My case is going to trial...

[gtrpimp76]

Oh and another point you brought up is how the insurance has been hiding the policy limit b/c of a higher limitations. I thought about that too. All my attorneys said is that we'll be pursuing Full Policy Amount. I could prolly see why they wanna drag this thing out a while longer.

 

[suzuki4life]

Well I personally would had asked for $500k minimuim.

breakdown for expenses.
actual damages(ie: bike, material and medical)
lost wages(actual lost wages or lost benefits in writing)
lost enjoyment compensation(no payment, no bike, wasting valuable time of your precious life)
mental infliction compensation(court stress, accident stress etc)




I was rearended a few years back. I was fired through an intersection and off my bike backwards on the opposite side of the intersection knocking me out cold. I came to staring at a an off duty patrolman who was holding me down by my helmet.

I was strapped to a stretcher forcefully ( I was sure I was fine)
my bike was left laying in piece on the road.
Xrays, EKG's etc.....
clean bill of health

settlement offered by the guy's insurance company
$12K total.
This covered my deductables, and my bike. THAT WAS IT.

Apparently they called my insurance company who called me with their number. My insurance company didn't even want to disclose the insult to me. I was pissed to say the least. I told the thief thank you but I'd be seeing him in court. He asked what I thought was fair. I said well if hot coffee on the lap can get over $250K I figure a cool mil would be a good starting point. He said, you weren't even hurt. I told him I was mentally and I hung up.

About a week went by and second offer came directly into me. Their dedicated settlement for ONLY my emotional injuries was over double what they had proposed for my entire previous offering. They were also covering my full medical expenses , not just the deductables as they previously offered. I had to go to one of their offices and sign agreement of settlements and collect my check. Guy nearly choked after I sgned the check and told him," I'd happily settled for my bills paid and a sincere apology, but Hey the check is already issued so i guess I should spend it"

 

[RamminBusa]

Take 'em to the cleaners... Good luck

 

[gtrpimp76]

Thanks RamminBusa. I'll do my best.

S4L: I like the expense breakdown you came up with. It is far from unreasonable and I think we can get properly compensated for everything.

 

[#cruncherbusa]

Take her shirt off her back!!!!

 

[greeneinc]

I would suggest filing a lawsuit close to $500K simply for the fact that you were not at fault, travelling below the posted speed limit and it is reported that the cager was 100% at fault. Then you have the factor of all the money borrowed and the expenses incurred. Now tack on that you had to drop out of school and both of your lives were placed on hold because of this persons negligence. The longer that the cagers insurance company holds out, the higher the lawsuit should be. Do not be afraid to file for this much because if this does go to court, with all of the publicize motorcycle cases recently where the cager was at fault, do not be suprised if the jury awards you more than that. Both you and your wife could have been killed and are very lucky. Make sure that your lawyer is a very good trial lawyer and specializes in accident cases. If you need, contact the AMA to see about getting some help with this. Glad to hear that you were both able to recover from this accident.

 

[eynlai]

BTW-My wife suffered a hairline fracture on her right elbow, laceration on her right ankle, fractures on her pubic ramus bone (both sides), lower back pain and occasional shooting pain on her right hand and forearm. What's even worse (yet wonderful at the same time) is she's already 10 weeks pregnant.  

Her OB GYN said her pregnancy will be "slightly" more difficult than a "normal" pregnancy. No she wasn't pregnant during the accident as it happened 6 months ago but this new bundle of joy may cause her some difficulty in the coming months.

Did your lawyer know about this? If your/her OB GYN can testify that the complications that she could face COULD be attributed to the accident... Go for $1 Million+ I'm not kidding and I would bet that if ALLSTATE learns about this they will be a little nicer. They may even be willing to disclose the policy limit at this point, and pay out up to the max if your lawyer ask for it just to wash their hands clean of this. But of course, you can continue beyond that and go after your own insurance, her and her boyfriend's personal assets.

Believe me, once, there's mention of a cute baby (they're all cute) and that the jury may hear of a cute baby... I hate to say to use your wife and your unborn in this way, but this is justified ammo.

By the way, lawyers usually take about 30 to 33% if SETTLED OUT OF COURT. If they go to trial then it can go to as high as 50%.

I don't know your lawyer, so I maybe stepping out of line here. But from what you've posted about him/her, it doesn't sound like he/she's the "hungry" enough. I'm not fond of lawyers, but sounds like what you need right now is someone that will say, "I'm going to ask for $3 million, I'll also suggest sueing the cellphone handset manufacturer and the cellphone carrier because she was on it while driving. Plus I'll sue the other person on the other line trying to give her directions KNOWing that she's driving while talking.".

My guess is IF this goes to trial he/she will not be the trial lawyer.

 

[MrHans]

Forgot to say good luck on you.

 

[race1gun]

Did your lawyer know about this?  If your/her OB GYN can testify that the complications that she could face COULD be attributed to the accident... Go for $1 Million+  I'm not kidding and I would bet that if ALLSTATE learns about this they will be a little nicer.  They may even be willing to disclose the policy limit at this point, and pay out up to the max if your lawyer ask for it just to wash their hands clean of this.  But of course, you can continue beyond that and go after your own insurance, her and her boyfriend's personal assets.

Believe me, once, there's mention of a cute baby (they're all cute) and that the jury may hear of a cute baby... I hate to say to use your wife and your unborn in this way, but this is justified ammo.

By the way, lawyers usually take about 30 to 33% if SETTLED OUT OF COURT.  If they go to trial then it can go to as high as 50%.

I don't know your lawyer, so I maybe stepping out of line here.  But from what you've posted about him/her, it doesn't sound like he/she's the "hungry" enough.  I'm not fond of lawyers, but sounds like what you need right now is someone that will say, "I'm going to ask for $3 million, I'll also suggest sueing the cellphone handset manufacturer and the cellphone carrier because she was on it while driving.  Plus I'll sue the other person on the other line trying  to give her directions KNOWing that she's driving while talking.".

My guess is IF this goes to trial he/she will not be the trial lawyer.

"i feel for the fool that pulls out on eynlai" >>got the right idea wear them out !! 250 k for coffee in lap this was attempted murder by my standards hope you come out on top

 

[gtrpimp76]

Thanks guys for ALL the well wishes. Eynlai: you've got some really valid points there. I totally feel that asking for at least 500K-1 MILL is not out of line and everything is justified. I'm gonna speak with my attorney today and see if we can sue for more. I've never been the type to sue frivously (as this is the first one ever due to a highside motorcycle accident due to a cager). But like you said, my child is due in February, my wife still has fractures Im sure and will cause lots of discomfort. BTW-I know you had a near miss last week and I hope all is going as expected. You filed that police report right? Good to hear that you kept it up on two wheels.

Greeneinc: I'll look into contacting the AMA and see what they have to offer. I'll def. make sure I have an awesome trial lawyer with this one. We have to file for more. There's no way we're going to get buttraped for this..

Thanx Mr.Hans...

 

[eynlai]

Yes, I filed. Luckily mine isn't bad at all compared to yours. So I just want my bike fixed to look clean again and the bracket fixed too to eliminate that vibration on the left peg.

Don't know what your lawyer's reaction will be when you talk to him about sueing for more. He'll probably scruff at the idea, especially if you tell him that you got the idea from a internet board. But keep this in mind: Insurance Co. usually offer low amounts, Plaintiff lawyers SHOULD ask for really high amounts, either the Jury/Judge will determine what's fair (usually a middle ground), OR it's settled out of court between those initial offerings/askings. It's not like if your lawyer ask for $3 Million, the judge or jury will dismiss the entire case and Insurance don't have to pay squat... No, they will usually adjust that amount to what they feel is fair. And likewise for listing those that you named in the suit, at the very beginning usually, the Judge will determine if all those named in your suit should be retained in the trial or dismiss... For example, you really can name the cellphone manufacturer and the carrier initially in the suit, because they were involved one way or another, it's up to the judge to determine if they their involvement constitute contributing to this woman's fault, and if they should be held partially liable.... Same thing for whoever she was talking to on the other end of the line. Was the other party aware she was on the phone? Did they know if she was using a headset or not? Did they advise her to pull over safely first while they were probably giving her directions? Or did they encourage her use of the cellphone while driving by continuing to give her directions knowing she's driving? These are the questions that will play out in trial.


There's no dispute of fault here

 

[A'Busa'd]

Its odd that you can't find out what the limits of insurance are. Here in Florida, that info is right on the insurance card we all must carry.

I'd be surprised if the offender was carrying more than 300K to 1,000K. Since you're going after the driver and the owner you might be able to double the available settlement. It's possible that the delays are due to two different insurance companies trying to work out the details, but I can guarantee you that they don't want to go to court. I see a nice settlement in your future.

 

[gtrpimp76]

UPDATE

The case finally settled out of court a month ago. Ins. co. agrees to pay $200K for me and my wife. I'll post more details as it is available.

 

[BusaWhipped]

Wow, 3 years to get this wrong righted. At least it looks like it turned out good in your favor. See you in Utah in 2 months.

 

[Charlesbusa]

Took long enough

Glad its over though

 

[screamin kanji]

Be DAMN SURE you include any Dr's reports indicating future surgeries or handicaps. I broke my wrist in accident and Dr said "he will need srgury by mid 40s for arthritis.

 

[Pipefighter248]

Took long enough

Glad its over though

+1

 

[gtrpimp76]

Wow, 3 years to get this wrong righted.  At least it looks like it turned out good in your favor.  See you in Utah in 2 months.

It seems like forever and a year since it happened. We were ready to go to trial a couple weeks ago, but the INS co decided that we have a very legitimate case against them and their client. To avoid any huge losses, they settled policy amount.

And yes, I WILL See you in UTAH in a couple months. I already cannot wait.

 

[gtrpimp76]

Be DAMN SURE you include any Dr's reports indicating future surgeries or handicaps. I broke my wrist in accident and Dr said "he will need srgury by mid 40s for arthritis.

we have. i have a separation in the Sacroilliac Joint and a separation of my pubic Symphsis bone that healed uneven and has calcification and small bone spurs. I can't train as hard as I want to (i.e. super long distance running and barbell squats and deadlifts). But we just want to get this over with. My attorneys wanted to go to trial b/c they felt we could've gotten a MUCH LARGER judgement on our side. Only problem is the appeal process could take another 3 to 5 years, and there is a small possibility the jury may feel that we deserve less.

 

[semi]

glad you got this finished to your satisfaction