mental help will come from, and of course that is where the BIG INSURANCE SETTLEMENT DOLLARS come from also.
As for the TMJ, a dentist who specializes in that field would be a lot better than an ordinary dentist. The TMJ specialist is adept at diagnosis and treatment, and of course, at making records that will help in making a good insurance settlement.
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#4. Learn about valuation factors in personal injury claims; INSURANCE INJURY CLAIM VALUATION TIPS
What about valuation of your claim? How does one figure out what to ask for? Quick Answer: get as much as you can. Figure out what would make you happy, and increase that amount by at least 50%! The value is what you and the adjuster agree it will be. Well, if that is not scientific enough for you, let’s learn a bit more about valuation of personal injury claims.
Valuation is not like going to a drive-in for a fast food meal. It takes time and study of many factors, including liability and medical records. Plus, one would like to meet the claimant to see how she will “sell” to the other side and to the jury. Those online sources that mention a "rule of thumb" is just that: a gross estimate.
SHORT ANSWER: A common theme among those who still think a “rule of thumb” formula will put you in the valuation ballpark is to multiply the medical specials times a number from ONE to FIVE (depending upon factors, some of which I will give you later—or all of which are fully discussed in the members' side of my website, dealing with insurance settlements www.SettlementCentral.Com ). Then that figure is the total value of the personal injury portion of the claim. Of course there is a long list of factors to consider for adding or deducting from the total.
Let's take a look just two factors that put the lie to the general use of this rule of thumb. An obvious one is that if a person with your injuries and those of your children is left to rely upon the records of a chiropractor or even a general practitioner medical doctor to support her claim, it will never have the same value as if one’s records were from an orthopedic surgeon or a neurosurgeon, as you may eventually have—for yourself or for your daughter. Oh, yes, I am aware that general practitioners and chiropractors seem to be better for most soft tissue injuries than taking drugs prescribed by a surgeon, but the insurance industry does not know that.
Insurance companies give great weight to opinions of orthopedic surgeons and neurosurgeons. http://www.settlementcentral.com/page0052.htm
A second, not so obvious, but very important factor that shows how inaccurate a “rule of thumb” formula can be is just plain location of the trial. Let's start with geography. Values differ from state to state, and within each state. City values are often different than rural values on claims, especially if the economy is tenuous in small towns. And the differences can be HUGE between these areas, even if only 20 miles apart.
Here is a listing of factors that will affect both the multiplier you will use, as well as the value of the claim inasmuch as they will increase or decrease the product of your multiplication.
1. LIABILITY DISPUTE
This is a big one because it most dramatically affects value. You should NOT ACCEPT any reduction in value for fault. Your fault cannot be used to reduce your award.
2. Trauma suffered
The value of your claim increases with a bigger crash, and decreases with a low damage tripping wherein one catches himself. Why? Just human nature. You had a HUGE crash, so this is a PLUS for your side.
3. Medical special damages
Cost of medical and related health care expenses; higher costs usually equate to an increase in value (excepting, of course, cases of gross overtreatment).
4. Type of injury
Where does the injury fall within the insurance industry's "hierarchy list" of valuing injuries? Irrespective of which injury may cause more pain, injuries are valued according to seriousness, tendency to be persistent or permanent, and whether or not they need objective proof to be believed (e.g. a broken bone versus soft tissue strain).
5. Type of medical care
Where does the medical care fall within the insurance industry's "hierarchy list" of valuing medical care? Orthopedists at the top, chiropractors near the bottom.
6. Prognosis- future care—permanency of injury or pain and suffering—does your doctor recommend 6 months of care, or were you done treating 4 months ago? Even if you are done treating, will the doctor predict future problems? You NEED YOUR DOCTOR TO MAKE AN OPINION TO THE EFFECT THAT YOUR RETURN TO WORK FULL TIME IS WITH SOME RESIDUAL PAIN, AND HENCE, YOU MUST PLAN TO RETURN FOR FUTURE CARE.
Your claim value gets a boost if your doctor specifies that you will need some future medical treatment, and right now the recommendation for surgery is important.
7. Your medical and claims history, prior accidents, prior injuries or treatment of the same area of the body.
8. Impairment of quality of life.
9. Quality and persistence of pain suffered.
10. Quality and thoroughness of your medical records.
11. Lost wages. Get your doctor to make a narrative letter in which he states that within nine months your job requirements can be expected to undermine the healing you have gained. We have a lot of free legal tips on insurance claims settlements using doctor narrative reports http://www.settlementcentral.com/page8003.htm You can get information there as to how to ask for a narrative letter and what it might cost. Talk to the doctor's office manager about it.
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#5. Learn about how to handle your own injury claim: DO IT YOURSELF INSURANCE CLAIM SETTLEMENTS
OK, Tiffany, Let’s Look at self-help methods of resolving your claim. Learn how to settle your own personal injury insurance claim AND DO IT!
Learn how to submit and settle your own personal injury insurance claims—DO IT YOURSELF SETTLEMENTS. Here is a series of pages that you can review. Take what makes sense to you and don't worry about the rest. Just get a flavor of how the system works without spending a ton of time right now.
Overview Tort Law Personal Injury Legal Claims http://www.settlementcentral.com/page3000.htm
Managing Medical Care After Auto Accident: http://www.settlementcentral.com/page0203.htm
Medical Care Documentation-the Key to Successful Personal Injury Insurance Claim Settlements http://www.settlementcentral.com/page0217.htm
Keys to a MAXIMUM INSURANCE INJURY CLAIM SETTLEMENT http://www.settlementcentral.com/page0089.htm
Use a Confidential Personal Injury Diary for TOP DOLLAR Insurance Claim Settlements http://www.settlementcentral.com/page0208.htm
Outline of questions to be expected from insurance claims adjuster http://www.settlementcentral.com/page0190.htm
Detailed listing of questions to be expected from insurance claims adjuster http://www.settlementcentral.com/page0207.htm
By the way, did you know that getting an early settlement is a favorite trick of the insurance adjusters? Please see my website wherein we show Insurance Claim Adjuster Secret Tactics http://www.settlementcentral.com/page0092.htm
Responding to Settlement Offer From Insurance Claims Adjuster http://www.settlementcentral.com/page0244.htm
Do It Yourself Advantages, or do these claims need an attorney? As for an ATTORNEY, this does not seem to be a case that involves any legal issues in dispute nor any large or complex damages. Why should you pay someone one-third to do what you can do yourself? Do-It-Yourself Personal Injury Claims; Eliminate Personal Injury Attorneys' Fees; Save Thousands of Dollars Settling Your Own Insurance Claim http://www.settlementcentral.com/page3011.htm
Without having to join my website, I have given a lot of free information on handling insurance claims without having to join as a member. Read the module at "5 Easy Steps to Do-it-Yourself Insurance Claim Settlement" http://www.settlementcentral.com/page0102.htm
This stuff is not rocket science, but it will take some effort on your part to read and cut and paste letter examples and to communicate. But hundreds of people are doing it each day, and they are getting good results.
What if you get only two-thirds the way to your settlement goal? Well, you can get as big a settlement as you can and then turn it over to an attorney and save a lot of fees. Thus, you could go it alone just to get an insurance settlement offer, and then take that insurance settlement offer to a personal injury attorney, thus exempting the amount of the offer from her fees. Do It Yourself Personal Injury Settlement Offer Reduces Personal Injury Attorney Fees http://www.settlementcentral.com/page0109.htm
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#6. Learn about how to communicate with the insurance adjuster: FINAL TOPIC—COMMUNICATE IN WRITING AND "DEMAND" NOT "ASK"
FINAL TOPIC, Tiffany: Effective communication with insurance claims adjusters. Establish Firm, Professional, and Positive Relationships With the Insurance Injury Claims Adjuster http://www.settlementcentral.com/page0059.htm
Always communicate with the adjuster in writing, showing your own analysis of value. It is OK I guess to have one call or so, but no more. Always have your information and ammunition in writing to give to the adjuster.
Let him know that you are FIRM IN YOUR RESOLVE to get what you are demanding (NOT "asking", since that invites a counter-offer, but instead "demanding" as fair and reasonable compensation) by asking him what the options are to resolve the matter fairly should he not agree to a reasonable claim value. In other words, let him know that you will go through with a court filing if need be.
Remember these tips, do your homework, print out your evidence, show resolve to get your fair settlement, and you will DO JUST FINE.
I trust that my extra time here has produced some information that has been of value to you, and thus I would respectfully request that you take the time to locate the FEEDBACK FORM on this site and leave some feedback for me.
Best Wishes,
Dr. Settlement, J.D. (Juris Doctor)
http://www.SettlementCentral.Com
