what to do after accident? | GTAMotorcycle.com

what to do after accident?

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gamer486

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I got into an accident some weeks ago. Other driver coming out of a small street with a stop sign decided to rolling stop and cut accross me without looking while i had the full right of way. Even though I braked i ended up hitting the car and flying off my bike and landing on the ground. I was taken to hospital and luckily nothing broken (except my bike). I have been dealing with insurance and physio since the accident.

Should I call a personal injury lawyer? Is there anyone recommended here?
Since my bike is a writeoff from insurance, could I return my license plate sticker from this year and get back the remaining value of it while keeping the plate?
Not sure what else i need to do after getting into an accident.

some notes:
i have video footage of the accident. insurance is replacing all of my clothing/gear and helmet, except my camera
other driver was charged with failing to yeild to traffic.
other driver and I have the same insurance company.
 
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insurance Co will take care of the bike
glad you're not seriously hurt
with no serious injury you cannot sue
should not need a lawyer for anything
 
“i ended up hitting the car and flying off my bike and landing on the ground.”

Your insurance company will be paying for any medical injury remediation (you) and collision damage / write-off (your bike) under the coverages in your policy (a.k.a. ‘No fault’ insurance). They are obviously motivated to pay the least as possible. Possibly taking advantage of your ignorance of your policy terms and insurance regulations.

An attorney will help ensure you recover the maximum entitlement under your policy. For a % cut, obviously. It is not unknown that some attorneys are linked to clinics that overbill to inflate the treatments, hence making a bigger cut for all involved.

At the minimum, you should ensure you are consulting a doctor that you trust to advise you on any injuries you experienced and the appropriate treatment. A clinic recommended by the insurer may be motivated to help the insurer minimize their costs.

How did you hit the ground? Easily where you were just bruised or some sort of strange angle where you stressed your neck or something (no, don’t answer here in public). Your youth may accomodate recovery but if you took a strange hit, extra therapies may be worth avoidance of some sort of recurrence at a later age.



 
Document every expense that you are out of pocket for as a result of the collision, that is about all the money you will ever see from it :|
Buy a replacement bike plus anything that was damaged, try to stay close to equal value on replacement items and sue for the entire cost.

Physiotherapy was a complete joke unless things have vastly improved and advanced since I experienced it; they nuke your injured areas with microwaves and have you do some stupid lame exercises on home built equipment, that was about the extent of the cure.

Lawyers will make decent money out of the ordeal, you will not.

"failing to yeild to traffic" sounds like he never even hit you :/ the guy who rear-ended me pleaded 'failure to yield in a stop and start situation'
... my bike was still firmly embedded in the front grill of his truck with me on it.
 
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Since everyone else is giving good advice, I'll give some good for your head:

Smoke some MJ and play some video games to relax yourself
 
- Be sure to go to every pysio appt.
- see the doc even if u think your fine
- fill any prescriptions (don't necessarily have to take them)
- note any physical pain or difficulties that arise.

Once lawyers are envolved, its fight not to pay you and the details from pysio & doc appts will come into light and play a huge factor.
Buckle up, it's a long drawn out process.
 
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ninjanewbie said:
...
- fill any prescriptions (don't necessarily have to take them)
- note any physical pain or difficulties that arise.
...
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Ya! flush all that stuff down the toilet
&yep that pain is going to get worse and probably a whole bunch of new ones added to it, jus keep riding.
 
Trials said:
Document every expense that you are out of pocket for as a result of the collision, that is about all the money you will ever see from it :|
Buy a replacement bike plus anything that was damaged, try to stay close to equal value on replacement items and sue for the entire cost.

Physiotherapy was a complete joke unless things have vastly improved and advanced since I experienced it; they nuke your injured areas with microwaves and have you do some stupid lame exercises on home built equipment, that was about the extent of the cure.

Lawyers will make decent money out of the ordeal, you will not.

"failing to yeild to traffic" sounds like he never even hit you :/ the guy who rear-ended me pleaded 'failure to yield in a stop and start situation'
... my bike was still firmly embedded in the front grill of his truck with me on it.
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If you don't know the physiotherapy business and what to look for you might as well go to a body rub parlour and at least get some jollies out of it. There are some physio therapists on the site so re-ask the question putting the request in the title or do a search.

There's nothing wrong with make shift equipment in many physio cases. If you have to hold a light weight and do wrist curls a can of pop can be as good as a $50 custom weight.

Welcome to the world of pathetic compensation from our insurers. Our whole insurance system is rigged to cheat you out of proper treatment.

Read your insurance policy (And weep) to find out your maximum pathetic compensations. You will also find out that YOUR opinion of the aspects of your well being that are important to you are of little concern to the insurer.

Lawyers can help if you get a good one.
 
One thing that I've heard about (but I didn't know before) is that although your hospital visit was maybe 'free', i.e. covered under OHIP, that since it was an outcome of a motor vehicle accident, that you should be notifying OHIP such and they will generate a bill for that treatment to be paid by the insurance co.

I don't think this is common practice though.

The risk is that if you ever end up with some sort of settlement/payment from the insurance co, you don't want to find out later that part of that is payable to OHIP and you end up with this obligation (after your lawyer has obtained their cut)
 
FLSTC said:
One thing that I've heard about (but I didn't know before) is that although your hospital visit was maybe 'free', i.e. covered under OHIP, that since it was an outcome of a motor vehicle accident, that you should be notifying OHIP such and they will generate a bill for that treatment to be paid by the insurance co.

I don't think this is common practice though.

The risk is that if you ever end up with some sort of settlement/payment from the insurance co, you don't want to find out later that part of that is payable to OHIP and you end up with this obligation (after your lawyer has obtained their cut)
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Hmmm, didn't know that and I work in a hospital too.
 
Owen said:
Hmmm, didn't know that and I work in a hospital too.
Click to expand...

Actually, my information above is not correct (I had heard this on a radio show).

So just checked and found accurate detail:

Ontario MoHLTC does describe their subrogation rights for personal injury accidents: http://www.health.gov.on.ca/en/public/publications/ohip/injury.aspx

But in the specific case of a motor vehicle accident, this is only for non-professional health care services: http://www.health.gov.on.ca/en/public/publications/ohip/motorvehicle.aspx

So it's only non-motor vehicle accidents where you'd need to be wary of any settlements related to negligence or wrongdoing and ensure you are accounting for any medical costs that need to be payed back to MoHLTC
 
Consult with a lawyer. They will determine if you have a valid reason for hiring them. I can offer you the name of someone who is handling both of my car accident claims. We are suing for lost wages and the range will be from 40,000 to 1.4 million depending on the settlement.

Where are you located? Your family doctor/lawyer will recommend physiotherapy clinics, make sure its close to home/work.

You can only get a portion of the money back on the plate, if you return it to them. There is an admin fee that comes out of it when you return it.

How are you feeling now that a week has passed?
 
OP take it from someone who has learned the insurance and lawyer games, from personal experience.

You don't have to, (and IMHO should NOT go to a treatment provider recommended by your insurer, there IS a reason the insurer recommended them..lol). Even if you have begun treatment there you can advise insurer your changing providers and find someone you believe will help you.

ASK the physio questions, IE how will they treat you, (If they say oh it will all be lasers and heat packs then go to someone who will ACTUALLY do hands on in addition to those). How long do they anticipate the process to be, etc etc etc.

You are young, and may fell you have "recovered" but there is a reason why lawyers don't sue for 24 moths post claim. I had an injury, (DIRECTLY related to a claim, that didn't surface for approx 18 months post collision).

You have approx 1 year to decide on the lawyer option. You actually have 2 years BUT you want them involved sooner than later. Talk to a few, (consultations are free, just DON'T sign ANYTHING until you have interviewed a few, they WILL try to get you to sign right then and there). Ask them what they believe you will end up with at the end, Then IMHO take any figure they give and cut it by approx 80%...lol

Keep meticulous notes of EVERY doc visit, how you feel daily and subtle changes in the way you feel has sleep pattern changed, appetite, mood swings, more cautious driving riding? etc etc. Ask others if they have noted any changes in personality etc.

You are not looking to get rich off an accident, just get back to how you were pre accident.

Under your policy the insurer will deem this claim to qualify as a MIG, (Minor Injury Guidelines), meaning they will provide no more than $3500, (Including treatment plan compiling and paperwork submission bills from providers), and they expect all treatments to be completed in MAX 12 weeks.

If you end up getting a lawyer your going to be giving them 35 - 50% plus disbursements of ANY settlement and expect it to be at approx 3 - 5 YEARS min.

Good luck
 
FLSTC said:
One thing that I've heard about (but I didn't know before) is that although your hospital visit was maybe 'free', i.e. covered under OHIP, that since it was an outcome of a motor vehicle accident, that you should be notifying OHIP such and they will generate a bill for that treatment to be paid by the insurance co.
Click to expand...

I think you are referring to a work place injury that would fall under WSIB. Most hospitals have notices posted all over the place regarding this. And they ask when you first register.
 
thanks for all of the advice. my accident happened 3 weeks ago, and i've been going to physio at rouge valley hospital (the therapists here are hands on and make me do exercises in every visit), it was the best one I could find near where I live. Most of my pain is in my lower back and hips(it has decreased over these few weeks), along with some pain in neck and shoulders.

i have kepts all of my prescription receipts.

I spoke with one lawyer who was referred to me by a coworker, but they turned me down because Aviva, my insurance company, is "hard to deal with and almost never pays out" according to them.
I'll do some more research and make some more calls to other lawyers.
 
I had a major injury claim and did not use a lawyer and the experience with the insurance adjuster has been very pleasant.
The bike settlement was handled by a separate department from the injury claim.
You don't have to take the first offer they give for the bike and gear. Just do a bit of digging to price out what the current value of your goods is. They will adjust their offer if you can give them reason to. You have to be quick, they want to close this part off asap.
For the injury, I was focused on my recovery so didn't claim any of the miscellaneous expenses that they normally cover. (I.e. Home care assistance, modifying staircase, etc. ) In return, she approves all my treatment plans right away, ok'd a $3k bone stimulator, and is just very pleasant to deal with. I've been seeing my physio for over 20 months and haven't had any issues regarding coverage. Insurance sent an occupational therapist to evaluate me twice. Once at the beginning for the home care even though I told them I wasn't going to claim any. The second time happened just after I returned to work.
Having access to a good physiotherapist for the long term is definitely important. You need to find a physio who knows what he's doing and also interested in making you better. There's way too many physios that just take your money and don't fix you. Recommendations are usually the best way to find the good guys.
Priority 1 is to fix yourself.
 
I was in a similar incident where I was hit head on and other driver was 100% at fault with bike written off and some injuries to me. I felt I was treated very fairly by the insurance company, adjuster and my physio, all the while under no illusions that the only one truly invested in my well being was myself.

I was off work for 10 months, went for 88 physio treatments and I did lawyer up. My case took 18 months from date of injury to fully closing the case. The law firm took 25% of settlement with no up front retainer, which was very fair for the expertise, effort and aggressive work they put in.

The firm I used was ThomsonRogers - I don't know if they would take your case based on the low level of injury you describe, but give them a shout.

Now 12 years later after the injury (almost to the day!), I can say that the settlement was fair - no more or less than it should have been.

Good luck to you.
 
How does a settlement work? They give you a lump sum $, then you have no more claims with the insurance co.? You then take the $ and pay for any medical, etc expenses yourself?

I only received cheques for the bike and gear, plus the loss work time.
They've been paying for the treatment directly to the physio and they've never denied or questioned any of the treatment plans.
I'm good with this arrangement and not looking to put $ in my pocket. If they gave me cash up front, I would probably be too cheap to keep going to the physio. for this long! My physio will keep treating me if there's something he can do and if I'm willing to do my homework. So far neither one of us has given up yet. And insurance hasn't been an issue.
I'm satisfied with my insurance support and didn't bring in a lawyer.

Hope the OP has a good experience with his insurance.
 
empty said:
How does a settlement work? They give you a lump sum $, then you have no more claims with the insurance co.? You then take the $ and pay for any medical, etc expenses yourself?
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Yes, to all of the above. Depending on the nature of the claim the insurance company may want to rid themselves of any ongoing care provided to you. I vaguely recall they have a legal obligation to do so for up to 10 years or so, but they can offer to settle sooner.

In may case, I felt that after doing the physio and personal rehab I did, I could maintain my own treatment plan and they gave me an initial settlement offer at around 14 months. My physio was pretty good for the 10 months I was on it, and was grateful for it. Moving onward, I felt I had the knowledge of what needed to be done on my own. It also helps that my spouse is an RMT and Osteopathic Manual Practitioner:)

The biggest lesson I learned from all of this was to spend a little extra money each year and purchase the optional top up coverage - especially related to income loss benefits. The mandatory $400/week may not be enough for most. I spend an additional $200/yr on insurance and would get a top up to either $1000 or $1200/week. If I perish in an incident, then my wife is set for life.
 
shanekingsley said:
The biggest lesson I learned from all of this was to spend a little extra money each year and purchase the optional top up coverage - especially related to income loss benefits. The mandatory $400/week may not be enough for most. I spend an additional $200/yr on insurance and would get a top up to either $1000 or $1200/week. If I perish in an incident, then my wife is set for life.
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This is one of the things that bothers me about our insurance.

Mandatory insurance came about in the mid 1960's so the victim of a bad driver didn't have to pay for damages and injuries out of his / her own pocket. $400 isn't even the minimum wage so you have to top up to cover for the bad driver.

Why does the innocent person have to financially suffer because of the bad driver either by loss of income or by, in essence, paying part of the bad driver's insurance premium?
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