Summary of the Accident
In April 2019, our client was driving her car on West Central Street (Rt. 140) in Franklin, Massachusetts. She approached a red light at an intersection Rt. 140 and came to a complete and safe stop at the red light. Another vehicle was driving directly behind our client and crashed into the rear of her car. Our client suffered injuries to her neck and back in the accident. When the two got out of their vehicles to exchange information, the other driver admitted he was distracted by his phone and didn’t see the red light or the stopped vehicles.
Shortly after the car crash, our client’s injuries got worse and she went to an emergency department at a hospital in Norwood, Massachusetts. The emergency room doctor had x-rays taken, which were negative for fractures. The doctor diagnosed our client with a neck and back strain. She was advised to follow up with her primary care physician, which she did the following week. Physical therapy was then recommended for this client’s neck and back. After a few months of physical therapy, our client was discharged from therapy with a home exercise program.
Having the Right Injury Lawyer Can Make a Difference
Initially, this client retained a lawyer to handle her personal injury case. This lawyer was recommended by her friend. After our client finished treatment, her lawyer prepared and served the other driver’s insurance company with a demand for settlement. Following brief negotiations, the insurance company only offered $5,000. The lawyer recommended to accept the $5,000 offer of settlement, and that was the best she was going to do.
Our client was unhappy with this offer and contacted the Framigham injury lawyers at Mahaney & Pappas, LLP for a second opinion. When this client called, Attorney Chuck Pappas gathered a lot of information over the phone. This client came in for a meeting within a few days. After reviewing all the documentation, we agreed to take over the personal injury case and notified the insurance company right away. A request was made to obtain the complete file from the prior lawyer.
Sometimes Aggressive Legal Action Must Be Taken
The insurance company made it very clear that $5,000 was the most they would pay. In our opinion, this offer was not fair or reasonable to compensate our client for the injuries and damages she suffered. We recommended filing a personal injury lawsuit to our client. She agreed and a lawsuit was filed.
We immediately engaged in thorough and aggressive discovery, including interrogatories, requests for documents, serving subpoenas, and depositions. After discovery was complete, we began negotiating with the insurance company and the lawyer they retained to represent the other, distracted driver. In the end, we settled this personal injury case for $19,000. Additionally, we were able to negotiate her outstanding physical therapy bills down, which got our client more than $10,000 in her pocket. This result was fair and compensated our client for her injuries and damages, and our client was very happy.
The Take Aways from This Case Result
This case is a great example of why accident victims need to find the right personal injury attorney for their case. There are many injury lawyers out there, but they’re not all the same. If you were hurt in an accident, do your research before making a decision. You should look for an attorney who is reputable and experienced in handling Massachusetts car accident cases.
VIDEO: How to Choose a Massachusetts Personal Injury Lawyer
Additionally, this result demonstrates how the goal of a personal injury case was met – to obtain fair compensation for an accident victim’s injuries, economic, and noneconomic damages. Not every accident results in a six-figure settlement. Many times, we see and hear these huge advertisements with settlements in the hundreds of thousands or millions of dollars. These types of results sometimes mislead people. Of course, the injuries and damages need to justify the amount of compensation. To many accident victims like the one here, however, they just want to be made whole and compensated for their pain and suffering. An experienced accident attorney will be able to properly assess your case and provide a reasonable amount of how much you should be compensated.
