Insurance adjusters try to confuse, frustrate, and even pressure you into saying something that could potentially damage your claim. The following are tactics used by insurance adjusters to accomplish just that.

Tactic #1 – First Call:  Insurance adjusters will contact a victim to settle a claim immediately for a very small amount of money. They want to meet with you right away because an injured person may not be aware of all their damages until several months down the road so this is the prime time for an insurance adjuster to settle claims.

Tactic #2 – Failing to Reveal the Amount of Insurance Coverage:  A claims adjuster may fail to disclose all insurance coverage available to pay for your injuries or lie about the amount. For instance, if you have an excess insurance policy it will cover claims that go over the original insurance policy amount. A savvy lawyer will know how to obtain this information to make sure their client receives their fair share.

Tactic #3 – The Squeeze:  Victims are discouraged to seek legal assistance because insurance adjusters will drag out the payment process for as long as possible. Their objective is to pay you the least amount possible so they will make if financially difficult for you to keep up the fight.

Tactic #4 – The Wild Goose Chase:  Insurance adjusters will request mountains of paperwork if you decline their initial offer so that the case can be properly evaluated. They will have you gather years of past medical records that have nothing to do with your current injuries. Much of what they request will have nothing to do with the actual claim. They do this in order to make your life miserable and frustrate you enough to the point where you accept their initial offer.

Tactic #5 – Challenge the Need of Medical Treatment: Let’s say your doctor has determined, based on a physical examination, that you need an MRI of your neck to rule out the possibility of a herniated disk. The claims adjuster might feel that this was not “medically necessary”. Further, they might claim that your physical therapy should have only taken  four weeks instead of eight so they deny payment.

If you are getting the run around from an insurance adjuster contact a qualified attorney of personal injury law.

The Cunnane Law Office has provided this content for informational purposes only.  You should refer your questions to a personal injury attorney.

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Remember feeling invincible those early years when you learned to drive? Being cool was first priority so we played our music too loud or raced friends home. Sadly, car crashes are the leading cause of death for teens in the U.S. As a parent, there are several things that you can do to help curb these statistics.

Teens really learn to drive by watching their parents so lead by example. Show your teen the importance of buckling up. More than half of teens killed in car crashes were not wearing a seat belt.

Teen crashes often happen because of inexperience so it is important to practice situational driving on back roads. This includes how to safely pull over and stop when your sight is impaired. It is also important to prepare your teen for the unexpected such what to do if the driver in front of you has an unsecured load and there is falling debris. How you react is just important as how quickly you react.

Finally, set guidelines for your teen to follow. These might include keeping a curfew,  no texting, not driving under the influence and having no more than two passengers.

To find out more about how you can help your teen driver, visit: http://www.teendriversource.org/for_parents#pages

The Cunnane Law Office has provided this content for informational purposes only.  You should refer your questions to a personal injury attorney.

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We post, tweet and hash tag our daily lives on the internet sharing our experiences with friends and family on Facebook, Linked In and Twitter not realizing that this content can be shared as public record. Many of us do not realize what the privacy policies really say and the fact that our information may even be sold to a third party website without us ever knowing it.

The reason I am bringing all of this up is that what you say online can affect and damage the outcome of your personal injury claim.

Even with privacy settings activated, your information may easily find its way into the wrong hands. Pages that are searched on Google will show up even without first logging in.

If you are on a social media website and you are in an accident, do not use any social media website until your case is completely resolved. Insurance adjusters may attempt to become your friend on Facebook or even follow you on Twitter to obtain information.

Let’s say that you claim that you are not able to perform any physical activity while suffering from debilitating back pain, however you post a photo of yourself golfing on Facebook. What you have said conflicts with the imagery posted and may ruin your credibility for the case. Remember, anything you say or do can be used against you later on in a court of law.

The Cunnane Law Office has provided this content for informational purposes only.  You should refer your questions to a personal injury attorney.

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It’s almost spring in Edmonds and we have hit the rainy season. What does this mean for drivers? Freeway backups and accidents due to slick roads. Rain is to blame for thousands of accidents every year. The first rain after a long period of dryness can cause oil  to come to the surface of the road. This means you will have less traction on your tires so you might skid while breaking or spin out of control. Roadways may be covered in water or have standing pools of water causing your vehicle to hydroplane at accelerated speeds.  Moreover, drivers experience decreased visibility due to rain on headlights and windshields. Most of us know to slow down in the rain, but what else can we do to travel safely in the rain?

The first few hours of rain after a dry spell can be the most dangerous. Use great caution during this time because engine oil and grease built up on the road will mix with water creating an extremely slick surface.

Plan for more travel time. Drive at a slower pace than normal and keep in mind that traffic will also likely be moving slower rate. Keep in mind that your route may be flooded or blocked.

Give trucks and busses additional following distance because tires can create enough spray to block your vision.

When breaking, do so earlier with less force than you normally would. This will let the driver behind you know that you are slowing down and will increase the stopping distance between you and the car in front of you.

Make sure to use turn signals so that other drivers know your intentions.

Slow down  on curves and turns more than you would in dry conditions. Standing puddles are usually at the edge of the road due to crowning in the middle. This means that you will want to drive in the center lane to avoid deep standing water.

Use your headlight even if it is daytime. This will help other drivers to see you coming. If however, there is fog do not blast your high beams because the light will reflect back at you making it harder to see.

If it is raining so hard that you cannot see the road or car in front of you, pull over and wait it out.

If you begin to hydroplane, do not break or turn your wheel quickly. Instead release the gas pedal slowly and steer straight until your car regains traction.

Before you go out, make sure your wipers are in good condition, have a good emergency kit and check your tire traction and pressure.

The Cunnane Law Office has provided this content for informational purposes only.  You should refer your questions to a personal injury attorney.

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Every day millions of injured people who are the victims of automobile, truck and motorcycle accidents get pressured to take extremely low settlement offers. In one instance a client suffered a serious back injury as the result of an automobile collision. He needed back surgery to eliminate intense pain he constantly felt. The back surgery wasn’t successful and he needed to have a second surgery. During this time he was unable to work as a full time painter so he lost his job. He was being treated by three different doctors and going through physical therapy.

I worked on my client’s case for over a year due to the extent of his injuries. Initially the at-fault insurance company offered $30,000 and then increased the settlement to $93,000 three weeks before trial. After taking the case to court, my client was awarded $517,321. This allowed my client to get his second surgery and return to the workforce.

If you have experienced an auto accident and believe you might be getting the runaround from your insurance company, consider this criteria when calling Cunnane Law:

1.            You can’t participate in normal daily activities.
2.            Your medical bills are overwhelming.
3.            You are unable to return to work.
4.            Expenses are piling up and affecting your life.
5.            You have lost a loved one due to another person’s carelessness.

The Cunnane Law Office has provided this content for informational purposes only.  You should refer your questions to a personal injury attorney.

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Your already late for work and you still need to stop and get gas. The light ahead turns to yellow and instead of slowing down you speed up because it’s a busy intersection and missing that light could mean an added three to five minutes on your drive time. But what if someone walked out on the crosswalk or if the light turned green for oncoming traffic and they didn’t see you? Speeding is one of the top three reasons for car accidents in America.

People most commonly speed because they are in a hurry, are not paying attention, don’t think the laws apply to them, don’t think it is dangerous or don’t expect to get caught. Speeding kills over 13,000 people each year. Approximately 27% of crashes and fatalities in construction zones occur as a result of speeding. Additionally, compliance with lower speed zones near schools is poor. Statistically every minute gained by speeding costs the U.S. $76,000 amounting to $40 billion annually.movie Baby Driver 2017 streaming

Automated speed enforcement reduces speeding and accidents, but local education and media campaigns need to accompany speed cameras to be affective and raise awareness. Next time you are in a hurry, ask yourself if a minute saved is worth your life, someone else’s life or $76,000.

For more information about speeding visit: http://www.nsc.org/safety_road/DriverSafety/Pages/Speeding.aspx

The Cunnane Law Office has provided this content for informational purposes only.  You should refer your questions to a personal injury attorney.

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Avvo is the largest question and answer forum where real people can anonymously ask legal questions and receive personalized answers. Avvo offers ratings and profiles for every lawyer including client reviews, peer reviews and attorney disciplinary records. Client reviews are the best testimony for how an attorney is doing their job. You can see what others are saying about Joseph Cunnane at: http://www.avvo.com/attorneys/98020-wa-joseph-cunnane-25644.html

Hear what clients are saying:

“Trust is such a big factor in hiring a lawyer. I found Joe Cunnane to be one of the most trustworthy people I have ever worked with. He’s compassionate and genuinely caring. I would refer him to my closest friends and family members without hesitation.”  – Posted 16 days ago

“Joe is by far the best lawyer I have ever worked with. My case was challenging and Joe handled it excellently; I was very pleased with the outcome. Joe works very hard, keeps you updated and informed of what comes next; always returned phone calls and works towards the client’s best interest. I highly recommend him.”  – Posted 8 months ago

Hear what other lawyers are saying:

“I’ve know Joe for 7 years and we worked together on several major cases. Joe knows how to work with the insurance companies to get fair settlements for his clients, and he knows how to be tough with opposing attorneys and their insurers if they make him go into battle. Joe is an active member of our State’s most influential trial lawyers organization WSAJ / WSTLA and is also involved in a number of important committees. Joe has an excellent and dedicated staff. You will be well taken care of.” – David Crump, Medical Malpractice Attorney in Edmonds, WA

Review Joe Cunnane and tell others about your experience with the Cunnane Law Office.

The Cunnane Law Office has provided this content for informational purposes only.  You should refer your questions to a personal injury attorney.

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According to the Nielsen Company, 51.7 million cases of beer are sold to fans on Super Bowl Sunday. This number continues to grow every year so it comes as no surprise that police were patrolling for drunk drivers all day Sunday.

Did you know that alcohol is a depressant that affects your reaction time, coordination and vision? Additionally it can compromise your judgment and ability to multitask. What this means is that when danger is ahead, your distance and speed perception might not be what they seem so things can look closer or further away than they really are. You might have the right intent to avoid the danger, but your reaction time or coordination could compromise your ability to react.

Intoxication levels may be affected by your fat content and food consumption so how do you know when it is okay to drive? The answer can be found by calculating your blood alcohol concentration and then dividing the answer by .015. The resulting answer is the amount of time it takes to metabolize that much alcohol. This calculation be found here: http://bloodalcoholcalculator.org/#LinkURL

The Cunnane Law Office has provided this content for informational purposes only.  You should refer your questions to a personal injury attorney.streaming Ghost in the Shell film

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