Audience Questions on “Good Morning” Show on Davidzon Radio 620AM with Irene H Gabo

Irene H Gabo answers Audience Q&A on Natasha Bystritskaya popular “Good Morning” show on Davidzon Radio 620AM. The areas covered included medical exams, settlements and welfare programs, arbitration and trials, workers compensation, car accidents, and premise liability.

Listen to the Broadcast:

Q&A Transcript

I have a car accident case and I was already called for a medical exam with insurance doctors. Now they are calling me to see another doctor? Why? Do I have to go?

The insurance company which pays for your medical bills after the car accident can have you examined by every specialty with which you are treating. So if you are seen by a chiropractor, a physical therapist and an acupuncturist you can end up having 3 exams. Now, if any of those doctors feel that you need more treatment as a result of the car extending and they recommend extending your benefits, you will have to go to more exams. Also, if you start a lawsuit against the other car that hit your vehicle, they will have the right to have you examined by their doctors, to see the degree of permanency of your injuries, and the overall disability.

I received a letter that because of the amount of settlement I received from my lawsuit, welfare is stopping my payments and Medicaid, please help

First of all, file an appeal to the decision, immediately, in writing. Send it regular and certified mail. This appeal will trigger a hearing within 30 or so day, where you will get to present your case to the HRA agent. You are allowed to have a certain amount of money in your bank per month, usually double, if you are married, and if you received a settlement payment above that amount, you will have to show how the money was spent, or list losing your benefits. There is a list of allowable expenses, necessities, that you can spend that money on. Things for the house, such as a mattress or a new refrigerator. Some people need repairs on their house and use the money for that. As long as you can show that the money was properly spent, you should be reinstated to your benefits.

I fell in the Post Office, because of a crumpled rug, who can I sue? The government?

Yes, the United States government. You must first file an administrative claim, form US-95 and then start an action within 2 years. The form must be filled out completely, include supporting documentation and state the sum for which you are suing the federal entity. I suggest you consult an attorney to help you with the lawsuit, as this initial form, US 95 is what the reviewing agency looks at to determine if they will pay on this claim, or deny it.

I was sitting in car that was parked and it was hit by a FedEx truck which drove away, what can I do?

If this already happened, I hope you called the police and had a report made, stating that the Fed Ex truck left the scene of the accident, after striking your vehicle. If not, print form MV104 from DMV website, fill it out and send it to Albany. Report this claim to your insurance company, as they will be paying for your medical treatment and time out of work, if there is any, and must have whats called a no-fault application receive within 30 days of the accident. Have your attorney write a letter to Fed Ex claims department, notifying them of the claim, attaching the police report. Their driver’s routes are mapped, and they can pinpoint who was at the location of the accident, at the time of the accident, though it might take some time. If that vehicle is never found, and your are seriously injured, you need to proceed for pain and suffering against your own insurance company.

I have a case against American Transit Insurance, I had surgery, and they still won’t pay the $100,000.00 policy they have. Do I have to wait for trial or there is a way to get the money faster?

American Transit almost never pays the policy, until close to trial, when the parties go before a Trial Judge, and your case may have to go to a jury. American Transit understands that you will have to pay an expert or experts to testify at your trial, that will cost thousands of dollars, and even when the case is worth 100k, they’ll often offer less. Mediation are not fruitful with them, and I don’t recommend spending money on them, as they will always come up with much less than the policy.

My attorney said I have a Workers Compensation lien which will have to get paid back after my car accident case? why?

He may not be correct. Workers compensation benefits paid as a result of a car accident, are waived if the benefits paid were under $50,000.00. There are few exceptions with City employees who often receive their full salary after a car accident, while the no fault benefits only allow up to $2,000.00 a month for lost wages, but even then, or if the amount of benefits paid is over $50,000.00, you will only pay 2/3 of the extra payout, you will get a 1/3 deduction.

Do you like arbitration or trials, why?

I like arbitration and mediation, and often prefer them to trials because a) I don’t need to call experts to the stand and spent thousands of dollars for them, that amount, later coming out of the client’s share and b) it is a much more expedited process. While a case, which is ready for trial can spend 12-18 months on a Kings trial calendar, once all discovery is complete, the arbitration and mediation can be scheduled in a month, take 2-3 hours and often get similar or better results as the trial. And the best part about mediation, they are not finite. If the client does not agree to the sum offered, we can then proceed to trial, but I get to hear all of the defense counsel’s legal arguments for and against the case at the mediation.