California Personal Injury and Insurance Blog

Think Twice Before Posting Personal Information Online

In 2006, Eric Sedie of Corte Madera, California, suffered injuries in a crash with a U.S. Postal Service truck. In 2008 he sued the Postal Service for $2.5 million, claiming that because of his injuries, every aspect of his life “has been and will be affected until the day he dies”. He claimed the activities that he couldn’t engage in any longer due to his injuries from the accident included bicycling, painting, and any vigorous activity.

 

Last week, a federal magistrate judge awarded Sedie only a little over $297,000 instead of the $2.5 million he asked for. The judge didn’t believe his claims of personal injury and believed his testimony was full of inconsistencies and exaggeration.

 

Why? In part because of a June 2007 MySpace posting “in which he described painting as a frustrating activity when his arm hairs would get caught in paint.” Although he claimed to be joking, the court didn’t think so. The court also found inconsistencies in Facebook postings, surveillance videos and testimony from expert witnesses.

 

Obviously, it was not a wise decision for Sedie to claim he was unable to pursue activities such as painting and then to post personal anecdotes about himself painting in public forums. Such comments make easy fodder for defense attorneys, and can have a huge impact on a legal case.

Proposition 17 Changes California’s Car Insurance Rules

Proposition 17, which will appear on the June ballot in California, could result in big changes for purchasers of car insurance in California. The proposition was written and funded by Mercury Insurance, California’s fourth-largest auto insurance company.

 

The proposition would allow auto insurance companies to charge customers more if they have never previously been insured. Proposition 17 also penalizes drivers who dropped coverage for more than 90 days over the last five years (with an exception for overseas military personnel) or who missed one insurance payment.  Those who stopped driving and didn’t need insurance would be required to pay up to $1,000 more for car insurance when they restarted coverage. Current California law prevents that surcharge.

 

Those drivers who did maintain continuous auto insurance would be eligible for a continuous coverage discount, which they could keep if they changed insurance companies. Under current California law, drivers who switch insurance companies cannot receive the continuous coverage discount.

This is bad for consumers. My general rule is that if the insurance companies are spending millions on a ballot initiative, and Mercury is, then this is only good for them. Additionally, the insurance companies are trying to undermine the authority of the insurance commissioner. While I do not think the insurance commissioner should be an elected office, at least for now consumers get to have some say in who will protect them from the insurance companies. I am urging everyone to vote no on Prop. 17.

Bill Imposes Larger Fines for Illegal Cell Phone Use

A bill proposed in the California State Senate hikes the fines for the illegal use of a cell phone while driving. A California State Senate committee approved the bill this week.

 

The current law, which went into effect July 1, 2008, fines drivers who are holding a cell phone $20 for a first offense and $50 for repeated offenses. Drivers are allowed to make calls with hands-free devices, except those under age 18. A ban on texting while driving took effect at the beginning of 2009.

 

The new bill would charge drivers who are holding a cell phone $50 for a first offense and $100 for repeated offenses. The fines for texting while driving would increase to $100. Court costs and fees would be tacked on to the fines, which would make the fines $255 for cell phone users and $445 for texters. In addition, drivers would receive a point on their driving records for violations. The new rules also would apply to bicyclists, but they would receive much lower fines - $20 for a first offense, $50 for a second, with no additional fees added.

 

According to the California Highway Patrol, traffic accidents have dropped 20 percent from the previous five-year average before 2008. Approximately 275,000 tickets were issued in California in 2009 for using hand-held cell phones while driving.

Staying Trim Helps Men Avoid Serious Bodily Injury in Auto Accidents

        Scientists at the Medical College of Wisconsin’s Injury Research Center studied 11,000 drivers between 2001 and 2005 and recently concluded that in car accidents, obese men are much more likely to sustain serious upper body injuries than are normal weight men or women. Obese men had a substantially higher risk of injury to the upper body (head, face, chest, and spine) than men with a normal weight.

 

            The study found that the increased risks could be attributed to differences in body shape, fat distribution, and center of gravity between obese and normal weight men, and between men and women.

 

            The study recommends motor vehicle safety features should be designed to take into account the obesity epidemic in this country. Although two-thirds of people in the U.S. are now overweight or obese, crash test dummies with a normal BMI are used during the design of car cabins. The study’s findings could have important implications for motor vehicle design in protecting vulnerable body regions.          

Most Injuries to Kids Occur Near Holidays

A new study, which will be released in the May version of Pediatrics, shows that the greatest numbers of injuries to children occur in the five days surrounding Labor Day, Memorial Day, the Fourth of July, and Halloween.

 

The researchers studied 5.7 million injuries suffered by children during the holidays between 1997 and 2006. They found that although the injuries they studied occurred near holidays, most of the injuries were not holiday related. The most common injuries were lacerations, contusions, abrasions, fractures, sprains and strains. They were usually related to sports and recreation, although injuries from falling down stairs and falling over furniture were also prevalent.

 

So how do you keep your children safe during the upcoming summer holiday season?  Experts say that although parents may be looking forward to relaxing over the holidays, it’s important to continue or even increase parental supervision. Over 500,000 families a year spend a holiday in the ER due to an injury to a child or adolescent, so a little extra care could insure you aren’t one of them.