Legal Question in Personal Injury in Oklahoma
Accident Claim Settlement
My son was a victim in a hit and run accident. During the accident the car he was driving was run front end first in to a step ditch. The airbags on the car did not deploy resulting in him impacting the steering wheel with his chest. After a medical examination, he was found to have sustained trauma to his heart and a minor neck injury. He had a diagnosis of fluid in the pericardium (the sac that surrounds the heart). At that time, it was decided by his doctor to wait and see if the heart would heal itself with the help of anti-inflammatory medication. The long-term ramifications were unknown. He has seemed to heal, but it is unknown if he will have any future problems from his injury. The insurance company would like to settle his case, with an offer based on a diagnosis of a chest wall contusion. The offer that they made seems extremely low based on the severity of the injury. They suggested that I might make a counter offer for a slightly larger amount money and they will see if they can meet my request. How do I determine what would be a fair counter offer based on any future medical needs my son might have?
2 Answers from Attorneys
Re: Accident Claim Settlement
Thank you for your question. Although your post is fairly detailed, it fails to provide sufficient information of your son's medicl prognosis. Therefore there is no way to evaluate the claim. Additionally, there may be other sources of compensation if indeed your son's injuries are found to be more serious than you presently are aware of. Unanswered questions as to whether your son's heart injury has left him susceptable to future heart problems precludes a settlement at this time in my opinion.
Re: Accident Claim Settlement
Many factors affect the valuation of your son's damages. These include: medical treatment and cost-both past and future, extent of any
disability(occupational,recreational & domestic as well as any emotional or psychological effects), pain and suffering, lost income, anticipated future lost income,
circumstances surrounding the cause of the accident, whether the driver of the other vehicle has been identified and his/her driving record,the amount of insurance coverage available to pay any damages(both on the other vehicle and your own UM/UIM),whether the air bag's failure to deploy was the result of a manufacturing &/or design defect, the completeness and accuracy of the accident report, the location of the accident, your willingness to hold out for the best possible settlement- even if that means going to trial... I think you get the picture.
There are a multitude of factors that influence the "value" of an injury. To suggest a dollar amount to you without knowing a lot more about your particular situation would do you a disservice. Please hire a competent attorney to represent you. Your son might be entitled to significant compensation and a good attorney working for him will be able to maximize his recovery.
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