Fort Worth Injury Attorney Blog

A new client of mine was just crashed into by an uninsured driver on Alta Mere near Ridgmar Mall. And since he does not unfortunately carry uninsured motorists insurance, he may not be able to recovery any money for his injuries, lost wages, and pain and sufferering. At least he has medical insurance and Personal Injury Protection benefits.

This is hardly the first time I have seen this happen in my 31 years of practicing injury law. And it obviously won't be the last.

My client's only option is to pay money to file a lawsuit against the uninsured driver, take a judgment,wait, pay more money, and have his driver's license and registration revoked. But that takes time, money, and aggravation, and hardly guarantees he will ever recover his damages.

There are almost 17 million licensed drivers in Texas and the state estimates that one out of four of them doesn't carry liability insurance. So that's 4.25 million uninsured drivers out there. And I think that is a low figure.

Why is this happening?

Driving with liability insurance is obviously required by law, and motorists caught driving without it face a fine on their first offense and the possibility of a license suspension and an impounded car on third or subsequent offenses.

But it is too easy to circumvent this law -- when it is even enforced.

Continue reading "Uninsured Motorists - Big Problem For Us Texans " »

Farmers Insurance Company's policy holders could file for refunds from a proposed $455 million settlement in a national class action lawsuit that accused the company of illegally inflating its rates by charging excessive management fees.

The case started out in a Texas court in 2007. It is now before a court in Los Angeles, which is expected to approve the settlement next month.

Texas Farmers is owned by Zurich Financial Services in Switzerland. Its national headquarters is in California. So much for the clever marketing aimed at Texans and farmers.

Less than a quarter of eligible Farmers customers have applied for the available refunds.
Maybe that's because of the red tape and small average refunds involved.

Policy holders could receive up to $60.00, although the average refund is about $25.00. Texas will receive about $20 million of the total $455 million available. $350 million has not been claimed.

Former Texas Insurance Commissioner J. Robert Hunter stated that the proposal will do little for consumers, since most of the money goes back to Farmers, which will just keep it.

A consumer attorney said that "It's ridiculous to require that their policyholders and former policyholders fill out and send in a claim form when Farmers could simply send them a check."

Austin attorney Joe Longley, who represented one group of plaintiffs, said Farmers customers are better off with the California proposal than the original Texas settlement of $117 million in 2002. The agreement came after the company had threatened to pull out of the Texas home insurance market because of massive losses from mold claims.

Company officials also were stinging from repeated attacks by Gov. Rick Perry, who made Farmers his favorite target in his 2002 campaign.

The original settlement included rate reductions, premium refunds, higher discounts and miscellaneous refunds. Longley and his clients challenged that settlement, contending the amount was inadequate. Longley eventually had his Texas clients participate in the California case.

"We objected to the Farmers settlement as not being nearly enough, and as a result, the national class action case evolved out of the Texas case," Longley said.

"Texas policyholders are getting a better deal with this [California] settlement because it is real money as opposed to credits or future reductions in rates," he said.

Once the settlement is approved, Travis County District Judge Scott Jenkins will convene a hearing in Austin.

Another class action case affecting Texas policyholders of the company was approved in federal court in Oklahoma City last week for $40 million plus $8 million in attorney fees. That case involved faulty disclosures of premium discounts by Farmers.

Farmers is often difficult to deal with, and I sometimes file suit rather than try to settle with its adjusters.

I have been truly blessed by the Lord with some of the nicest clients in the world. Thank you all for the honor and privilege of representing you.

Yesterday and today, I had the pleasure of meeting with another two of my great clients, giving them sizeable checks, and concluding their legal battles against the insurance companies and their attorneys that had tried to deny them from receiving any money. One man was hit as he was on his motorcycle in Fort Worth and another woman's car was crashed into in Arlington. I fought hard to make sure they received favorable recoveries for their injuries.

I wanted to share their comments about how pleased they were. As you can see, they were delighted with their cash recoveries and my legal services.

I am proud that 100% of my clients have written that they are "very pleased" with their financial recoveries and the way they were treated and that all would recommend me to a family member or friend. To my knowledge, no other attorney can claim this.

Over 100 happy clients have filled out comment forms and they can be seen here

I believe that positive recommendations are the best way to hire someone, don't you?

I am delighted to announce my latest substantial recovery, this time on behalf of Mr. D___, a hard working Fort Worth resident. And it's been a busy month, with $1,230,000.00 in recoveries so far!

Mr. D___'s truck was side swiped by a Ford delivery van on the south side of town two years ago. He was taken to the ER, but the initial tests were negative. Unfortunately, my client had to undergo a cervical fusion six months later. He lost his truck driving job, but was already 65 years old at the time.

The defendant's insurance company and its attorneys had many defenses, some of which were valid. They argued that Mr. D___ was not seriously injured, he suffered from arthritis, he didn't even need the surgery, and if he did, their driver did not cause it, his medical bills were excessive, he had fully recovered from his injuries, he was going to retire at the age of 65, the visible damage to both vehicles was relatively minor due to the side swipe, the verdict potential was severely limited under the draconian "paid vs. incurred" statute enacted by the Texas Legislature in 2003, etc.

I fought hard and am proud that I forced the insurance company to pay this outstanding settlement. Then, to increase my client's recovery of money, I greatly reduced the subrogation liens held by his health insurance carrier and various medical providers. Now I am in the process of slashing his Medicare lien so that he will get even more money.

My client was ecstatic with the outcome, as you can see in this photograph. It was my honor to represent this wonderful couple (I also obtained a good settlement for his wife when she was hit in front of a school last year by a FWISD bus) and wish them the best of luck in the future.

House Bill 1110 would require all convicted DWI offenders -- even first timers - to install ignition interlock devices in their car. Even first time convicted offenders would have to blow on the device to calculate their blood alcohol content.

If it's under the legal limit of 0.08, the car engine would start.

Now, only repeat offenders or drivers with a 0.15 BAC level have to have the devices installed.

Arizona's reduced its rate by 46 percent by requiring this, and it is shocking that this is not already the law here.

Of course, the offender can have someone else blow into the machine, or find another car to drive. But it would have a deterrant effect and we must crack down on all of the drunks out there on the roads.

MADD is one of my favorite causes, and it strongly supports this bill.

On Monday morning at 2:40 a.m., a pickup truck driven by Louis Nieves, 23, who was DWI and had at least 10 beers at a downtown bar, crashed head-on into a gasoline tanker truck as he drove the wrong way on Interstate 30 near Beach Street.

The truck caused the tanker to explode. Its driver, Alejandro Raya, a kind and hard working family man from Fort Worth, was tragically killed. Mr. Raya, who had lived here for over 25 years, was married to a woman who works just down the street from my office at the Railhead BBQ restaurant and had three children, ages 21, 14, and 12. He was excited about his daughter's upcoming Quinceanera.

As the father of an almost 21 year old daughter, whom I love dearly, I can only imagine the grief that his family is suffering now and I am truly sorry for its loss.

The devastation caused by the crash and ensuing fire was immense.

The steel and concrete bridge over Sycamore Creek literally dissolved in the flames and the four lanes of I 30 will have to be reduced to two lanes for the next five months. What a hassle for people driving to work downtown or getting onto the Mixmaster.

The Texas Department of Transportation will have to pay at least $15 million to design and build the bridge and highway -- this in the middle of our $27 billiion budget deficit.

The State will have to pay over $40,000.00 a year to imprison Nieves for many, many years, not to mention the cost of his trial and court appointed attorney. He is currently jailed in Mansfield awaiting transfer to the Tarrant County Jail. His bond was set at $90,000.00, so it is safe to say he will be in jail until his trial.

And of course there is no way to put a value on the life of Mr. Raya or the suffering of his wife and children.

You will remember that just last week, at about the same time in the morning, a car pulled out in front of a tractor trailer and nearly caused it to plunge 50 feet from the I20/820 ramp down on to cars beneath.

This story makes me sick, and I demand to know the answers to these questions:

How long had Nieves been getting drunk at that bar?

Was he already drunk when he got there? Had he been drinking at another bar?

How did the bar on East 8th Street where Nieves was getting wasted not know that he was intoxicated?

Why did it continue to serve him in violation of the Texas Alcohol Beverage Commission guidelines?

What time did he leave, since the wreck happened approximately 40 minutes after closing time, and the bar was no more than five minutes away.

Why didn't others at the bar try to stop him from driving?

How did Nieves not know that driving after drinking 10 beers would be dangerous?

Why didn't he have a designated driver or call some one to take him home?

Had Nieves ever done this before?

How many drunk customers had this bar allow to drive away before?

Why didn't Nieves get killed, not the other way around? Why does the drunk never seem to get hurt?

How did Nieves have so much money to spend on alcohol and does he have liability insurance? Insurance greater than the (just increased) limits of $30,000.00 per person?

Why do we allow this carnage to continue, night after night? What are we doing to prevent drunks from crashing into us?

As readers of my blog know, I HATE drunk drivers. I believe that Nieves should be given a long prison sentence for vehicular manslaughter and the bar should be sued under the "dram shop act" for civil damages, as punishment to him and as a deterrant to others who drink and drive and bar owners who serve them.

That is why I support MADD - Mothers Against Drunk Drivers - and am supporting its Walk Like MADD next weekend here in Trinity Park. And I will make a contribution on the way home to the fund for the family being collected at the Railhead, and encourage any one else to do so if they can.

A collision tragically resulted in the death of Richard Chu, a 60-year-old New Jersey man here on business, when the cab he was riding in slammed into the back of an 18-wheeler parked on a service road shoulder along Interstate 35W south of Meacham Boulevard.

The cab driver was taken to John Peter Smith Hospital with injuries. The driver of the 18-wheeler was asleep when the wreck occurred and was not injured.

A Fort Worth ordinance prohibits parking oversized commercial vehicles for more than two hours on public streets. An investigation is still ongoing and if the evidence shows that the trucker had been parked for more than two hours, he could be cited under the ordinance. Of course that won't do much good for Mr. Chu.

This type of negligence infuriates me! Not only the inattention of the cab driver but also the disregard of city ordinances by the 18-wheeler. This ordinance was passed to avoid this exact issue and I hope this violation will not go unnoticed by the FWPD. .

If I were retained by the family of this man, I would not only sue the negligent cab driver but also the 18-wheeler company and its driver for negligently remaining on the road and creating an unsafe hazard.

And on a personal note, my poor mother was injured when she was riding in a cab in Los Angeles back in 1988 and died six weeks later, I believe due to the injuries she sustained in that wreck.

Continue reading "Fort Worth Cab Crashes Into Parked Semi, Killing Passenger" »

I just returned from court where a large company agreed to pay a substantial sum as trial was beginning. My client's car had been crashed into by the company's tractor trailer on I-35 last year, but the company denied that it was at fault, and later, when I proved that it was, still denied payment to my client.

My client, Karlisha _____, was very pleased with her recovery of money and the reduction of her medical bills, and told me that if she ever needed a lawyer, or knew of any one looking for a lawyer, she would immediately call me.

If you've been involved in a wreck with an 18-wheeler, you need an attorney who will fight to make you the most money possible. I file lawsuits and make companies pay. Call me today at 817-885-8000 for a free case evaluation and find out what I can do to help you.

Texas has one of the largest populations of uninsured drivers in the country. A whopping 22% of the people driving next to you do not carry liability insurance according to the state -- and I think that number is higher.

This is why it is more important than ever to make sure that you have UM/UIM coverage on your policy.

Many of my clients have purchased UM/UIM (Uninsured/Under Insured) benefits but they don't know it -- and they would never receive money they are entitled to until I got them this money. Their own agents tell them not to file -- if my clients even think to call their agents. And virtually none of my clients understand what UM/UIM is and how it can help them immeasurably.

UM/UIM is a part of the auto insurance policy which can be used to help pay medical bills and lost wages if it is discovered that the negligent party does not have insurance or if their insurance is not enough properly compensate you for your injuries. So, for example, if your injuries exceed the amount of the defendant's insurance policy limits, at that point your Underinsured Motorist Coverage would then kick in.

UM/UIM covers every insured no matter what vehicle they are in. It also covers everyone in the insured vehicle. Some of my clients are uneasy about filing a claim on their own policy, believing their rates will increase. However, by state law, insurance companies cannot raise rates for filing UM/UIM.

The UM/UIM statute requires that a signed rejection of the coverage be provided, or UM/UIM has to be paid. I immediately write a letter to my client's carrier when I am hired, and always force the insurance carrier to provide a signed rejection for my clients, even when they try to evade my request. There have been at least 10 cases when I made companies pay my clients UM/UIM benefits - including one last week -- even though my clients had never even purchased UM/UIM! Needless to say, they were ecstatic to receive this money.

Every insurance company that sells policies in Texas is required by law to offer UM/UIM coverage with every policy. Texas insurance companies offer a minimum of $25,000.00 and up to your liability limits worth of UM/UIM coverage. I strongly encourage you to purchase this coverage at an average cost of as low as $10 a month.

If you've been in a wreck, please contact my office by phone at 817-885-8000 or fill out this contact form for a free case evaluation. I will take the time to personally meet with you and explain the whole process including all the ways I can get you money, many of which you may not have even known were available to you.