Major Accident-No Attorney yet...advice?

[Woodlawn]

(07-22-2012 01:27 PM)hurt back Wrote:  

(07-22-2012 11:06 AM)Woodlawn Wrote:  This is probably the time I should mention my remarks aren't from a friend, but that I do actually have firsthand knowledge of the way these things work.

Well since we are all here... We all have some kind of knowledge / experience ..

And the statements provided by each are just for information, not for someone like you to blow everything way out of proportion... If you don't like our responses then fine... But lets not make a WAR out of it, thats not why we are here.

That being said when someone gets an attorney is their own decision.. The OP was asking a question and we provided an answer.. Every state is different as every adjuster, insurance company, injured worker, and attorney....

Because everystate is different, I highly doubt an attorney would want to represent someone who after X amount of time is now seeking help because everything has went to heck and a hand bag.. I mean they know they do NOT get paid unless you settle and would you want to work days or even weeks just to decifer what went wrong and how could be avoided if the OP had an attorney from the get go..

I got my attorney 3 days after my injury because of my situation trying to get my employer to call W/C and report injury.. Attorneys ( at leasts here in TN ) can make a huge difference..

And whether the OP gets one now or later they are still getting there 20% ( here in TN ) whether they help you for 1 day or 5 years...

Well hopefully this will clarify things up, the OP wanted answers so hopefully all of these responses will point them in the right direction.

The main thing is to ensure the proper treatment for the Injured Worker that is more important than anything else.

Perhaps my wording above made it seem more hostile than intended. Fact is, I have firsthand knowledge about the way these things work from a different angle. Not only that, but I've been on the same side of things.

You believe an attorney can add value right away, and that's fine. My main concern in severe injury cases as that too often, they block the flow of information which needlessly complicates things. Once things settle down, if rehab isn't being approved timely, if medications are being denied for no good reason, I get it.

I admit to being a bit jaded. In California, certain attorneys send people to the same group of doctors and there, quite literally, is never improvement. In fact, after seeing this doctor, there are now 7 injuries in addition to the original back pain. These doctors are usually upward of 70, never perform surgery, and just serve to add to the settlement offer.

If the point is the injured worker gets back to being as functional as possible, seeing stuff like that is frustrating.

[Timothy Belt]

I am a workers' compensation attorney in PA, and I know for a fact that over the 10+ years that I have focused my practice on workers' compensation, more and more insurance companies are using in-house lawyers and captive firms. I don't claim to know the situation in other states.

To get back to the meat and potatoes of this inquiry, a good lawyer will move the process along, and provide you with an immediate benefit. An attorney that does not handle many WC cases may slow the process down and just get in the way. Again this is just my very bias opinion on the subject.

[Timothy Belt]

I am a workers' compensation attorney in PA, and I know for a fact that over the 10+ years that I have focused my practice on workers' compensation, more and more insurance companies are using in-house lawyers and captive firms. I don't claim to know the situation in other states.

To get back to the meat and potatoes of this inquiry, a good lawyer will move the process along, and provide you with an immediate benefit. An attorney that does not handle many WC cases may slow the process down and just get in the way. Again this is just my very bias opinion on the subject.