Articles Posted in General Injury Information

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With the arrival of winter weather, it’s important to take stock of your car and its safety features. Blizzards and ice storms can make driving treacherous, so it’s important to be prepared. Here are some tips for keeping your car safe in New England winters.

  1. Adaptive headlights: Headlights that adapt and rotate to light in the direction you turn can come with either a rotating headlight system or cornering lights. They snap on when turning left, right – it’s great for any car driving during winter weather!
  2. Forward collision warning and emergency braking: This technology uses a combination of cameras, sensors and lasers to detect hazards including stopped vehicles in the road. The anti-lock braking system is employed when danger appears imminent so that you can stop quickly without losing valuable time or causing an accident with other drivers who don’t have this safety feature on their cars too.
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Casi todo el mundo, en un momento u otro, experimentará la desgracia de verse involucrado en un accidente de coche. Muchos accidentes de coche, afortunadamente, implican impactos menores que resultan en muy poco, o ningún, daño a la propiedad de los vehículos involucrados.

Existe la suposición de que un accidente de coche menor no causa ni puede causar daños personales a los ocupantes del vehículo. Eso es un mito que ha sido desmentido por la ciencia. Es un hecho que incluso una colisión de vehículos de motor de menor importancia puede causar un individuo para experimentar lesiones personales, y a menudo, las lesiones personales muy graves. Muchas personas que experimentan un accidente de coche menor desarrollan lentamente el dolor derivado del accidente.

A veces, este dolor puede ser retrasado por días o incluso semanas, pero antes de que usted lo sepa, usted tiene el cuello y o el dolor de espalda que no va a desaparecer. Para muchas personas, este tipo de lesión puede incluso empeorar y volverse muy importante con el tiempo. Es por eso que no importa cómo ocurrió el accidente, y no importa lo poco daño a la propiedad fue sostenido a los vehículos, siempre es aconsejable al menos consultar con un abogado de lesiones personales de Boston para una consulta gratuita después de un accidente de coche menor.

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Massachusetts car insurance law is based on a no-fault system. This means even if you were at fault or negligent in causing the car accident, you’re still entitled to have your medical bills and lost wages paid through Personal Injury Protection, or PIP, for short. This mandatory auto insurance allows people to get their car accident-related medical bills and lost wages paid without having to go to court and file a lawsuit. This, in turn, prevents courts from becoming more and more clogged and congested with these smaller cases.

What is PIP?

PIP pays for all reasonable-related and necessary medical bills brought on by the accident. PIP is paid by the car insurance company that insures the motor vehicle you were in at the time of the car accident. These benefits are available for two years after the car crash occurs. If the other driver was legally responsible or at fault for causing the car accident, then his car insurance company will have to pay back your car insurance company for any medical bills that were paid on your behalf. This system of PIP reimbursement is handled between the two car insurance companies in a process called subrogation. 

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La ley de seguros de automóviles de Massachusetts se basa en un sistema sin culpa. Esto significa que, incluso si usted tuvo la culpa o fue negligente al causar el accidente de coche, tiene derecho a que se le paguen las facturas médicas y los salarios perdidos a través de la Protección contra Lesiones Personales, o PIP, para abreviar. Este seguro obligatorio de automóviles permite a las personas obtener el pago de las facturas médicas y los salarios perdidos relacionados con el accidente de coche sin tener que ir a los tribunales y presentar una demanda. Esto, a su vez, evita que los tribunales se atasquen y congestionen cada vez más con estos casos menores.

¿Qué es el PIP?

El PIP paga todas las facturas médicas razonables y necesarias provocadas por el accidente. El PIP es pagado por la compañía de seguros de automóviles que asegura el vehículo de motor en el que usted estaba en el momento del accidente de coche. Estas prestaciones están disponibles durante dos años después de que se produzca el accidente de coche. Si el otro conductor fue legalmente responsable o tuvo la culpa de causar el accidente de coche, entonces su compañía de seguros de coche tendrá que devolver a tu compañía de seguros de coche las facturas médicas que se pagaron en tu nombre. Este sistema de reembolso de PIP se maneja entre las dos compañías de seguros de coche en un proceso llamado subrogación. 

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Because of our climate here in New England, slips and falls on snow and ice are quite common. Generally, these cases are claims for negligence against a snow plow company, property owner, or other potentially responsible party.

The burden is on the injury victim to show that the party responsible for snow and ice removal where you fell failed to reasonably remove the snow, ice, or both, which led to your injury. These cases are very fact specific and have become easier to win due to changes in recent years to Massachusetts snow and ice law. Before 2010, Massachusetts landowners would only be held liable for negligence if there was an “unnatural accumulation” of snow and ice on their property. Proving that standard was met was very difficult. That basically meant the courthouse doors were closed for these claims. The burden is on the injury victim to show that the party responsible for snow and ice removal where you fell failed to reasonably remove the snow, ice, or both.

That prior legal standard for snow and ice liability would be replaced by the groundbreaking case of Papadopoulos v. Target Corporation. In that case, the highest court in Massachusetts, the Supreme Judicial Court, decided in that case that landowners must keep their properties reasonably clear of snow and ice. That does not mean landowners must make sure there is not a single shred of snow and ice on their property. Rather, what it means is that deciding what is “reasonable” removal of snow and ice would be judged on a case by case basis. The courts were welcoming cases they previously rejected. That means thousands of Massachusetts slip and fall victims would now be able to be compensated for their injuries. 

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Debido a nuestro clima aquí en Nueva Inglaterra, los resbalones y caídas en la nieve y el hielo son bastante comunes. Por lo general, estos casos son demandas por negligencia contra una empresa de quitanieves empresa quitanieves, dueño de la propiedad, u otra parte potencialmente responsable.

La carga está en la víctima de la lesión para demostrar que la parte responsable de la remoción de la nieve y el hielo en el que se cayó no se retiró razonablemente la nieve, el hielo, o ambos, lo que condujo a su lesión. Estos casos son muy específicos y se han vuelto más fáciles de ganar debido a los cambios en los últimos años a la ley de nieve y hielo de Massachusetts. Antes de 2010, los propietarios de tierras de Massachusetts sólo serían responsables por negligencia si había una “acumulación no natural” de nieve y hielo en su propiedad. Demostrar que se cumplía esa norma era muy difícil. Eso básicamente significaba que las puertas de los tribunales estaban cerradas para estas reclamaciones. La carga de la víctima de la lesión es demostrar que la parte responsable de la eliminación de la nieve y el hielo en el lugar en el que se cayó no eliminó razonablemente la nieve, el hielo, o ambos.

Esa norma legal anterior para la responsabilidad por la nieve y el hielo sería reemplazada por el caso innovador de Papadopoulos contra Target Corporation. En ese caso, el más alto tribunal de Massachusetts, el Tribunal Judicial Supremo, decidió que los propietarios deben mantener sus propiedades razonablemente limpias de nieve y hielo. Eso no significa que los propietarios deban asegurarse de que no haya ni una sola pizca de nieve y hielo en su propiedad. Más bien, lo que significa es que la decisión de lo que es una eliminación “razonable” de la nieve y el hielo de la nieve y el hielo se juzgará caso por caso. Los tribunales están acogiendo casos que antes rechazaban. Eso significa que miles de víctimas de resbalones y caídas de Massachusetts podrían ahora ser compensadas por sus lesiones. 

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Do you have a fireplace? If so, are you planning to put up your holiday decorations soon? If so, be careful! Just because Santa can fall down the chimney, does not mean you should too! Chimneys can be dangerous if you’re not careful. Keep reading for more safety tips and what you can do to stay safe this holiday season. As the temperatures continue to drop in Massachusetts, your fireplace or woodstove is more likely to get some heavy usage.  Stay safe and reduce the risk of fire and injury with these Massachusetts fireplace and wood stove safety tips.

First, Creosote will accumulate in your chimney and may catch fire. Cleaning your chimney will remove these deposits. This should be done at the beginning of each season. With heavy usage, it may need to be done more frequently. There are also some creosote sweeping logs that may help clean. Secondly, the wood you burn will affect the air quality in your home. Only burn the appropriate type of hardwood. Never burn any pressure-treated wood or veneer wood (such as parts of old furniture). The chemicals in wood actually produce toxic fumes. Finally, teach your children to stay away from fireplaces and wood stoves. Educate them about the danger of fire. Be sure to state how far they should keep themselves and their belongings away from the fireplace or wood stove area. 

Enjoy your holiday season, and manage your fire equipment well. If you or someone you know was injured, contact our office for more information regarding how to proceed. 

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Insurance companies are similar to a two-faced snake. They claim to be on the victim’s side until the victim becomes an “inconvenience” to them. They hire negotiators whose sole purpose is to shake down victims and manipulate the situation to save themselves a few dollars. Here are 4 ways insurance companies rip victims off:

  1. An insurance company will use your words against you. Assume anything you say to a representative of an insurer is being recorded and analyzed for them, so it’s important not only what information we share but also how that comes across in the conversation with our adjusters following accidents or claims.. When speaking with someone who has been hired as either an adjuster (the person looking at damages) estimator(someone determining value), lawyer etc., make sure they know everything about their job before starting any discussion – this could save oneself time later down the road! For starters: never assume anything. 
  2. Insurers love to throw out false accusations in an attempt at scaring you into submission. They might claim that their offer is final, or worse yet–they may even threaten your driver’s license! But don’t let them get away with it; just remember what is commonly said: “If they lie about one thing, then there are two more lies waiting around the corner.”
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 Las compañías de seguros son similares a una serpiente de dos caras. Dicen estar del lado de la víctima hasta que ésta se convierte en un “inconveniente” para ellos. Contratan a negociadores cuyo único objetivo es estafar a las víctimas y manipular la situación para ahorrarse unos cuantos dólares. He aquí 4 formas en que las compañías de seguros estafan a las víctimas:

  1. Una compañía de seguros utilizará sus palabras en su contra. Asuma que cualquier cosa que usted diga a un representante de una aseguradora está siendo grabada y analizada para ellos, por lo que es importante no sólo qué información compartimos, sino también cómo se percibe en la conversación con nuestros ajustadores después de accidentes o reclamaciones. Cuando hable con alguien que ha sido contratado como perito (la persona que examina los daños), estimador (alguien que determina el valor), abogado, etc., asegúrese de que conoce todo lo relacionado con su trabajo antes de iniciar cualquier conversación; esto podría ahorrarle tiempo más adelante. Para empezar: nunca des por sentado nada. 
  2. A las aseguradoras les encanta lanzar falsas acusaciones en un intento de asustarle para que se rinda. Pueden afirmar que su oferta es definitiva o, lo que es peor, ¡pueden incluso amenazarte con el carné de conducir! Pero no deje que se salgan con la suya; recuerde lo que se suele decir: “Si mienten en una cosa, hay dos mentiras más esperando a la vuelta de la esquina”.
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The answer is not always as black and white as it seems. If you fall due to a store’s negligence like slippery floors or uneven ground then yes, that could be considered grounds for a lawsuit. However, if your slip and fall was merely an accident then no, there are no legal grounds for suing the store. So what does this mean for someone who falls in a store? It means they will need to report their injury to the manager immediately so that they are able to receive medical attention right away if needed. They should also document what happened with pictures of any injuries before leaving the scene of the incident because these photos may help prove liability in court later down the line if a settlement before trial is not reached. 

If you have fallen in a grocery store, call our office today at 617-444-7777 to receive a free consultation.

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