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5 Reasons You Need An Orlando Car Accident Attorney

June 25, 2018 by Adam Page

No one ever hopes or plans for a car accident, yet it happens at the most unusual of times. Car accidents are unpredictable and scary. The actual accident is sometimes the least of your worries as the damages that unfold afterward can be considerably more worrisome. Dealing with the legal ramifications of being involved in an accident can cause significant stress and grief. Car accidents are usually a result of someone’s carelessness or negligence, and the legal complexity involved in proving fault may require that you have a personal injury lawyer. You may need an Orlando personal injury attorney for the following reasons:

Knowing the Rules and Laws

In order to sue for damages and compensation, you need to know the laws that exist for this purpose so you can act accordingly. You are expected to file a police report and a car accident claim within a stipulated time frame that differs from place to place. A personal injury attorney in Orlando will be able to guide you on the necessary steps to take as well as the additional requirements you may be unaware of so that you don’t jeopardize your right to sue and so you have the best chance to win in court.

Getting the Most From Insurance Companies

Insurance companies protect the insured and provide compensation for damages when the need arises. However, for insurance companies to stay afloat, they are expected to reduce overhead and keep costs in check. This means that your expectations in terms of compensation will be totally different from what the at-fault insurance company has to offer. When dealing with insurance companies, you must know the most effective paths of action to take in order to maximize your compensation. You may obtain an injury lawyer in Orlando who can advocate for your interests and ensure you are well remunerated.

Short Term & Long Term Damage Recovery

After the initial and obvious damages in an accident, there are additional costs that can potentially add up afterward such as psychological trauma, physical incapacitation, emotional stress, pain, suffering and of course medical bills. A personal injury attorney Orlando may be able to enlighten you on your potential rights to recovery and make sure you are compensated from instant damages as well as potential damages as the situation evolves in the days and afterward.

The Complexity of Proving Liabilities

An experienced lawyer understands the scope of liabilities and the various elements needed to win a personal injury lawsuit stemming from a car accident in Orlando. It can be very difficult to prove your case by yourself, even if you have witnesses to collaborate your claims or a police report to substantiate it. An Orlando personal injury lawyer who understands the workings of the law will do extensive legal research in respect to case law, citations and legal precedents to prove your position and maximize your monetary recovery. Don’t try to fight a car accident case in Orlando on your own – contact myself, David R. Heil today for a free consultation – I don’t get paid until I recover what is rightly due to you.

Giving You Peace of Mind

Being involved in a car accident distorts the reality for so many people and life can go downhill afterward, but having an experienced injury lawyer in Orlando can make the journey to recovery easier. From legal subtleties, rights, and jurisdictions to damage evaluation, medical expenses and insurance claims, there are countless reasons why you should seek the counsel of an experienced car accident attorney in Orlando.

Lost Wages Due To Personal Injury In Orlando

May 21, 2018 by Adam Page

Personal Injury and Lost Wages: How a Lawsuit May Help You Recover Funds for Missing Work

If you have suffered an injury as a result of someone else’s negligence, you may opt for a personal injury lawsuit to seek compensation for the pain and suffering you have gone through and to also recover financial damages for missing work.

In as much as there is no definite amount of damages that will ever restore you to the exact position you were in before the injury, suing for personal injuries may provide you some financial reprieve for the medical expenses as well as help you recover funds that you may have lost during your recovery when you were unable to continue with your regular income generating avenues.

About Lost Wages From Personal Injuries In Orlando

Lost wages are part of the economic damages that an Orlando personal injury attorney will try to secure for the victims of personal injuries. In most personal injury cases, calculating lost wages is relatively straightforward, though this may not always be the case. Lost wages apply when you have to miss work during recovery, medical appointments and rehabilitation therapy amongst others.

Even if you were paid by your employer through vacation time or sick time, you may be entitled to compensation for this time off. This is because if you had not sustained the injury, you wouldn’t have missed work.

Lost wages with regards to personal injury lawsuits also apply to self-employed individuals, though it may sometimes be very difficult to calculate an accurate figure for such cases. For self-employed individuals, an Orlando personal injury attorney will try to establish a case for the lost hours of work, economic damages to the business in form of missed opportunities and extra costs of labor amongst others. To arrive at an appropriate figure, income statements and tax records may be needed to show the discrepancy in income before and after the injury.

Loss of Earning Capacity

If a personal injury leads to the victim’s loss of earning capacity, then an Orlando personal injury attorney may also seek compensation for this. One suffers the loss of earning capacity when they suffer injuries which, in turn, prevent them from performing the professional tasks that previously allowed them to earn their income.

A case in point would be when a highly skilled laborer sustains an injury as a result of someone’s negligence, and due to the injuries, they lose their ability to work in the manner they did before he got injured.

They either may never be able to work again, or they may have to work at a reduced capacity or have to take a lower paying job because of the physical limitations caused by the injuries. Loss of earning capacity may also include loss of future promotions and benefits.

The calculations for loss of earning capacity usually involve projections of future earnings. Sometimes it features reasonable speculations, such as inflation and probable career trajectory amongst other factors.

You should be aware that most of the personal injury lawsuits involving loss of earning capacity will be vehemently opposed by the insurance company defense attorney as being severely speculative.

However, if you have an equally aggressive Orlando personal injury attorney, they may bring in vocational experts and economists to help in determining the most appropriate figure for the loss of earning capacity and to present the necessary evidence needed to secure the amount you deserve.

Theme Park Accidents and Injuries in Orlando

March 25, 2018 by Adam Page

Florida is perhaps the theme park capital of the world. With the presence of Disney World, Wet n Wild, Epcot Center, Sea World and Universal Studios, there are countless of theme parks that attract millions of visitors every year. Unfortunately, besides the fun and the excitements, there is also a downside to it – theme park accidents and injuries.

Instead of visitors having fun and good times in the parks, they end up getting injuries, some of which are so severe that they end up spending months in the hospital. If you are ever involved in a theme park accident or you get an injury in the course of having fun in the theme park, it is imperative to get an Orlando theme park injury attorney to help you recover any damages you suffered as a result of the injury.

What causes theme park accidents and injuries?

Theme parks feature thousands of acres of land and they are designed to accommodate millions of visitors every year. There are a myriad of facilities within the parks for entertaining and thrilling guests, and though they are designed to be safe for every user, accidents and the injuries do happen at these facilities.

For instance, the roller-coasters move at dangerous speeds and if appropriate safety precautions are not taken, then the visitors will always be prone to accidents and injuries. The same is the case with the water slides where users may get off track and land on the hard surfaces with a devastating impact.

Here is a brief glance at some of the causes of most accidents and injuries in the theme parks in Orlando:

Failed safety devices
Food poisoning
Negligent security officers
Failure of mechanical parts
Slips and falls
Fatigued ride operators
Lack of adequate maintenance
The use of old equipment

Certain precautions are always taken before the respective facilities or equipment are used, and this may include strapping safety belts to prevent falling off the air when one is hundreds of feet from the ground or having floaters before jumping in the pools. But there are other unforeseen incidents which may still happen, irrespective of the observed safety measures. For example, mechanical problems are sometimes inevitable and come with deadly consequences.

Premise Liability Law and Amusement Parks

It is the responsibility of theme park operators to invest in proper machinery maintenance to ensure that rides don’t break down with people mid-air. However, it is not just problems with the rides that concern the theme park operators. Other hazards such as food poisoning may also become a liability to the operators when they fail to ensure all the food vendors have safe and fresh foods for the visitors. There is also the potential dangers of slips and falls in wet sections of the park, as well as in the poorly lit areas.

What to do if you are injured in the theme park

When you get involved in an accident or you sustain an injury when you are on the theme park, there will be concerted efforts by the theme park representatives to try and defend the park and stop you from getting damages from your injuries. You may even receive a call from the risk management department requesting a statement on the incident.

You must never talk to anyone about the incident before talking to a theme park injury lawyer in Orlando. It is vital to seek professional representation as soon as possible, and before the accident is quickly swept under the carpet in the usual misleading red tape.

Superstitions and Actual Personal Injury Claims

January 16, 2018 by Adam Page

Distinguishing Luck and Liability

An Orlando personal injury attorney may tell you that few accidents are simply a matter of “bad luck”. The superstitious person can blame spilled salt or the wrong side of the bed, but ultimately it is faulty products, negligent behavior, and plain carelessness that are the real cause of most personal injury claims. However, one can benefit from abiding by many of the most practical and well-known sources of “bad luck”. Many superstitions are based on actual injuries that can occur if you are not cautious. Speak to a qualified personal injury attorney in Orlando if you accidentally “step on a crack” and land on a personal injury claim.

Walking Under a Ladder

While the myth is centuries old, the rule of never walking under a ladder still carries obvious practical application today. A person walking under a ladder might be hit by falling tools or knock over the person standing on the ladder. Some ladders today even come with warning signs indicating as such. Falls from ladders and construction accidents involving ladders are common injuries seen by any Orlando accident attorney.

Opening an Umbrella Indoors

Think of opening an umbrella not only as a potential claim for a personal injury attorney in Orlando but simply as a matter of etiquette. This superstition began in the Victorian era when umbrellas were quite fashionable and also adept in knocking over vases and other valuable art pieces that Victorians loved to display in their homes. The risk of damage is just as probable today if you are not careful, you can even poke out an eye.

Breaking a Mirror

A broken mirror really could result in 7 years of bad luck if someone is injured by the broken glass. In any situation, particularly involving businesses open to the public, property owners are responsible for quickly and thoroughly cleaning up broken debris before anyone has the chance to step or fall on it. Superstitions about mirrors began in ancient Rome, but the practical applications still apply today.

Black Cats

Is your well-meaning but misguided neighbor leaving out food for the stray cats in the area? A rise in the number of feral cats is a danger to everyone, especially small children that are most at risk for scratches and bites from infected strays. An Orlando personal injury lawyer may be involved in more than just bad luck if your neighborhood is filling with cats.

During the Bubonic Plague, black cats were seen as a well-recognized omen of death. Many major historical figures were said to have suffered from ailurophobia (fear of cats), and an estimated 15 percent of the population today share some level of that same fear. The chief realistic concern is the fear of being bitten or scratched, and the concern is not unmerited. An Orlando personal injury attorney is necessary just as easily for cat attacks as for dogs. Far worse than dog bites, cat bites may quickly lead to severe infections that often result in hospital care and long-term damage.

Updating Your Insurance Policies

January 7, 2018 by Adam Page

Time to check and update your insurance policies

Insurance Coverages

The New Year is a good time for resolutions and for doing a review of your insurance policies. This may save you from a nasty surprise in case of a loss. Many people I speak with tell me that they have “full coverage” usually that means the full required insurance, but actually it’s simply the minimum coverage allowed. A few minutes now may save you a lot of misery later.

Auto insurance:

Personal Injury Protection (PIP): This insurance pays 80% of your medical bills after an accident. This is required, but you may still have a deductible. If you have a deductible, get rid of it.

Medical Payments (Med Pay): This is an optional coverage, it would pay the leftover 20% from PIP and then pay additional medical bills up to the limit of coverage. You should have at least $10,000.00.

Underinsured/Uninsured Motorist Coverage (UM): This is also an optional coverage. It covers you in the event that you are injured by a driver with no bodily injury coverage. (Bodily Injury coverage is not required in Florida.) You should have at least $20,000 but I would recommend at least $100,000.00.

Home insurance:

Water damage: Policies are now being written with water damage exclusions or low limits on water damage claims. A water loss can easily do $50,000 to $100,000 damage to your home. If you have a water damage exclusion or low limit have this eliminated.

Mold damage: Like water damage, policies are now being written with mold damage exclusions or low limits on mold damage claims. Mold also can easily do $50,000 to $100,000 damage to your home. If you have a mold damage exclusion or low limit have this eliminated

Dogs: Many policies are now written with dog bite exclusions. If you have a dog you need to have this coverage.

Flood Insurance: Homeowners policies do not cover floods, which is interpreted as any ground water intrusion. You must buy a separate policy for this.

Finally, if you have Peoples Trust Insurance, get another company immediately. It is absolutely the worst company to deal with and requires you to use their own company to repair your home. This company Rapid Response has in every instance I have seen uses substandard materials and workmanship. They will only take orders for repairs from the insurance company and you will not have any input into how your own home is repaired.

I will be happy to review your policy for free, please contact us today at (407-599-2100) or email (david@heil-law.com) if you have any questions.