Category : Car Accident Injuries

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Accidents in a Rental Car

You’re on vacation in your rental car and get in an accident. What happens next? Who is liable? Will my insurance policy cover me? These are just a few of the questions you may ask yourself. The answers will vary depending on what rental car company you rent from and what insurance policy you have.

Female Driver Making Phone Call After Traffic Accident With Head In Hands.

Your Auto Insurance Policy

Most auto insurance policies will travel with you when you’re on the road within the United States. Just in case you should contact your insurance company before driving a rental car to make sure your particular policy will provide the coverage you need. In almost all cases, your insurance policy’s comprehensive and collision coverage will extend to a rental car. If you purchase the rental car company’s insurance, it will be treated as supplemental above your personal insurance policy.

When you get into an accident in a rental car, notify the rental car company and fill out an accident report form. The rental car companies will most likely charge your personal auto insurance before the rental insurance kicks in. If you have sufficient personal liability insurance, the rental car insurance will most likely not be necessary.

The Credit Card You Paid With

Some credit cards offer services for their customers such as offering insurance on rental cars paid for with the credit card. Check with your credit card company to see if this service is offered. Also, check with them before you rent to see what their limitations are on renting a vehicle. Some limitations can be time limits, for example: you have a rental car for 30 days and your credit card will only cover your rental for 2 weeks. If you do go this route, make sure you contact the credit card company immediately after the accident to get your information in their system as they will have a time limitation on claims after the accident.

The Rental Car Company

If you have full coverage for rental cars on your personal insurance and rental insurance on your credit card, you probably will not need the rental car company’s extra insurance coverage. So when is purchasing the rental car company insurance a good idea? There are a few situations where this would be a good idea. If you live in a city and do not have a car or auto insurance, the rental car company insurance is necessary. Before purchasing the rental car company’s extra insurance, make sure you read the contract very carefully and clarify with the rental agent exactly what is covered and what is not.

If you were injured in an accident involving a rental car, contact a personal injury lawyer to discuss your case. Attorney Charles V. Contrada will explain your legal options, guide you through the process.

To speak to attorney Charles V. Contrada about a car accident in Ohio or Michigan, call 419.841.4400. Charles has helped thousands of individuals with car accident claims and will explain the legal options that are available to you. Call Contrada & Associates for comprehensive legal guidance that will help you to receive the most favorable outcome.

 

1 Aug 2016 Continue Reading

3 Ways Sports Equipped Contrada as a Personal Injury Lawyer

Contrada’s experience playing college football, coaching, and leading a recreation center gives him an extra edge as a personal injury lawyer.

On October 14 and November 5, 2015, Tom Cole interviewed Charles V. Contrada, car accident lawyer, on BCSN Sports Flash. The conversations centered around how sports are key to helping youth develop long-term career skills.

Contrada played football at Kenyon College and graduated before completing law school at the University of Toledo. He was President of the Sylvania Recreation Corporation for 5 years and served as a board member for many more.

Three characteristics from Contrada’s sports background directly augment his effectiveness as a personal injury attorney in the courtroom:

1. Competitiveness

As Cole asserts, “Clients all say the same thing: ‘Charlie fights for us.’ You go into the courtroom and, like you’re putting the pads on, you’re playing to win.”

2. Preparation

It is not only what Contrada does in the courtroom that leads to success, but also how he prepares. He explains, “Look at the coaches… they practice every day during the week because they are preparing for that particular game. That’s also true with trials.”

3. Grace Under Pressure

Contrada references great quarterbacks that remain calm and collected regardless of the situations they face. “[In light of the] heavy emotion that might be happening, you’re cool as a cucumber and trying to think ahead of the other side,” says Contrada.

Contrada is braced to go head-to-head with your opponent in the courtroom. If you have been involved in a car accident in Michigan or Ohio, contact attorney Charles V. Contrada at 419.841.4400.

View the Sports Flash episodes on YouTube:

14 Mar 2016 Continue Reading

School Bus Accidents

Back to school is right around the corner. As parents, you entrust your child’s school bus driver/school district with their safety to and from school. As a parent, getting a phone call saying there was an accident involving a school bus your child was riding on and they were injured is a nightmare coming true. Since school buses are not required to have seatbelts, your child could be at risk for greater injury if a school bus is involved in an accident.

When it comes to accidents involving a school bus, there are a few different scenarios. There are accidents caused by other drivers and accidents caused by the school bus driver. Your child may be entitled to compensation for each scenario.

School Bus Accidents Caused By The Driver

When there is a school bus accident caused by the driver of the bus being distracted or not paying close enough attention, you as a parent may be able to recover compensation from the school district since they should be covered by their insurance policy. You will probably need a personal injury lawyer to help you navigate through this process as a school district is considered a government entity making it a long and challenging process. In addition, there are usually multiple claims by many parents being asserted.

School Bus Accidents Caused By Other Drivers

If your child was injured in a school bus accident by another vehicle, you also may be entitled to recover some compensation from the at-fault parties insurance company. You may need to have your child’s medical expenses covered and possibly compensation for your child’s pain and suffering.

With an experienced personal injury lawyer like Charles V. Contrada, he will help you:

  • Investigate and gather evidence
  • Put together medical bills, photographs, witness statements, copies of insurance policies, the accident report, etc to support your claim
  • Negotiate a settlement
  • File a lawsuit and try the case if necessary
  • Prepare a minor settlement in probate court if necessary

If you or your child has been injured in a school bus accident, contacting a personal injury attorney as soon as possible will make the claims process much easier.  Attorney Charles V. Contrada will explain your legal options, guide you through the process.

To speak to attorney Charles V. Contrada about a car accident in Ohio or Michigan, call 419.841.4400. Charles has helped thousands of individuals with car accident claims and will explain the legal options that are available to you. Call Contrada & Associates for comprehensive legal guidance that will help you to receive the most favorable outcome.

20 Aug 2015 Continue Reading

New Ohio Laws for Teen Drivers

Ohio has taken another step in their “Drive Towards A Safer Ohio Initiative” with passing a new law that restricts teens with a probationary license. It is intended to increase the level of experience for teenage drivers under 18.

Research conducted by AAA shows that teen drivers are more likely to be involved in a fatal car accident between the months of May and September when school is out. Their research also shows that teens are significantly more likely to be involved in car accidents after 9 p.m. Car crashes are the leading cause of death for 15-20-year-olds in the United States every year.

This new Ohio law has placed more emphasis on the experience of teenage drivers rather than just going by their age. The new law puts restrictions on what hours teen drivers are allowed to drive in and how many passengers they can have in their car.

This new law was put into effect on July 1, 2015. It states that probationary drivers under the age of 18 will have these restrictions during the first 12 months after receiving their license.

  1. No driving between midnight and 6 a.m., unless that driver is accompanied by a parent or guardian.
  2. No driving with more than one nonfamily member in the vehicle.
  3. All passengers must wear a seatbelt at all times.
  4. No use of mobile/cellular communication while driving.

Previously, teenage drivers who had a probationary license had restrictions based on their age, not experience. This new law applied to all drivers under 18 years of age with a probationary license. The new law has expanded the restricted times of driving from midnight to 6 a.m. from 1 a.m. to 5 a.m.

Ohio hopes this new law will help teenage drivers become more responsible behind the wheel while they gain the learning experience necessary to become successful drivers.

If you or your teenage child have been involved in a car accident, contacting a personal injury attorney as soon as possible will make the claims process much easier.  Attorney Charles V. Contrada will explain your legal options, guide you through the process.

To speak to attorney Charles V. Contrada about a car accident in Ohio or Michigan, call 419.841.4400. Charles has helped thousands of individuals with car accident claims and will explain the legal options that are available to you. Call Contrada & Associates for comprehensive legal guidance that will help you to receive the most favorable outcome.

12 Aug 2015 Continue Reading

Accidents Involving a Low Speed Vehicle

Summer is here and there is a good possibility that you will see a Low Speed Vehicle (LSV) driving around your neighborhood. LSV’s are small electric vehicles, similar to golf carts that are street legal.

To drive legally, your LSV must pass an inspection, be registered and titled by the Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles and insured. You must also have a valid driver’s license. An LSV can only go up to 25 mph and is only allowed on roads or highways that have a 35 mph posted speed limit with the exception of crossing a street with a higher posted speed limit.

Since your LSV is street legal, you will need to have the proper insurance. There are specialized policies available for an LSV. Talk to an insurance agent to see what policies will fit your needs the best. I cannot in good conscious advise you to buy this type of coverage online. Talk to someone knowledgeable especially the first time you purchase this type of insurance.

What happens in an accident involving an LSV?

LSV’s can be very dangerous to the drivers and passengers, even under normal operating conditions. Even though LSV’s are equipped with seat belts, windshields, turn signals, brake lights, and mirrors, they do not have windshield wipers, doors, airbags or side impact door beams. They do not have to meet the rigid safety standards that today’s cars and trucks must meet. LSV’s are also not crash-tested by the federal government and their safety records have not been checked on a regular basis.

Since their design and use on roadways shared with other cars, trucks and SUV’s, the potential for serious and even deadly injuries exist. While driving an LSV on the road, always pay close attention since you are at greater risk for injury than other motorists in full-sized vehicles.

If you were injured in an accident involving a full-sized vehicle that was not paying attention or did not see you, contact a personal injury lawyer to discuss your case. Attorney Charles V. Contrada will explain your legal options, guide you through the process.

To speak to attorney Charles V. Contrada about a car accident in Ohio or Michigan, call 419.841.4400. Charles has helped thousands of individuals with car accident claims and will explain the legal options that are available to you. Call Contrada & Associates for comprehensive legal guidance that will help you to receive the most favorable outcome.

5 Jun 2015 Continue Reading

Accident with an Uber Driver

What is Uber?

Uber is a very popular rideshare service in most major cities in the United States. Uber is similar to a taxi service but the difference is Uber does not own, operate or control their cars and do not hire drivers directly, the drivers are considered independent contractors by Uber.

You were in an Accident with an Uber Driver

Have you been in an accident because of an Uber driver? If you have, the aftermath can be very confusing and difficult to navigate alone. It can be a tricky subject since it depends on a variety of circumstances ranging from was the Uber driver on duty with passengers, if the driver was on their way to pick up a passenger, or if the driver was off-duty.

Hiring a personal Injury attorney will help you get to the bottom of what the Uber driver was doing at the time of the accident. These scenarios will help identify if the drivers personal insurance will cover the accident or not. Since Uber is not a car service/taxi company, insurance coverage is like the Wild West. It was not until this past March Uber started offering additional coverage for Uber drivers who were on duty and driving between passengers.

Since Uber calls itself a technology company, not a transportation company or car service, it allows the company to place more blame on the driver, which makes it very difficult for other drivers, pedestrians and even passengers to file complaints with Uber. Uber is notoriously difficult to reach. There is no customer service phone number, only an e-mail address which makes communication difficult and frustrating.

Car Insurance if you are an Uber Driver

Being an Uber driver has its perks. You can set your own hours, meet lots of people, and drive all day if in the comfort of your own vehicle that is what you enjoy doing, plus you get paid for it. Even though Uber has a lot of upsides, there are downsides you need to be aware of, especially when it comes to your insurance policy.

Most personal insurance policies have an exclusion stating that the policy will not cover you if you are driving for hire. Uber does provide some additional coverage when you have an Uber passenger in your vehicle (1 million dollar additional coverage). Just recently, Uber now offers additional insurance when you are driving for Uber without a passenger in your vehicle. If you do not have the additional Uber coverage, you may want to consider adding a commercial policy or find an insurance company that offers a rideshare policy. With the popularity of Uber skyrocketing, insurance companies are now starting to offer additional rideshare coverage for these types of drivers. Since insurance policies can be difficult to fathom, you should check with your insurance agent to see what the best option is for you.

If you have been involved in a car accident with an Uber driver, contacting a personal injury attorney as soon as possible will make the claims process much easier.  Attorney Charles V. Contrada will explain your legal options, guide you through the process.

To speak to attorney Charles V. Contrada about a car accident in Ohio or Michigan, call 419.841.4400. Charles has helped thousands of individuals with car accident claims and will explain the legal options that are available to you. Call Contrada & Associates for comprehensive legal guidance that will help you to receive the most favorable outcome.

28 May 2015 Continue Reading

Nagging Phone Calls & Mailings after a Car Accident

One of the saddest things that happen after an accident is the 50 phone calls, 50 mailers and door drops. The calls alone will drive you crazy.

By law lawyers aren’t allowed to solicit by phone. However, some have gotten around this rule by having a recorded message. The vast majority of lawyers find this type of solicitation appalling.

You may wonder where they got your information. Generally, they get it from police reports which are public information. You can view anyone’s police report if you have the time and desire.

The reason this practice is allowable is the Ohio Supreme Court ruled that it is unfair that the at-fault party’s insurance company could contact you, and tell you information that may not be 100% accurate, and not a lawyer.

The intention of the Ohio Supreme Court was good, but the unintended consequences are awful. Most of my clients find the phone calls worse than the mailers. A client actually got 50 cell phone calls 2 days after the police report went online. For those who answer those phone calls, it is much worse.

Originally, when this practice started, the calls came from chiropractor’s offices. Then some of them would say they would even put you in touch with a lawyer to represent you and have you sign a legal contract right in the Chiropractor’s office. Now, it is not just Chiropractors contacting you, it is marketing firms as well. These marketing firms are very aggressive to get your business. Generally they will not precisely identify themselves, for example: a “wellness clinic”. In some cases, they will even represent themselves as the driver at fault’s insurance company.

In addition, some of the callers have indicated they already have made an appointment for you to come in and get checked out making it seem like they are the insurance company. This is a very sneaky approach to getting your business.

Another approach, they will offer is for you to come in for a free evaluation to see if you were injured in your accident. When this happens, they will always find that you were indeed injured in the accident.

The best offense to these rouge tactics is to not answer the phone, or be intimidated by them or engage with any of them at all. All mailers should be thrown in the garbage and all phone calls left unanswered.

We at Contrada & Associates do not condone these practices and do not engage in them.

If you have been involved in a car accident, contacting a personal injury attorney as soon as possible will make the claims process much easier.  Attorney Charles V. Contrada will explain your legal options, guide you through the process and assist you in dealing with insurance companies and sneaky companies trying to take advantage of you.

To speak to attorney Charles V. Contrada about a car accident in Ohio or Michigan, call 419.841.4400. Charles has helped thousands of individuals with car accident claims and will explain the legal options that are available to you. Call Contrada & Associates for comprehensive legal guidance that will help you to receive the most favorable outcome.

 

 

19 Mar 2015 Continue Reading

Independent Medical Examinations

In very limited circumstances, if you are involved in an accident, the insurance company or the defense lawyer may request that you undergo an “independent medical examination”.  Needless to say, there is nothing independent about these examinations and, in many ways, they are a total mockery of the doctor/patient relationship.

 

Why do they want an Independent Medical Exam?

The insurance companies want you examined by their doctor to evaluate the extent of your injuries and oftentimes to determine what injury was caused by the crash, as opposed to a pre-existing condition that the victim had before the automobile accident.

Why they are not Independent

The main reason that the so-called independent medical examinations are truly a defense medical exam is the defense lawyer, or insurance company, gets to hand-pick whatever doctor they choose to examine you. I am sure it’s not hard to believe but many times insurance defense lawyers or insurance companies pick doctors that have a bias in their favor.  In particular, they often pick doctors over and over again and thus have a pretty clear notion of what the doctor will say and what the doctor will find. The doctors love the extra cash they make.

For example, there are some doctors that will testify that a muscle injury caused by an automobile collision, such as whiplash, can last longer than 6-10 weeks. Of course, this is nonsense and I have seen so many cases where people have lifelong injuries from whiplash that it breaks my heart. However, the defense and insurance companies will get these doctors to tell the jury that nobody has long-lasting muscle injuries.

Statewide Doctor

There is now a doctor, who had been doing defense and insurance medicals out of Columbus, Ohio and making millions of dollars doing so. He is now opening shops in Toledo, Cleveland and possibly Cincinnati to do even more defense insurance medical exams and to make even more money. We hope that the juries can see through this sort of flim-flam, where the same doctor does report after report for the same defense lawyers.

A Fairer Approach

For attorney Charles Contrada, who has handled thousands of cases over 35 years, he believes a fairer approach would be to independently pick doctors off of a list of physicians who actually treat patients with injuries and have them examine the injured person. In that way, these would be truly independent examinations and the insurance company could not hand-pick the doctor ahead of time. If the doctors were randomly picked and they had biases, either for or against certain types of injuries, it would at least be the luck of the draw and not a foregone conclusion that the entire exam would be used against the victim.

How to Prepare for an Independent Medical Exam

It is important to time the different portions of an exam. Sometimes there is a period where you have to answer written questions. Be careful not to answer them if you do not understand them. Second, there is usually a period of question and answer by the doctor.Third, there is a physical examination. It has been our experience that most of the exams are quite short.

If you have been involved in a car accident, contacting a personal injury attorney as soon as possible will make the claim process much easier. Attorney Charles V. Contrada will explain your legal options, guide you through the process and assist you in dealing with insurance companies and Independent Medical Exams.

To speak to attorney Charles V. Contrada about a car accident in Ohio or Michigan, call (419) 841-4400. Charles has helped thousands of individuals with car accident claims and will explain the legal options that are available to you. Call Contrada & Associates for comprehensive legal guidance that will help you to receive the most favorable outcome.

27 Feb 2015 Continue Reading

Is Your Vehicle Under Insured?

The state of Ohio has changed the minimum liability coverage for all licensed drivers for the first time since Richard Nixon was president. If you have not updated your automobile policy since before 2013, you should take notice. The new minimum liability coverage policy was put into effect March, 2013.

Under the previous requirements, all drivers in Ohio must have insurance liability coverage that will pay up to $12,500 per person to cover injuries and medical expenses as well as $25,000 per accident and $7,500 for property damage per accident.

The new requirements double the injury liability and more than triple the property damage amount. Broken out, that means all Ohio drivers now must have insurance liability coverage starting at a minimum of $25,000 injury per person, $50,000 per accident, and $25,000 to cover damage to other driver’s vehicles and property. Check with your current insurance provider to make sure your auto insurance policy is in line with the new state minimum requirements.

What Happens If I Get Into An Accident And Only Have Minimum Coverage?

Purchasing more coverage than the minimum requirement could protect your assets in the event a very serious accident occurs. If you do not have adequate coverage, the law does allow the victim to take any assets the liable party has in their name in order to cover the costs of the damages.

Other than the minimum insurance requirement, you may also purchase optional insurance policies to help cover you in the case of an accident. Optional policies you can purchase as an addition to the minimum requirements are Collision, Comprehensive (other than collision) and uninsured / underinsured coverage.  It is important to note that uninsured / underinsured coverage amounts have not gone up even though the state minimum requirement has. Be sure to look at increasing the amount you have insured to be able to cover the new state minimum requirements.

If you have been involved in a car accident and are not sure if you or the other party is properly insured, contacting a personal injury lawyer sooner rather than later will make the legal process much easier. A personal injury lawyer with experience handling car accident cases similar to yours can help guide you through the legal process.

To speak to a personal injury lawyer about your car accident, call Contrada & Associates at 419.841.4400. When calling our office, you are able to speak directly with a lawyer about your car accident and the legal options that you have. You will also enjoy personal attention and face-to-face meetings with your lawyer throughout the entire legal process.

23 Dec 2014 Continue Reading

How can I find an attorney for a car accident injury?

After sustaining an injury in a car accident, it is very important to contact a car accident attorney. Finding the right attorney for your injury can be done in a variety of ways.

Finding a Car Accident Injury Attorney

The first thing that many do when seeking an attorney for a car accident injury is to ask their friends and family for suggestions. If someone you know has been in a similar situation as you and filed a personal injury claim following a car accident, ask them which attorney represented them and if they would recommend their services to you. Taking this route allows you to not only receive the name of an experienced attorney, but also have an insider’s view of the attorney’s way of communicating and interacting with clients.

If you do not know anyone who has hired a car accident attorney in the past, you can look online for an attorney in your area. Visit a search engine and use keywords such as “Toledo car accident attorney,” or “car accident injury lawyer Toledo” and you will see multiple results for your search.

Researching a Personal Injury Attorney

After you find an attorney’s website, take the time to learn about them. Deciding on a car accident attorney is an important decision as they will be representing you in a legal case that can significantly affect your financial situation. Some things to note when looking through a car accident attorney’s website include:

  • Is the site updated with case results and helpful information to clients?
  • Read the attorney’s bio – do they seem like they’d be a good fit for you?
  • Is there a blog that can guide you through the legal process?
  • Are there client testimonials?
  • Is the attorney board certified?

After you look through the website of the attorney, contact the office via phone. When calling in, ask the secretary or intake person what the office’s protocol is (i.e. will you be working directly with the attorney or a legal aid?). You can also ask how many years of experience the attorney has, how many years the firm has been in practice doing injury cases, and if they are limited to car accidents and personal injury cases.

Once you feel confident about hiring the attorney, make sure you inquire about the fee. Most attorneys operate on a contingency fee which ultimately takes a portion of your settlement as payment. Ask what the percentage is (typically 1/3 of the settlement).

Hiring a Car Accident Attorney

After following the above steps in researching a car accident attorney, contact the office and explain the accident you were involved in and the injuries that you’ve sustained. When calling our law office at 419.841.4400, you will then be able to speak directly to an attorney about your case and receive advice on the steps that you should take.

We recommend contacting an attorney sooner rather than later as the process is much easier with legal guidance from the beginning. You will also be able to avoid the possibility of jeopardizing your claim which can easily be done if you do not have an experienced car accident attorney advising you.

Call Contrada & Associates at 419.841.4400 to receive the legal guidance that you need for your car accident injury claim.

 

23 Oct 2014 Continue Reading