Need advice about insurance and car accidents

[Drakkon]

MY mom was invovled in a bad accident last friday, she driving an expedition got hit by a 17 yr old girl in a minivan, rolled the expedition twice leaving mom with a concussion and about 20 stiches, and sister (passenger) with a pretty beat up body as well.
So turns out girl has same insurance as mom (Farmers)...well they called mom yesterday to take her statement but it was the GIRLS agent and not my moms. Thus they have in office crap going on where they deceptively told mom (who is on medications and is barely fit to do much commenting) to ask her about what happend.
Now it looks like they are especially screw them over giving them TOTAL = 12K, thats after injuries, and after the total of the expedition (2002 model /w 75K miles) even though it was ENTIRELY the girls fault (she quoted to officers "I was on my cell phone and wasn't paying attention" - in the police report and also my mom was quoted by police as going under the speed limit based on tracks and ammount of damage to minivan)
Any ideas what to do here? I told her to get a lawyer but she says she doesn't have the money for it, i'm like when you WIN you will not even have to pay

 

[Kelvrick]

How old are you? Where is dad?

Yes, the best thing to do is to get a lawyer, and hopefully she didn't cash the check yet. They offered 12k right? How did they come up with the figure?

 

[lytalbayre]

Ummm, just for the record I HATE FARMERS (out of principle because they have very bad customer service and the misrepresent a lot of their policies - based on my personal experience).

And yes, your mom doesn't need $$ for a lwayer in this kind of case. There are tons of accidental injury lawyers that would take on this case for a % of winnings...

Like others said, don't accept the settlement. Wait until your mom is out of the hospital until this get's straightened out. Just tell the insurance company to wait until she is healthy (they don't have much of a choice!).

Good luck!

 

[Drakkon]

I'm 25...dad is around but hes of the same mindset as mom...so im just trying to figure out some way to get them to lawyer up as this 12K to me seems outrageous.
They already released mom from the hospital, she had no major internal injuries so shes home already. Thus why the insurance is already calling her.
The 12K figure was figured out by farmers and their idea of how much vehicle was worth before it was totaled prettymuch. Since mom has health insurance they considered that it covered that (which is BS because its going to still be a few bills from hospital for things they didnt cover)

 

[ValValline]

1. NEVER take the first offer from any insurance company
2. NEVER EVER EVER take the first offer from an insurance company that insures both parties in an accident
3. NEVER sign anything until you talk to an attorney when an accident involves injuries
4. DON'T talk to anyone if you are on meds. Tell them to wait a few days until you feel better or get out of the hospital.

The bottom line is that insurance companies want to settle as cheaply and as fast as possible before the victims have time to figure out just how badly they are hurt.

 

[BoomerD]

MOST attorneys will offer an initial consultation at no charge. A GOOD attorney who speicalizes in this will take the case for a percentage, (as will most BAD ones too) and she will need no money up front. It sux that her insurance company is trying to screw her, but "welcome to insurance"...ALL they care about is THEIR bottom line, not playing fair to your mom... Her health insurance will want to be paid back for what they pay for her medical expenses. Whether it's from the insurance settlement, or just from your mom's pocket, they won't care, but a good attorney can negotiate that as well.
You're getting good advice here...GET AN ATTORNEY!! If you don't know of a good one in your area, ask around. Most people know someone who's had a similar thing happen, and if they used a good attorney, they're usually glad to recommend them, and if they had a BAD one, they usually SCREAM at you not to use them...

 

[bigj3347]

lytalbayre is correct. I work at a a lay firm that specialized in traffic accidents. We take just about all of our cases on a contingency fee basis. We'll take a percentage of your settlement amount. typically 33-50%. You can haggle with them before you sign the retainer agreement. When the same insurance insures both parties. There are two claims that are filed. One for you, and one for the other party. The claims adjuster assigned to your claim DEFENDS your interests, and vice versa. Make sure that you, or your attorney, fiels a claim on your behalf with your insurance. This accident sounds pretty serious, a police report should have been filed. The police would come and take everyones statement, look at the damage done, skid marks etc. and make conclusion on who was at fault. Sounds like this shouldn't be a problem, your mom doesn't seem like she's at fault. The insurance company would then send an apprasier out to your home or to the bodyshop the car is at to inspect the vehicle. If the vehicle is a totall loss, another total loss adjuster will be assigned to work with you on the totall loss settlement, they'll appraise the vehicle. Year, make, model, mileage to determine the value relative to the area you live. If it isn't a total loss, they'll give u an estimate on the repairs cost. This is called the Property Damage portion of the claim. The should also pay for our rental while your car is in the shop. There typically isn't any negotiations inthis phase, they'll be responsible to take restore your vehicle to its original condition. After the Property Damage portion is done, we'll then proceed with the Bodily Injury Claim. The attorney's office will obtaine all your medical reports and bills, orgainzie it and write a demand package on your behalf. This will include special damages, injuries, loss of wages, etc. This is where the attorney helps a lot. Without the expertise of an attorney, the other party insurace will typically low ball you if you don't have an attorney. The attorney will argue for you, the decline in the quality of life, mental strain, physical pain, inconveniecnes etc. This settlement amount they negotiate for you is where they take their cut. I know it sounds like the attorney's is fleecing you for your suffering but it really isn't that bad, if they lose your case, they get nothing. And if you don't get a lawyer, the insurance companies will just bully you out of your rightful money. This is a very general run down of the claims process, hope this helps to give your famiily a general idea on what to expect. I'm not sure what you meant in your post by 12k for everything. the indusry practice, (I work with Farmer's a lot) is that property damage and boidly injury separated. Your mom is still in the hospital, the medical bills and reports and no where near completed. If 12k is for the property damage portion, go to autotrader or kelly blue book to see the going price for a comparable vehicle. DO NOT SIGN THE BODILY INJURY RELEASE UNTIL YOU ARE DONE TREATING WITH A DOCTOR AND KNOW HOW MUCH MONEY IN BILLS YOU"RE LOOKING AT. you'll have to sign a property damage release in order to get the money for the damage to your car but make sure you're not releasing your rights to a bodily injury claim until a reasonable price has been negotiated.

 

[geckojohn]

The agent shouldn't have taken the statement... that's the claims team job.

 

[YoshiSato]

Originally posted by: Kelvrick
How old are you? Where is dad?

Yes, the best thing to do is to get a lawyer, and hopefully she didn't cash the check yet. They offered 12k right? How did they come up with the figure?

Because you both have the same insurance get a very good lawyer.
Should still have a lawyer regardless but you definately need one in this case, because State Farm is going to lose regardless. They don't want to lose big though.