Unfortunately, some insurance companies opt to treat their insured individuals with disrespect when they report injury claims. Obviously, the main benefit to the insurance company is that they can save money when they deny coverage to injured individual. These denials most often occur in car wrecks or automobile accidents, but can happen in workers’ compensation claims, real estate or property disputes, or in health insurance claims.

The main trick for the the insurance company is to get notice of your claim for compensation, and then immediately or within a short period of time, deny compensation for on your claim based on any number of "policy exclusions."  You’re then left without any recourse for paying your necessary and related expenses. The insurance company then continues to make money by forcing you to pay your premium for "coverage," without having to expend any of the necessary reserves.

At some point, this type of problem became such a business practice, that insurance companies denied claims to prevent payments. Around 1986, the Oklahoma legislature had seen enough pressure to enact the Unfair Claims Settlement Practices Act. The Act, which is codified at 36 O.S. § 1250.1, et. seq., is a strong weapon in the consumer protection artillery.

The Act applies if you make a claim for compensation based on your insurance coverage. It’s important to note that these protections do not apply if you’re seeking coverage from someone else’s insurance coverage. This makes sense, because someone shouldn’t have to pay for your claim, without a particular amount of scrutiny on the claim.

That said, violations of the Act happen if your insurance carrier breaks any of the legal rules (duh), or if you can show that your insurance company’s action are some sort of "general business practice." See 36 O.S. § 1250.3.

Generally then, there are 16 ways that your insurance carrier can violate the statute. These are enumerated in 36 O.S. § 1250.5 (the updated statute is here). I’m not going to state each one of them, except to say some of the more common violations are:

• Failing to fully disclose to first party claimants, benefits, coverages, or other provisions of any insurance policy or insurance contract when such benefits, coverages or other provisions are pertinent to a claim;
• Knowingly misrepresenting to claimants pertinent facts or policy provisions relating to coverages at issue;
• Except where there is a time limit specified in the policy, making statements, written or otherwise, which require a claimant to give written notice of loss or proof of loss within a specified time limit and which seek to relieve the company of its obligations if such a time limit is not complied with unless the failure to comply with such time limit prejudices an insurer’s rights;
• Not attempting in good faith to effectuate prompt, fair and equitable settlement of claims submitted in which liability has become reasonably clear;
• Issuing checks or drafts in partial settlement of a loss or claim under a specified coverage which contain language which releases an insurer or its insured from its total liability;
• Compelling, without just cause, policyholders to institute suits to recover amounts due under its insurance policies or insurance contracts by offering substantially less than the amounts ultimately recovered in suits brought by them, when such policyholders have made claims for amounts reasonably similar to the amounts ultimately recovered.

These are all fairly common ways that your insurance carrier may try to limit the amount of funds which you can get compensation for. Although very few individuals will have problems when they make their insurance claim, there are still a reasonable amount of people who face these problems. Unfair settlement is also a common problem when you deal with property replacement, such as your damaged vehicle.

The Oklahoma legislature has written some consumer protections for unfair auto settlements. I’m not going to discuss those, because they’re not as common of problems, but you can review them here.

If you’re having trouble getting compensation for your injuries, it’s important to speak with an attorney who can help you. It’s even more important that you speak with someone who can make sure your insurance company is acting responsibly, and in your best interests. Contact Absolute Legal Services, LLC, if you’d like to discuss your injury claim, or your insurance company’s behavior. You may email us at: contact@absolutelawfirm.com, or call our office at (405) 748-0318.

Settling an Insurance Claim is a post from: Oklahoma Legal Issues. You can read the original post by visiting our site. Please visit our homepage for more information about our law firm. Absolute Legal Services, LLC is an Oklahoma City law firm helping people with legal issues in personal injury actions, consumer claims, immigration, and social security. Please see our services page for more information.

I believe some fear the financial costs of seeking an attorney’s advice. While it’s a genuine concern, it’s probably unfounded. Most attorneys have low or free consultation rates, followed by similarly low hourly or flat fees for particular tasks. (The flat fee is a feature I believe sets Absolute Legal Services, LLC, apart from other firms.) Flat fees can help limit the economic impact of your decision, and help ensure that you’re getting sound advice.

Still, people opt to do it themselves. I’ve published several articles on DIY legal services, and some of their consequences. You can find my posts about writing your own will here, here and here. I’ve also expressed concerns about properly executing your estate plan here, here, here, and here. Yet, companies like LegalZoom.com find themselves flourishing (although there’s this article that discusses their Missouri battle over the unauthorized practice of law).

There’s a March 2010 Kiplinger’s article (hat tip to The Probate Lawyer Blog) that addresses the issue of DIY estate planning. The article provides a generally favorable and unbiased review of DIY lawyering, and I’ll freely agree that you can do some of the tasks (e.g. power of attorney) without too many issues.

But, what about "the hiccup?" The great thing about using an attorney is that the attorney can often see your hiccups before they happen. If not at your first meeting, then certainly further down the road as he or she evaluates your issues and makes assessments. Your lawyer has a vast array of resources to consult that will help guarantee a superior quality of service fill-in-the-blanks can’t give you.

If you’d like to discuss our flat fee services, please give us a call: (405) 748-0318, or send us an email: contact@absolutelawfirm.com. We’ll be happy to make an assessment, and quote you a fee for the service. If you’re looking to start a business, draft a will or estate plan, purchase a piece of property, or any other matter, let us know, we can help you. You’ll talk to an attorney from your first phone call until your last.

Cutting out “The Middleman” is a post from: Oklahoma Legal Issues. You can read the original post by visiting our site. Please visit our homepage for more information about our law firm. Absolute Legal Services, LLC is an Oklahoma City law firm helping people with legal issues in personal injury actions, consumer claims, immigration, and social security. Please see our services page for more information.

Often, the difficult task is determining who’s at fault (your driver or the other driver), and moving forward with treatment. One question I’m asked is "who pays for my medical bills?"

In Oklahoma, your rights to receive treatment and compensation for your medical bills are enormous. Generally, unless you’ve done something to distract your driver, you’re not accountable for any "bad acts." This means that your driver’s poor driving doesn’t effect your ability to recover for your medical bills from his/her insurance, or from the other party’s carrier. You may opt to initiate a lawsuit against your driver or the other party.

When you consult an attorney, he/she can advise you on the appropriate way to handle the claim, and the appropriate individual(s) to make claims against. Additionally, if you’ve added medical payments coverage to your policy, like I’ve discussed, you’re going to have money available to cover some or all of your medical treatment if you have an injury. This is important because it could take you months to settle a personal injury claim.

If you’ve been injured in an automobile accident, and would like to discuss your rights, contact our office at (405) 748-0318 or by email: contact@absolutelawfirm.com. Don’t delay treatment or assistance in representing your interests.

Who’s Paying My Bills? is a post from: Oklahoma Legal Issues. You can read the original post by visiting our site. Please visit our homepage for more information about our law firm. Absolute Legal Services, LLC is an Oklahoma City law firm helping people with legal issues in personal injury actions, consumer claims, immigration, and social security. Please see our services page for more information.

However, unless you’re being pulled over for a "simple" speeding violation, it’s in your best interest to keep your mouth shut. For one, if you are eventually charged with a crime, any information or confessions you give the police can and will get used against you in the prosecution’s case-in-chief. These types of admissions are called admissions against interest, meaning you wouldn’t confess to committing the crime, unless you’d actually committed the crime. The police officer will testify regarding your statement.

What about "hearsay" you ask? Doesn’t apply. Admissions against interest are exceptions to the hearsay rule, and therefore, admissible. Strike one, you’re out! Your attorney will work hard to keep that information from being part of the criminal trial, but there’s no guarantee.

The second reason you never want to talk to the police is because the officers can use any information to form reasonable suspicion, which is necessary to search your vehicle, person, or residence. By confessing to a crime or criminal activity, you’re only enhancing the officer’s necessary information. If you say nothing, there’s a later viable objection that the search or information obtained against you was "poisoned."

Third, cops can lie. This was a shocking revelation to me when I went through school. I had a naive belief that a police office must tell you the truth when he or she questions you regarding a crime. That simply isn’t true. The police may use anything lies or else to get you to confess to a crime. These lies may include false statements about evidence, accomplice confessions, or witnesses.

If you’re facing a criminal charge, it’s important to remember that you can, and must, assert your Constitutional right to silence. Any "innocent" statement, can have some drastic consequences in the end. You must assert that you will no talk to the police about the current crime, or any other crimes, without an attorney present.

Keep Your Mouth Shut is a post from: Oklahoma Legal Issues. You can read the original post by visiting our site. Please visit our homepage for more information about our law firm. Absolute Legal Services, LLC is an Oklahoma City law firm helping people with legal issues in personal injury actions, consumer claims, immigration, and social security. Please see our services page for more information.

Customer Service.

Dear Customer!

We have been waiting for you to contact us for your Confirmable Package that is registered with us for shipping to your residential location. We had thought that your sender gave you our contact details. It may interest you to know that a letter is also added to your package.

However, we cannot quoteit’s contentto you via email for privacy reasons. We understand that the content of your package itself is a ATM CARD worth of $900,000.00 USD. As you know, TNT do not ship money in CASH or in CHEQUES but ATMs CARD are shippable. The package is registered with us for mailing by your colleague as claimed, and your colleague explained that he is from the United States but he is here in Nigeria for a three (3) months Surveying Project as he works with a construction firm in the Nigeria West Africa We are sending you this email because your package is been registered on a Special Order.

What you have to do now, is to contact our Dilivery Department for immediate dispatchment of your package to your residencial address. Note that as soon as our Delivery Team confirms your informations, it will take only one working day (24 hours)for your package to arrive it’s designated destination. For your information, the VAT & Shipping charges as well as Insurance fees have been paid by your colleague before your package was registered.

Note that the payment that is made on the Insurance, Premium & Clearance Certificates, are to certify that the ATM Card is not a Drug Affiliated Fund (DAF) neither is it funds to sponsor Terrorism in your country. This will help you avoid any form of query from the Monetary Authority of your country. However, you will have to pay a sum of $291.USD to the TNT Delivery Services Department being full payment for the Security Keeping Fee which is just only $291 USD of the TNT Delivery Services as stated in our privacy terms & condition page.

Also be informed that your colleague wished to pay for the Security Keeping charges, but we do not accept such payment considering the facts that all items & packages that is registered with us have a time limitation and we cannot accept payment having known not when you will be picking up the package or even responding to us. So we cannot take the risk to have accepted such payment incase of any possible demurrage.

Kindly note that your colleague did not leave us with any further information. We hope that you respond to us as soon as possible because if you fail to respond until the expiry date of the foremost package, we may refer the package to the British Commission for Welfare as the package do not have a return address.

Kindly contact the delivery department (TNT Delivery Services Post) with the details given below:

Contact Person: Nelson Wilson

TELL: +234 807 0715 304

Email: wilsonnelson@deliveryman.com

Kindly complete the below form and send it to the email address given above. This is mandatory to reconfirm your Postal address and telephone numbers.

FULL NAMES:

TELEPHONE:

POSTAL ADDRESS:

CITY:

STATE:

COUNTRY –

This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. ::::

CONTRIBUA COM O MEIO AMBIENTE. NÃO IMPRIMA ESTA MENSAGEM :::::

You’ll notice a couple of things about the email that set it off as a fraud.

First, their grammar is very bad, or more appropriately, very formal with verbiage that looks like a foreigner wrote it. For example, when was the last time you heard "demurrage" used? Even after reading this Wikipedia article, I’m not sure what it means, other than to say it’s a delivery delay that the shipper is responsible for. Even then, the phrase doesn’t have common parlance, except in a technical sense.

Second, remember anything too good to be true, probably is. Tell me honestly, when was the last time you received 900 thousand dollars without having to do anything.

Third, there’s usually some "crazy" looking email address or contact information to send the information to. Despite the fact that the first email has been "cleaned" for spam, I’m not trusting an email from "deliveryman.com." If you want to validate the email address, try entering it into your web browser and visiting it. Deliveryman.com doesn’t exist – at least there’s not "landing page." A "legitimate" email address will have a landing page. Moreover, I’m not sure where 234 807 0715 304 is from since I don’t do a lot of international calling, but a quick Google search tells me there are over 4 million results all leading to Nigerian scammers. Just note, nothing good comes from a Nigerian-based email.

Fourth, there’s usually some suspicious phrase or lack of information. In the first email, it’s " we cannot quoteit’s contentto [sic] you via email for privacy reasons. We understand that the content of your package itself is a ATM CARD worth of $900,000.00 USD." The "shipper" is telling me that they’re not able to give me the information, but in the next sentence, they give me the information.

Finally, the email will always contain vague information. In this scam there are several vague references: my "sender" didn’t put his/her contact information; the email is sent to "customer service"; my "colleague" works for an undisclosed Nigerian survey company; and my "time-sensitive" package has no time limit for acceptance.

Now, certainly if you’re dealing in international goods and services, you may deal with these issues on a weekly or daily basis. However, for you, there’s probably no reason to be replying to this email., because there’s certainly not going to be $900,000.00 at the other end (sorry, you’ll lose out if there is – in the end, you’ll thank me). Too many people get swindled because of the "Snake Oil Salesman."

Note: you may also be interested in this story about Facebook and Twitter scams that could potentially harm your computer.

Going Phishing, and Doing it Poorly is a post from: Oklahoma Legal Issues. You can read the original post by visiting our site. Please visit our homepage for more information about our law firm. Absolute Legal Services, LLC is an Oklahoma City law firm helping people with legal issues in personal injury actions, consumer claims, immigration, and social security. Please see our services page for more information.

Usually the scam goes something like this:

You’re waiting in a parking lot or at a stop light. A car collides with your vehicle causing you to jerk or "whiplash" in the vehicle. The accident may involve a minor impact, with little property damage, or a significant one. You feel slightly shaken, your heart races, and you’re slight achy. There’s no significant on-site bodily injury, merely "post-accident anxiety."

The scam artist races to your car, is usually very apologetic, and even "confesses" to causing the accident, including a "generous" offer to pay for the damage to your car. The scammer will give you an excuse like they don’t want their insurance to increase, they’re very busy, the accident didn’t cause much damage, or they don’t want their spouse to find out. They’ll offer you some money (usually an amount below $500), "to make it all go away."

You’re not injured, so against your better judgment, you decide to take the "nice" man/woman’s offer, and save yourself some hassle too.

The problem is, you later discover that the damage to your vehicle is significant, and those "slight" aches have turned into a mind-numbing pain that even the best over-the-counter pain reliever can’t ease. What you discover is that your "sweet deal" quickly turned into a costly sour apple.

The problem is, now you can’t get make a claim because you don’t have any of the offender’s information, and you haven’t properly documented the accident. The scam artist got away with a good deal, while you’re stuck with the costly bill.

Remember in Oklahoma, if you’re involved in an automobile accident, you’re required to exchange information with the other party. Don’t let the other party out of his/her obligation. If they’re pressuring you to settle, use the law and your obligation to stay out of trouble as an excuse.

It’s important too for you to contact the police, unless the circumstances/laws say otherwise. Having the proper documentation regarding the accident will protect you in the future when you need the medical care and auto body repair that you deserve.

If you have been the victim in a motor vehicle accident anywhere in Oklahoma, call my firm ASAP for a free consultation at 405-748-0318, or go to http://www.absolutelawfirm.com.

Don’t Fall for “The Buyoff” is a post from: Oklahoma Legal Issues. You can read the original post by visiting our site. Please visit our homepage for more information about our law firm. Absolute Legal Services, LLC is an Oklahoma City law firm helping people with legal issues in personal injury actions, consumer claims, immigration, and social security. Please see our services page for more information.

It’s important to prepare before the crash, so you’ll function perfectly during the crash, and ensure that your rights are protected.

If you haven’t done so already, you need to get your "car accident survival kit" together. Your kit should contain all of the materials you’ll need for the crash.

When the crash happens here’s what you need to do:

1. Assess the damage to you, your passengers, and other drivers. Determine if medical attention is needed.
2. Contact fire, medical, and police.
3. Post/display warning flares or signs to alert other drivers of the accident. If required & possible, move vehicle from traffic.
4. Note the other party’s license place number.
5. Exchange insurance/driver’s license information with the other party/parties (use your notepad to store the information).
6. Take a lot of pictures of the vehicles, parties, passengers, roadway using a disposable camera or cell phone.
7. Make a notation in your notebook regarding your current aches, pains, bruising, etc.
8. Discuss the event with law enforcement. Do not admit liability.
9. Get medical treatment
10. Continue to document your aches, pains, bruising, etc. in your notebook and/or by photos.

How you handle the auto accident can determine how much compensation you’ll receive for your injuries. Failing to properly document or gather the appropriate information can be detrimental to your injury claim.

If you’ve been injured in an automobile accident, don’t delay in contacting my firm to assist you in receiving the compensation and treatment you deserve. You can contact us by calling 405-748-0318 or visiting our website at http://www.absolutelawfirm.com.

Auto Accident 101 is a post from: Oklahoma Legal Issues. You can read the original post by visiting our site. Please visit our homepage for more information about our law firm. Absolute Legal Services, LLC is an Oklahoma City law firm helping people with legal issues in personal injury actions, consumer claims, immigration, and social security. Please see our services page for more information.

I’ve stressed the importance of watching what you say online, but it’s also important to watch where your conversations are coming from. The New Jersey case of Stengart v. Loving Care Agency, 973 A.2d 390 (N.J.  2009), is an example of how an employer may use your email conversations against you.

The issue in Stengart was "whether workplace regulations converted an employee’s emails with her attorney — sent through the employee’s personal, password-protected, web-based email account, but via her employer’s computer — into the employer’s property."

The plaintiff had anticipated filing a lawsuit against her employer, and therefore had regular email communications with her attorney. The problem was that the employee used her work computer to send email through her private Yahoo! email account.

The employer argued that the messages were "discoverable"  documents (meaning the documents would become evidence against the employee), and therefore not subject to the "attorney-client privilege." Obviously, the employee argued that the email message were privileged, and could not be used against her at trial.

The employer used its policy handbook to justify its position. The trial court agreed that the documents were not privileged, and admitted them as evidence. However, on appeal, the Superior Court of New Jersey, held that the employer had a vague policy regarding email communication, and therefore the email sent through a private email account retained some expectation of privacy. Additionally, the Court held that the company’s ownership of the computer did not instill an unrestricted right to examine the private contents. Specifically, the Court reasoned that "the company had no greater interest in those communications than it would if it had engaged in the highly impermissible conduct of electronically eavesdropping on a conversation between plaintiff and her attorney while she was on a lunch break."

This case is profoundly important (at least in New jersey) because of its emphasis on the attorney-client relationship, but also on the extent of "employer eavesdropping." Even though the employee won, I find it shocking how much information the employer was able to obtain. The controversial communications were stored computer images of the employee’s web-based email program. I didn’t know you could get that information, and I didn’t realize to what extent the employer could look at those snapshots.

Stengart illustrates that you need to get away and avoid all employer-sponsored computers when you’re doing "non-work" activities. As you can see, nothing is ever really private, despite how much you want to believe it is.

Be Careful Where You’re Messaging is a post from: Oklahoma Legal Issues. You can read the original post by visiting our site. Please visit our homepage for more information about our law firm. Absolute Legal Services, LLC is an Oklahoma City law firm helping people with legal issues in personal injury actions, consumer claims, immigration, and social security. Please see our services page for more information.

This particular attorney had returned from a seminar on advanced estate planning practices where one of the presenters discussed legal fees. The presenter commented that if the attorneys weren’t charging a certain sum (roughly $10,000) for the described work, then "you’re getting screwed." In further conversations she stated that quite a number of individuals in the field charged over $15,000 for the service.

Her lament was that she often lost clients because they perceived the cost of a service the same as the quality of the service. I think this is true, regardless of the provider.

There has always been the great debate among lawyers about pricing. Whether it’s "value pricing" or another name, pricing is pricing. I’ve had some blatant discussions regarding pricing, like this one. I’m sure you understand that there are some costs that get associated with a provider’s services, and therefore, one’s "value", arguably, is subjective. There’s articles all over the internet that talk about attorneys charging hourly rates of over $1,000. Wow!

That’s the point my colleague was making: some lawyers are charging outrageous prices for their services because they can, not because they’re worth it.

The problem is, we’ve got it in our minds that in some professions, price matters. We’ll go to the "high priced lawyer" because he/she is the high priced lawyer. We fail to recognize that sometimes (and often) the neighborhood attorney can handle the job just as easily as the high priced lawyer for less cost. Again, we’ve been taught to believe that we should value the competency of a professional service provider by the amount of his/her fee. We see high price, and think high caliber.

Yet, ironically, we’re judging every other product/service by how much money we can save. We’re trying to get discounts on our groceries, gifts, clothing, telephone/internet. We demand more service, for less money, and think nothing about it’s quality. We shop at dollar stores because we can get "good deals cheap."

If you’re deciding on whether to hire an attorney, it’s important to examine a couple things to make sure the money you spend actually results in quality value:

1. Ask the attorney whether they’ve handled your type of issue before;
2. Ask the attorney what you can expect in terms of communication, outcomes, daily expectations;
3. Ask the attorney whether you can expect to call and speak with the attorney, or whether you’re dealing with an assistant or answering machine;
4. If the attorney seems young or inexperienced, ask the attorney whether they know other attorneys they work with who can help them resolve your issue;
5. Ask the attorney what type of work they’ll have to do on your case – is this an issue that the attorney can use pre-formatted forms for (saves you money), or will the attorney need to develop original materials?
6. Ask the attorney what his/her hourly rate is, and what types of "extras" you’ll be paying for – are you paying for lunches, office supplies, etc., or is the attorney "high tech" and trying to save you money?
7. Ask the attorney who will be working on your case;

Whether $1,000 is a reasonable price for an attorney’s services depends on the complexity of the case, the novelty of the issues, the amount of work performed, and the attorney’s specific knowledge and skill handling your type of issue. Like all professions, regardless of someone’s perceived value, you’ll get overrated/overpaid "the flop", and the undervalued superstar. It’s important to navigate between the two, and not get caught by the glitz and glamor of a "high priced attorney", just because they can be. Dig deeper, evaluate, and examine their potential and the value and quality of their services.

If you need an attorney, please feel free to contact our office: (405) 748-0318 or contact@absolutelawfirm.com, to discuss your issue.

Price Does Not Equal Quality is a post from: Oklahoma Legal Issues. You can read the original post by visiting our site. Please visit our homepage for more information about our law firm. Absolute Legal Services, LLC is an Oklahoma City law firm helping people with legal issues in personal injury actions, consumer claims, immigration, and social security. Please see our services page for more information.

The two most common reasons why your attorney withdraws from your claim are: 1) conflict, and 2) your failure to fulfill your obligations.

A conflict exists when your litigation goals and the attorney’s ability to represent them become opposite. Most likely, this is because the attorney moved to a new law firm that represents your opponent. Ethically, the attorney can’t represent you and your opponent, unless you waive that conflict (not recommended if you’re in serious litigation).

Your attorney may withdraw if you fail to live up to your part of the attorney-client agreement. Most often, this involves not paying your legal bill, but the attorney can withdraw if you’re not returning phone calls/letters, missing appointments, or "failing to cooperate" in the litigation.

Your past bad conduct may cause your attorney to withdraw, when your lawyer discovers you’ve lied (see my prior posts here and here about lying to your attorney). Your fraudulent actions could cause the attorney to violate the Rules of Professional Conduct, and therefore, your attorney will consider his/her employment and financial well-being before proceeding with the claim.

Your relationship with your attorney is vitally important to the success of your lawsuit. If you’re not doing what you need to to nurture the relationship, it’s going to be hard for your attorney to advocate on your behalf.

The Attorney-Client Relationship is a post from: Oklahoma Legal Issues. You can read the original post by visiting our site. Please visit our homepage for more information about our law firm. Absolute Legal Services, LLC is an Oklahoma City law firm helping people with legal issues in personal injury actions, consumer claims, immigration, and social security. Please see our services page for more information.