Maryland Auto Accident Lawyer Blog: Auto Accidents Archives

Who is Gallagher Bassett?

By Ronald V. Miller, Jr on December 6, 2011 1:27 PM | No Comments | No TrackBacks

Gallagher Bassett is an international company with over 4,000 employees and over 100 offices. Yet, when an accident victim gets a call from Gallagher Bassett after a car accident, their first question is often, "Who is Gallagher Bassett and why are they call me?" For such a big company, they keep a low profile.

Gallagher Bassett is a outside risk manager. In other words, they are claims adjusters for companies and smaller insurance companies who do not have their own adjusters.

Our Maryland auto accident lawyers have settled a number of cases with Gallagher Bassett. But they are not an easy company to deal with in accident claims. We take a look at the Gallagher Bassett and dealing with them in Maryland accident cases here.

Wrongful Death Award in Cab Case

By Ronald V. Miller, Jr on October 4, 2011 5:00 PM | No Comments | No TrackBacks

A North Carolina jury awarded $1.5 million in a wrongful death lawsuit brought by the family of a pedestrian hit by a cab. Before his death, the man suffered brain damage that ultimately killed him eight months after the accident. The pedestrian victim was blind - thankfully, there were witnesses to the accident which helped avoid a miscarriage of justice.

One big problem with cab accident lawsuits in Maryland is the taxi cabs are typically insured for only $20,000 in coverage, an amount below the minimum limits. How do cab companies get away with having less than the minimum insurance? They use MAIF which is a Maryland state government operated insurance company that slipped by the legislature when they increased the minimum limits. Hopefully, this gets fixed in the next legislative session.

Settlement with State Farm

By Ronald V. Miller, Jr on July 11, 2011 9:57 AM | No Comments | No TrackBacks

State Farm is a tough insurance company if you are trying to settle a car accident case. We have a little magazine type thing called the Metro Verdicts Monthly which provides interesting summaries of personal injury cases that go to trial in Maryland. The majority of cases that go to trial are auto and truck accident cases. I have never gone back and done the math but I suspect that almost half of the auto accident cases that go to trial in Maryland are with State Farm as the defendant.

Like the way this blog takes a backseat to the Maryland Injury Lawyer Blog, we have a website called Maryland Auto Accident that we have tried to put more into but it keeps getting set aside for the Miller & Zois site. In any event, I have written what I think is a pretty detailed analysis of handling claims with State Farm on that site that you can find here.

GEICO Claims Central

By Ronald V. Miller, Jr on July 8, 2011 2:33 PM | No Comments | No TrackBacks

I have written a lot in recent years about dealing with GEICO in Maryland accident cases. Here, I've set up a "GEICO Claims Central" with lots of information and analysis for lawyers handling car accident claims with GEICO.

Getting 911 Tapes in Baltimore City

By Ronald V. Miller, Jr on April 20, 2011 11:39 AM | No Comments | No TrackBacks

Evidence of a 911 call can be a game changer in a Maryland car accident case. First, the fact alone that a call was made can be important in some cases. But, more significantly, the defendant often makes the call and says thing in the heat of the moment that he/she may later recant. In Baltimore City, you can get a 911 call by sending a fax to 410-984-7024. Their address is:

Information Retrieval Unit

242 West 29th Street

Baltimore, Maryland 21211

In a related/unrelated story, The American Journal of Emergency Medicine published an article on Baltimore City 911 calls, finding that a new strategy helped slow repeated unnecessary 911 calls, which drain manpower and resources of the City's emergency medical services. A pilot program that identified Baltimore City's top 911 callers and coupled them with a case worker has succeeded in drastically cutting the number of such calls while helping callers get proper care.

Moral of the story: by continuing to try, we can find better solutions to Baltimore's most vexing problems.

Car Accident Settlement Calculator

By Ronald V. Miller, Jr on March 14, 2011 4:41 PM | No Comments | No TrackBacks

Laura Zois writes on the Maryland Accident Lawyer Blog about the search for the elusive car accident settlement calculator. Sneak preview: there is a formula but no calculator.

Property Damage Claims: The Bad News

By Ronald V. Miller, Jr on March 9, 2011 10:57 AM | No Comments | No TrackBacks

I was talking to a potential client today who suffered a pretty serious car accident while already facing some existing challenges. I help people for a living. So I like being able to tell people in trouble, "I got this. We can solve your problems."

I can't do this on property damage cases. The reality is the law is such that more often than not, injury victims with significant property damage or a total loss to their vehicle are going to get a raw deal. Our lawyers can often turn that raw deal into a medium-rare deal (or something like that). But with respect to the property damage, if justice is getting the car back to where it was before the accident, injustice will outperform justice.

Our website provides a lot of advice on property damage claims. But keep in mind: our firm handles only (serious) personal injury claims. So even if you have the world's best property damage case, our lawyers will not be able to help you if you are not hurt. But if you have a question about a property damage claim, you can email me at ronmiller@millerandzois.com. We often help people that we will never have occasion to represent.

Travelers Accident Claims

By Ronald V. Miller, Jr on January 26, 2011 2:56 PM | No TrackBacks

Our car accident lawyers provide on our website an analysis of accident claims against Travelers Insurance. In a nutshell, Travelers is a good defendant in Maryland accident cases. You would much rather try to reach a settlement in a claim against Travelers than you would with Allstate, State Farm, and the like. That is not to say that it is easy to reach a settlement with Travelers in Maryland. Insurance companies are not giving away settlements in accident cases in 2011. Every case is a fight. But, still, generally speaking, Travelers Insurance is easier to deal with than most Maryland insurance companies.

Car Accident Lawsuit Loans

By Ronald V. Miller, Jr on July 6, 2010 2:13 PM | No Comments | No TrackBacks

On our Maryland car accident website, we write about the perils of lawsuit loans in Maryland auto accident cases.

Medical Malpractice After a Car Accident

By Ronald V. Miller, Jr on July 6, 2010 12:51 PM | No Comments | No TrackBacks

What if a doctor commits medical malpractice on a patient while treating the patient for injuries from a car accident in Maryland? The driver is liable not only for the plaintiff's direct injuries but also for any additional harm resulting from medical providers rendering aid, regardless of whether the treatment is proper or a negligent manner.

The reasoning behind this Maryland rule is that the at fault driver by his actions put the plaintiff in a position of danger and should be held accountable for the risks inherent in treating the plaintiff's injuries. Of course, the at-fault driver in an auto accident where there is subsequent medical malpractice can bring a claim against the negligent doctor or health care provider for contribution. But I have never seen or heard of this happening.

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