Dallas Fort Worth Car Accident Lawyer Blog

In the past doing something about drunken driving mostly meant imposing more prison time and higher fines. But Texas still leads the nation in alcohol-related fatalities with 1,269 in 2008, the latest year for complete data. Legislators will reconvene in January and several ideas already have been bandied about, from sobriety checkpoints to requiring more use of restrictive car devices.

Sen. Jane Nelson, R-Lewisville believes in the 2 strikes, you’re out rule. Her goal is to help repeated violators to stay out of trouble. She is proposing to automatically revoke the license of anyone convicted of a second DWI offense-permanently. Currently under Texas law, licenses are suspended for various time periods typically one year for your first conviction and two years for your second conviction.

Hypothetically, if Sen. Nelson’s proposal were taken into effect, it would lead the defendant or drunk driver to drive without a license or insurance. Many uninsured and unlicensed drivers do not think about driving from one point to another, they just simply do it. Sen. Nelson would need to tighten restrictions on drunken drivers by having sobriety checkpoints and mandatory interlock devices for first time offenders.

In 2007 nearly 13,000 people were killed in drunk driving related crashes. Drunken Driving collisions are the cause of 50% of the fatal wrecks that occur on the weekends. Remember that even if you are not drinking and driving you can still be affected by it. Dallas and Fort Worth are taking many steps in order to get drunk drivers off the road. Please think about the consequences before you drink and drive.

Information and commentary is provided by Dallas/ Fort Worth Drunk Driving Accident Lawyer Mark Anderson. The Anderson Law Firm can be reached in Dallas at 214-327-8000 or in Fort Worth at 817-294-1900. For more information about drunk driving accidents, please fill out our contact form online for a free consultation.

Loya Insurance is one of two large auto insurers that had a complaint record well above the state average in 2009, according to a new listing of “justified” complaints handled by the state Insurance Department.

One driver, Larry Randall, was sideswiped in May 2009, and the driver who was at fault had an insurance policy with Loya Insurance.

““They tried to ignore me from day one, and then they finally sent me a check covering a fraction of my claim. When’s the last time you heard of major damage to the side of a car being fixed for $300?” Randall said, noting he has not cashed the company’s check.

An analysis of the Insurance Department figures by The Dallas Morning News showed that 10 of the 25 largest auto insurers in the state, which are those with more than 100,000 policies, had below average customer service records.

Loya, one of the top companies at the top of the list, is now being investigated by the Insurance Department for violations of state regulations. Loya Insurance is countering back though, arguing that their company serves a unique customer base, typically lower-income drivers who have trouble obtaining insurance.

The Insurance Department Agency is limited in how it can respond to consumer complaints because the department cannot force a company to pay a disputed claim if there is no violation of the law. The agency can also not determine who was at fault in the specific accident. However, the customer complaints do help the Insurance Department Agency with identifying issue of concerns that would otherwise be neglected.

You cannot trust insurance companies—don’t be fooled. The truth is all they really want is for you to sign up with them and make your premium payments on time. When it actually comes time to paying money out on a claim, you can forget all of those friendly slogans. These self-proclaimed “good neighbors” can quickly become your worst nightmare. These insurance companies will not pay you a single dime more than they want to and they don’t pay until it benefits them. They are not looking out for the policyholder’s best interest; they are looking out for their best interest.

Because it’s an adversarial process, the at-fault person’s insurance company has no duty to treat you fairly. So what should a person do if they are injured in an accident? They should at least speak to a Board Certified Personal Injury Attorney about their case. Not all cases need lawyers, but we think all serious injury cases sure do, and the victims need a good lawyer who will fight for their needs so they get proper compensation.

Information and commentary is provided by Dallas/Fort Worth Car Accident Lawyer Mark Anderson. The Anderson Law Firm can be reached in Fort Worth at 817-294-1900 or in Dallas at 214-327-8000. If you have questions about a car accident or questions about an insurance claim, please fill out our contact form online for a free consultation.

If you have hurt in an automobile accident in or around Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas and are trying to handle your case on your own with the responsible party's car insurance company, you might find yourself in a very common predicament. Many car insurance companies, such as USAA, Geico, Allstate, State Farm and Farmers, like to offer very low and insulting "nuisance" value offers upfront. Sometimes these offers are as low as $500 but they are more common around the $1,000 level. The offer comes from a message from the insurance company adjuster that your case has low or little value due to (insert your own crazy excuse here) and that you're lucky to be receiving this offer. Car insurance companies just don't treat injury victims right! At that point, an injured person has two options: They can either accept this low offer and be stuck paying the medical bills on their own or they can fight for what is right.

The only way to fight for fair compensation is to file a lawsuit. A lawsuit is the great equalizer. No longer does the big 800 pound gorilla (i.e. the insurance company) have the upper hand. They have to play fair as in the end of a lawsuit there is a jury trial facing them where someone else determines the value of the case, but not them.

Just last week I resolved a motor vehicle collision case where my client had received a very low-and insulting- offer prior to me filing a lawsuit on his behalf. After the attorney hired by the insurance company deposed (a formal interview) my client, he was able to realize that my client would make a very credible witness and would present well in front of a jury. By that, I think the jury would believe him when he relates the medical treatment he received directly to the accident. Ultimately, the automobile insurance company paid what was fair. But what was fair was much, much more than the initial crappy offer they sent to him. Last week's case was just another reminder about how bad and unfair insurance companies can be. After all, they care about their profits, not about the wellbeing of the people who are injured as a result of their own insured's reckless driving.

If you have been injured in a car, truck or motorcycle wreck, sometimes you just got to fight for what you believe is fair. The Anderson Law Firm specializes in helping those individuals who have been injured in motor vehicle accidents. We also work on other types of personal injury claims. Mark Anderson is Board-Certified in Personal Injury Trial Law and has been helping the injured his entire career. To discuss your situation confidentially, please contact the Anderson Law Firm at 1-877-294-1115. You can submit your question online by clicking here to reach Personal Injury Lawyer Mark A. Anderson.

Car wrecks happen every single day here in the Dallas Fort Worth Metroplex. And days like today cause even more where the wet roads create dangerous conditions. After the motor vehicle accident, many people will end up needing an injury lawyer to represent them when they seek fair compensation for their accident related injuries to their bodies.

There are a million ways that people find their injury lawyer to represent them after they have been injured in a car accident. Some injury victims ask their friends and families for a referral to a personal injury lawyer, but this oftentimes ends up a dead end as either they have never had a reason to hire an injury attorney before or they didn't like the one they did indeed hire.

Another common way that people who have been hurt in accidents find a lawyer is through some sort of advertising. It is just easy to call the lawyer they see on TV or in the yellow pages. But I think you have to beware of attorneys who advertise on television as they usually run what is called personal injury mills and the clients are totally devoid of any personal attention from real lawyer.

A good way to find a lawyer, in my opinion, is to gather a list of potential lawyers from an internet search and then do your research to check out the prospective lawyers’ credentials. One way to look into the background and experience of an injury attorney is to look at the lawyers own website and read all about him or her. Another thing to do is to look up the rating received by the lawyer. Two popular rating services are Martindale Hubble and AVVO. You should also check out the State Bar of Texas Website, as it has important information on lawyers such as license status and Board Certifications.

Click here for some more information about Finding The Right Lawyer For You.

If you have been injured in a car accident in the Fort Worth Dallas Arlington area, you deserve the best representation you can find. The Anderson Law Firm will be happy to discuss the facts of your specific case and will give you a quick and confidential evaluation of your rights to recover. We have convenient offices in Dallas and Fort Worth. To speak with the Board Certified Personal Injury Lawyer Mark Anderson, call us in Dallas at 214-327-8000, in FW at 817-294-1900 or in Texas toll free at 1-877-294-1115.

In my book, 15 Mistakes That Will Wreck Your Texas Accident Case, I spend some time going over many reasons why you can’t trust the at fault party's insurance company. One of them is that insurance companies like to delay your claim as long as possible because they are in no hurry to resolve it.

There is truly only one way to fix this problem, and that is to have a lawyer on your side that can aggressively approach the insurance company to resolve your claim. When a jury is close to awarding you compensation for your injury, the insurance company feels pressure to resolve your problem. Which brings up the point that sometimes the only way to get your claim resolved is to bring the case in front of a jury. Often times even the threat of a trial will help the insurance company to pay you the money that you deserve.

My hope is that by educating people about problems you may encounter with insurance companies, you will be better prepared if you have to file a claim. This is just one of many helpful pointers that are highlighted throughout my book. To obtain your free copy of 15 Mistakes That Will Wreck Your Texas Accident Case please click here.

This information is provided by Dallas/Fort Worth Personal Injury Lawyer Mark A. Anderson. Mr. Anderson can be reached in Dallas at 214-327-8000, in Fort Worth at 814-294-1900 or by clicking here.

In my book, 15 Mistakes that will Wreck Your Texas Accident Case, I highlight 15 different mistakes that are of the utmost importance to be aware of in the case that you are in a car crash. If someone's carelessness causes you to be seriously injured, you must make sure you don't make mistakes that could wreck your own claim.

Mistake No. 1 is: Failing to call the police and failing to document everything you observe at the scene

If you have been in an automobile accident, there are several things which absolutely need to be taken care of with regard to your potential claim.

1) Immediately following the accident, your first priority is getting yourself out of harm’s way and then calling 9-1-1 to ask a police officer to be sent to the scene of the accident so the officer can assess fault and write a report.

2) If your injuries are such that you need to go to the hospital, make sure to ask for an ambulance when you call 9-1-1. If you are physically able, try and collect the name, phone numbers, and insurance information of all the drivers involved in the crash.

3) It is also extremely important to collect the names and numbers of all witnesses. Witnesses do not usually stay at the scene for very long, so it is vital that you get their information quickly.

4) Document the scene by writing down all relevant information. This could include the street names, weather, the time of day, lighting, and the types of cars involved.

5) Finally, if possible, take pictures of the damaged vehicles and the accident scene with your cell phone or camera.

I hope this gives you a better idea of the procedure you should go through if you are involved in a car wreck. It is my hope that by informing people of the proper steps to take, their claims can be resolved as efficiently and effectively as possible.

Please click here to get your free copy of the 15 Mistakes that will Wreck Your Texas Accident Case.

This information is provided by Dallas Injury Lawyer Mark A. Anderson, who can be reached at 214-327-8000 or contacted by clicking here.

According to a figures released by the Texas Department of Insurance, nearly 270,000 driver in Texas don’t have insurance on their vehicles. This 21% figure for Fort Worth is slightly lower than the statewide average of 22%-but that’s still a lot of uninsured drivers.

The percentage of vehicles believed to be uninsured has dropped, however, from 25% in June 2008. This is when Texas launched the TexasSure database, a way for police officers to verify insurance coverage. With this database, officers can check after an auto accident to see if the driver who claims to have lost or forgotten his or her insurance card is really covered.

The Dallas/Fort Worth area is certainly more insured than some places in Texas. In Kennedy County, south of Corpus Christi, nearly 50% of its residents are believed to be uninsured. Cameron County, near Brownsville, comes in at nearly 38% uninsured.

I have blogged before (and written in my book 15 Mistakes That Will Wreck your Texas Accident Case) about the need to purchase UM insurance. This type of insurance is the best kind to buy. When you are in a car wreck and the other driver had no insurance (or not enough), then UM/UIM is the insurance which will compensate you for your medical bills, lost wages and pain and suffering. So don’t delay—pull out your policy now and check to see if you have it. If you don’t, call your insurance agent now.

Information provided by Texas Board Certified Personal Injury Attorney Mark A. Anderson, who can be reached in Dallas at 214-327-8000, in Fort Worth at 817-294-1900, and toll free anywhere in Texas at 877-294-1115. He can also be contacted by clicking here.

Every year, I get a lot of calls from people who have been hurt in a car wreck but have waited too late to make claim. Sometimes the calls come to me right before the deadline and the caller thinks all they have to do is let the insurance company know about the claim and that by doing so all deadlines are complied with. However, that is wrong. The law in Texas is that you must either resolve the car accident claim or file a lawsuit within two years of the wreck. This is called the Statute of Limitations and it is very strict. Even if you have been talking to the insurance adjuster, thinking everything will work out, and you let the two year anniversary pass you by, you are out of luck. If you, or your attorney, actually files the lawsuit two years and a day after the accident, that is too long and you have lost your right to seek any compensation for your medical bills, lost wages and pain and suffering.

But even though you have two years to file the lawsuit, that does not mean you should put off making a claim or hiring an attorney. Most attorneys, including myself, are hesitant to make a claim unless we can have time to investigate whether the claim will ultimately be successful. I usually need to see the police officer’s accident report and evaluate the medical records, which is impossible to do prior to filing a suit if I am contacted right before the two year deadline. So do yourself a favor and contact an attorney as soon as you have decided to make a claim. Or if you are going at it alone, make sure to save some time to find an attorney in case your attempt to settle your claim pre-suit is unsuccessful.

Information provide by Dallas Fort Worth Car Accident Lawyer Mark A. Anderson, who can be contacted in Dallas at 214-327-8000, in Fort Worth at 817-294-1900 and toll free in Texas at 877-294-1115.

Contact the Anderson Law Firm Online by clicking here.

Dallas Fort Worth injury lawyer Mark A. Anderson has recently authored a book on the injury claims process in Texas. The book, 15 Mistakes That Will Wreck Your Texas Accident Case, addresses all parts of the injury claim process. The consumer guide provides information such as whether an accident victim even has a viable injury claim, whether they should make that claim, why the injured party cannot trust insurance companies. A detailed explanation is provided as to the legal process, written in plain words.

A large part of the 15 Mistakes book is a listing of all the things that an injury victim must watch out for in order that they don’t wreck their own injury case.Additional information provided in the book is some of the basics on insurance policies and how an injured party might go about selecting the right attorney for their injury case.

Another chapter is devoted to how an injured party can go about to try to determine the value of their accident case, with an explanation of the real factors looked at by lawyers, judges, juries and insurance companies. The book, 127 pages in length, is designed for the accident victim who has not yet made a decision on whether to make a claim or which attorneys to hire.

The 15 Mistakes book is offered free to Texas residents as a public service. Out of state individuals interested in the book can order it for $16.95 at www.amazon.com. Those in Texas who are interested in the book can order a copy or a downloadable version for immediate review at www.dontwreckyourcase.com.

About the author: The 15 Mistakes book is written by Dallas Fort Worth injury lawyer Mark A. Anderson, who has been practicing injury law in the State of Texas since 1991. Mr. Anderson is Board Certified in Personal Injury Trial Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization and devotes his entire practice to representing those who’ve been injured by the result of someone else’s negligence. A large part of the Anderson Law Firm’s practice is devoted to helping those injured in motor vehicle accidents of one kind or another, including car accidents, bus and truck wrecks and motorcycle accidents.

Mark A. Anderson can be contacted at 817-294-1900 in Tarrant County, 214-327-8000 in Dallas County and 1-877-294-1115 across Texas.

A new study was released yesterday by the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute which confirmed what we already knew—that texting while driving is extremely dangerous. But the results were even scarier than all the experts had previously thought. Before this new study, all the predictions on how more likely you were to have an accident while driving were based on laboratory experiments—where drivers were in a simulator. Those tests showed a risk of having an accident about eight times more if you were texting. But the new study is much better: they used cameras mounted in trucks over an 18 month period. The new study, based on real life data, showed that you have a risk of a truck wreck of 23 times more if you are texting. That is a huge increase in risk!

Another interesting thing is that the study showed that the truckers took their eyes of the road an average of five seconds when they were texting. At average highway speeds, an 18 wheeler will travel the length of a football filed in that five seconds. That is a very scary scenario.

Currently, only 14 states ban texting while driving (Texas is not one of them). While banning it will not solve this problem, it would serve as some sort of deterrent. Certainly we can all wait (or pull over) before we text while driving. Texting while driving is about as dangerous as drinking and driving.

From a litigation standpoint, if the cause of an accident is in dispute, obtaining the cell phone records to determine if a trucker was texting at the time of the collision is crucial.

Information provided by Texas Accident Attorney Mark A. Anderson, 817-294-1900.

I often get asked by injury victims how I am paid. They are very concerned that they cannot afford the high hourly rate they hear that attorneys charge. But they soon learn from me that hiring an injury attorney takes no out of pocket money. That is because I work on (and also all injury attorneys I know also work on) contingent fee contracts. What that means is that no money is paid to me up front or as the case progresses. Instead, the contracts signed by my clients spell out that I am paid a percentage of the recovery once the case is finally resolved, either by settlement or by trial. At that time, I receive a portion of the proceeds. The standard attorney’s fee contract also calls for the injury attorney to be reimbursed for any out-of-pocket expenses incurred by the attorney in the case.

So basically, the attorney does not get paid until the end of the case, and the client never has to write a check to the attorney, as it is just deducted from the overall settlement proceeds. At my firm, we provide a detailed settlement breakdown so the client can see and understand all fee and the expenses.

So what happens if the case is lost for some reason and no money is ever recovered? In such instance, the attorney is simply not paid anything for his services and the expenses are just written off. Said another way, the client will owe the attorney nothing.

Because it is never guaranteed that the client will be able to win the case, each case must be evaluated closely and the attorney must decide on his own if the case is worth pursuing. I limit my practice to serious injuries where there is a likelihood of success.

Contingent fee contracts are a wonderful way for everyone to access the civil justice system. Without these types of contracts, it would be difficult to retain an attorney to fight for your rights.

If you would like to discuss hiring the Anderson Law Firm on a contingent basis for a serious injury claim, please call the firm at 214-327-8000 in Dallas, at 817-294-1900 in Fort Worth or toll free at 1-877-294-1115.

A new book has just been released which informs all types of victims in their personal injury claims. The book, 15 Mistakes That Will Wreck Your Texas Accident Case, is written by Mark A. Anderson, a Board Certified Personal Injury Specialist from Fort Worth, Texas.

The book, which focuses largely on car accidents, discusses all the different ways that injury victims can harm their own claims and offers practical pointers on how injured parties can avoid these common pitfalls. But that's not all the book covers. It also discusses what constitutes valid injury claims, what goes into valuing an injury claim, how the injury claims process works (from the accident all the way through trial) and what to look for, as well as what to be wary of when hiring an accident attorney. 15 Mistakes also points out and describes various types of available insurance which come into play during the claims process and common myths about insurance companies and settlements.

15 Mistakes is a must-read for accident victims in Texas. It's written in plain English--not filled with typical legal jargon. The book is most-helpful if it's read after an accident and before a decision is made to hire an attorney, but everyone can benefit from its useful tips.

Mark Anderson's book is available for FREE to Texas residents, who can order the book by visiting www.DontWreckYourCase.com, or by calling the Anderson Law Firm at 817-294-1900. Non-Texas residents can purchase the book online for $16.95 at www.amazon.com.