Received writ of summons.

[Fad]

Hi guys,

 

I got served, on new year's eve. So i would like to share and ask a few questions. Mostly i''m just sharing it here to help me relax a little bit.

 

I got into an accident in May 07, was at a T-junction and i made a right turn and got hit by a bus from opposite direction. Yeah basically that's what happened. I was quite seriously injured, fractured ribs and fractured spleen(which had to be removed), and a few lacerations and bruises.

 

But the ridiculous thing that is really bugging me now is that a PASSENGER who was inside the bus is claiming from me, and the bus driver. Best part is below:

 

Statement of special damages

Medical expenses to date $70

Transport expenses to date $20

Future and/or continuing medical expenses[to be assesed]

but estimated at $1000

Future or continuing transport expenses[to be assessed]

but estimated at $500

Loss of earning capacity[to be assesed] but estimated at $20, 000

 

I don't know whether to laugh or cry, he suffered $70 medical fees(bcos the diagnosis showed he had no injuries except complaining of neck pain), but is claiming for 20k+. I know i should be consulting my lawyer but it's new year and i have 8 days to make an appearance. So i must go to court and file memorandum of appearance.

 

Would like to ask what have i got myself into really. I feel it doesnt make sense at all that the passenger even has the cheek to claim such a big amount when he didnt even suffer any injuries, while i had 2 surgeries and warded for a week in hospital. Appreciate any comments or advice. Thanks for reading.

[EvilGixxer]

wow. 20k. that passenger is a white horse or wat lol... 20k due to injured neck.

[compfused]

I didn't know passengers of a bus can claim against you in an accident..If there are many passengers in the bus at the time of accident and all claim neck pain..Here pain..There pain then die already la..

[contrarian]

Firstly, call your insurer immediately. Make an appointment with the insurer, give them the papers.

Your insurer will exercise its duty to defend and take over the legal action against you. Get the insurer to respond to the writ; do NOT respond yourself.

 

There is nothing ridiculous about a passenger in another vehicle making a claim against you if you were involved in an accident with it. You are not in a position to assess anyone's injury; only a doctor can tell.

[Fad]

Thanks for the advice. I also feel it's perfectly ok for passengers to claim for injuries they have sustained. But for this particular case, i seriously doubt the joker even suffered anything and yet he's going so far out to claim. His medical report stated:

 

"On examination, he was alert with stable vital signs. There was slight tenderness over the lower cervical spine but the range of the movement was full. There was also limited movement of back due to pain. No other injuries were found. X rays of the cervical, thoracic and lumbar spine did not show abnormalities."

 

I'm no doctor but for all i know his neck pain was there even before the accident happened.

 

Would also like to ask what is the probability of him winning the claim and how much the tp investigation will affect the result. I've been told that it depends on the % of liability of the negligence, and the % will be used for the claim amount. So far tp has not made any prosecution. Thanks.

[Marcheline]

He probably stated the most classic injury in most accidents: Whiplash. Not to be mistaken, there are genuine cases of whiplash which can be debilitating.

 

What causes whiplash?

Whiplash most commonly occurs in car crashes as result of sudden deceleration. Whiplash occurs when the soft tissue in the spine is stretched and strained after the body is thrown in a sudden, forceful jerk. The injury most commonly occurs in car crashes involving sudden deceleration, but the injury can also occur in other strenuous physical activities such as diving.

 

But for a passenger on a bus, this guy really takes the cake. Is the claimant an elderly man? Yeah.. You should consult your insurance company regarding this. For youself, was it negligence on your part or the bus driver's part that caused the accident? Don't worry, the law in Singapore is just, the last time I checked.

[contrarian]

Personal injury claims are the typically the most difficult of motor liability claims. You make it sound easy to claim successfully. There a lot of people here who have made third party injury claims and can tell you that it isn't that easy at all. In the process of the claim, the claimant has to bring proof of the injury and the damages claimed resulting from that injury.

 

What the claimant has done is only to start the process. There's a lot more to go from here, especially if it's as highly contestable as you would believe.

 

Get the insurer to enter an appearance, and file a defence. They have their own money on the line here. If they want to contest the claim, they can tell you how. Your best bet is to co-operate with them.

[Fad]

Negligence was on both my part and the bus driver's. I really appreciate the advice given, and will consult my insurer tomorrow.

 

I'm not worrying too much now but i just thought i could begin the new year with a fresh start and leave behind the unfortunate events in the past year.

[Leftlegged]

wonder if this is a sign of our country turning into a suing-happy country, just like THAT popular western country?

 

reali unbelievable these people huh...

[Fad]

wonder if this is a sign of our country turning into a suing-happy country, just like THAT popular western country?

 

reali unbelievable these people huh...

 

Yeah i guess so. I've been told that there are 10 more passengers that are going to sue. My goodness. From what i remember of the accident, i was the one lying down there gasping for air, bleeding everywhere, while they just surrounded me and looked at me like watching a drama show.

 

I seriously believe buses should be equipped with seat belts nowadays. So in case they bang ppl, at least the passengers wont get 'hurt'.

 

And seems like the law firm is having good business. I want to be a lawyer.

 

[moreira88]

this is really a classic case of kicking a man when he's down...

 

seriously though.. just go down to your insurance company and let them settle the issue.. it's ridiculous that all of a sudden another 10 over ppl start to claim from you..

 

monkey see monkey do.. all these people are just plain lazy and want to get rich at the expense of others... really pisses me off...

 

but if we look at it from a neutral point of view.. i doubt their chances of winning are high.. unless they really suffered significant injuries that would hinder their work in the future.. and all these would be determined by the doctor assigned by the court...

[Echo]

Yeah i guess so. I've been told that there are 10 more passengers that are going to sue. My goodness. From what i remember of the accident, i was the one lying down there gasping for air, bleeding everywhere, while they just surrounded me and looked at me like watching a drama show.

 

I seriously believe buses should be equipped with seat belts nowadays. So in case they bang ppl, at least the passengers wont get 'hurt'.

 

And seems like the law firm is having good business. I want to be a lawyer.

 

 

bro, i can't help u much in this, but all i can do is to wish u good luck and all things be well to you. Things will turn out fine, so stay cool and healthy.

[Yatz86]

wa, pity u man....body pain, wallet also pain

[Fad]

this is really a classic case of kicking a man when he's down...

 

monkey see monkey do.. all these people are just plain lazy and want to get rich at the expense of others... really pisses me off...

 

 

That is what's making me angry. They were there and they saw how i suffered, how badly injured i was after the collision. Yet they go to the trouble of hiring the lawyer to sue. The lawyer also very clever, must have gathered all the passengers and psychoed them.

 

I have already moved on from the accident and am about to graduate from poly in 2mths time, with exams and projects to work on, and suddenly i have all these crap i have to deal with.

[sanseiu]

i seriously doubt they will get more than what they paid the lawyers to do. just write into the newspapers. give the straits times a nice juicy story to write on. i can see it in the headlines already.

 

passengers on a bus sueing the biker who got knocked down.

 

lol

[moreira88]

That is what's making me angry. They were there and they saw how i suffered, how badly injured i was after the collision. Yet they go to the trouble of hiring the lawyer to sue. The lawyer also very clever, must have gathered all the passengers and psychoed them.

 

I have already moved on from the accident and am about to graduate from poly in 2mths time, with exams and projects to work on, and suddenly i have all these crap i have to deal with.

 

seriously bro.. it's not worth you stressing out over this.. just let your insurers take care of it.. i have a feeling things might just turn out well for you.. because most of them didn't go for a medical straight after the accident and have the 'honour' of making dubious claims against you.. but that is my personal opinion.. so you take care bro.. and good luck to you... dun worry too much about all these people.. typical singaporeans.. where they can get the easiest and cheapest.. they would do what others do..

[moreira88]

i seriously doubt they will get more than what they paid the lawyers to do. just write into the newspapers. give the straits times a nice juicy story to write on. i can see it in the headlines already.

 

passengers on a bus sueing the biker who got knocked down.

 

lol

 

i tink at that time he driving ar...

[Fad]

Nope i was riding. Thanks for the wishes. I think it would make a good story too, the irony of passengers in bus claiming against rider who got knocked down.

 

And ya the claimant mentioned in my first post, went for checkup only 4 days after the accident occuredd.

[moreira88]

Nope i was riding. Thanks for the wishes. I think it would make a good story too, the irony of passengers in bus claiming against rider who got knocked down.

 

And ya the claimant mentioned in my first post, went for checkup only 4 days after the accident occuredd.

 

ya.. so you can actually fight back what.. say.. for the next 4 days the claimant was alrite.. then how come 4 days later complain this and that? was there the possibility that he injured himself 4 days after the accident? all these would be taken into consideration by the judge.. if the case really goes to court...

[MonoWorld]

TS, i wish you lucks. knn these ppl really will get their piece of their karma cake one day.. really no self-respect. lower than animals.

[white_angel]

maybe its just me but i don't see what the fuss is about..????

 

"strike while the iron is hot"

 

i believe some of you might do the same..

i know i would sue the pants off both the driver & rider!

 

picture this....

 

plane in the air, bird knocks into cockpit shattering glass..

pilot got shrapnel in eye cannot see, co-pilot in washroom

plane goes down, nobody die but all wanna sue...

so how?? faster go find bird see if need vet's attention is it??

Pilot wanna sue who??? THE BIRD????

 

TS its part & parcel of life, take it as it is

whoever's fault it was, there's no use crying over spilt milk.

it'll turn out fine, no worries

 

*what doesn't break you only makes you stronger..*

[yanuk]

as stated, it is common for passengers in a vehicle to sustain injury and file a claim. I think he believes that SBS is very less likely to pay (big corp with powerful lawyers) so he took the case against you. Throw the letter to your insurance company to handle as you are covered for all third party claims.

 

NEVER NEVER file anything yourself! Your insurance co will not take it up after that!

 

Either way, you are not 100% at fault. The fault will more likely to be (you)60-40(bus) cos the bus must have seen you turning and did not take appropriate actions to avoid an accident.

 

Whiplash is a common injury sustained by passengers and drivers in an accident and there's no way to prove whether it's real or not.

 

The reason why he is claiming for 20K is a 'play safe tactic' he will work out some fantastic equation relating why he loss his job becos of whiplash and cannot perform at work thereby getting him sacked or less valued bla bla bla.. you just got to live with it. From the 20K baseline if the court rules that you are only x% liable then he will only get the x% of 20K usually this amount will be enough to pay for the lawyers fees and have some left for himself.

 

Then he'll go on and take cab for the next few years (during or whiplash recovery) and bill them all to you. However, do hope he is rich enough to sustain this life style as it is "pay first reimburse at the end" of the case.

 

Otherwise, if just sue for $70 med bill.. but to pay thousands for lawyer where got worth it right?

 

Writ of summons are nothing, don't be intimidated by such legal letters. Just pass the letter to your insurance company. They will have the lawyers to fight it out for you. At the end of the day, you don't have to pay anything above your 'cess amount and probably a loading on future insurance. Eitherway, it's cheap.

 

Concentrate on recovering and let the insurance worry about all the stuff for you. I have a case has been on going for 4 years, make it 5 since we're in 2008. Your case won't end so soon I guess.

[mi5trooper]

bro. as long as u are not drinking and driving or any etc that is going to void insurance coverage (just a reminder). u can safely let the insurance company people to handle this case. it is now a case between their lawyer and the insurance lawyer.

 

there is a saying "let the pro handle the case. it is their kind of game and the ball is in their court"

 

all you need is just to tell the fact, the true story.

 

What you will suffer is a very high insurance permium in the next coming yr for your bike insu. all your ncb will be gone.

[bluelabel]

bus passenger , should be a driver.

[yanuk]

bus passenger , should be a driver.

no doubt about that.