Legal Question in Personal Injury in New York
I was hit by a car
To whom it may concern,
Hello. I have a question that has been lingering in my mind for quite some time now. On 10-22-05 I was walking on the sidewalk and was struck by a vehicle that lost control. My first instinct was to jump when I heard the tires screeching, and by doing this, the vehicle struck my left leg (particularly my ankle) and lifted me up so high that I flew through a nearby barber shop window. I was rushed to the hospital and barely lived due to major loss of blood. An 18yr old male was the driver of the auto, and he was under his father�s insurance policy. After sewing and only getting 25k (16,500$ after my Lawyer received his share) in exchange for 65 days of my life spent in a hospital bed, now more than ever, after I closed the case, and collected the settlement, my ankle has been bothering me now more than ever. I would not have closed the case if I would have understood the severity of my injury, but with poor guidance, I did. Now, I am trying to find out if there is any possible way I can reopen the case, or even go after the insurance company this time. Any information would be appreciated. Thank you very much whomever you may be for taking your time to become
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: I was hit by a car
What you have described is a very common scenario in the personal injury field. That is, it sounds as if the driver only had the minimum required $25,000.00 policy and the driver's insurance carrier tendered the entire amount to your attorney.
There are only two other ways you might have obtained additional monies. First, your attorney could have attempted to collect from the defendant personally. Unfortunately, most individuals do not have enough assets to make the effort worthwhile. Even if assets exist, they are easy to hide or transfer. Other assets are untouchable for legal reasons which I will not elaborate upon.
Before you could even determine whether assets exist or not, you would have to go all the way to trial which, in New York City, can take years upon years. As unfortunate as it sounds, the 25 policy is normally the best you can hope for.
The other means by which you could have obtained additional monies is if you or a family member residing in your household had "underinsured motorist coverage" in a sum greater than $25,000.00.
If you did have underinsured coverage above $25,000.00, I would advise you to promptly consult an attorney as the failure to procure the underinsured coverage could be the result of attorney malpractice.
Hope this was helpful.
Marshall R. Isaacs
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