THIS MONTH’S FEATURED LAW AREA: WORKERS COMP CASES
If you are injured on the job your employer must pay for all your medical bills related to your injury. Also your employer must pay you 66% of your weekly wages. So why is there a need for worker’s compensation lawyers to help you if the law is so clear? Well in my experience it has a lot to do with your employer’s insurance company trying to throw legal roadblocks in your way. How? Like having their paid doctor say you are okay to return to work. Or trying to get your doctor to say you do not need more therapy, etc. The list is endless. So if the insurance company is trying to hurt you or if you want a lump sum settlement of your claim, please call us. We can help you.
2018 STEELER MAGNETS MAY be coming to your home this summer. We still have to work out some details about whether it can happen. But if I can I will. Why? Simply because you fine readers have supported me for so long. Why shouldn’t I do the same for you?
$3 Million Bike/Motorcycle Case
A bicyclist injured after hitting a pothole during a charity bike race has won a $3 million verdict against the event’s organizer in Pa. This happened despite the injured victim having signed a written waiver as a condition of riding in the bike race. Waivers are not always a bar to recovering $$ for your injuries.
USEFUL ADVICE DEPARTMENT
How can this Newsletter help you in a practical everyday way? Well how about knowing a little more about insurance jargon? Like for instance…
PRIMARY V. SECONDARY INSURANCE
What does it mean when insurance adjusters or attorneys say your car insurance is primary? Or workers comp is primary. What does that mean in English? Just this. If you are injured in a car collision, you 1st turn in all of your medical bills to your own auto insurance company for payment. There is a silver lining to this. Under the law at least the first $5,000 of your medical expenses must be paid by your own car insurance company, without you having to repay them. And there is more. The bills from your hospital and doctors are not paid on a $ for $ basis. So actually you can incur somewhere around $8,000 or more of medical bills and the likelihood is your first party benefits will cover it all without any cost to you. Pretty cool, huh?
And what if they say workers comp is primary? What does that mean? It means that if you are in an auto accident while you are working, your medical and wage loss is first turned in to your employer’s insurance company for payment. Not your car insurance. If you are making a claim against another person (by filing a lawsuit) then the workers comp insurance company has a right to get reimbursed for any bills they pay out for you, including medical and wage loss $$ they paid out.
You see the difference? Now knock them dead at your next neighborhood block party with your knowledge of the law!
Defective Smoke Alarms
If you know of someone hurt or tragically killed in a fire because of a defective smoke alarm, please call us. We have several such cases going on right now.
Pittsburgh’s Best Kept Secret?
One of them is the low cost of owning a home in our area. Recently, Kiplinger Money Magazine had a listing of the median price of houses in most cities. Somewhat shocking. Pittsburgh’s median home price is $125,000. The median home price in Santa Rosa, California is $600,000. If you want a real shocker, the median price for a home in San Jose, California is $1,000,000. That’s right. This is another good reason to love Pittsburgh. And what city can compete with our sports teams overall? The Steelers, the Penguins, the Pirates. Wow!
FYI Dept.-Buy When Things Are On Sale
Kiplinger’s also had a list of the best times to buy certain items. Just wanted to highlight a couple of them. January – linens, bedding, exercise equipment and winter clothing. April – tires, cruise vacations, hotel discounts on tax day. July – swimwear, air conditioners. August – laptops, school supplies. November – large appliances. December – toys, jewelry, wedding dresses. Hope it helps!
CONGRATULATIONS to William K. who won $50.00 in last month’s Newsletter contest.
Now for your chance to win $50.00 in our June contest: What national holiday do we celebrate in June? Come on, show your Stars & Stripes!
Humor Department: Want to make God laugh? Tell God what your plans are for the future. As you know, we often plan what we are going to be doing tomorrow, next month, next year, etc. Then boom, something comes along out of nowhere to knock those plans into the stratosphere. Trust the Big Guy!
Your Friend and Lawyer,
Bernard M. Tully
HAPPY FATHER’S DAY!