Pennsylvania Car Accident Legal Questions

Although statutory law ( law made by the legislature) provides for some exceptions, the law in Pennsylvania in most circumstances is that a party may not recover his or her attorneys fees from the other party. In the situation in which you are involved, the plaintiff cannot recover attorneys fees.... Read More

Assuming one is a licensed driver, as a general rule, a person may legally operate a vehicle owned by another person if the driver has the permission of the owner. There are insurance issues which may be present anytime that a person operates the automobile of another, and which depend upon specific facts, but operation of another's automobile with that person's permission is not a criminal violation if the driver has a valid license.... Read More

That is a diffcult question to answer based upon the information which you have provided, but the answer is most likely no, since you stopped and gave the pedestrian your name. You should immediately report this to your insurance company, which will cover you for any claim for injuries that the pedestrian may have. Since I am assuming you were not cited by the police, and you gave her your information, there would appear to be no criminal issue.... Read More

If you were in plain view and the car hit you then you have a great case.  You should contact a good Pennsylvania Car Accident Lawyer with experience handling cases involving pedestrians hit by cars.  Check out our car accident site for more helpful information: http://fairlielaw.net/practice-areas/car-accidents/... Read More

This is not a no-fault accident.  Pennsylvania has "no-fault" insurance for medical coverage which means that your insurance company pays "PIP" or first party coverage for your medical treatment until your policy limits are exhausted.  However, just because medical treatment is covered by each party's own insurer regardless of fault, that doesn't mean that the driver who is at fault is not liable for property damage, pain and suffering, or medical expenses over the first party insurance limits.  In this case it sounds to me like the woman would clearly be found to be at fault.  You should contact a qualified Pennsylvania Car Accident Lawyer and you should probably review the information at: http://fairlielaw.net/practice-areas/car-accidents/... Read More

under PA law every motor vehicle must provide at least $5,000 in medical bill coverage.  So assuming you owned and properly insured your vehicle there would be at least $5,000 in medical bill coverage.  However, if you did not have insurance on your motor vehicle at the time of your accident then any medical bills can be recovered from a negligent driver who caused the accident or your health insurance carrier. Scott Cooper scooper@schmidtkramer.com 717-888-8888... Read More

First, in Pennsylvania, there is a 2-year statute of limitations for commencing a lawsuit for personal injuries.  So if the date of the accident was October 21, 2010, then without knowing any other facts, it would appear that your ability to file a lawsuit for those injuries expired on October 21, 2012.  Secondly, even though you may technically have a cause of action against the bar for serving you alcohol while visibly intoxicated, the fact remains that you were the one who caused the accident that resulted in your injuries because you were driving while intoxicated.  As such, there is a strong likelihood that a court would find that you were 50% or more responsible for causing the accident, notwithstanding the bar's own violation of the law, which means that under Pennsylvania law, you would be legally barred from recovering damages. ... Read More

Yes.  Being uninsured does not restrict or prohibit the other driver from filing a lawsuit against your son.  It only limits his right to recovery.  If your son does get sued because of this accident, he needs to send the lawsuit to his automobile insurance company that covered the car he was driving at the time.  The insurance company will then provide your son with a lawyer and a defense free of charge. ... Read More

You should talk with a good car accident lawyer as soon as you can.  The insurance companies will be calling, medical treatment is required, and the police may have questions about the accident.  All of this can impact what happens with a case, so with free consultations being the norm in this area of law why not get good quality advice to help?  You can start by reviewing the information on my website pertaining to Pennsylvania Car Accidents... Read More

While the general principle of sovereign immunity does apply in Pennsylvania, they are trying to sucker you here.  There is a specific exception for the operation of a motor vehicle within Bensalem's control.  You need to put them on notice immediately with a special letter that I or any lawyer can draft for you, as there is a six month time limit to give notice of your intent to sue.  If they call you again don't discuss the case at all - have a lawyer do that - but you should ask them to put in writing their statement that you have no claim.   Hopefully they are stupid enough to do that.  Steve Fairlie  ... Read More

You would have to file suit against the driver for the out-of-pocket damages you sustained as a result of her negligent operation of her motor vehicle.   Given the fact that you are only seeking $1,300.00, you could file suit in the local Magisterial District Justice that has jurisdiction over where the other driver lives, or where the accident occurred.  This type of action is inexpensive to file and will be a quick process (1-2 months from filing to getting in front of a judge) and you can do it without an attorney.    Michael J. Davey, Esq. Eckell Sparks Law Firm 344 West Front Street, Media, PA 19063 mdavey@eckellsparks.com  (610) 565-3700... Read More

John Bisnar We have encountered this same problem a number of times.  We simply call up our bank, where the check is drawn, explain the situation and verify that you are who you are and that we wrote you the check.  Our bank will then cash the check.  If your personal injury attorney has a similar relationship with his/her bank, this may work for you as well. John Bisnar Bisnar|Chase, California Personal Injury Attorneys Trusted Professionals.  Proven Results. www.BestAttorney.com 800-956-0123... Read More

John Bisnar  If you have caused a traffic collision you can be sued personally.  However, the best car accident attorneys know you can't sue a negligent driver's insurance company in the normal case. Generally traffic collision lawsuits are filed against the negligent driver.  Never is a traffic collision lawsuit properly filed against the negligent driver's auto insurance company.  The auto insurance company didn't do anything wrong and therefore the injured people have no claim against the negligent driver's auto insurance company.  If they are going to sue, they have to sue whomever actually did something wrong. Homeowners' insurance typically does not cover motor vehicle accidents.  Even if you are being sued for something your homeowners' policy does cover, again, since your insurance company didn't do anything wrong, the injured people can not effectively sue your insurance company.  There are "umbrella" provisions in some insurance polices that may cover motor vehicle accident liability. If the injured people sue you personally, your auto insurance company is going to provide you a defense law firm to protect you.  They will negotiate a resolution of the claim.  If necessary, they will go to trial to defend you.  Almost the only time you will have personal exposure to paying the victims anything is if a court awards them more than your insurance policy covers.  Even then you have some forms of protection. Why would someone try to go after you personally instead of settle with the insurance company?  (1)  They don't understand how insurance coverage works; (2)  Your auto insurance company isn't willing to pay them what they are demanding for a settlement; (3)  Your auto insurance coverage isn't high enough to cover the damages and the injured parties think that you have enough money to pay them from your own funds and will not file a bankruptcy to stop them; (4)  The injured parties are trying to intimidate you or have something personal against you; and/or (5) They are getting no competent legal advise or really bad legal advise. Turn this matter over to your auto insurance company.  Insist on speaking to your defense attorney that they provide.  Go over all your questions and your insurance policy protections with the attorney. John Bisnar BISNAR|CHASE, California Personal Injury Attorneys Trusted Professionals.  Proven Results. www.BestAttorney.com 800-956-0123    ... Read More

The key here is that the driver is liable for the amount of the damage to your car as well as your injuries, even if you have limited tort insurance.  Limited tort insurance is converted to full tort insurance if the at fault driver accepts ARD or is convicted of DUI.  Provide as much documentation as you can for the value of your car and if it is not enough, even if you were not planning to sue for your injuries, pursue a claim for the injuries which will help make you whole on the property damage.  Legally, it is of no significance that you planned to drive this car until it was taken from you.  You are only entitled to the fair market value of the car today. See http://fairlielaw.net/practice-areas/car-accidents/ Steven F. Fairlie, Esq.Fairlie & Lippy, P.C.1501 Lower State Road, Suite 304North Wales, PA 19454voice: (215) 997-1000fax: (215) 997-1777steve@fairlielaw.netwww.fairlielaw.net  ... Read More

Absolutely.  If you choose limited tort there are many very common scenarios where you could be involved in a crash and recover nothing where if you had full tort you might recover $50,000 or more.  See http://fairlielaw.net/read-the-fine-print-before-you-agree-to-limited-tort-insurance/ Steven F. Fairlie, Esq.Fairlie & Lippy, P.C.1501 Lower State Road, Suite 304North Wales, PA 19454voice: (215) 997-1000fax: (215) 997-1777steve@fairlielaw.netwww.fairlielaw.net... Read More

Different lawyers often have different views of the same case. For that reason I would encourage you to talk to more lawyers in your local community. Also, if you are turned down again try asking the lawyer if he knows of a lawyer who does take this type of case on a contingency. Good Luck   Andy Gillin, Senior Partner GJEL Accident Attorneys... Read More