Pain and suffering from auto accident while 38 weeks pregnant

by Lori
(Portland, Oregon)

I was side-swiped while 38 weeks pregnant and althougn not seriously injured, I did have to go to the hospital for observation and ended up the baby came 5 days early. The medical bill was paid for, as well as the rental car and repairs to my car. We were on a freeway going 55mph when she side-swiped me.

We pulled off to the side of the freeway to exchange information. Boy did that freak me out! I just spoke with the lady's insurance about settling this claim and pain and suffering and she offered me $300..... Wow, that's awful low in my opinion.

Of course one cannot determine that this accident caused me to have the baby 5 days early, but one cannot also say that it didn't.

The total medical bill that was paid was $740.70. I did mention to the insurance claim lady that I had to take maternity leave a week early and I could not be reimbursed for salary because my insurance said it had to be two or more weeks.

So I told her that my salary would be $700/wk. She was going to speak with her supervisor and get back to me. In my opinion, I think that I should not settle for less than $2500, which is about 3x the cost of the medical bill they paid, and ultimately would cover the out of pocket expense I paid for my delivery.

Any advice? I don't want to go out and hire an attorney as I'm a single Mom and don't have time to do that, let alone have money to cover an attorney cost.

Answer:

Hello Lori,

Well, if you believe your pain and suffering is worth $2,500, then you will have to negotiate with the insurance company until you get that amount. Some times multiplying the medical bills can help guide your range of negotiation; however, there is no rule that makes them liable for 2, 3, or any ratio.

I know that hiring an attorney takes time, but dealing with insurance companies to get some kind of compensation (when they start $300) will take you substantial amount of foot work.

At any rate, your compensation of damages should be consistent with a “normal” injury claim without pregnancy, except that you should also be compensated for the worry and aggravation this accident could have caused on you as a future mom.

See more about injury claims here:

http://www.auto-insurance-claim-advice.com/bodily-injury-claim.html

The problem for you will be to differentiate the treatment and pain cause because of the normal course of pregnancy and the damages cause by the accident (i.e. was the back pain related to the accident or to the fact that this is “normal” pain for a 38 week pregnancy).

Evaluating your claim can take a little longer than usual, depending on all the facts of your claim. Always talk to an attorney if the insurance company is not making any progress.


Good Luck,
http://www.auto-insurance-claim-advice.com/