Don't Fight The Insurance Company Alone

You need to have an experienced Nashville automobile accident attorney on your side as soon after a car accident involving serious injury or death as you can get one. The U.S. insurance industry has trillions of dollars in assets, enjoys average profits of over $30 billion a year, and pays its CEOs more than any other industry. But insurance companies still engage in dirty tricks and unethical behavior to boost their bottom line even further.

The current economic turmoil affecting the insurance industry on Wall Street has only made the outlook bleaker for consumers living on Main Street. Insurance companies are likely to demand huge rate hikes and refuse more claims than ever. Some of America’s most well-known insurance companies, the same ones that spend billions on advertising to earn your trust—have endeavored to deny claims, delay payments, confuse consumers with incomprehensible insurance-speak, and retroactively refuse anyone who may cost them money. The following are some of the low down behavior that they engage in:

Denying Claims

Some of the nation’s biggest insurance companies deny valid claims in an attempt to boost their bottom lines. These companies have rewarded employees who successfully denied claims, replaced employees who would not, and when all else failed, engaged in outright fraud to avoid paying claims.

Delaying Claims

Many insurance companies routinely delay claims, knowing full well that many policyholders will simply give up.

Confusing Consumers

Insurance contracts are some of the most dense and incomprehensible contracts a consumer is ever likely to see. More than half of all states have enacted “plain English” laws for consumer contracts, yet many Americans still do not fully understand the risks they are subject to.

Discriminating by Credit Score

Increasingly, insurance companies are using credit reports to dictate the premiums consumers pay, or whether they can even get insurance in the first place. The practice penalizes the poor, senior citizens with little credit, and those who have suffered financial crisis through no fault of their own. Insurance companies have denied fiscally responsible people who paid their bills in cash, but refused renewals because of a lack of credit history. Others have seen auto rate hikes near 600 percent despite clean driving records after falling on economic troubles.

These are but a few of the despicable tactics these huge financial institutions use and they are seeking new ones daily, in fact, they reward employees who come up with new ways to screw consumers. This is why you need an experienced Tennessee Automobile accident attorney on your side when you need to make a claim. If you try to take them on by yourself they will crush you and leave you holding the bag.

When you hire an attorney from Phillip Miller & Associates, you’re getting the whole package.  You don’t just get an extremely qualified and dedicated lawyer, you also get a loyal Tennessee resident who cares about the quality of life in their community and who puts their time and money into standing up for causes and charities they believe in.  You can read about some of the causes we support on our home page, along with a summary of our professional qualifications.  Additional details about our attorneys and staff can be found by viewing our personal profiles, where you can get to know the men and women who will be looking out for your best interest.

Please contact Phillip Miller & Associates today and take your first step forward towards putting the frustration and horror of your auto accident experience behind you.

The Auto Accident Victim Who Represents Himself Has A Fool For A Client

Have you or a loved one been involved in an Auto Accident? Before You Make a GIANT Mistake and Talk to An Insurance Adjuster, Sign any Forms or Hire an Attorney; Please Give Us a Call or Order Our Free Book. At Phillip Miller & Associates, we are here to help.

When you get into your car each day, you are one of over four million licensed drivers traveling the roads and highways of our great state. Unfortunately, you might be unlucky enough to be involved in one of Tennessee’s 486 car accidents that occur each day.  These accidents resulted in 1,284 deaths in 2006 alone.  However, knowing that you aren’t the only person who will be involved in an accident this year is of little comfort.  If you or someone you love has been hurt in a serious Tennessee car accident due to somebody else’s negligence, then you may be feeling angry, frightened, or even alone in your suffering.

There is no reason for you to bear your burden alone.  The experience of an auto accident is traumatic enough and your recovery will bring its own challenges.  You don’t need the added stress of worrying about who will pay for the medical care you need, how your car will be repaired, and if the individuals responsible for your suffering will be brought to justice.  This is the time to call the law firm of local Tennessee attorneys and staff who for the past 25 years have dedicated their lives to protecting the rights of injured men, women, and children in Tennessee.

We hear it all the time – “accidents happen”.  However that really isn’t true.  There is always a reason for an accident, always an explanation.  In our experience as Tennessee auto accident lawyers, there is usually a person or people behind the cause of the accident, people who should be held accountable.  You don’t deserve the injuries and suffering you’ve been through because of somebody else’s negligence, and our job is to make sure that you receive the justice and compensation that you deserve.

You may not be sure whether or not you really need an attorney; however we still want to hear from you.  Our policy is to meet with you for no cost and no obligation if you have been involved in an accident and believe that someone else is at fault.  Since we’re on your side, we base our fees on whether or not we can recover on your claim.  If we recover nothing, then you owe us nothing for our time and effort.  We hope the realization that you have nothing to lose by pursuing a satisfactory resolution to your case reassures you, and allows you to focus your energy on getting better while we fight for your rights.

When you retain an attorney from Phillip Miller & Associates, you’re getting the whole package.  You don’t just get an extremely qualified and dedicated lawyer, you also get a loyal Tennessee resident who cares about the quality of life in their community and who puts their time and money into standing up for causes and charities they believe in.  You can read about some of the causes we support on our home page, along with a summary of our professional qualifications.  Additional details about our attorneys and staff can be found by viewing our personal profiles, where you can get to know the men and women who will be looking out for your best interest.

Contact Phillip Miller & Associates today and take your first step forward towards putting the frustration and horror of your auto accident experience behind you.

If It Sounds To Good To Be True It Probably Is

As an experienced Tennessee automobile accident attorney I would like to take this opportunity to warn you about something that sounds like it might be so easy on your part and doesn’t really hurt anyone but the insurance company, and that warning is about filing false claims with your insurance company.

It starts so innocently. You’re driving in busy traffic and another motorist taps you from behind. You pull over and talk to the other driver, and he, or often it’s a woman, is very apologetic and begins a dialogue with you that ends with the offer of easy money. They will direct you to a doctor or medical clinic where these accomplices create a serious injury out of whole clothe. All you have to do is file a claim with your insurance policies uninsured motorist policy and whatever you collect you share with the members of this criminal organization.

After you have become an accomplice they will help you get in deeper by working several other scams and on each of them you make good money. Sounds simple and easy and it’s not the kind of activity that the cops care much about. WRONG!

The insurance companies are watching and they are nailing people and sending them to prison for violations of the Racketeering Influenced Corrupt Organization (RICO) statute that is used to defeat the mob. The sentences are harsh and the fines are huge.

Just this week in Tampa Florida a taskforce lead by agents from Direct General Automobile Insurance Company with cooperation from Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office, arrested and charged four members of a gang that filed false claims and several associates who were involved in staged automobile accidents. Direct General and  many other companies are taking a “zero tolerance” policy toward staged accidents and auto insurance fraud, and is working closely with law enforcement agencies to battle this fraud wave.

If you or someone you love has been hurt in a serious Tennessee car accident due to somebody else’s negligence, then you may be feeling angry, frightened, or even alone in your suffering.

There is no reason for you to bear your burden alone.  The experience of a Tennessee auto accident is traumatic enough and your recovery will bring its own challenges.  You don’t need the added stress of worrying about who will pay for the medical care you need, how your car will be repaired, and if the individuals responsible for your suffering will be brought to justice.  This is the time to call Phillip Miller & Associates, the law firm of local Tennessee attorneys and staff who for the past 25 years have dedicated their lives to protecting the rights of injured men, women, and children in Tennessee.

Avoid Distractions

As an experienced Nashville automobile accident attorney I’ve always thought that a particular kind of auto accident was, for lack of another description, difficult to understand. The accidents I’m referring are the ones where a vehicle races forward, out of control, and crashes into or through a building. The usual explanation is that the gas pedal stuck or that I meant to hit the brake and I hit the gas.

Many, but not all of these types of car crashes involve older drivers who are experiencing medical emergencies. Take for instance a recent Nashville car crash in which the driver of her brand new BMW was parking her car outside of her place of employment, when she thought she was applying the brake, she floored the gas pedal and crashed through the window and into the building.

The best idea that I can come up with is that the driver is simply not paying attention to what they are doing. They have allowed themselves to be distracted. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration driver inattention is the leading factor in most crashes. Nearly 80 percent of crashes and 65 percent of near-crashes involved some form of driver inattention within three seconds before the event.  Primary causes of driver inattention are distracting activities, such as cell phone use, and drowsiness.

The distraction can be just about anything, thinking about personal problems, applying makeup, talking to a passenger, drinking coffee or eating, the list is endless. Just think about it, if we could educate people on the danger of distraction while driving and they would make a serious attempt to maintain their focus on their driving, we could seriously reduce crashes.

If you or a loved one is injured or killed in a Tennessee automobile accident by a distracted driver you owe it to yourself to contact the experienced Nashville auto accident lawyers at Philip Miller & Associates and take advantage of a free consultation to find out about your rights and remedies.

It Can't Hurt To Brush Up

You have been driving for 50-years, why not take a Driver Safety Course? Cars have changed. So have the traffic rules, driving conditions, and the roads you travel every day. Some drivers age 50-plus have never looked back since they got their first driver’s licenses, but even the most experienced can benefit from brushing up on their driving skills.

The AARP Driver Safety Program offers experienced drivers a refresher course to brush up on their skills and, as a bonus, you might just get a discount on your car insurance. You can expect to learn current rules of the road, defensive driving techniques, and how to operate your vehicle more safely in today’s increasingly challenging driving environment. You’ll learn adjustments to accommodate common age-related changes in vision, hearing, and reaction time. After completing the course, you will have a greater appreciation of driving challenges and of how you can avoid potential collisions and injuries to yourself and others. And don’t worry, there is not a test to pass.

The classroom course costs only $12 for AARP members and $14 for non-members. The cost for the online course is $15.95 for AARP members and $19.95 for nonmembers.  Course times, dates and locations will be listed along with a phone number to call to register for the course. Or call, toll-free, 1-888-AARP-NOW (1-888-227-7669). To register for the online course, visit www.aarpdriversafety.org.

The experienced Tennessee automobile accident attorneys at Phillip Miller & Associates highly recommend this course. We see all too many Nashville auto accidents that might have been prevented with a little care. If you have teen drivers in your family it might save their lives and the lives of others if you have them join you as you take the online course.

In Part Three, I’d like to address another important factor in enhancing your teenagers driver education experience. Engaging your teen in safe driving is the first step in protecting him from harm, and talking with your adult peers is another important step to raise awareness and drive change. The following are some ideas for discussing the issue with other parents:

* Talk to the parents of your teen’s friends about the rules they have for their teen driver and share your rules as well – an easy way to gather effective resources. It’s just as important to discuss teen driving rules with fellow parents as it is to discuss rules you have regarding teen parties, alcohol use and curfew.

* Convince parents in your community to commit to a common set of driving rules that they’ll enforce. It’s much easier to be an effective parent when you have the support of other parents in your community.

* Find out how other parents respond when their teen violates their family’s driving rules. Ask them how they’ve handled situations that you have found challenging. Parents often gain useful advice from each other.

* Discuss how best to coach teens on what to say when they’re passengers in a car that they think is being driven unsafely.

* Talk to other parents about how to respond if they discover that one of their teen’s friends who has been driving has also been drinking. Give each other the authority to take the teen’s car keys and call the teen’s parents, call a taxi or allow the teen to sleep over. Agree that you’ll never permit a teen to leave your house and drive if you suspect that he has been drinking.

* The next time your school organizes a meeting or back-to-school night for parents of teens, be sure the topic of teen driving is on the agenda.

* Organize a parent discussion at your teen’s school about your state’s Graduated Driver Licensing (GDL) requirements to help parents of teen drivers in your community learn the law. Consider inviting a representative from your local police to explain the regulations and how they’re enforced where you live.

As an experienced Tennessee automobile accident attorney i hope the last three blogs have been helpful to the parents of teen drivers. If you need more information check out my website at Phillip Miller & Associates or any of the following web sites:

http://www.saferoads.org/

http://www.aaafoundation.org

http://vtti.vt.edu

http://usa.safekids.org

http://fmcsa.dot.gov/

http://autosafety.org/

http://www.carcrash.org/

http://www.madd.org

http://www.stopimpaireddriving.org

Teaching Teens Safe Driving

Over the next several blogs I’m going to talk about things Tennessee parents can do to help insure that their teen drivers get the information they need to help them have a safe and healthy driving career.  How can parents help their children become safe drivers? As a parent, you ultimately want your child to be well-trained to tackle life’s challenges. Learning to drive is part of that training and it’s important that parents play an active role in the process. The following is a variety of information that can help you:

* Talk to your teen early and often. Discuss the risks and responsibilities of driving with your child at a young age and keep talking to your teen before, during and after the licensing process. This discussion should have the same – or even higher priority level – as discussing sex and drugs.

* Don’t rush the training process. Just because teens have a permit or license, doesn’t mean they are ready for every driving condition. By easing into the training process, such as practicing in parking lots and side streets instead of busy highways, you’ll help ensure you and your teen will be ready for any situation.

* Understand your state’s laws. Every state has Graduated Driver Licensing to help new drivers get their initial on-the-road driving experience under lower-risk conditions, protecting them while they are learning.  Familiarize yourself and your teen with these requirements, and establish your own rules for when, where, how and with whom your teen may drive by creating a Parent-Teen Driving Agreement. Even after receiving their license, some teens are not prepared to drive on their own – only you can decide when your teen is ready to drive without adult supervision.

* Empower your teen. Being a passenger in another teen’s car can put your teen at risk. Peer pressure among teens can be both positive and negative. Make sure your teen knows it’s okay to say something if uncomfortable while riding with a friend and help her practice what to say in these situations. Although you can’t be with your teen at all times, you can how important it is that your teen speaks up in dangerous situations.

* Practice what you preach. Be a positive role model when you’re behind the wheel. Your teen is more likely to be a calm and courteous driver, wear a seat belt and follow the rules of the road if they see you do the same.

If you want to learn more about safe driving and find other links to safety information visit our web site at Phillip Miller & Associates. If you or a loved one become involved in a serious Tennessee automobile accident you owe it to your family to contact the experienced Nashville auto accident lawyers at Phillip Miller & Associates and take advantage of a free consultation.

Lawyer Up Right Away

One of the benefits of retaining an experienced Nashville automobile accident attorney to protect your interests after you have been involved in a Tennessee automobile accident is that we understand that the best results come from the best beginnings. Immediate involvement of an experienced attorney means to the investigation will be thorough.

When a Tennessee automobile accident is caused by a drunk driver, breath and blood tests can disclose the alcohol content of the driver. It becomes trickier when the accident is caused by a drowsy driver or one who suffered some sort of medical emergency. This is what we do at Phillip Miller & Associates. Our investigators know the ropes and have years of experience getting to the truth of the matter.

Dealing with an unexpected accident or serious injury caused by somebody else’s negligence can be a traumatizing and life-changing event, but you shouldn’t have to face the future alone.  If you are a Tennessee resident suffering from the effects of a serious auto accident, workplace injury, tractor trailer accident, or motorcycle crash then the attorneys at Phillip Miller & Associates are here to fight for the justice and compensation you deserve.  We are a firm of local Tennessee attorneys and staff who for the past 25 years have dedicated our lives to protecting the rights of injured men, women, and children in Tennessee.

Auto Insurance Fraud On The Rise

Insurance industry studies indicate 10 percent or more of property/casualty insurance claims are fraudulent. And fraud is the second most costly white-collar crime in America behind tax evasion. Add it all up and insurance fraud costs Americans billions of dollars each year. Not only does fraud cause higher insurance rates, but it also raises our taxes and inflates prices for consumer goods.

Insurance cheats range from organized criminal enterprises, to unscrupulous doctors and lawyers, to dishonest body shop operators, to your neighbors. Regardless of who they are, insurance criminals are motivated by one thing: money. It’s all about greed and taking what isn’t rightfully theirs.

Fraud Scams

Among other scams, insurance criminals:

- Devise elaborate staged vehicle accidents complete with fake injuries to collect on insurance policies.

- Intentionally destroy property or vehicles and lie to insurers about the supposed “accident.”

- Fake injuries to collect disability, workers’ compensation and personal injury insurance claims.

- Inflate insurance claims.

- Make false theft reports.

As consumers we suffer when these crooks get over on the insurance companies. It takes a concerted team effort to fight back against insurance criminals. No individual organization or agency has the resources to single-handedly stop these criminals. But by combining the resources and expertise of thousands of insurers, law enforcement agencies, state fraud bureaus and the National Insurance Crime Bureau, as well as John Q. Public, insurance fraud can be detected, deterred and stopped, thus helping to protect American consumers’ pocketbooks.

If you think you are being victimized by an insurance scam, you will need an experienced Tennessee automobile accident lawyer on your side. When you hire an attorney from Phillip Miller & Associates, you’re getting the whole package.  You don’t just get an extremely qualified and dedicated lawyer, you also get a loyal Tennessee resident who cares about the quality of life in their community and who puts their time and money into standing up for causes and charities they believe in.  You can read about some of the causes we support on our home page, along with a summary of our professional qualifications.  Additional details about our attorneys and staff can be found by viewing our personal profiles, where you can get to know the men and women who will be looking out for your best interest.

Contact Phillip Miller & Associates today and take your first step forward towards putting the frustration and horror of your auto accident experience behind you.

Governmetn Employee Negligence

As an experienced Nashville automobile accident attorney, I have handled dozens of lawsuits against the Metropolitan Government of Nashville Davidson County Tennessee for the negligent acts of it’s employees while on the job. The process of getting compensation from a government entity in Tennessee is different when one sues a governmental entity and if you are to be successful it’s important that you retain an experienced Tennessee automobile accident attorney to handle your claim.

Several Nashville media outlets reported on a rash of recent settlements against Metro Nashville that have had to be approved by the Metro Council. Generally, when a settlement is recommended by the Department of Law the Council is on notice that the lawyers think that if they go to trial the Plaintiffs will recover substantially more than the offered settlement. This has created problems for some Council members.

According to the media articles, in the last three months the Council has approved settlements in the amount of $588,000.00. Unfortunately, the suggestions by several Council members focus’s more on punishment of the negligent employees rather than a proactive approach to reducing negligent actions on the part of Metro employees.

Punishment of employees won’t help reduce the number of claims, that’s sort of like closing the door after the barn has burned down.  The answer here is a focused proactive educational program aimed at preventing the actionable acts in the first place.

If you or loved one is injured or killed in a Nashville automobile accident caused by the negligence of a Metro Nashville employee you owe it to yourself to contact the experienced Nashville automobile accident lawyers at Phillip Miller & Associates and take advantage of a free consultation to learn about your rights and remedies.