Charlotte, North Carolina (NC) Personal Injury and Car Accident Lawyer
Rosensteel Fleishman, PLLC is a Charlotte, NC based law firm whose lawyers proudly serve individuals in Charlotte, Concord, Monroe, Statesville and across North Carolina who have been injured in automobile accidents, slip and falls and other personal injuries.
Over a thousand people per week come towww.charlottepersonalinjury.info looking for help with their NC legal needs. The Lawyers and staff of Rosensteel Fleishmam, PLLC thank you and invite you to contact us with any questions onhow we can help with your NC personal injury.
 NC Car Accident Frequently Asked Questions
After an individual gets into a car accident in NC they typically have numerous questions about what to do next. Below are some of the most frequently asked questions posed to our Charlotte personal injury attorneys.
Medical Questions
1. After being in a NC auto accident should I use my health insurance?
2. Do I have to first have to get permission from the other person’s car insurance before I see a doctor?
3. Can I see a doctor even though I don’t have health insurance?
Car Questions
1. What determines if my car is a total loss?
2. Do I get a rental car?
3. What happens if I disagree with the insurance adjuster’s appraisal of damage?
Insurance
1. The insurance company is calling me asking that I give them a recorded statement. Should I?
2. Should I let the insurance adjuster visit me at the hospital?
3. Should I sign the insurance company’s medical release?
4. Do I need to first speak with the insurance company before speaking with a lawyer?
MEDICAL QUESTIONS
QUESTION ONE
After being in a NC auto accident should I use my health insurance?
ANSWER
After being injured in a NC car accident most people’s foremost concern is getting the best medical care available. Hospital emergency rooms including Carolinas Medical Center (CMC), Presbyterian, Union Regional Medical Center, North East Medical Center, and Gaston Memorial are required under federal and state law to treat individuals regardless of their ability to pay. Under most circumstances health insurance (or payment upfront) is necessary to see private physicians including general practitioners, orthopedics and neurosurgeons. This holds true even if the NC car accident wasn’t your fault (NC differs from many states that have PIP or no fault coverage). However, any payments made to the health care provider by an individual’s health insurance would come under the purview of North Carolina’s collateral source rule, which benefits the injured party The individual needs to keep in mind that their specific health insurance policy may subrogate and thus they should read thethe policy or have a Charlotte personal injury lawyer of Rosensteel Fleishman review it. As such, while it is always the individual’s decision our Charlotte personal injury attorneys counsel our clients to use their health insurance after being involved in a NC auto accident.
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QUESTION TWO
Do I have to first have to get permission from the other person’s car insurance before I see a doctor?
ANSWER
No. In fact, if after being involved in a NC car accident the insurance adjuster tells you that you are not allowed to treat with a doctor they have violated North Carolina’s General Statutes. Under the law individuals are not limited in scope or scale regarding their medical treatment. Our Charlotte personal injury attorneys view your case as a team effort. We ask our clients to take whatever steps are necessary to take care of themselves medically and we will take care of them legally.
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QUESTION THREE
Can I see a doctor even though I don’t have health insurance?
ANSWER
Yes. There are ways to see a doctor without money upfront or health insurance. For example, Charlotte hospital emergency rooms are required under federal and state law to treat individuals regardless of their ability to pay. Further, because of our reputation, history and commitment to the well being of our clients many doctors including general practitioners, orthopedics and chiropractors in and around Charlotte will see our personal injury clients when we refer them even without health insurance.
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CAR QUESTIONS
QUESTION ONE
What determines if my car is a total loss?
ANSWER
In NC a vehicle is deemed a total loss if it is damaged 75% of the actual cash value (ACV) of the vehicle. This means that if the car is worth $10,000.00 and it will take $7,501.00 to fix it, it is deemed a total loss. As such, the issue typically boils down to determining the ACV of the vehicle and the cost of repair. In many situations our Charlotte personal injury attorneys have been successful in convincing an adjuster to total out a vehicle below 75%. For a more detailed article on NC property damage please see NC Auto Accidents and Property Damage
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QUESTION TWO
Do I get a rental car?
ANSWER
After you are involved in a Charlotte NC car accident the law entitles you to compensation for the loss of use of your vehicle. This is typically calculated using a dollar amount per day for the loss of use. Many car insurance companies, to escape paying the individual directly for their loss of use pay for a rental vehicle. Many people involved in a NC car accident do not realize however, that they are entitled to be compensated for the time between the accident and the time they get a rental vehicle.
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QUESTION THREE
What happens if I disagree with the insurance adjuster’s appraisal of damage?
ANSWER
The answer (or more correctly your options) depends on whether you are handling the property damage portion of your claim under your collision coverage or the other person’s liability insurance. Regardless, the Charlotte personal injury attorney assigned to your case will explain to you that the insurance adjuster’s appraisal has limited value. In NC, the adjuster is not able to break down your vehicle or even enter it without your permission. The adjuster can merely walk around the vehicle and take pictures. As such, the appraisal that matters is that of the body shop. If you have been involved in a NC car accident you have the right to take your vehicle to a body shop of your choosing. The body shop’s appraisal will be compared to the adjuster’s. As long as it can be shown that the damage to the vehicle was a result of the NC car accident the adjuster is responsible to pay for it (regardless of his/her original appraisal).
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NC INSURANCE QUESTIONS
QUESTION ONE
The insurance company is calling me asking that I give them a recorded statement. Should I?
ANSWER
As a general rule of thumb our Charlotte personal injury attorneys do not allow our clients to give recorded statements to the insurance company. There is no requirement to give the insurance company a statement as to what happened during the NC car accident. The adjuster is not asking questions to help the individual. Many times they are asking questions in an attempt to get the individual to say something that will weaken or damage their claim. Questions dealing with speed, location, distance, and time are extremely relevant in determining fault and damages in a NC personal injury case. There are hundreds of NC Appellate and Supreme Court decisions dealing with each one of these elements. As such, our NC personal injury attorneys counsel people to consult with a NC personal injury lawyer prior to speaking with the insurance adjuster.
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QUESTION TWO
Should I let the NC insurance adjuster visit me at the hospital?
ANSWER
As a general rule of thumb our Charlotte personal injury attorneys do not allow the insurance adjusters to visit our clients at the hospital. Many times individuals are on medication that can impair their thoughts and reasoning. Further, dealing with insurance companies can be very stressful, especially if the injured party is unsure of what to say or they are worried about damaging their claim. There is little to nothing to gain by meeting with the insurance adjuster at the hospital and as such our NC personal injury lawyers counsel against it.
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QUESTION THREE
Should I sign the insurance company’s medical release?
ANSWER
As a general rule of thumb our Charlotte personal injury attorneys do not allow our clients to sign the insurance company’s medical release. A medical release, unless limited by scope, gives the grantee access to the injured party’s entire medical history. Our Charlotte personal injury lawyers do not believe the insurance company should have access to medical history that is not related to your Charlotte car accident. As such, our Charlotte personal injury lawyers provide our clients who have been involved in a NC car accident a medical release which allows our office, not the insurance company, the ability to request the medical bills and records the client incurred as a result of the NC car accident. We then send only the records and bills related to the NC auto accident to the insurance company prior to negotiating the case.
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QUESTION Four
Do I need to first speak with the insurance company before speaking with a lawyer?
ANSWER
No. There is no requirement to contact the other person's/company's insurance company prior to speaking with a NC personal injury attorney.
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Call (704) 714-1450 to make an appointment to speak with a NC personal injury attorney, or stop by the office during regular business hours. We understand that the last thing you need to do at this time is miss a doctor's appointment or more time from work. We will schedule an appointment that meets your needs.
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