A couple weeks ago I was at Lowes Hardware picking up some items for my DH. I had asked for some help as I was checking out. I told the cashier all I really needed was for someone to lay the seat in my car down (because of the arthritis in my hands I can't do it and forgot to have DH do it the night before). The items I had purchased were 6 feet long (they are called standards (metal rods) - used to make shelves) so therefore had to go thru the trunk and into the car, now the thing is they were not heavy at all and that was why I only needed the help with the seat. I was told by the cashier to pull the car up to the door and when I did a young man brought the buggy out. I got out of the car walked to the back door and opened it. He stopped the buggy beside the car so I was between it and the car. He then started to pick the merchandise up out of the buggy so I stopped him and reminded him again that I needed help with the seat. He then put the merchandise back in the buggy (including the metal rods). Now is where the PROBLEM begins. These metal rods are not very big around and the buggy of course has holes in it so one of them slide throw the buggy and nailed me in the leg. It was very painful and cut my leg bad enough to require 3 stitches. An accident form was filled out after I took care of the bleeding and put a bandaid on it. Someone was suppose to call me the next day. This happened on the 10th, I patiently waited until the 20 and then called them. I was told someone would call me the next day. No one called so on Monday the 24th I called again and within 45 minutes the manager called me back, very apologeticly, and gave me an 800# and a claim#. He said someone should call me but to give them 24 to 48 hours and if not call them. They finally called me yesterday and offered to pay all my bills and offer me $750 in compensation.
My question is do I accept it or do as my daughter suggest an consult a laywer. Her problem with the whole thing is she knows someone that was at Lowes recently and an employee torn the fabric in her (raggy) old car while loading something for her and Lowes gave her $1500.

Sorry this is so long. Please tell me what you would do.
Thanks,
Betty

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I want to say I am sorry for your injury! It is no fun to get hurt...especially by someone else's fault.

Other than that, I don't know what to tell you. What are you wanting out of Lowe's? If it were me, I would take what they are offering although others may say differently

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OH MY GOD! What more do you want? They will pay your medical bills, PLUS $750 for your time and trouble??? That seems like a pretty decent response from a company given you got a cut on your leg that may or may not have actually been their responsibility.

If you had pushed the buggy out by yourself and one of these pipes slid through and caused an injury would you still blame the store and expect something from them???

This injury is not going to cause any permanent impairment (yes, you might have a scar--but don't we all have a few scars?). A year from now, this injury will not still be effecting your daily life (as opposed to something like slipping and falling on a wet floor that wasn't posted).
I am sorry if I'm coming off harsh, but I honestly don't understand why you think you deserve more than getting your bills paid and the $750 compensation for time and trouble and whatever "suffering" you may have had...

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I would take their offer.

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I think Lowes is being more than fair. Way, way, way more than fair.

ETA: The reason to settle would be to let them off the hook for any future expenses you might incur as a result of this injury. If you don't forsee any long-term injury, do you feel right accepting $750? And if you do forsee a long-term injury in your future, is $750 going to be enough to cover future treatment?

My nephew settled for $100,000 after an injury that resulted in a pretty permanent disfigurment and likely future operations. A pick-up backed up, smashing his leg between the back of the truck and a fence post. He had to have considerable repair work done, and will probably need physical therapy as an elderly person because his leg will never be quite like it was. So for him, I can see how a settlement was appropriate.

I think their offer is more than fair

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I totally agree with marilynk!
Everyone is too quick to sue--that is a huge problem. The lawyers are making all the money.
I would be more than satisfied with what they gave you. I am not sure I would have even put in an accident report.

I agree with everyone else, what more could you possibly want? I would have been more than happy with them paying for you medical bills. I think everyone is way to sue happy!!

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Sounds like it was truly an accident, no negligence involved. I think their offer is fair, and you really want to do the right thing here. After all, the sequence of events unfolded because you asked for help with your seat. If you had not requested, maybe this scenario would not have happened. Hope it doesn't sound like I am placing some blame on you; just referring to the sequence of events.

(Not to mention, there are many lawyers out there that only see the almighty dollar sign, and will try to ask for a ludicrious amount, and then take more than a third of that).

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Definately agree!

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The compensation is very fair, IMO. I do want to say this, tho. Be sure you consult your doctor about you a tetanus shot as well. Everyone is supposed to have a booster every 10 years. One year, my son had a bad sunburn, and they gave him a booster tetanus shot, in addition to the treatment for the sunburn.

I doubt a lawyer would even do anything for you. There is no permant injury, right??? I say Kudos to Lowe's, except for the taking so long part.

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I say take the offer and be thankful it wasn't very serious

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"Never loan your car to someone you have given birth too"

OMG! You can't possibly be serious.

Yeah, ok, I'll play. I would take the $750 settlement and feel lucky that I got that. After all, the very minor accident happened because they were doing you a favor! Three stiches is hardly a big deal and Lowe's has already offered a settlement that is far beyond fair. If I were you, I would accept the settlement

I would settle. I was in a car wreck a few months back. the other driver hit me. totally his fault. no injury to me or him. anyways, when I got home from work the next day. some lawyer had called and left me a message on my machine telling me to call him back. I did . He wanted to come talk with me about the "HORRIBLE accident I was involved in . I told him that I was not hurt and neither was the other driver, He didnt care He wanted to sue and that was all he could talk about. he told me that he got my info from the police report and he thought he could get me a good settlement. he got blasted and I dared him to ever call back. The other drivers insuarnce paid for everything that was dammaged and I was happy about the outcome and the amount I was given. People sue over the lest little thing these days .

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One thought comes immediately to mind:

"Just because you can (sue), doesn't mean you should"

also applies to wearing spandex

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I was walking home one night and a guy hammering on a roof called me a paranoid little weirdo. In morse code. -Emo Phillips

Heck, I'm on my way to Lowes to look for sharp objects...
$750 would come in real handy right about now. No, I'm just kidding, it doesn't sound like fun at all getting stitches, and I am such a baby that I would have probably cried. I am glad that they are just taking responsibility and that you were not more seriously injured. The $$ sounds pretty fair to me, and that they are willing to pay your Dr. bills as well. I wouldn't get a lawyer involved; it doesn't really sound worth it this time.

I don't think you should make comparisons about so and so's situation vs yours.

I'd take the offer of doc bills paid and the settlement.

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Someday stores will probably get tired of being sued for things like this and stop offering carry-outs.
To answer your question I would take the $750 and medical bills.

Wow! Before I read your post I wondered what I would want if I ended up needing 3 stitches due to the fault of a store. I believe it is totally reasonable to expect them to pay for the medical costs. Then I was thinking maybe $50 - $100 to cover the time it took to get the stitches, inconvenience, etc. I am amazed that they offered you $750 and think you should take their offer.

Thanks for all your replies. I thought my feelings on the whole matter were right and looks like most of you agree also. I think way to many people run to lawyers and sue other people way to often.
cougarskies thanks also for your reply but in defense of my daughter she is not a greedy, grasping person. She is a very loving caring person who happens to think her mother's leg is more important than a junky old car.

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I say $750 is a very merry Christmas for your family. Take the offer and don't burn your bridges! If you sue you may never be able to shop there again. Do you REALLY want to do that to your family? Sounds like they frequent the place if your daughter was involved in a settlement as well. Heck, if she drove a beater, $1500 is a great down payment for a decent car! I mean, yea, you could counter offer but really, what's that going to do for you? Are you doing it for the money or the pain and suffering? Sounds like you were down for a day and have a story to tell people. Good luck with your decision.

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I think $750 is more than generous especially since you were asking them to do you a favor in the first place. Putting your car seats down is absolutely no responsibility of a Lowe's employee. They were being generous in honoring your request in putting you seat down. I am surprised they could actually even touch the seats in your car, lest they get sued if the seat handle fell off or something when they flipped the seat down for you. Not saying you would....but obviously people would sue if something happened to their seat when the Lowe's employee was folding it down. I know our Circuit City is not allowed to assist in putting items into your car for those exact reasons. It is quickly making customer service go out the window for everyone else out there. I agree with another poster....I wouldn't have even thought about making an accident report on something so minor but not saying you are wrong for doing so.

I have to admit that was my thought as well. I'm afraid your daughter suggesting that you should consult a lawyer and "hold out for more money" does not reflect well on her.

The store employee was doing you a favor. The poor guy probably got into trouble, too. Why in the world would you want to cash in on a simple accident?

I'd check with your doctor first. If you accept payment and it turns out you were more seriously injured than you thought, you're probably out of luck. Usually, those types of payments require you to sign something stating that you won't seek further claims.

If the doctor says to expect no complications, then decide what you want to do.

Ordinarily, I'd agree with what the others here have posted. However, my first and last experience with Lowe's was so incredibly bad, I'd like to see you sue them into bankruptcy.

I'd be happy to take it!
I cut my thumb on a shopping cart at Target once-right on the knuckle. Wasn't a big deal until I woke up a few days later with red streaks running up my arm! Off to the ER on a Sunday! Would have loved to have $750.00 for that!! lol

I am really sad that some of us are attacking the daughter and the way she was raised. I think she was just comparing another case she knew and thought that mom's leg was more important than some car seat. I am telling you as a mom of a young woman myself, I would be infuriated if from one small sentence in a post, others made such harsh, ugly judgements about her. The OP didn't ask anyone what they might think of her daughter!!! I am quite certain that many of you would be angry as well... AARRGGHH!!!!

I know my lovely, young daughter may have wondered the same thing!!! She just doesn't understand everything about the world. Neither do I. Live and learn.....and be nicel.

I thought the same thing.

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Doing the right thing isn't always the same as doing the easy thing.

We are not allowed to touch the inside of anyones car because of liablility issues. Daily people think a stainless steel gas grill is going to fit into their buick, because it has a large trunk. When that doesn't work they want us to shove it in the backseat. About a year ago someone did and ripped the back seat. I personally would feel very guilty taking any money above the medical bill. But that is my opinion.

Fascinating that so many whine about greedy lawyers . . . seems to happen and then those are the first people to think their case is different. I don't mean you, OP, I think you're asking a perfectly fair and reasonable question. The people that seem to think you're greedy . . . well, I'm guessing they never had a metal rod cut their legs and have to have three stitches which probably are leaving a permanent scar to boot.

I think you should take the offer. Lowe's, having undertaken the task of helping you get the stuff into your car, owes you the duty of doing it correctly. I don't think a jury would consider the employee terribly negligent, but he's not entirely free of negligence either. I wouldn't feel a moment's guilt taking the extra money, and see no reason why you should. You've had lost time, pain, aggravation and probably a permanent scar as a result of the employee's actions.

The fact that they are offering you anything over medical bills is great. A few years ago, I slipped on some ice in front of CVS. The side walk was shoveled but there was a hole in the awning that during the day would melt snow on the roof and puddle on the sidewalk then freeze at night. I was there before the sun thawed it and slipped, and broke my ankle. CVS did not have a sign and knew about the problem because other people told them. They thought it was the building owners responsiblity. Since the water was clear it was difficult to see the ice on the sidewalk.
I went to the ER and CVS gave my name and number to the building owner who had this insurance company call me and offered me only my medical expenses. Since I do not work outside the home I asked if they would at least pay $75 per week for 3 weeks for a cleaning service. They said no just medical. Since I am a little older it took longer for my ankle to heal and could nto put weight on it for over 6 weeks. And crutches do not do well in rain or melted snow on any sort of tile floor at the stores. So it really was hard for me to even get out with it happening in Jan.
So IMO your very lucky they offered you anything over medical. I would jump on that. I understand it hurt, but your still able to go about your daily activities. Good for Lowes for being fair.

I was carrying a takeout pizza once and right outside on the sidewalk was a patch of ice like you're talking about. It had melted and dripped off the awning and refroze. I had the pizza box, didn't see it, slipped and fell. Cut up my knuckles, ripped my favorite jeans and was sore for several days. I didn't even go back in the store to tell them. I just got up and went home. Then, a few days later, went and bought new jeans. I never even thought about suing them.


Lisa

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I think they are being considerate and you should accept their offer as is.

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I'd LOVE to get paid $750.00 for 3 stitches!!! Anyone wanna come to Lowes with me and go to work?
If we worked in teams we could make at least $750.00 a day. It may take a few weeks to hit all the Lowes in a 200 mile radius LOL LOL































Now, now don't get your panties in an uproar.....I'M JUST KIDDING!!

While walking my son up the stairs to his doctors appointment when he was 7 years old he slipped on the doctors steps that were covered with over 3 inches of ice and cracked his head open. This doctors waiting room is typically filled with 50 or more people at times and I could not understand why,with so many patients ,would he not have his porch cleared ,so people could walk up them safely.My son got a bunch of painful stitches in his head and what have normally been a 2 hour wait ended up only being 5 minutes ,lol.It never even dawned on me to sue.Theres been a few other times but I won't get into them.If I had sued all the medical professions that have damaged and done me wrong in the past I think I would be rich.I'm glad the OP is getting compensated for not only her medical bills but for that horrible ugly scar that she'll probably have to look at for years to come.

Not me!!! I have a horrible big thick scar on the right side of my right thigh that sticks out like a sore thumb and my bf looks at it everytime we are going somewhere in the car. I would pay $750 just to make that scar disappear.

I don't think the OP should feel quilty taking the money, or having her med bills paid. But her original post made it sounds as if she was considering asking for more--that's what my issue was with. That would have been extremely greedy and ridiculous.

Granted, I'm not a personal injury lawyer...but I deal with disability ratings (or permanent impairment or whatever you want to call it) and maximum medical improvement/healing all day long--a scar from a cut that required 3 stitches would not qualify for any impairment or disability. So while a scar may be permanent, big whoop! 3 stitches would indicate to me that the cut was about an inch long (give or take a bit)--and everyone has scars from one thing or another.

While I don't think all lawyers are greedy--I know far too many that are. I know some really good ones and would not hesitate to retain them if I needed representing. But my issue with a lot of law suits for personal injury is: Where is personal responsibility? Why should someone pay you to be stupid/do something incredibly dumb? In the case of the OP: If she knew she was going to Lowe's and what she was going to get would require having the seat down--why didn't she have that done by her husband or her daughter BEFORE (could have been done the night before even)?

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Mental that one, I'm telling you. ---Ron Weasley, "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets"

If you already haven't gotten one, you may want to get a tetanus shot. If the injury has healed, and you no longer feel discomfort, byall means call them and settle. If the injury were more serious, I would consult with an attorney.

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I agree, the only thing I can see as for a waiting period would be to make sure there was no infection or trouble with the wound healing before you settle, and it appears there has not been any problem. I think it is very fair.
I am in the settlement thing right now, and I am going to end up with a lawyer, BUT a tractor trailer lost control and jackknifed and took the van out with the boys in it. It has been a nitemare so far but we are trying to do what we can with the boys settlement before so a lawyer will only apply to me..was right much fun trying to get someone to fork out over 7,000 for a wheelchair..

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Want a funny story:

I was at a major airport waiting for my flight. Right before the flight was to board I decided I would make one quick run to the rest room. ( I hate going on airplanes) anyways get in the stall click the lock and something didn't sound right. Did what I had to do and went to leave the stall turn the lock.......nothing! turn it again OMG I think I am stuck in the stall. Nah I can't really be here stuck in this bathroom stall.
try to turn the lock, nope. Shake the door and yell for help. Nothing no one around! ( The one and onlu time I have been in a empty womens restroom lol) look under the door. Heck no my butt isn't fitting under that! Now Im scared and starting to panic because my plane is boarding, my son is waiting for me and I am stuck in this cotton pickin stall. Look up big gap between ceiling and top of the stall. Watch out crazy lady is going over folks. So I had to climb onto the toilet and then onto the toiletpaper holder, hoist myself up and over the top of the stall. In all my wonderful wisdom as I was going over I'm thinking ok up, over ill just hit the toilet paper holder in the next stall, then the toilet and i'll be free. Get myself up swing my leg over and wooosh down I go I missed the toilet paper holder. Landed on my feet though! took a second to compose myself and went to walk out and thought hrmm my foot hurts a little but not bad. I look around the bathroom as I come out and still no one in there. Head to my gate and as I'm walking to my gate I'm looking for employees to tell them that something was wrong with the lock of the stall I was in. Everytime I stopped someone they would tell me I needed to go and tell someone else.

Anyways I go back to the gate to meet my son and board my plane. At this point I just want to go home. I'm in a strange airport and I still have another 5 hours of travel time. My son asked me why it took me so long to get back and I told him I would tell him when we got seated on our flight. So we get on the plane get seated and now I'm starting to really hurt. My right foot is throbbing. Told my son what happened and he is laughing so hard he is crying. I tell him my foot really hurts and he looks at me and says through his teeth Mom don't take your shoe off. I'm just rocking in my chair because now I really hurt. Get to the next lay over spot and call my husband who also proceeds to laugh til he cries when I tell him what happened.

Finally get home. I took my shoe off and poof my foot exploded it was so swollen. It was after 1am in the morning so I decided to call the dr. in the morning. Went to the dr. had to explain the story yet again and they also proceeded to laugh til they cried and told me maybe I should make up a story because no one was ever going to believe that someone got locked in a bathroom stall and jumped out. I got my x-rays and I had broke my foot/toes diagnally across from the big toe all the way to the little toe. No wonder I hurt. I was supposed to start my new job the next day and now I was out for the next 6 weeks.

When I got home from the dr. I called to airport to tell them about the lock and that no one was around to help me. I just wanted them to go fix it so someone else didn't end up stuck like me. Not more than 30 mins later their insurance company called me and offered me my medical expenses, paid time off work and a inconvience settlement. I was shocked. I never even thought about money and told them that. And they told me to take it.

Anyways sorry didn't mean to hijack your post just thought someone else might get a laugh out of my mishap. To this day I can't go to a public restroom and lock the stall I am that strange women trying to hold it shut with my hand, foot or purse string lol.

Thanks for sharing your humorous story. What a story, and a happy ending.....well kinda.

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Me too Don't bring the daughter into. Also I think sometimes we are so quick to be mean when people are asking our opinions. Do you think it is possible to give opinions without being mean??

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OMGoodness Keowa your story had me in stitches. I am sorry to hear that you broke your foot in that incident. I would have done exactly what you did in the situation. I think you had a quick thinking solution.

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I personally think $750 for 3 stitches is good.. I would take it and run with it. Like you said you aren't a 'spring chicken' so it isn't like you are a leg model who's career is effected. Also like others have pointed out .. this clerk/sales person was doing you a favor (which btw might become a law that no one is allowed to touch your car seats or help you to the car anymore) and didn't intentionally injure you. To be honest I am betting this person had to immediately go for a drug test, and give 2 statements to 2 managers regarding the incident. If he didn't lose his job over this I am sure he got a severe write up. Take the $750 and consider it a lesson learned. Take hubby with you and make sure your seats are already down. Remember that every $$ you take is going to cost all of us in the long run with higher prices and less customer service. Being greedy only hurts us all in the long run.

Well said. I never understood why people felt they should profit from an "accident". DH has a co-worker that was involved in a car accident. There were some injuries, but everybody will be fine. Since the car that hit the co-worker was a company owned vehicle, co-worker in now a millionaire.

Keowa

I had to laugh at your story, BUT more so I am impressed that you could actually go over the top! I could fit under the door but I CERTAINLY could not climb over it! I am way impressed, but sorry you got hurt.

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LoL there is no way to fit under the door there trust me. The lady told me there is only 6 inches between the floor and the door to prevent purse snatchers reaching under and grabbing your purse. Im not a big person and can you imagine how funny it would have looked if I had managed to get half my body through and the other half got stuck. Omg lol the mental picture is even more funny than me going over the top.

OH!!! I thought it was a regular door..makes sense though. Ok...never mind!!!

I am still impressed that you were able to go over! LOL

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Nutella,....
proving some of the best things in life come in a jar.

Be careful of those airport bathrooms. I had the same thing that happened to Keowa, happen to me. In my case, I was in a foreign country where I didn't speak the language, so I couldn't yell for help. Fortunately, there was enough room under the door. So, I had to shimmy under it. Ew. That was bad enough, but as I was about 3/4 of the way through, someone walks into the bathroom and looks at me like I'm nuts. There I am, wriggling like a worm on the bathroom floor and I can't even explain what happend. At least I didn't break anything though!

Really? So if someone drives a car negligently and puts you in a wheelchair for life, you don't think you should receive anything beyond your medical bills?

No, I don't think an accident should make a person an instant millionaire. Why should an "accident" be like winning the lottery (for the injured as well as the lawyers)? If a driver is negligent, they need to face the legal system just like anybody else that breaks the law.

I'm sure we will have to agree to disagree on this. You asked my opinion, so I'm giving it.

Did I miss something about a wheelchair?

I said something in my post about the insurance company having to replace Michaels wheelchair. He was in the van that got hit by the jack knifed truck...wheelchairs are like motorcycle helmets and car seats, once in a accident they can NOT be used again for transport, neither can the ramp or the tie downs in my van..
no offense to you quintane but you must have never been seriously injured in a accident. On June 20th I lost my van, which was a custom van for Michael we have had for 14 years....I have a compresion fracture..among other things,...
I have not been able to lift Michael since then...well I have but I sure am not supposed too..because there is not always someone around here to do it for me..I do have a lawyer because I need to make sure what has happened to me does not screw up the following years and if it does I need to make sure I can get help. Michael will always need to be lifted, he is never moving out....etc...
Do I or will I become a millionaire..hardly. We was able to manage the van replacement half way without one but they wanted to cheat us by using the old tie downs...which they can not do...thankfully I got Q'Straint to replace them free so we just have the labor of putting them in and we got the van off ebay...it is a nitemare so far and it will be one for quite a while..
Not everyone needs a lawyer I agree,, but if you want the court system to help you get money our of a accident over charges you are thinking the wrong way...
If a drunk driver hits you and tolals your car I am sure you will not say oh forget about it, the courts will take care of it....hardly.

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Jean-Marc-Gaspard Itard

Jaboomer2,

I'm sorry that you are going through such an ordeal. My post was in reference to somebody we know that was involved in an accident, no permanent injuries and they received a million dollar settlement. In fact, the victim in this case originally said that she only wanted medical bills, loss of wages, and replacement of property, but that the lawyer was pressuring them to sue for the million.

You're right, I have never personally been in a serious injury accident. I do think that you should receive compensation to cover any and all expenses that arise as a result of the accident and I do understand that there is a need for lawyers to represent your interests. What I have objections to is frivolous lawsuits.

As far a a drunk driver hitting my car and me seeking justice through a lawsuit, I'm afraid I'm going to have to respectfully disagree with you. The insurance company pays the settlement, not the driver, so I'm not sure how that serves punishment to the driver.

I hope it never happens to you, but I'd be interested to hear if you're still singing that same tune if anything ever does.

The "instant millionaire" comment is really just not accurate, however. NO ONE gets to be an "instant millionaire" just by being in a minor accident. That's just another falsehood put out by special interest groups.

I'm sorry, but I juust don't believe that. Nothing about that story rings true. I'm confident -- 100% confident -- that there are details that are being left out, quite possibly details you don't know about.

I base that on nearly 25 years of being a personal injury lawyer.

Well, I don't know what to tell you. I have no reason to doubt what I was told. I've personally seen the woman and her husband and they are alive and kicking. I've also seen the fruits of their lawsuit. The driver of the the van that hit them was using a company owned vehicle on the weekend for recreational purposes (pulling a trailer with a ski-do or something), not what it was insured to be used for. It was not a DUI situation. As far as it making them million dollars, you're probably right, they didn't end up with a million because the lawsuit was for a million and their lawyer got his cut out of it too.

A lawsuit for a million doesn't mean you GET a million.

Alive and kicking doesn't mean they didn't suffer serious injuries, pain or extended disabilities or time out from work.

As I said -- I suspect there are a great many details you don't have access to that would explain a great many things.

BTW, in most cases the insurance on the van wouldn't even come in to play if the guy was using it for a purpose not sanctioned by work . . . another odd little detail.

I think I've already addressed every one of these points previously. I'm sorry you feel you have to so adamantly defend you choice of career. I've stated the facts as they were told to me. Again, I have no reason to question what I was told. I'm done. Have a great day!

Sorry, Jaboomer - I should've quoted the post I was referencing. Truble quoted quintane, and quintane hadn't mentioned a wheelchair - she was speaking about someone who walked away injury free.

And quintane, I do think that they surely wouldn't get a million dollars. If there was a million dollar settlement, they probably got $5, and their personal injury lawyer got $999,995.

I don't think of it as defending my career -- I am proud to do what I do and don't need to defend it at all. I think of it as attempting to eradicate the falsehoods and ignorance that exists about it. This thread couldn't be a more perfect example of how much work is left to be done.

There's a world of difference between these 2 situations.

Would I sue in the first situation? Most likely not, if that's how it really happened. If my bills were paid, I and my loved ones with me were completely fine, I'd be happy with that and move on.

The second situation? Most likely 100% yes. But again, it's very different from either the OP's situation or what quintane related.

Should a someone sue because they got a couple bruises, missed a day or two of work, if they were compensated fully for all injuries/medical bills/missed work? I personally don't think so. quintane's story seems to be more along those lines, where as Addison's experience is much, MUCH different.

There are cases that SHOULD be pursued in court and there are cases that should not. Just because one CAN sue, doesn't always make it the right thing to do.

While I like to believe in lawyers and the legal system, there are plenty of lawyers out there who can be called "ambulance chasers" and will find any tiny thing to exploit and up the lawsuit ante with. It's unfortunate and corrupts the whole system. There are also many greedy people out there who would sue to the high heavens for the tiniest thing....why? Because they CAN. Not because there's a need, or for justice, but just to see how much they can milk out of the system.

It's a shame that it goes on, but hopefully changes will continue to occur.

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And there are doctors that are quacks and IRS people who cheat on their taxes and accoutants who embezzle . . . there are alway bad people.

But your last paragraph here proves my point that most people are utterly clueless about the way the tort system works.

Alright, I accept that. It's just very hard to believe that every story, article, etc I've read over the years about "ambulance chasers".

No matter what, I won't change my opinion that there are times TO sue and times TO NOT sue. I personally thought that was the gist of this thread. Nothing in life, including when to or not to sue, is black and white.

But instead of telling us how we don't understand, would you be willing to start a thread and explain it for us?

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I don't believe we're as utterly clueless as you seem to think.

We just live by a different moral code.

Wow. That's perfectly clear now, isn't it?

No. I've already tried to explain it and gotten smacked down by people who cast slurs on me and my profession. I know what I do helps people and I really can't see any point in trying to convince people who are predisposed to think I'm scum that I'm not.

I think there is a need for personal injury lawyers. I just don't believe that every injury calls for one.

If I'm not all that hurt, and they weren't purposely negligent, I don't know that I'm owed compensation beyond medical bills and possibly lost work time.

My brother-in-law is an example of this. He was leaving a McDonalds and a bolt snapped, causing that tension thing at the top to swing down and hit him on the head.

He wasn't knocked out, had no real pain to speak of, and there was just a very small scratch on his forehead.

It was lunch time and the place was packed.

He told a cashier about it, and the cashier didn't seem too worried.

When he told us about it later, in a group of friends, someone asked if he had at least gotten a free sandwich. By the time the conversation was over, BIL was starting to come around to the idea that they owed him something. The more he recounted how the pimple-faced cashier didn't take his 40 year old self seriously, the more inscensed he got.

Next thing we knew he had gotten a lawyer and was contacting McD's. They paid for him to have a CT. It showed nothing wrong. He and the lawyer then researched how long it might take for symptoms of a head trauma to appear, and the angle they played was that it might take a full year for something to be evident, and that he would need several CT's in that time just to keep tabs on the situation.

McD's then offered him $1,000 to just drop it. He took it.

His wife took Phen-phen. She had been on every single diet known to man. She doesn't ever ask, "Is this healthy?" She asks, "Will it make me skinny?" We've been through the banana diet, the pea soup diet, SlimFast, NutriSystem, Diet Center, and every possible diet pill sold on late night tv known to man.

She took PhenPhen for a very short time. She comes from a family with some cardiac disease.

Long story short, she has a little damage. Very litte. In fact, she took three different types of tests before they could even discern any cardiac anomalies.(sp?) They don't know if it's from the PhenPhen or not, given her family history, but it is possible it's from the Phenphen. She is considered to be at the bottom of the payout list according to the class action suit.

There is a house she would like to buy. She told me last year, "If I can figure out a way to show that there is a bigger chance that it was their fault, I can get more money and then if I can buy that house with the settlement, I can quit my job!" She was very excited.

And yes, there was a lawyer willing to take HER case, as well.

I agree with the poster above. Just because you CAN sue doesn't always mean you SHOULD. In the case of my SIL, she herself has put her body through the ringer as she's yo-yo'd for years. Do the pharmaceutical companies have a responsibility to ensure that their products are safe? You betcha. But on a personal level, I believe her own body negligence shoud weigh heavily on her conscience if she's considering blaming the makers of Phen-phen for any health problems she might have.