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Rear Ended on Freeway @ Dead Stop

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kollsc

Junior Member
What is the name of your state? Arizona (Accident October 6, 2004)

I was at a dead stop on a freeway due to traffic. The at-fault party didn’t see that our lane was stopped until she moved into our lane and rear ended me. Police report estimates her speed at 35 mph.. I am confident she was moving more like 40-45 upon impact.

She shoved my Grand Cherokee into the truck in front of me and then them into the car in front of them. 4 vehicles in total; 3 had to be towed away. My SUV was totaled by my insurance company. They paid off my loan - total pay out of around $17,500.

Oh, did I forget to mention .. of course .. she has NO INSURANCE.

I and one of the girls in the at-fault vehicle (89 blazer) were transported to the hospital. I was immobilized and transported to the hospital via ambulance. I had a 5" gash in my leg and other bruises and abrasions. My leg had to be sewn up, x-rays were taken, my head had an abrasion. Although I was belted in - the impact was so strong that my seat broke loose from the floorboard and the back of the seat busted.

I missed only 1 day work but had a few months of Chiro treatments, etc. My medical expenses were $8,000. My medical coverage on my auto policy covered $5,000 and my group medical through work covered the remaining $3,000.

I am left with a 5" x 1/2" scar on my leg; a round scar a little larger than a quarter; and an area on my lower leg about the size of a softball that is still numb 7 months after the accident.

Now my insurance company is trying to settle my pain and suffering portion from my uninsured motorist coverage. They first offered my $12k .. I said no, they moved to $13k .. again I said no .. now they are at $14k and will not budge from there. I don’t know if the scars will ever get any better .. I will have to live with them for the rest of my life .. and they are rather dark in color. My leg is still numb 7 months later and I don’t know if it will ever heal. My insurance company says we can wait 7 years to see if it heals .. and if it does, my settlement would be less .. or I can take their offer of $14k.

They tell me that even if I would have lost my leg, my total coverage is $25k and they would not pay more than that - no matter what.

I am told that I will have to pay my group medical provider back the $3k that they paid since they have no recourse against the uninsured at-fault party. Is this true ??

If I pay them back the $3k that leaves me with only $11k and it just don’t seem like enough given the facts.

Thoughts ?? Opinions ?? Comparable settlement values ??

Thanks !
- Confused.
 


teflon_jones

Senior Member
The only person that can answer if this settlement is ok is you. If you're not happy, ask for more, but without concrete documentation from a doctor as to what permanent injuries you've suffered, and how they're going to affect your life, you're not going to get anything else.

If I were you, I'd take their offer and move on. Fighting this isn't worth your time.
 

I AM ALWAYS LIABLE

Senior Member
My response:

Oh, boloney. Hire a personal injury attorney and take this into U.M. Arbitration. Your insurance company is low-balling you. For injuries such as yours, I typically obtain "Policy Limits".

IAAL
 

teflon_jones

Senior Member
I AM ALWAYS LIABLE said:
My response:

Oh, boloney. Hire a personal injury attorney and take this into U.M. Arbitration. Your insurance company is low-balling you. For injuries such as yours, I typically obtain "Policy Limits".

IAAL
Hiring a PI attorney will cost the poster 1/3 of the settlement, so even if they get the full $25k that'll only leave them with $16750, or $2750 more than they're offering now. And it'll take a lot of time and effort, and there's no guarantee the PI attorney will get the full $25K. I just don't think it's worth it personally.
 

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