My gf's lawyer told her how much she could get from a car accident injury today...
 

This 16 year old kid who hadn't been driving for no longer than 1 month hit her car at around 40 mph exiting an entrance only and completely failing to stop to check for traffic. He was at fault. She had to go through 3 months of chiropractic work (it was genuine, she's a frail girl) and 2 months with an arm brace.

I don't know about you, but I've known people who had only gotten small flesh wounds who ended up with $2,000+.

Her lawyer said he can get at the most, $2k to $3k. Is it just me or does that sound awfully low comparatively to what other people receive in car accident injuries? We're not greedy but it'd be nice to know if this sounds low, or about right from other experiences. :winkwink:

How much does the attorney get?

the usual rate.... 98%

but seriously, thats low.... very low...

The lawyer is getting 1/3. He said hes going to *try* to get her $3,000.
The chiropracter gets $3,100.

[QUOTE=sonofsam]the usual rate.... 98%

They do rip people off all the time

The dude probably had minimum insurance. If it all got put to other uses that is the problem.

so are you actually getting $10k? $3k goes to you, $3.1k for medical bills and the rest to the lawyer?

or are you hoping to get $3k, minus $1k for the lawyer, and $3.1k for medical bills, so you are $1000 in the hole out of the whole deal...

So that's $3k PLUS medical expenses, right?

Edit:

exactly what i was trying to ask :winkwink:

Why should she recieve more that she's spending? I'm assuming that the insurance will cover her actual expenses at her chiropracter and thats it?

Is the amount your gf is going after equal to or around the sum of lost wages, medical bills and attorney fees?
WG

That seems low. :2 cents:

Ditch the lawyer and handle it yourself. Lots more money.. Its not hard

You don't ever HAVE to settle. You can get a judge or even a jury trial. If the lawyer's getting 1/3, don't you think he's asking for as much as he, in his professional experience, thinks he can get? There may also be limits on the kid's insurance.

Plus judges and juries usually aren't impressed by chiropractic visits. If she can get her chiro visits paid for, and a little for pain and suffering, she should be happy. Getting in an accident isn't winning the lottery and high payouts for something minor affect all our rates.

/rant over

Wow...what a subject for me...lol I have been on the phone all week with lawyers, doctors and insurance adjusters about a wreck I was in last year.
What I have found out is the general rule of thumb for settlements involving substantial injuries is the sum of three times what the medical bills are. Now when I say substantial injuries, what I have been told is that you need to have some sort of eveidence that you were hurt, bloody gory photos, scars, ex-rays of broken bones etc. If you do not have such evidence then this type of injury is called a soft tissue injury which does not pay off well with jurors, without the actual proof or photos then the jurors may think you are just trying to get rich quick like alot of people have done in the past.
I found out that here in Northern California the insurance company "All State" has actually lowered the payouts on soft tissue settlements by a third by doing some pretty risky market research. Basically what they did was for 2 years (I think thats how long it was) they basically offered $1000 for any soft tissue settlement...take it or take us to court they said. Of course most people took it to court and that's exactly what they wanted them to do. This gave them a very good idea of what jurors would award people for soft tissue damages. The outcome was in their favor and it dropped the standard offers by 30% or so...pretty smart of you ask me.
Now for my wreck heres the scoop... I was hit last year when a guy ran a red light doing about 55-60 mph, my 4 runner was totaled and I had a pretty nice bump on my head and bruised shoulder. I went to the doctor a few days later because I was loosing my grip in my left hand....doctor said I had a pinched nerve and suggested and MRI... had the MRI done, found two or three more compressed vertabraes (bulging discs). I was going through back treatment at the time of the wreck but had never had my neck checked out so there is no way to tell if this was caused by the accident or if it's related to some sort of disc disease. Basically it's a gamble on my part and the insurance companies part if we decide to take it to court....My medical bills were $8000 and the insurance compnay offered me $13000 to settle it right now...I told them $19000 take it or leave it....they came back at $15000....I once again said $19000 and am waiting for the response as I am typing this, he said he had to get approval from his higher ups....this all happened today.

The Lawyers I spoke with said different things but of course all wanted at least 33% plus court costs to take the case...but a couple said I could get alot more because they would use their own doctors and prove that my injuries were caused by the accident...a couple said it was a great offer...take it and run and a couple said I should counter offer and try to get them to $18000 or so. I did the last choice because it's such a pain to deal with all of this and it could take up to two years for a settlement to come through if I sue.

If you do try to get a higher settlement yourself, I would do some research first, find out some lingo that is used, speak with as many lawyers as you can and then get a fair settlement price in your head before you start trying to negotiate. Also just keep in mind that the other parties insurance adjuster that you are dealing with may seem very nice and act like he or she is working for you but in all reality they are paid to NOT PAY YOU!
Good Luck :)

That sounds way too low..hit up a few lawyers..it should be more in the range of atleast 100k

It sounds to me like she is going to be fine and you should drop the attorney and talk directly with their insurance company to see if they will settle with you for a decent amount at or around what your attorney said.

If she has insurance and they will pay for her doctor visits then let them and keep any extra cash you get from the settlement but be happy she wasnt seriously injured or killed and move on.

Sounds very low.

I was rear-ended in 1992 by a 17 year old driving to school. I was waiting to turn left into my kids' daycare and he plowed into me doing about 45. The one good thing was that I had my foot on the break and the cops said it prevented my car (with wheels turned a bit to the left) from moving into oncoming traffic.

Anyway.... the bolts on my bucket seat sheered off and the seat shifted backwards at the same time my 4 year old son's head moved forward from the impact (he was in an approved child booster seat). His lower jaw was broken completely in two at about the point of the 3rd tooth from the front on the right. He lost a permanent tooth bud at that location and had his mouth wired shut for 6 weeks.

I was uninjured as was my older son who was 7 at the time. I received 2500, my older son received 500. My attorney presented alot of research in settlements for similar injuries to the other party's insurance company and they decided to settle for $80,000 for my son's injury. My attorney was the son of a family friend and reduced his normal 1/3rd fee to 20%.