FAQs

FAQs About DUI and Personal Injury Cases

Frequently Asked Questions

Q. My car has lien on it. I’ve only had it for a few months and paid only a few payments. What does it mean if they are 70% at fault? Where does the attorney fees come out from something like these?

A. When an insurance company’s adjuster informs the injured party that they are not accepting full responsibility for an accident, they are saying based on the information they have, the insurance company believes the injured party is partially to blame for the accident. The percentage they are willing to accept for your damages is subject to change, if you can provide them with information that proves that their insured (the person that hit you) was actually 100% at fault.

For example, if you can provide them with a witness statement that says their insured caused the accident, the insurance company will likely raise the percentage. They may require a recorded statement from the witness. The insurance company will also take a recorded statement from the injured party as well. Most personal injury attorneys do not let their clients provide recorded statements to the insurance companies because the statement may harm any potential claim their client may have. Please speak to your attorney before submitting a recorded statement for any accident you were involved in.

The attorney’s fees will come from the 70%. For example, if you are not able to convince the insurance adjuster that their insured was 100% at fault, then the attorney fee, which is normally 33 1/3% of the total settlement amount will be deducted from the 70% settlement amount.

Q. Auto accident non injury but there is fraud, intent, negligence, defamation, cover up, not acting in good faith, probation violation, failure to appear, fleeing the scene, warrants and criminal driving record and it’s all on a state farm client. State farm knew what to do and took full advantage of my father in law. He was not injured and knew that no lawyer would take this case its non injury no money to be made. He couldn’t communicate to them he only speaks polish so they failed to in good faith use their interpreter with him. They said they’re denying and closing the case and I said no you’re not. I went on the internet to find the driver has a criminal driving record and was not on the insurance policy. Additional information, I need someone to tell the steps to do file for him and speak for him in court before it’s too late.

A. First, you need to find an attorney licensed in your state to help you with your father-in-law’s case. You also need to contact the Attorney General in your state due to the criminal acts you mentioned that were committed by the person that hit your father-in-law to include the insurance company seemingly fraudulent actions as well.

As for the insurance company denying the claims made by your father-in-law, this is what you should do: (1) you need to consult with a licensed attorney who has a substantial amount of experience in area of personal injury law for your state;

(2) you have to find out how the amount of time your father-in-law has to file a civil suit against the driver of the vehicle that hit him. Most if not all states have statutes of limitations for personal injury cases like the one you mentioned. For example, in Arizona, time limit is normally 2 years from the date of the accident to either settle with the person that hit you or file a civil lawsuit; however, if the insured is a municipality, Arizona law states that you will only have 180 days from the date of the accident to file a notice of claim. If you have to file a notice of claim in Arizona, and it was properly served, you will only have a year from the date of the accident to file the lawsuit for all state claims. Depending on the laws of the state you live in, you may only have 2 years to settle the matter or file a civil law suit. And if it was a municipality that caused the accident, then you may only have 180 days from the date your father-in-law was hit to file what is normally called a notice of claim. If you fail to file the notice of claim, and the insured was a municipality, then you will forever lose the ability to file a civil lawsuit;

(3) after you determine who you are suing and how much time you actually have to file suit, you need to author a demand letter to serve on the other party. This demand letter could be your notice of claim (if you are suing a municipality) or a regular demand. Make sure you give the insurance company a date certain to answer your demand or notice of claim;

(4) if the insurance company does not settle within the specified time frame of your notice of claim or demand letter, you need to file a lawsuit in the proper court for your type of case, and (5) you need to hire an attorney or seek an experienced personal injury attorney to help you with representing your father-in-law with his personal injury claim. Your father-in-law’s case is somewhat complicated and he needs an experienced personal injury attorney to help him with this matter.

Q. hard and too long to explain; I need help any advice would rather explain on phone or free consultation Richard Matuszewski 602-716-1143 my time and options are running out.

A. When the police officer gives a ticket to the person that struck your vehicle, it is always a good thing. It is even better when the police officer states that the person did something to cause the collision. This doesn’t mean that the insurance company will agree with the police officer’s assessment of the accident and inform you that they have accepted full responsibility. Hopefully, the police officer completed the ticket and/or crash report properly so that the reader can determine how the accident occurred and who is likely at fault for the accident. Again, this information is just that, information from another source that says you may not be at fault for the accident. Please contact an experienced Arizona personal injury attorney to help you with your case.