Bike Accident compensation - advice needed

[TheOne]

Aldric > Your case quite clear cut in terms of liability. It's definitely 100% the driver's fault (vehicle behind collide into vehicle in front). Normally for such cases, you should get a lawyer to help you process all the claims; those with a department specialising in traffic accidents will know exactly what to do.

 

For medical compensation, normally they'll wait about 6 months for the injury to stabilise then they'll send you to a doctor for a checkup. Tell him all your problems and if surgery is required, it should be covered by the driver's insurance.

 

Basically, you're now claiming from the driver's insurance. Like you said yourself, a fracture should be approximately 10k depending on the severity. Of course, certain bones are less "valuable" like your collarbone, foot while the more serious bone fractures will be the tibia/fibula (shin) and femur (thigh). My advice is: don't worry too much about how much you'll be getting otherwise you might end up disappointed. Recovery is still more important. You can ask other biker friends who've been seriously injured before what their claims are.

 

Knee ligament injury is quite serious. Take care of it, bro.

[Aldric]

thanks bro .. my bike shop had intro me a lawyer

and i had went to seen the lawyer .. just tt now got to rest well and get my injuries recovered .. thanks bro for the info .. any way the fracture bone is near my thumb to wrist area which make me unable to take my exam now .. have wrist pain .. and i am a right hander..

[harni]

Originally posted by Aldric@Dec 13 2006, 05:22 PM

thanks bro .. my bike shop had intro me a lawyer

and i had went to seen the lawyer .. just tt now got to rest well and get my injuries recovered .. thanks bro for the info .. any way the fracture bone is near my thumb to wrist area which make me unable to take my exam now .. have wrist pain .. and i am a right hander..

>Aldric,

 

u better take care!!! i understand u r very interested in the compensation u can get for the injuires.

 

but i think u should pay more attention at yr injuries. remember to take note of the problem u facing, the recovering rate of yr injuries, where the pains???

 

If u feel that yr injuries is not fully recover or unfit to work, try yr best to extend yr MC. question the doctor if any doubt. doctor may not be 100% right. try not to have any break in between the MC. continueous MC is the BEST.

 

i remember when my brother went to A & E in TTSH. the doctor only give my brother 3 DAYS MC n dischared my bro. ( the doctor in-charge told my brother no dislocation or factured)

 

after 3 days, my brother leg is still swollen, wan to get more MC from A & E in TTSH again, u know wat the doctors said??? the most senior doctor in A & E told my brother n me that they trust their doctors' decision. if want get more MC, get 1 more queue number again n see the doctor.

 

u know the queue how long in hospital A & E??? so i suggest to my brother to get MC from clinic until the next visit with the specialist in TTSH.

 

after 2 week from accident, went back to TTSH for follow up. My brother was still limping. u know what the specialist said when he saw my brother.

 

Why are u still limping??? yr X-Ray show that there is no problem in yr Leg.

 

then my brother show the doctor his foot. the bone is pointing outward on the side of his foot. then the so called specialist show the x-ray to the head of dept. the head of dept see the x-ray. ln least that 2 sec, he can identify the problem. there is a serious dislocation in his foot. told my brother that u cant walk anymore as it may exaggerate.

 

i told myself what the hell??? why got this kind of things happen in singapore hospital.

 

my brother have been trying to walk for the past 2 week then now u told us cant walk anymore............. prepared for operation..............

 

hope that u can get my point, yr injuies is more important that the claims.

 

after the recovery, then pay all yr attention on claim ba.

 

TAke care!!!

 

 

Thanks Contrarian for yr added advice.

 

Really thanks everyone here who make efforts to adviced us on our claims.

 

 

 

:cheer:

[Aldric]

harni thanks for the advise .. true enough that the doctor are quite funny pple .. the first time i went he gave me 5 day mc .. i was unable to stand at all .. and went back .. and extend .. and fall down then extend 2 day only .. hais ..

hope ur brother will recover well ... is not tt i keen on the claim .. but my dad want to make sure i settle it nicely .. don like cant be bother tt kind ..

[TheOne]

Seriously, if you find that your injury requires more attention than what your doctor is giving you, go look for a second opinion. Some doctors can be negligent in their examination of patients; it happens. Take it from someone who's been to see numerous orthopaedic specialists for several injuries.

[teng_fred]

Ya.. same senario like me.. Complained my leg pain, can't move when was in hospital.. The doc-in-charge of my ops said nothing initially.. But I complained more..cos it swelled..(like pig throttle leg like that) The head doc came and immediately saw a hair-line crack on the ankle from the X-ray.. Went further X-ray and CT- scan and saw tiny bony fragments on my heel and comminuted fracture dislocation near the ankle. (Something like that. Don know the medical terms)

 

Currently now MC almost 3 months liao..

[teng_fred]

Originally posted by TheOne@Dec 13 2006, 05:05 PM

Aldric > Your case quite clear cut in terms of liability. It's definitely 100% the driver's fault (vehicle behind collide into vehicle in front). Normally for such cases, you should get a lawyer to help you process all the claims; those with a department specialising in traffic accidents will know exactly what to do.

 

For medical compensation, normally they'll wait about 6 months for the injury to stabilise then they'll send you to a doctor for a checkup. Tell him all your problems and if surgery is required, it should be covered by the driver's insurance.

 

Basically, you're now claiming from the driver's insurance. Like you said yourself, a fracture should be approximately 10k depending on the severity. Of course, certain bones are less "valuable" like your collarbone, foot while the more serious bone fractures will be the tibia/fibula (shin) and femur (thigh). My advice is: don't worry too much about how much you'll be getting otherwise you might end up disappointed. Recovery is still more important. You can ask other biker friends who've been seriously injured before what their claims are.

 

Knee ligament injury is quite serious. Take care of it, bro.

In terms of liability, the driver is at fault but u have to see what he made on the police report. Furthermore, TP report also play a part in claims. At the police report, he could say that you suddenly stop and he could not stop in time and traffic light is still green.. If the judge believes that, then u will still win a certain amount but lose 10 -20 % for contributary neg overall. And also depend on how good the lawyer talks to make the judge thinks the driver 100% liable..

So all I can say is that don think so much of the claim payout. Get all your receipts (transport or medical) consolidated and give to the lawyer when needed. Just thank all the lucky stars that we can still be alive after the accident. Concentrate on recovering for our own future.

[Aldric]

mine is when i saw amber then i stop with engine braking somemore .. put to nuetral already and left leg down then kanna kissed from rear and the traffic light cfm is red ..

[teng_fred]

Originally posted by Aldric@Dec 14 2006, 02:12 PM

mine is when i saw amber then i stop with engine braking somemore .. put to nuetral already and left leg down then kanna kissed from rear and the traffic light cfm is red ..

You can your story and he can say his story. Most important is that u have witness.. If u don have, it's your words against his with TP's report. Same senario as mine.. very fustrating that the other party tried to put the blame on me in his report.. No witness cause it happened so fast.. just a difference of 5 mins.. No witness due to traffic light diff. if not I will have lots of witness..including my colleagues..

[Aldric]

alemak sian la ... not say no witness is just tt the witness saw didnt came down to help out ...

[teng_fred]

Originally posted by Aldric@Dec 30 2006, 02:35 AM

alemak sian la ... not say no witness is just tt the witness saw didnt came down to help out ...

Same here.. may have witness but the veh didnt stop. Well, now just have to go thru the legal process and hope my or your lawyer is good enough to help me or u to claim the amount..

[jefang]

Just for your info:

 

My friend drive a van, which he knock on a car when the light change to red, he cannot stop on time, and just a small knock, which turn out the lady driver in that car was from amry, and what did u know, she send lawyer to my friend and cliam more then $80000! yes is $80k!!!

 

She was not hurt at all! $5000 for the repair of her car, and in the letter said she scare to drive and scare to get bang on the back when she was in her car, and was support by lot of letter from everywhere, and need to take medi and see doc for the next 10 yr!

 

My friend had arrange a lawyer and he told my friend this claim is normal, which may settle by 50% to 80%, but even 50% also 40k! how a van driver can pay that type of $$$??? anyway if i will you, i will ask my bro to claim more then 500k or 1m for this case! go talk to a lawyer, which i know there's laywer (think in amk centre) you do not need to pay him anything, but when the claim is back they will take 5%-10% from the cut, only for this sure win case... and is good for you bro and better life....

[teng_fred]

It's standard policy that lawyers do not take any $ for their services till the case has ended.. unless it's only for consultation..

[tidy]

any lawyer to recommend guys? please state tel numeber or their office address if have.. thanx!

[contrarian]

Originally posted by teng_fred@January 03, 2007 01:33 pm

It's standard policy that lawyers do not take any $ for their services till the case has ended.. unless it's only for consultation..

that's not true. if you're the claimant, many lawyers do ask for a deposit and may also some charge fees along the way if your case will take a long time.

[harni]

Hi everyone,

 

Very long didn’t update my brother case liao. My brother met his lawyer yesterday at Chinatown point. Now the lawyer is doing all the filling n everything is in the process.

 

Final medical report of TTSH specialist

They will arrange a medical specialist from Gleneagles hospital to do a 2nd opinion of his injury.

Get a finalize TP report. (This decide the liability of the case)

Request a court date for processing the settlement (Writ of Summons)

 

Most important is the court date, once got the date, they will start the first stage of settlement. First stage is to settle the claims without trial. That mean both party lawyers can reach an agreement of the claims without trial.

 

If one of the party not happy with the claim, then proceed to second stage will require a trial. That mean judge will decide the claims.

 

What are the damages my brother can claim???

 

General damages

 

1) injury

2) pain n suffering

3) side effect in future

 

Special damages

 

1) cost of medical bills

2) loss of income n CPF contribution

3) future medical bills

4) If my brother is unable to continue his old job due to injury and have to switch to other job. They have to compensate the loss of revenue.

5) Repair of motorbike ( this goes to motor shop)

 

If proceedings are commenced in Court, there are 2 questions to be decided:

a. Liability - who is responsible ( depend of the TP report)

b. Quantum - how much the damage caused is worth.

Refer to other cases in history, how much my brother can claim for his dislocated foot

 

 

Need to wait how long to get the claim???

 

Hopefully by this year 2007. As this is not a small claim. General damages in excess of $5,000, the money will be paid to the Public Trustee (a government officer) who will then pay the money. It usually takes 3 to 6 months from the completion of your case for payment to be made.

 

hope these info can help others too. will update more when i get more new from lawyer.

 

cheers,

harni

 

 

:cheer:

[Epredator]

Your bro will be a little rich man once the case is settled. Estimate he will get 40-50k worth of compensation upoon settlement.

[teng_fred]

Bro, thanks for the info... just wondering.. when your bro saw the lawyer, was he given an estimate amount of his claims? If yes, can you roughly tell us if it's ok?

[harni]

Hi teng fred,

 

The lawyer is arranging a specialist from Gleneagles hospital to give his second opinion of his injury. Normally government hospital doctors are very conservative in their diagnosis.

 

Information needed

 

Final medical report of TTSH specialist

Gleneagles hospital report

Finalize TP report. (This decide the liability of the case)

 

Time needed to get the information above

3 weeks

 

Once the lawyer has the information above, then can advice on the estimate claim.

 

I will update again when my brother gets the information. I would like to take this chance to thanks the people here who give me many good advices. Will share with u all my brother story but not the claims. Hehehe !!!

 

Cheers,

harni

:sweat:

[harni]

Will update the estimate amount from lawyer before trial (3 weeks)

The whole process of the claims …..

The actual payout for my brother case

 

what i learn, i update here

I hope that though my brother case will let u all have a better understanding of accident compensation.

 

cheers,

harni

:cheeky:

[teng_fred]

Thanks.. if u don want to reveal how much ur bro got, please put $XXXXXX. if possible, break down the claims amount... Hope not asking too much of you... Forgive me if u r offended.. Will post mine when time comes...

[-sOnG-]

General guideline i know of in compensation claims

 

Of total amount if defendant's insurance party willing to settle upon : -

 

Nature of cause / % defendant liable

 

Drunk driving - 100%

Dangerous driving - 90%

Inconsiderate driving - 80%

Careless driving - 70% - 75%

 

So eg. if u r hit by a driver who is charged careless driving by TP , his insurance coy say settle 30k for ur general damages, u get 70% x $30k (for this eg.) which is 21k remaining. You must accept the other 30% liability for contributary negligence.

 

But of course, u can choose to fight that u r totally not in the wrong , provided there are witness around and other factors which may help in your case.

[harni]

Originally posted by teng_fred@January 13, 2007 02:09 pm

Thanks.. if u don want to reveal how much ur bro got, please put $XXXXXX. if possible, break down the claims amount... Hope not asking too much of you... Forgive me if u r offended.. Will post mine when time comes...

No problem sharing the claim amount. Once I got the estimate amt from lawyer, i will update here for yr reference.

Will explain clearly how the lawyer calculates the amt also.

 

pai sei for the misunderstanding, I mean the $$$ cant share but claim amount information can share.

 

Cheers,

harni

[teng_fred]

Originally posted by harni@January 15, 2007 10:05 am

No problem sharing the claim amount. Once I got the estimate amt from lawyer, i will update here for yr reference.

Will explain clearly how the lawyer calculates the amt also.

 

pai sei for the misunderstanding, I mean the $$$ cant share but claim amount information can share.

 

Cheers,

harni

Ha.. of cos $$$ can t share la.. Your bro deserves to take the amount all for himself for his suffering...

[TheOne]

Thanks Harni for your updates. I'm also in the midst of processing the accident claims and will similarly share my experiences here in this thread.

 

3 months have elapsed so far and thus far, only the Traffic Police accident statements have been taken. The official report will probably be released by the Traffic Police at the 6-month period (meaning another 3-month wait).

 

I've kept all my receipts for claims with regards to this accident: taxi receipts for trips made to the hospital, receipts for crutches and wheelchair, medical bills etc. All these will probably be paid out under the Special Claims section.

 

As my injury is still considered quite "fresh", they'll probably wait a while before sending me to a private specialist to assess the long-term implications of the broken leg. Thus far, I'm still limping, having difficulty bending my knee and occassionally feel throbbing sensations in the thigh. All these will be related to the doctors.

 

Anyway, as a sidenote, the Barometer of Liability which determines the "contributory negligence" component is not fixed by what charges are brought against the driver but rather the traffic situation at the time. Please refer to this excellent link for more details:

 

http://www.gia.org.sg/BarometerofLiability...ement(BOLA).doc

 

Note the exclusions. Normally, when eyewitnesses are present, the case might be a 100% liability for the driver. A traffic light camera will also help determine whose fault it is. The BOLA will only be used when no witnesses have stepped forward and there's no admission of total liability by other party (clash of statements eg. A says green light, B says red light).

 

Hope that this helps all brothers here.