My prayers go out to all of those who were involved in this accident, especially the 17 year old girl who was thrown from the SUV she was riding in when the driver of the bus hit her vehicle.

A lot of people will probably be wondering who is at fault in this wreck. And from the information I have been able to find it seems to be that the driver of the bus was the own who caused the wreck when he failed to yield to the other vehicle.

Because the bus driver was ticketed and is considered “at fault” for this accident then both he and the company he was working for may be considered liable for any and all damages that the victims of this accident suffer from. This includes hospital bills, pain, suffering and any loss of property.

Most likely the victims (or their families) of this accident will be receiving phone calls from the insurance adjusters representing the day care very soon. These adjusters will be trying to limit the liability and how much they will have to pay the victims of the accident. It’s very important that the victims act carefully during this time! I suggest that they inform themselves as much as they can BEFORE they talk ANYONE, by reading relevant materials such as the “Memphis Accident Book”.

Ferrell Law Firm
2255 S. Germantown Road, Germantown, TN 38138
901-754-1340 or 888-GET-JAMI

WREG – Channel 3 has more coverage on the accident in this video.
 

The car was heading south on Homer street when it apparently left the road and struck a tree.

Be careful Memphis! Any time you’re driving be sure to watch out for other vehicles that can easily run you off the road causing accidents and potentially life threatening injuries.

And if you’ve been in a bad car wreck and need the help of a personal injury lawyer you can call our office 24 hours a day at 901-754-1340.

What did she do?

She called the person she considers to be the best personal injury lawyer in Memphis (I’m her husband, she better have been thinking that) to help her, your’s truly.

And what did I do? 

First I made sure that neither her or my two children were needed immediate medical attention. Then I talked her through getting the other driver’s insurance information, getting the other driver to write down their admission of guilt, taking pictures and seeing if there were any witnesses.

The good news is that, although the impact from the car wreck was pretty hard, neither of my two children were injured. The bad news is that my wife has had a terrible headache for over a week and severe pain in her neck.

We took her to the Campbell Clinic in Collierville (Germantown had no availability for two weeks) to be seen by one of their neck specialists. Unfortunately we’re still not 100% sure on the final diagnosis. It may be a cervical strain, aka whiplash, or it may be even more severe and be a herniated or bulging disk. We’re definitely keeping our fingers crossed that it’s not a disk issue.

We’ve taken our car in to be fixed up and expect for it to be ready for pick-up tomorrow. Hopefully everything will be working great and in perfect shape for both the car and my wife’s neck.

If you’ve been hit from behind here in Memphis or involved in a bad car wreck anywhere in Tennessee or Mississippi give me a call at 901.754-1340. I want you to be my client. And just like my wife, I want you to also think I’m the best personal injury lawyer in Memphis after I help you.

Ferrell Law Firm, 2255 S. Germantown Road, Germantown, TN 38138

As Brad writes on his blog, his injuries were pretty severe and life threatening. But what I found inspiring was how he viewed this accident and how he actually felt that it was a “blessing”. His posts, which can be read in their entirety here and here, offered insight into his feelings and how he and his family dealt with this terrible accident.

I found his posts both heart warming and genuine. I wish Brad all the best in his recovery and hope that he is enjoying his time back with his family and friends after his stint in the hospital. And I hope that those of you who have been injured may find a little glimmer of hope in what Brad has written.

Going through a car wreck and suffering a major injury is difficult. But when you work with people who are similar to Brad it makes all the difference. And it reaffirms my feelings on why I don’t take small cases from people just looking to make a quick buck when they should be counting their blessings that they weren’t seriously injured. I’d much rather work with someone who truly needs my help and who understands a life that is “blessed”.

If you have been hurt in any type of accident anywhere in Mississippi or Tennessee call me at 901-754-1340. Or get your free copy of my book by clicking here. I guarantee it will be worth your time.

According to the Commercial Appeal a tanker truck carrying highly flammable material was caught up in a wreck with a Chevy Illumina and Jeep Liberty a little past midnight last night.

Unfortunately there were injuries with this car wreck. Both a man and a woman who have yet to be identified were taken to the Med in critical condition. Let’s all pray that their injuries were minor and they will fully recover.

As always if you have any questions about an accident or car wreck that you have been involved in please call our law office here in Memphis. My team of lawyers and I will be happy to help you in any way that we can. Just call us at 901-754-1340.

The message that I send is very different from each and every one of the personal injury law firms who you see advertising on television or billboards around Memphis. First of all I don’t want thousands of clients a year, that’s not the way I work.

My ideal and normal client is someone that’s a good person who works hard and who has unfortunately had something terrible happen to them. Most of my clients don’t even want to “sue” anyone. They just want to feel better and make sure that the insurance companies and their adjusters don’t take advantage of them. That’s where we step in and help.

Secondly, I try to give away as much information as possible to accident and injury victims so that they understand what’s going on. I give every person who calls my office the tools to try to handle their case themself. You can get this package, my Memphis Accident Book, by clicking here. I want you to be informed as well as you possibly can.  Other injury lawyers and accident law firms here in Memphis don’t do this. They simply want to sign you up immediately so that they can begin making money off you and your injuries.

But do you want to know a little secret? Many times you don’t even need a lawyer for your case. Especially if your case is relatively minor with only a couple of thousand dollars worth of medical bills or less.  I’ve had countless potential clients who I have told “Don’t hire me – you can do just as well on your own without paying my fee”. Try finding another lawyer in Memphis who will tell you this!

But sometimes you really do need a good injury or accident lawyer. This is especially true for major injuries with lot’s of medical bills and damage. You need to hire someone to make sure that you are taken care of properly and receive every dime you should receive, because the insurance companies will absolutely eat you up and spit you out if you don’t have the absolute best lawyer in Memphis that you can find.

That’s when we step in to help you. And the insurance companies know that when they deal with me and my team of lawyers that they are in for a fight. That’s because we don’t take frivolous and questionable lawsuits. They know that when we’re involved it’s a major case.

These are just a few of the things that make us different, and it’s why some of our clients have told us that they thought we are the best lawyers in Memphis.

Call me today at 901-754-1340 and I’ll help you determine what’s best for your accident, injury or worker’s comp case. Even if that means telling you NOT to hire me!

9.  Keep in mind that sometimes it’s better to have your car repaired rather than totaled. For example, if you owe $10,000 on your loan but the car is only worth $7,000, it is not the insurance company’s responsibility to pay off your loan.

10.  Find out if you have bought GAP insurance when you purchased your car. GAP insurance can help you fill in the difference if you owe more on your car than what it’s worth.  There are a lot of stipulations with GAP insurance, so we recommend that if you are in an accident and your vehicle is totaled, go ahead and file your GAP claim immediately – it can take up to three months to process.

11.  If your car is a total loss, you have the option to “retain salvage.” This means the insurance company will pay you the Fair Market Value of your car minus a salvage amount.  Salvaging a car means you can keep your vehicle, but the title will change to “salvaged-rebuilt.”  This can be a good option if you own an older car that are already paid for and didn’t sustain much damage.

Hopefully that answered some of your initial questions about dealing with property damage after a car wreck.  If you are having difficulties at any part of this process, we urge you to contact an attorney that may be able to ease the way for you!

5.  Get the determination from the appraiser if your car is a “total loss” or if it is repairable. If it is repairable, you have the right to choose where you wish your car to be repaired.  The insurance company should cover towage costs if you need to move the car to another body shop from the one it was initially towed to.  A body shop cannot start repairs without authorization from you.  Make sure to stay in contact with the shop as repairs progress.

6.  If the car is being repaired, rebuilt parts are only acceptable if they come with a separate warranty. Make sure to insist that the shop warranty the parts (and labor) if they are insisting on using rebuilt parts.

7.  The day you are informed your repairs are complete is likely the day the insurance company will cease providing a rental car for you. Make sure you confirm this so you are not left without transportation.

8.  Insurance companies total vehicles when the damage to the vehicle is equal to 75% of the value of the vehicle. Once an offer is made to you by the insurance company on your vehicle, they can cut off your rental car.  Remember, you are entitled to the Fair Market Value of your car – the best resources to determine that value are the NADA Used Car Value Guide or the Kelly Blue Book.

Watch for our third and last post in this series tomorrow as we discuss the final few issues you may come across when dealing with your property damage.  To be continued…

1. Contact both your insurance company and the insurance company of the other driver(s). No matter who was at fault, everyone needs to know in case one party or the other isn’t covered by insurance.  And your insurance company may be able to help fill in some gaps that another underinsured motorist’s carrier may not be able to cover.
2. Get photographs of your vehicle prior to the appearance of the appraiser. Every angle, the license plate, the odometer, and the car’s interior are all important – they may have to support you later on as insurance companies try to dispute your claim.
3. If your car is drivable, make sure to get estimates from at least two body shops. This will help you get a better understanding of the true total damage to your vehicle.
4. Request a rental vehicle if your car is non-drivable. You are entitled to one from the day of the accident until either a. an offer is made on your total-loss car or b. your car repairs are done.  You are not entitled to a rental car if your car is still drivable.  If authorization on a rental car is dragging, you are entitled to “loss of use,” even if you have another car at your disposal.

Check our next post for the next steps in the process of dealing with property damage as the result of a car accident!  To be continued….

For this post I’m going to use two different examples.

Here’s Scenario #1:

You and your co-worker are carpooling. He was late to pick you up and now he’s driving like a mad man to make it to work on time. As you get near an intersection the light in front of you turns yellow, but your co-worker isn’t about to slow down. Instead he guns the accellorator and tries to zip through the light, which is now red. Unfortunately he didn’t care to notice the oncoming Suburban that hammers your side of the car. 

You are transported by ambulance to the closest hospital where you are treated for lumbar fractures, lacerated pancreas and TBI (traumatic brain injury). You’re doctor’s bill quickly climb and before you’re released, two weeks later, you owe $300,000 in medical bills and don’t have any insurance.

What do you do?

In this situation your co-worker would be the “at-fault” driver. He was negligent in running the red light and causing your injuries. If not for him and his negligence you would not be in the situation you are right now.

And don’t worry about the fact that you are suing “him”. None of us want to cause our family and friends to be pushed into debt because of a lawsuit we bring against them, right? But don’t worry,your lawyer will not be going after their personal funds. Your lawyer will be attacking the co-worker’s insurance. We don’t want to take anyone’s home away from them!

Now forScenario #2.

Let’s assume the same facts as above except this time your co-worker was driving properly, but the driver who hit you ran the red light.

In this case you’re still the passenger who was hurt in a car wreck but this time you would bring a lawsuit against the driver of the Suburban that hit you.

Why?

You would sue the other driver because now he is the one who was at fault. The other driver was the person who was negligent and who caused the wreck, not your co-worker.

In Either Scenario:

The first thing you should do is find the best memphis personal injury lawyer you can find. They would help you with the process of bringing a lawsuit against your co-worker to recover damages that would allow you to pay off your medical bills, receive money for your lost wages due to missed work, and make sure you recieve enough funds to help you fully recover from any physical problems.

Call my office at 901-754-1340 if you have any questions that you would like to ask me.