Blog Topic

Auto Accidents

Halloween Free Cab Ride Program
Posted by: Michael Sawaya
October 28, 2009

If you are planning to go out this Halloween in Denver, and have a few drinks with some friends, it is your responsibility to arrange for a safe way to get home. We would like to help.
If you have had too much to drink, or you have any doubt, call a cab and send the bill to us!

Colorado Accident & Injury Law Part IX:Appropriate Prejudgment Interest on a Judgment in an Insured Motorist Case
Posted by: Michael Sawaya
October 01, 2009

The Supreme Court in the case of USAA v. Parker, O7SC524 upheld the Court of Appeals ruling in USAA v. Parker, P.3d , No. 05CA2361, 05CA2569, slip op. (Colo. App. May 3, 2007), that the "personal injury statute" controls the calculation of prejudgment interest in such cases and thus Petitioner USAA...

Colorado Accident & Injury Law Part VIII: Supreme Court Clarification Application of The Doctrine of Sudden Emergency
Posted by: Michael Sawaya
September 18, 2009

•· The Supreme Court in the case of Hesse v. McClintic, 06SC624 on January 14, 2008 gave a pronouncement on the defense of sudden emergency that establishes a standard not heretofore stated by the Colorado appellate courts.

Colorado Accident & Injury Law Part VII: Collateral Source Issue & The Issue of Valuing Medical Bills
Posted by: Michael Sawaya
September 09, 2009

This has been an issue of great importance to Plaintiffs' counsel since the demise of the No-Fault Statute in 2003.
Some District Court Judges had ruled that the Plaintiff was entitled to submit the amount of medical billings as the appropriate evidence, even if less had been actually paid by an insurer, while other Judges ruled that, if there had been payment by an insurer, the Plaintiff would be limited to submitting the amounts actually paid by that insurer.

Colorado Accident & Injury Law Part VI: Changes in Uninsured Motorist Coverage
Posted by: Michael Sawaya
September 02, 2009

(c) The coverage described in paragraph (a) of this subsection (1) shall be in addition to any legal liability coverage and shall cover the difference, if any, between the amount of the limits of any legal liability coverage and the amount of the damages sustained, excluding exemplary damages, up to the maximum amount of the coverage obtained pursuant to this section. A single policy or endorsement for uninsured or underinsured motor vehicle coverage issued for a single premium covering multiple vehicles may be limited to applying once per accident. The amount of the coverage available pursuant to this section shall not be reduced by a setoff from any other coverage, including, but not limited to, legal liability insurance, medical payments coverage, health insurance, or other uninsured or underinsured motor vehicle insurance.

Colorado Accident & Injury Law Part V: Quasi-in-rem
Posted by: Michael Sawaya
August 27, 2009

V. Quasi-in-rem issues of attachment of insurance policy for insured defendants who cannot be found for service of process

•· Carvajal v. State Farm, Colorado Court of Appeals 08CA861 focuses on steps a Plaintiff may take to attach, and ultimately collect on an insurance policy in the event of a missing or unknown Defendant.

Colorado Accident & Injury Law Part IV Uninsured Motorist
Posted by: Michael Sawaya
August 18, 2009

•III. UNINSURED MOTORIST STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS ISSUES: RECENT CASE LAW CONFIRMING THREE YEAR MINIMUM SOL: Rider vs. State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company, 2009 WL262446 (Colo.App.)

•· The case was based on the UM statute. Plaintiff, Rider, was driving and was rear-ended by an uninsured motorist. She found out as early as 5 days after the accident or as late as 7 months after the accident that the driver was uninsured. The case was filed 2 years and 11 months after the accident, against both the uninsured driver and then UM carrier (state farm). ...

Colorado Accident & Inury Law Part III cont. Medicare & Medicaid Liens
Posted by: Michael Sawaya
June 22, 2009

2. The Medicare, Medicaid and SCHIP Extension Act of 2007 ("MMSEA").

Requires defendants to report certain information regarding settlements with Medicare beneficiaries to the Secretary of Health and Human Services.
The Centers for Medicare and Medicare Services (CMS) have not provided guidance on when a Medicare Set-Aside (MSA) is required.

Colorado Accident & Injury Law Part III cont. Medicare Liens
Posted by: Michael Sawaya
May 29, 2009

2. Medicare:

•· Medicare is a federal government healthcare program for those over 65 or those under 65 who are disabled, suffering from permanent kidney failure or diagnosed with Lou Gehrig's disease....

Colorado Accident & Injury Law Part III cont. Medicare & Medicaid Liens
Posted by: Michael Sawaya
May 19, 2009

D. MEDICARE AND MEDICAID LIENS

1. Medicaid:

Medicaid is a state government program that is needs based. It has long been the Plaintiff attorney's practice to consider and resolve all Medicaid liens in the resolution of the automobile case.

•· Plaintiff's counsel is required to identify which bills have been paid by Medicaid...

Colorado Accident & Injury Law Part III-Lien Issues In Auto Cases
Posted by: Michael Sawaya
May 05, 2009

•· Lien issues involve an area of increasing Plaintiff counsel involvement, and one of growing liability for Plaintiff counsel. There are pecuniary and ethical concern. Long gone are the days when the Plaintiff attorney did not need to be concerned about who might have a third party claim to money that the client would be receiving.

Colorado Accident & Injury Law Part II-Change In Med Pay Policies
Posted by: Michael Sawaya
March 11, 2009

II. STATUTORY CHANGE REQUIRING OFFER OF $5,000 MED-PAY IN AUTO INSURANCE POLICIES: C.R.S. 10-4-635. (EFFECTIVE JANUARY 1, 2009) This statute will apply only to accident after January 1, 2009.

Colorado Accident & Injury Law Part I
Posted by: Michael Sawaya
March 04, 2009

I. C.R.S. 10-3-1115 AND 10-3-1116 (HB 08-1407)

PENALTIES FOR UNREASONABLE CONDUCT OF INSURANCE CARRIERS

•· C.R.S. 10-3-1115 Improper denial of claims

(1)(a) A PERSON ENGAGED IN THE BUSINESS OF INSURANCE SHALL NOT UNREASONABLY DELAY OR DENY PAYMENT OF A CLAIM FOR BENEFITS OWED TO OR ON BEHALF OF ANY FIRST-PARTY CLAIMANT.

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Posted by: Mitch Short
December 08, 2008

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Uninsured Motorists
Posted by: Drew Haywood
July 14, 2008

Colorado has one of the highest rates of uninsured motorists in the country. If you are hit in an auto accident, don't expect the responsible party to have insurance. Some studies have indicated that up to 38% of Colorado drivers are uninsured. Yikes!

Under-Insured Motorist Law Reinforced!
Posted by: Michael Sawaya
July 14, 2008

Colorado roads are full of drivers with no insurance. Colorado has even more drivers who are insured for bodily injury limits of only $25,000 person, $50,000 per occurrence. When the Colorado Auto No-Fault law expired on July 1, 2003 the minimum was $25,000/50,000 and the medicals did not then have to be paid from that amount. The minimum is clearly not adequate for most auto accidents, yet it remains the law. The Colorado Legislature and the Governor agreed that when someone buys Underinsured Motorist coverage it should be useful to the full amount of the policy.

Teen Drinking and Driving
Posted by: Michael Sawaya
July 14, 2008

Did you know that your child may be significantly at risk just by getting into a vehicle? Many of us worry about young teen drivers. Are they safe? Will they get home in one piece? Are the friends they're riding with safe drivers? It's not teens' inexperienced driving that's causing stir in our communities, as much as the alcohol consumption that's being involved while driving. According to The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of young adult deaths. A startling 12.8% of those accidents were alcohol-related, and 40% of those deaths involved teens driving while they were drinking alcohol. Shocking. Also according to the NHTSA, 23% of teen drivers in fatal car crashes had blood alcohol levels that well exceeded the legal limit.

Evidence Preservation
Posted by: Michael Sawaya
July 09, 2008

Folks, don't be mislead, if you have been injured and you have only your testimony at the time a case goes to Court, don't expect to be believed. The climate in our Courts today is not one bit pleasant for most injured people. Juries are sceptical at best. The insurance industry and unscrupulous political parties have lawyer-bashed for more than two decades now and the pool of unbiased jurors has grown much smaller. Don't expect to always find a sympathetic ear.

Talking on a Cell Phone & Driving
Posted by: Michael Sawaya
July 09, 2008

California's ban on hand held mobile phones has caused me to consider our own drivers in Colorado. Talking on a cell phone is extremely distracting, not to mention some Colorado drivers actually text message while driving! When I text message, nearly all of my focus is concentrated on the phone because it requires me to squint, make certain that I'm pressing the correct buttons, then I have to wait for it to go to the next letter, and finally send it. Sometimes, it takes me 5 minutes just to send one simple text. An automobile accident can happen in a split second.