How will you afford the medical care you need? Can you get compensation to help pay bills while you cannot work? What if your injuries are permanently disabling? The best step you can take is to get a knowledgeable personal injury attorney involved as soon as possible.
EVERY DAY ALONG THE NORTH SHORE AND THROUGHOUT MASSACHUSETTS, MOTOR VEHICLE ACCIDENTS CHANGE INNOCENT VICTIMS' LIVES
ANOTHER DRIVER’S MISTAKE OR EXTREME RECKLESSNESS MAY HAVE LEFT YOU COPING WITH SERIOUS INJURIES AND WORRIED ABOUT THE FUTURE
Highly Experienced Legal Guidance
After a highway accident or other roadway crash caused by someone else, attorney Mark S. Horrigan will put more than 30 years of wide-ranging legal experience to work for you. At our firm in Lynn, you will be treated with genuine compassion by a attorney who negotiates skillfully for car accident victims and knows how to win at trial. In fact, Mark has tried approximately 100 cases to verdict and earned excellent outcomes via settlements in many more.
Auto insurance companies are profit-focused. If their representatives can find a reason to deny your claim or pay less than you deserve, they will. For more than a decade, Mark S. Horrigan defended against such claims for a major insurer. He has in-depth knowledge of how adjusters assess and value claims, as well as the sophisticated strategies they use and how to overcome them.
Attorney Horrigan’s knowledge covers all issues in a car accident case, including case considerations:
- All types of driver negligence, from speeding and other traffic violations to drunk driving and texting behind the wheel
- Accidents involving semi trucks and other large commercial vehicles, which often have devastating consequences and demand proactive, aggressive representation
- On-the-job traffic accidents that may justify both a workers’ compensation claim and a separate claim against the driver who caused the crash
- Car accidents caused by uninsured and underinsured drivers
Case Consideration Auto Claims
Basic Massachusetts auto accident case processing considerations
No Fault Personal Injury Protection
(PIP) Insurance Coverage
Every Massachusetts auto insurance policy has it, but what does it cover? PIP insurance coverage includes the following:
- at least the first $ 2000 in medical bills if you have private health insurance up to$ 8000 in medical bill coverage if you do not have private health insurance coverage
- lost wages causally connected to a disability arising from the accident- up to $ 6000 in lost wage coverage if you are limited to$ 2000 in medical bill payments due to having private health insurance
- overall combined/aggregate cap of$ 8000 between medical bill payments and lost wages if you do not have private health insurance
Timing Concerns- the statute says that a PIP claim must be submitted as soon as practicable in order to ensure that you will be able to make a claim.
Threshold Statutory Requirements fo be Eligible for Compensation for Pand and Sufferint
Either at least $ 2000 in related medical bills, or, a fracture or permanent disfigurement (e.g., scarring, etc.)
Adequacy of Insurance Coverage to Compensate for Your Damages
- Mandatory, minimum auto liability insurance coverage required- $ 20,000 if there is only one injured claimant and$ 40,000 overall no matter how many injured claimants there are
- Application of uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage- a.k.a. “Coverage U”
- Threshold consideration- if the at-fault party has the minimum 20/40K coverage the coverage U on your policy must exceed 20/40K before you effectively have any coverage U to apply to your damages
- Where the at-fault party was driving an uninsured vehicle- your policy will always provide at least $ 20,000 in uninsured motorist coverage
- If your coverage U has a higher limit you will have more to apply to your damages
- hypo-example- You have lOOK in damages the at-fault vehicle that hits you has$ 20,000 in coverage and you have lOOK in coverage you; you will effectively have 80k in coverage U to apply to your damages
Damage Elements
- Pain and suffering
- Lost earnings or loss of earning capacity
- Medical bills in excess of any PIP coverage
Statute of Limitations
Generally three years from date of accident excepting injuries to minors