Alabama Car Accident Lawyer Blog

A tragic crash between a motorcycle and car in Tuscaloosa has claimed the lives of the drivers of both vehicles. The Tuscaloosa car accident occurred on May 24th about 6 pm on Watermelon Road. According to the Tuscaloosa news report, the driver of the motorcycle, Timothy Hargrove of Coker, was traveling westbound when his vehicle veered over into eastbound traffic and struck the car of Karin Fischer. Sadly, both Mr. Hargrove and Ms. Fischer died as a result of their injuries. A child in Ms. Fischer's car did receive minor injuries, but hopefully will make a full recovery.

Unfortunately, as Alabama car accident attorneys we see this type of tragic wreck far too often. In 2008, there were 2,106 crashes in Alabama involving a motorcycle. In this situation, if the wreck happened as set forth above, the family of Ms. Fischer would have a claim under Alabama's wrongful death statute. The first step would be for an estate to be set up as the proper party to bring a wrongful death claim in Alabama is the administrator of the estate. Alabama has a very unique wrongful death statute in that in only allows for punitive damages. You cannot make a claim for compensatory damages under Alabama's wrongful death law. Another area of inquiry in addition to a recovery against the at fault driver in this type of situation would be a recovery under Ms. Fischer's uninsured and/or underinsured motorist insurance. Click here for more information on Alabama's wrongful death law and Alabama's uninsured motorist law.

As a Huntsville personal injury attorney one of the most frustrating feelings is settling a case and having to tell your client they are going to have to wait on their settlement monies until Medicare releases its final payment letter. For example, our firm resolved a Huntsville car accident claim in November 2009 and it wasn't until May 2010 that we finally got the amount of the Medicare lien. The Medicare Secondary Payer (MSP) system is set up so that Medicare does not pay for healthcare services when a third party such as an insurance company or defendant in a personal injury lawsuit is legally responsible for those medical bills. For example, if John Doe is on Medicare and he is injured in a motor vehicle accident when another driver runs a red light when John Doe goes to the hospital Medicare will initially pay those bills; however, under the Medicare Secondary Payer Act the law states Medicare should be reimbursed what it paid if the injured party makes a recovery from the at fault party. As a Alabama personal injury lawyers we do not have any problem reimbursing Medicare out of our client's settlement proceeds, the problem stems from getting Medicare to provide an accurate and timely response to a request for the amount of their lien. As illustrated by the example above this process can take months and even years.

A solution to the Medicare lien problem is in the works. The Medicare Advocacy Recovery Coalition (MARC) has been working on a bill with the Association for Justice (AAJ) that will hopefully refine the arduous process for obtaining a Medicare lien amount. One part of this new bill would allow the Plaintiff's attorney to calculate what they believe Medicare is owed and send that amount in to Medicare. Once Medicare receives the proposed amount they would have 75 days to appeal that calculation. The other option would be for the Plaintiff's lawyer to request a final lien amount and CMS (Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services) would have only 60 days to respond or lose its right to reimbursement. The passage of this bill is vitally important; therefore, we strongly encourage everyone to call and write their congressman and ask them to vote for MSPEA (HR4796). If this bill fails to pass many injured clients will continue to wait for their settlement monies.

A two car accident in Limestone County, Alabama near Athens, at Coffman and Easterferry roads has claimed the life of Jamie Adams. Adams' vehicle collided with a vehicle being driven by Jason McMunn. Jason, his wife Lori McMunn and two year old daughter Bailey were all injured in the crash and taken to Athens-Limestone Hospital for treatment. Early reports from the Decatur Daily did not indicate the cause of the wreck. The report did indicate that Mr. Adams was not wearing his seat belt at the time of the wreck. According to the Alabama Department of Public Safety in 2008, 191 drivers were killed in Alabama automobile accidents when they were not wearing lap and shoulder belts. The saying Seat Belts Save Lives is definitely true.

A head on motor vehicle accident in Chilton County, Alabama on County Road 42 near Jemison has killed one person. According to a report, Wanda Underwood of Calera was driving westbound when her minivan crossed the center line and struck another car. Sadly, Ms. Underwood died at the scene and 6 other people were injured as a result of this crash. In 2008, 12 people were killed in car and truck accidents in Chilton County, Alabama. This was a 50% reduction from 2007 when 25 people lost their lives in fatal crashes in Chilton County.

A car accident on US Highway 82 in Tuscaloosa has sadly claimed the life LaBridgette Ellis. According to the Tuscaloosa News report, Ms. Ellis was pulling out on to Hwy 82 heading eastbound when she was struck by a large Ford truck. The initial investigation indicates Ms. Ellis may have failed to yield the right of way. According to the Alabama Department of Public Safety, in 2008 14.5% of all Alabama car and truck accidents were caused by a driver failing to yield the right of way. Failure to yield the right of way was the single greatest cause of all automobile accidents in Alabama in 2008 ranking just ahead of driver not in control and tailgating.

The Huntsville car accident attorneys at Martinson & Beason are pleased to announce they have reached a pre-litigation auto accident settlement for our client who was injured in August of 2009. The Madison County car wreck occurred around 5:30 pm on Interstate 565. Based upon the facts of the motor vehicle accident, we were prepared to present evidence that the at-fault driver was texting while driving on an Interstate at rush hour. We are happy that we were able to reach a just and fast resolution for our injured client.

This case is a prime example of why it's important to hire an experienced Alabama Car Accident Lawyer. Often the difference between winning a case and losing a case or getting a just settlement or award at trial is a proper investigation to determine the cause of the wreck. In this case, we were able to determine based upon our investigation that the subject car accident was caused by a driver who was texting while driving.

For more information on the dangers of distracted driving see www.distraction.gov