Personal Injury Protection (PIP)
April 27, 2010
“Personal Injury Protection” (also known as “PIP”) is coverage purchased through your automobile insurance. PIP covers medical expenses and 80% of lost wages as a result of injuries sustained in a car accident. Texas law provides that PIP must be made available in the minimum amount of $2,500 per person, but you can purchase more coverage if you wish. PIP will cover you as well as any passengers in your vehicle.
In Texas, PIP is automatically included in any personal automobile insurance policy unless the coverage is expressly rejected in writing. Likewise, even if PIP does not appear on your policy, you will have the minimum coverage ($2,500 per person) unless your insurance company can produce a signed written rejection of the PIP coverage.
However, do not mistake PIP for “Medical Payments” coverage (also known as “Med-Pay”). On the surface, Med-Pay and PIP look similar. But there is one major difference. With Med-Pay, your insurance company has a right of reimbursement if you receive a separate settlement. PIP has no such right of reimbursement. For example, let’s say you are injured in a car accident which is the other driver’s fault. If you have medical expenses of $2,000, your PIP coverage will reimburse you for those medical expenses. You can then submit those same medical expenses to the other driver’s insurance company. If the other insurance company agrees to pay you a settlement (for example, $4,000), then you would not have to reimburse the PIP benefits that you previously collected from your insurance company. However, if you had Med-Pay coverage instead of PIP, then you would have to reimburse your insurance company the $2,000 you previously collected in Med-Pay benefits. That is why many insurance companies and their agents tend to push Med-Pay coverage instead of PIP.
Personal Injury Cases in Small Claims Court
April 20, 2010
More and more car accident, slip & fall, and other personal injury cases in Texas are being filed in small claims court. This is true for several reasons. First, the jurisdictional limit of small claims court was raised from $5,000 to $10,000. This has opened the door to cases being filed in small claims court since there are many injury cases whose value is not likely to exceed $10,000. Secondly, the rules of evidence and procedure are very relaxed in small claims court. In fact, the Texas Rules of Evidence expressly do not apply in small claims court. This makes prosecuting a small claims case much less time consuming, less expensive, and far less aggravating for both the client and the lawyer. Third, your case will get heard much quicker in small claims court. Generally speaking, a case could get to trial within 3-6 months of its filing, as opposed to 2 years or more in a higher court. And when you do get to trial in small claims court, the case is typically finished that same day.
Whether your personal injury case is a good candidate for small claims court will be determined after a consultation with your lawyer. Your lawyer should be able to explain the pros and cons of filing your case in small claims court. You and your lawyer can then make a decision as to whether small claims court is your best option, or whether your case should be filed in a higher court.
How are Car Accident Repairs Handled?
April 13, 2010
You have just been involved in a car accident and your vehicle has been damaged. You have reported your claim to the insurance company. Sometimes the insurance company will ask you to take the vehicle to one of their approved body shops. Although such shops may do a fine job, they usually follow the repair guidelines dictated by the insurance company. You have the right to use a body shop of your choice. Furthermore, you have the right to have the repairs done with the parts of your choice. You do not have to settle for after-market or salvage parts just because that is what the insurance company wants.
If your vehicle is totalled, then you are entitled to collect the “fair market value” of your vehicle. The fair market value is determined by many factors, such as the year, make, model, mileage, condition, etc. Some commonly recognized sources for car values include the NADA, and Kelley Blue Book. Another method is to search the local classified listings in your area for comparable vehicles being offered for sale.
Personal Injury Cases and Contingency Fees.
April 11, 2010
“No fees unless you collect.” What does this mean? Most, if not all, personal injury lawyers agree to represent a client on a “contingency fee” basis. Simply put, a contingency fee is a fee paid to an attorney that is contingent, or conditioned, upon any recovery in the case. Since most injured clients are unable to pay an attorney on an hourly basis, the attorney and client enter into an agreement whereby the attorney will be paid in the event there is any monetary recovery. If there is no recovery, then there is no fee. Almost always, the contingency fees are calculated as some percentage of the recovery. For instance, if the contingency fee is one-third (33 1/3%), and your case settles for $9,000.00, the attorney would be entitled to $3,000.00, for attorney fees. The remainder of the proceeds are used to pay any case expenses, medical expenses and to pay the client. However, there are some issues that the client should be aware of before entering into a contingency fee agreement.
What is the percentage and does it increase for any reason? Most of the time, a contingency fee agreement begins with an initial percentage in the event the case settles without the need for filing a lawsuit. This is usually the lowest of the percentages. Customarily, however, the percentages may increase if the attorney has to file a lawsuit in your particular case, and the percentage may even increase further if the case has to go to trial or even an appeal. This is so because the attorney has now invested much more time, effort , and money into prosecuting your case.
Does the attorney also get to recover case expenses over and above the contingency fee? Almost every personal injury case is going to involve some expenditures such as records fees, filing fees, investigative expenses, and litigation expenses. Under normal circumstances, the attorney pays these expenses and then recovers the expenses out of the settlement or recovery. Generally, expenses are recovered in addition to, and separate from, the attorneys fees. What the potenial client should look for is the type of expenses being deducted. Obviously, direct expenses should be recouped from the settlement or recovery. However, the client should note if other indirect, or overhead, expenses are being charged. Examples would include fax fees, stationary fees, mileage, etc. These are generally overhead expenses and, in my opinion, should not be charged to the client’s case. Nevertheless, it is not uncommon for an attorney to provide for recovery of these types of overhead expenses and the potential client should be aware of this upon reviewing any contingency fee contract.
What happens if my case doesn’t settle or I lose my case at trial? Then the attorney gets nothing for his fees. However, the typical contingency fee contract may provide that the attorney can seek reimbursement of his expenses from the client. Nevertheless, the ethical attorney does not seek reimbursement of case expenses from the client especially when the attorney and client were cooperative with each other and both gave their best efforts to prosecute the case to its conclusion. The attorney will simply write off the expenses as a loss.
What if I decide to drop my attorney? Keep in mind that when you sign a contingency fee contract, you are essentially assigning a percentage of your case to the attorney. Likewise, if you drop your attorney without good cause, the attorney can still enforce his right to recover his fees and expenses. If you drop your attorney for good cause, then the attorney would only be able to collect the “reasonable value” of his work. Whether the attorney is dropped with or without good cause will almost always be disputed between the attorney and client. Likewise, if you hire another attorney, your new attorney will probably have to agree to make some split of his fees with your previous attorney in order to avoid any future disputes. The best way to avoid this issue is to feel comfortable with the attorney you are hiring from the very beginning. If you have any hesitation, then go home and sleep on it. Another suggestion is to CALL A LAWYER you can trust.