Alabama Automobile Injury Attorneys – You are a passenger in the car. You are on your way. Everything looks good. Suddenly, your driver runs a stop sign. He didn’t see it. He hits on the headline. You are very upset. When you later call the driver’s insurer to file a claim, the adjuster apologizes, but your claim is limited by Alabama’s guest passenger statute. Your driver probably wants the insurance company to pay you. But it doesn’t matter. The adjuster will simply deny your claim.
I have previously written about Alabama’s guest passenger statute. You can read one of my previous posts on this topic
Contents
- Alabama Automobile Injury Attorneys
- Personal Injury & Business Attorneys In Montgomery, Al
- Driving In Huntsville: Your Duty To Drive With Due Care
- Birmingham Personal Injury Lawyer
- Beasley Allen Secures Settlement For Family Of Student Killed In Crash
- Mobile, Al Personal Injury Lawyers
- Birmingham Car Accident Lawyer
- Gallery for Alabama Automobile Injury Attorneys
- Related posts:
Alabama Automobile Injury Attorneys
My previous post provides a good overview of the law. In it I discuss the background to this unjust law. I will explain the law as well as some exceptions. As with most legal matters, exceptions are important! Today I will again briefly touch on exceptions. But first, in this post, I want to offer some practical advice for passengers who have been injured in a car accident. What should you expect if you are a passenger injured in an Alabama car accident? How do you solve this problem? You need practical advice for your claim.
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In the 1920s and 1930s, many states adopted guest passenger statutes. Insurance lobbyists have worked hard to get these unfair laws passed across the United States. While many states have abandoned this unfair rule, Alabama has not.
What is the guest passenger policy? As an oversimplified explanation, the guest passenger law often allows a negligent driver to avoid liability for injuries to their passengers in a car accident. Passengers who are only social guests in the car cannot sue their driver for negligence.
Fortunately, Alabama’s guest passenger law has three big exceptions. I discussed the exceptions in my previous post. They are:
If you want to know more about guest passenger charter, check out my previous post. If you want to hear more about why I think this is such a bad halacha, I’m happy about that too. But today, if you are a passenger who has been injured in a car accident caused by your own driver, I will share some practical advice. What are some tips for avoiding guest passenger statutes that benefit the driver if you are in the car?
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Let’s start with this. As soon as the insurer knows that you are a passenger, he will reject your claim. That’s all the reason he needs (even if it’s completely wrong). Many adjusters assume that you do not file a claim after being denied. Also, many attorneys know that most settlement factory attorneys avoid these cases because they require work. Thus, the adjuster simply decides to reject the claim.
Maybe the adjustment will change his mind later. However, such cases usually require a court appeal. If you are seriously injured as a passenger, talk to someone who understands the law and knows how to build a case. If you are seriously injured as a passenger, it is best not to speak to the administrator until you have received good legal advice.
My first tip is for the insurance company. I mentioned this in the last paragraph. Insurance companies often reject passenger claims without considering any details. Adjusters simply use the guest passenger law as a convenient excuse to deny. If I am seriously injured in this situation, I would talk to an attorney before dealing with the insurance company. Let a qualified attorney handle these issues. Do not give the insurance company time in advance to prepare for your eventuality.
The rest of my advice has to do with proving that you were only a social guest in the car. They are all about proving that you have provided a real benefit to the driver. How do you do that?
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Look for any proof of payment. Did you help pay for the car? In many cases, a friend or relative will provide a portion of the car purchase in exchange for future transportation. I have had several cases where this has happened. If you helped pay for the car, you may have a canceled check or other proof of your contribution. Help pay for gas, repairs or car maintenance? If you provided financial benefits to the driver, you may have canceled checks, credit card statements, or other receipts showing your financial contributions. This evidence can easily establish your claim as an exception to the law.
Although notes are fantastic, they are not required. I am currently working on a car accident case where a passenger gave her boyfriend money to buy a car. In return, he promised to provide her with transport. He has it. Unfortunately, in this case, the passenger provided money. However, he can still testify to it.
Talk to the driver and witnesses. What does the driver say? In many cases, the driver thinks his insurance company should cover the passenger. The driver is happy to say that he received real benefits from the passenger. In other cases, friends and family members can also testify about the financial benefits provided by the passenger to the driver.
See the details of the trip. Where did you go and why? I will use one of my previous cases as an example. The driver and the passenger have a child together. They agreed to be parents together. As part of this arrangement, the boy’s mother regularly traveled with his father to important events. Both of them traveled together. What was the purpose of the trip you were upset about? Did you benefit your driver?
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How should you handle a situation where you are a passenger who is injured because of your driver? Do not accept an outright denial from the insurance company. Talk to an attorney who understands these situations and the key facts that make them different. Finally, work hard with your attorney to gather the key facts about the full relationship and how you benefit the driver. This law is unfair. In most cases, you can still make a claim.
From its Huntsville office, The Blackwell Law Firm practices serious personal injury cases throughout Alabama. Let us know if you have any questions. We are happy to discuss your legal issues. Crash!!! You will hear the sound of grinding metal. Your body slams into the interior of your car. what’s up At one point, another driver ran a red light and hit her. In the hours and days after the accident, you will begin to feel a lot of pain. You care about your health and your future. Now you are dealing with pain, medical care and bills. Today I want to talk about the medical bills and a common problem in Alabama car accident cases.
When you see a doctor, it is easy to tell him to calculate the other driver’s car insurance company. After all, the other driver was at fault. That negligent driver should be paid by the insurance company! Although this sounds logical, it is a mistake. Telling your health care provider to bill your car insurer is a mistake. This is a mistake made by many accident victims. This is a mistake often encouraged by insurers and billboard attorneys who aren’t even looking for you! This can have a huge impact on your personal injury claim.
This is an easy mistake. First, the other driver must pay. Second, many adjusters mean you have to submit your accounts. Most adjusters stipulate that the insurance company will pay your medical bills when they occur. Remember, the adjusters are only trying to get information from you.
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Do not tell the doctor’s office to pay the other driver’s auto insurance. This is a mistake. You must bill your treating physicians for your own health insurance company. If you don’t have health insurance, you still have other options. I have written about other options in previous posts on this blog. Here are five reasons why it’s a mistake to tell medical offices to bill the other driver’s auto insurer:
I hear this story almost every week. The caller said they were involved in an accident and spoke with the other driver’s insurer. The regulator stipulated that the at-fault insurance company would pay the medical bills. Typically, the adjuster would require the victim to sign a release allowing the insurance company to receive the settlement. This is correct! While an adjuster may pretend they want to take care of your medical bills, the reality is very different. In fact, the adjuster will want to verify the claim by learning about your health information as soon as possible.
In a car accident claim, the at-fault insurance company usually wants to pay a lump sum. They pay a certain amount of money and you sign a document waiving your claim. They do not want to pay each payment as it is made.
The adjuster wants you to think differently so he can start controlling you. If you fall for the adjuster’s false promises or false influence, it will delay your care. This can hurt your claim in the long run. He can leave you
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