Arbitration and awards 6/12/2008

[Summertime2]

What is the name of your state? Washington State.

I was in an auto accident April 2005 where the other vehicle ran a stop sign and hit my vehicle (a brand new 2005 Volvo XC90). The other driver was ticketed at the scene. Her insurance coverage is 25/50/10. I am a stay at home wife with four children. I still have shoulder and back problems stemming from the accident.

Damages to my Volvo were $16,350. My medical bill total is $14,398.

The arbitrator awarded me $10,968.00 for property damages, $14,397.97 for medical expenses, and $15,000 for general damages, for a total of $40,366.

My attorney believes this is a "generous amount" and that we could possibly not be awarded this much if we went to trial. He says that most juries do not give high awards for auto accidents in the state of Washington.

My attorney says that her insurance company will now counter the amount offered by the Arbitrator and that we will be going back and forth with different amounts until we reach a settlement agreement and/or go to trial.

I just wondered if I should consider this amount generous and now what should I expect to happen? I don't understand why we went to an Arbitrator when he awards the plainiff a certain amount and the defendant (her insurance company) can still fight it.

Thank you in advance for your help and guidance.

 

[ecmst12]

$15k for general damages? Hell yes that's generous! Of course you haven't described your injuries in detail but unless you required surgery or have documentable permanent disabilities from them (not just continuing pain, actual reduced function), that's pretty damn good.

Of course you will not get more then $25k for injury and $10k for property damage since that is all the policy has available. But that's still a very good deal; soft tissue injuries generally do NOT get policy limits.

 

[teflon_jones]

Have you completed the treatment for your injuries? If so, then yes the settlement is good and I would take it.

 

[Summertime2]

Yes I sustained soft-tissue injuries from the accident, which haven't healed. (Daily right shoulder/back pain, daily low-grade fevers, and almost daily headaches).

I would just like to get this thing (lawsuit) over with and get the medical treatment I need from the doctor I want to see (his office will not see patients who are in a lawsuit).

Can anyone explain to me why we would go to an Arbitrator and still have to negociate the settlement with the insurance company?

Also my attorney says we will get as much as we can from the defendants' insurance company and then file an uninsured motorist claim with my insurance for the remainder of the Arbitrators figures since her insurance is only 25/50/10. Does this make sense? And will it make my insurance go up because of it?