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How can you protect yourself financially if you have a Motorcycle Accident?

Written on September 18, 2011 by Norman Gregory Fernandez in Articles, Biker and Motorcycle Law, Biker Rights, California Motorcycle Accident, Car Accidents, Damages, Editorial, Education, Insurance Information, Motor Vehicle Accidents, Passenger Injuries, Personal Injury

California Motorcycle Accident Attorney Norman Gregory Fernandez

I am a Motorcycle Accident Attorney who handles motorcycle accident cases all over the State of California. Unlike all of the other lawyers out there advertising for motorcycle accident cases, I actually ride motorcycles.

I have a unique incite above all other lawyers who do not ride motorcycles because I am actually a biker like you.

I cannot tell you how sick and tired I am of getting a new motorcycle accident case, where my client has suffered catastrophic injuries, and the person at fault has minimum $15,000 coverage, no coverage, or coverage nowhere close to covering the damages in the accident.

Look let’s face it, we motorcycle riders are far more likely to be seriously injured or even killed in a motorcycle accident, then those who ride 4 wheel cars or trucks. Unlike the person in a car who has a metal cage around them, all we have is the helmet and clothes on our body to protect us. When we hit the ground at speed we tend to suffer more serious injuries.

It is smart and prudent for those of us who ride motorcycles to protect ourselves financially in case we are in an accident.

So you may ask how we protect ourselves financially in case we are in a motorcycle accident.

It is simple; we buy enough insurance to cover the risk of catastrophic injury in case we are in a motorcycle accident.

How do we buy the right insurance? It is simple, in California, most uninsured motorist coverage policies also cover under insured motorist as well. In other states or even California, you want to make sure you have uninsured motorist and under insured motorist coverage in an amount of no less than $500,000 dollars. I suggest that you have at least one million dollar uninsured motorist and under insured motorist coverage for motorcycle accidents.

Uninsured motorist coverage will cover you in case a person who is at fault in an accident has no insurance.

Under insured coverage, covers the difference between what the at fault driver insurance policy limits are and your coverage. It gives you the option of deciding how much coverage you will need.

I also suggest that you maintain high liability coverage limits as well (In case you are at fault) for your passenger in case you are in an accident where you are at fault.

Finally how do you cover yourself for an accident that you are at fault in? You can get comprehensive and collision coverage to cover your motorcycle, rental car coverage to cover your loss of use of your motorcycle, and medical payment coverage to cover your medical bills.

Most policies that I have seen only cover medical payments up to $10,000; however I am sure you can get more coverage depending upon how much you are willing to pay.

So there it is there are no more excuses for not enough insurance coverage to cover you in case you are in a motorcycle accident. Call your insurance agent and get yourself covered.

I do not want to find myself one day trying to explain to you why after you have suffered a million dollar injury, you will only get $15,000 in your motorcycle accident, because the person who is at fault only has minimal coverage, and no assets to pay you a million dollar judgment.

Besides, if you do get a million dollar judgment against an at fault driver, all they have do to is go bankrupt to get rid of the debt to you. The right insurance is almost always the only way to protect yourself financially in a motorcycle accident case.

If you or your family have been the victim of a motorcycle crash, truck crash, car crash, or other motor vehicle accident anywhere in California call us for a free consultation at 800-816-1529 x. 1, or go to http://www.thepersonalinjury.com.

By California Motorcycle Accident Attorney, and Biker Lawyer, Norman Gregory Fernandez, Esq., © September 18, 2011

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To Retain a Lawyer or to Not Retain a Lawyer, What Should You Do?

California Personal Injury Attorney Norman Gregory Fernandez

As a California Personal Injury Lawyer, I give free consultations to injury victims throughout the State of California almost every day.

Inevitably about 5% of the people I talk to have either tried handling their California personal injury matter on their own, or are very reluctant to “get lawyers” involved because of what they heard about lawyers, or are clueless about how the legal system works.

Ultimately, out of the 5% of the people mentioned above, about 1% or 1 out of 100 people I talk to decide to handle the matter on their own.

To me, an experienced California Personal Injury Attorney, it is inexplicable why someone would choose not to retain an attorney to handle their personal injury case. Let me tell you why.

Firstly, most people have no clue that they are entitled to recover the following damages in a typical personal injury matter:

Out of Pocket Expenses: All out of pocket expenses flowing out of the personal injury matter such as: loss of wages, medical cost, prescription cost, cost of travel to and from the doctor, prescriptions, loss of use of vehicle, either the repair cost of a damaged vehicle, or the fair market value of a damaged vehicle when the repair cost exceeds the fair market value, rental car, loss of future wages, future medical expenses, etc.

Non Economic Expenses: Pain & Suffering, Emotional Distress, Loss of Enjoyment of life (loss of enjoyment of life consists of compensation to a person for not being able to do things that they used to do, while they are injured. Such as cleaning, cooking, walking, dancing, going out, etc.)

In a nutshell a typical person has no clue that they are entitled to the things mentioned above, how to value such things even if they know about it, and most importantly, how to get it.

Going further, if an injured person is married, they typically do not know that their spouse also has a cause of action against the person who injured them for loss of consortium. Hell most personal injury lawyers in California do not even go for loss of consortium.

Loss of consortium in a nutshell is damages that a spouse of an injured party are entitled to, for the loss of the things that their spouse used to do with and for them in the marriage, because of their injury. In many cases loss of consortium can amount to a substantial amount of money.

I have just touched the tip of the iceberg with this article. Ultimately, only a fool has themselves for an attorney.

I can assure you that in 99% of cases, a person without an attorney will get less than a person with an attorney in a California Personal Injury case.

If you or a loved one have been injured in a California Personal Injury matter you may call my personal injury hotline 7 days a week, 24 hours a day for a free consultation at 800-816-1529 extension 1. You may also check out my personal injury website at http://www.thepersonalinjury.com.

By California Personal Injury Lawyer Norman Gregory Fernandez, Esq., © February 10, 2011

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Tags: california personal injury, california personal injury attorney, california personal injury lawyer, Damages, emotional distress, general damages, loss of consortium, loss of enjoyment of life, loss of use of vehicle, loss of wages, medical bills, norm fernandez, norman g. fernandez, norman gregory fernandez, pain and suffering, special damages

I am Really Sick and Tired of Ambulance Chasers who give us Real Personal Injury Attorneys a Bad Name.

Written on September 15, 2010 by Norman Gregory Fernandez in Articles, Assult & Battery, California Motorcycle Accident, Car Accidents, Damages, Defective Roads, Dog Bites, Editorial, Education, General Legal, Insurance Information, Medical Treatment, Motor Vehicle Accidents, Passenger Injuries, Personal Injury, Product Defects, Slip and Fall, Wrongful Death

California Personal Injury Attorney Norman Gregory Fernandez

Yes you read the headline of this article correctly; I am sick and tired of ambulance chasers who give ethical personal injury attorneys such as me, a bad name.

An ambulance chaser has been defined by an online dictionary as:

“A lawyer or entrepreneur who hurries to the scene of an accident to try to get the business of any injured persons.”

First of all let me tell all of you something right now, lawyers or their representatives are prohibited from soliciting your business at the scene of an accident in the State of California.

Any attorney who engages in such conduct can face disciplinary proceedings.

If someone is coming up to you at the scene of an accident and recommending an attorney to you; chances are they are engaging in prohibited conduct.

You should never select an attorney based upon a solicitation at the scene of an accident, at your doctor’s office, by the tow truck driver, by a body shop, etc.

Always select someone based upon your own research.

My good friend who is an ex NICB agent, and who now runs an investigative corporation, has told me stories of unethical attorneys illegally paying runners, cappers, doctors, tow truck drivers, body shops, to refer cases to them.

He has also told me stories of personal injury attorneys who are in illegal partnerships with non attorneys to get business.

No attorney can fee share or be in a partnership with a non attorney to get your business.

To be frank, I am absolutely shocked to hear such stories. It is beyond my belief that some unethical attorneys are engaging in such behavior. It is to be frank, despicable.

For attorneys such as me who play by the rules, it is outrageous to think of the poor victims of this type of illegal activity.

Going one step further, you may have recently heard about the explosion in San Bruno and the horrible aftermath.

Sure enough, there are some bottom feeder law firms putting out press releases trying to scavenge business from those poor souls in San Bruno.

Historically in the State of California, attorney advertising was prohibited. In the last several decades attorneys have been allowed to advertise. Some have taken it too far.

I am not against attorneys being allowed to advertise, but I am against what I consider to be ambulance chasing in advertising.

The same thing happened after the Chatsworth Metrorail crash, and many other disasters.

As for me, I am no ambulance chaser. I do not need to be because I am good at what I do.

All of my past and present clients know this to be true. To be good at what you do, you need to actually care about your clients, and get them the money that they deserve.

Ask yourself a question; have you ever heard any other personal injury attorney discussing the topic of this article? Heck No. Do you wonder why? It is the dirty little secret that no one wants to talk about.

Well I am talking about it.

I would like to hear any comments you have. You may comment by clicking the comment link below.

By California Personal Injury Attorney Norman Gregory Fernandez, Esq., © September 15, 2010

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Tags: ambulance chaser, california personal injury attorney, california personal injury lawyer, capper, norman gregory fernandez, referral, runner

If you Ride a Motorcycle You Need to Read This; it Could Save You or Your Family

Written on September 10, 2010 by Norman Gregory Fernandez in Articles, Biker and Motorcycle Law, Biker Rights, California Motorcycle Accident, Car Accidents, Damages, Editorial, Education, Insurance Information, Medical Treatment, Motor Vehicle Accidents, Passenger Injuries, Personal Injury, Wrongful Death

California Biker Attorney and Motorcycle Accident Lawyer Norman Gregory Fernandez at the Beach Ride

I cannot tell you how many motorcycle riders have called me this summer after having a motorcycle accident.

One guy in particular really disturbed me. His fiancé called me. He was taken out by a 17 year old teenage girl who had gotten her drivers license 2 weeks before the accident.

As she was driving in the slow lane, she told the CHP that she swerved her car trying to avoid something in her lane. While swerving, she cut across 4 lanes of traffic on the 10 freeway, and nailed my guy on the motorcycle as he was riding to work as a truck driver.

My guy had been riding motorcycles for years, this was his first accident. He had leathers on, and a full face helmet. He suffered a traumatic brain injury from the accident.

In the hospital, his family and fiancé were told he had the worst possible type of brain injury, and that he had a 10% chance of survival. Even before he woke up from his coma, his family and fiancé were told that he had permanent brain damage.

The girl who hit my guy only had the California minimum insurance of 15k per person per incident. This insurance amount will not even cover one day of my guy’s hospital care.

He was in a coma for about a month and in the hospital for 4 months. He is recovering, but he will never be the same. He see’s double vision, he is learning how to talk again, and he will never be able to return back to work as a truck driver. It is unknown what the future has in store for him, but at least he is still alive, and his fiancé is sticking by him.

He is fucked not only because he got taken out by a teenage girl in a car on the freeway, but because of her minimum 15k insurance coverage, he will get no money at all to compensate him for his future care, future loss of wages, his pain and suffering, loss of enjoyment of life, his emotional distress, etc.

This girl ruined his life.

This does not have to happen to you or your family.

WOULD YOU TRUST THE FUTURE OF YOU OR YOUR FAMILY TO HOW MUCH LIABILITY INSURANCE A TEENAGE GIRL DECIDES TO BUY?

Read the above sentence very carefully. If you as motorcycle rider want to put you and your family’s future in the hands of whatever liability insurance another driver buys, then you are a fool, yes a fool.

I cannot tell you how many times I get calls from victims of motorcycle accidents who are stuck living with the policy limits of the people who hit them. 99% of the time, the person who hit you in a motorcycle accident case, does not have enough insurance to properly compensate you.

I have recommended for years that every motorcycle rider and biker carry at least 1 million dollars in under insured and uninsured motorist coverage to cover the difference between the insurance liability policy that a person who hits you has, and what you may actually need to compensate you for your losses in a motorcycle accident case.

Yet time and time again, I hear the same old story from motorcycle accident victims, they do not have under insured coverage or uninsured motorist coverage to cover their losses.

I will lay it out straight to you because I am a fellow motorcycle rider and biker; if you get into a motorcycle accident, chances are that you will suffer a catastrophic injury, because we are not surrounded by sheet metal like in a car.

If you suffer a catastrophic injury in an accident that is not your fault, you could be entitled to substantial money. In order to get substantial money, you need to have substantial insurance. Many if not most people who may hit you on the road on your motorcycle, either have minimum insurance or no insurance because of the economy.

Therefore you need to protect yourself and buy the level of insurance that you feel comfortable with in case you suffer a catastrophic injury. This is not only to protect yourself, but to protect your family as well.

I suggest 1 million in under insured, and uninsured. If you can afford more, get more.

Look many of you out there spend hundred’s and possibly thousands of dollars per year on aftermarket accessories for your motorcycles why not take a chunk of that and protect yourself and your family.

This is just common sense.

By California Motorcycle Accident Attorney and Biker Lawyer Norman Gregory Fernandez, Esq., © September 10, 2010

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Tags: Insurance, liability insurance, Motorcycle Accidents, norman gregory fernandez, under insured coverage, uninsured motorist coverage

Beware of Accident Scammers and Con Artist; Don’t get Screwed out of a Recovery.

Written on December 30, 2009 by Norman Gregory Fernandez in Articles, Biker and Motorcycle Law, Biker Rights, California Motorcycle Accident, Car Accidents, Editorial, Education, General Legal, Insurance Information, Motorcycle Accidents, Passenger Injuries, Personal Injury

Watch out for accident scammers and con artist. You are driving alone in your car, you are thinking about the holiday season or some other event, you come to a stop, and then wham – some idiot has just rear ended you.

You neck jerks back, and then forward, your body hits the seatbelt going across your body. You are shocked. You did not imagine that a mild rear end car accident would sound so loud, or violently jerk your body like it did.

You heart starts racing as you realized what happened. You may not feel pain yet because your body is producing chemicals which mask pain, or your may feel mild pain or stiffness at this point.

You head feels light as you unbuckle your seat belt and get out of the car. The person who hit you is a nice clean cut guy or gal. They run over to you apologizing greatly about how sorry they are, and that they did not mean to hit you.

They offer to pay for the damage to your car, sometimes on the spot. They usually have the same story; they do not want to get their insurance involved because their rates will go up, or their spouse will get upset, etc.

You empathize with the person who hit you; you know that they are required to exchange insurance information with you, but they are so nice, and they are offering to pay, you actually feel bad for the person who hit you. They are talking a good game. They give you a $100 or $200. You go on your way; later that night you realize that you cannot turn your neck and you have the worst headache in history. It turns out that you are going to miss work for a couple of weeks recovering.

You find out later that you have $3,000 damage to the back of your car.

What have you done; you screwed yourself out of thousands of dollars in just compensation that you were entitled to because you let an accident scammer and con artist talk you out of doing what was right.

Make no mistake about it; there is no way to know right after a vehicle accident what your damages are. I have seen people who thought they were not injured after an accident, turn up with shooting pains a numbness hours later, they had nerve damage.

The California vehicle code requires all persons involved in a vehicle accident to stop after an accident, and to exchange identifying information and insurance information. You can be nice after an accident, but firm at the same time.

The first thing you should do is to call the police if you can, and then ask the other party to produce their driver’s license and insurance information. Ask them if the address on the license is current, and request their phone number.

If they try to play the same old con I discussed above simply tell them, look the law requires that we exchange information and I cannot take a chance on getting in trouble, can you please give me your drivers license and insurance information? If they refuse, tell them that you have already called the police.

Make sure that you note the model and make of their car along with the license plate information.

The vast majority of persons out there will comply with the law. However, there as those few asocial assholes that will try to scam and con their way out of not being responsible when they cause harm. Don’t let yourself be a double victim by being injured by them, and then turning around and letting them get off for a few hundred dollars.

If you have been the victim in a motor vehicle accident anywhere in California, call my firm ASAP for a free consultation at 800-816-1529 x.1, or go to http://www.thepersonalinjury.com .

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Tags: california car accident attorney, california car accident lawyer, california motor vehicle accident attorney, california motor vehicle lawyer, california motorycle accident attorney, norman gregory fernandez

Bad weather in California causing hundreds of Car, Truck and Other Motor Vehicle Accidents; Be Careful.

Written on December 11, 2009 by Norman Gregory Fernandez in Articles, Biker and Motorcycle Law, Biker Rights, California Motorcycle Accident, Car Accidents, Editorial, Education, Fatal Motorcycle Accident, In The Wind, Insurance Information, Motor Vehicle Accidents, Motorcycle Accidents, Motorcycle Safety Tips, News, Passenger Injuries, Personal Injury, Wrongful Death

California Personal Injury Attorney and Lawyer Norman Gregory Fernandez

As all you Californians know, we have had a series of bad storms over the past week. Now this is nothing new to Northern Californians, but Southern Californians are definitely not used to the rain and snow.

There have literally been hundreds of car, truck and other motor vehicle accidents over the past week all over the State of California. Everybody is blaming the bad weather, but in 99% of all cases, the fault is on drivers who were not being careful while driving in the bad weather.

Everyone needs to be careful out there on the roads. I flew in to Los Angeles International Airport last night from San Francisco. Although it was not raining in Los Angeles, the traffic was horrible because of the rain earlier in the day. There were still your ubiquitous assholes on the road, not letting people switch lanes, tailgating, driving recklessly, you name it.

To protect yourself against the bad drivers you need to make sure that you have uninsured motorist coverage and under insured motorist coverage in a decent amount to protect yourself against these bad drivers with bad insurance.

If you are hit, the first thing you need to do is make sure you get a police report, go to the emergency room if you need it, and call me for a free consultation on your car, truck, or any other motor vehicle accident, anywhere in California, at 800-816-1529 x. 1. As all of my clients all over the State of California know; I am an attorney that cares about my clients. I will do what I can to take care of you.

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Tags: bad weather, bike accidents, california motorcyle accident lawyer, california motorycle accident attorney, california personal injury, california personal injury attorney, california personal injury lawyer, Car Accidents, motor vehicle accidents, motorcycle crashes, motorcycle wrecks, News, Truck Accidents

Politicizing the Cost of Health Care by Blaming Trial Lawyers; What a Load of Crap!

Written on April 9, 2008 by Norman Gregory Fernandez in Articles, Editorial, Education, General Legal, Insurance Information, News, Other, Personal Injury

Callifornia Lawyer Norman Gregory Fernandez discusses Medical Malpractice You have heard President Bush blame trial attorneys for the cost of health care being so high; you have heard a certain political party blame trial attorneys for the cost of health care being so high, and now another article is circulating on the Internet blaming trial attorneys for the cost of health care being so high. What you are hearing folks is flat out crap. It is time to air out the truth and call the B.S. for what it is; B.S.

We trial lawyers help personal injury victims including victims of medical malpractice, when nobody else will. We are usually the last and only recourse for persons who have been harmed. Do you think that a doctor, hospital, or other health care institution is going to just volunteer to compensate you for your losses?

What is Medical Malpractice? Medical Malpractice in a nutshell is a person suffering injuries or damages, as a result of a doctor or health care institutions failing to act as an ordinary professional in the community would. In other words, the doctor, hospital, or provider, causes you injuries by screwing up, usually with devastating results!

As we all know or should know, human beings are not perfect, and will sometimes make mistakes. Just like most commuters buy car insurance to protect themselves in case they screw up, doctors do the same thing.

It is not the fault of personal injury trial lawyers for a doctor or hospitals, screw-up, and it certainly is not the victims fault. We personal injury lawyers are the ones that go to bat for people who have been injured as a result of a doctor or hospital screw-up. It is our jobs and it is what we do. We help the victims to obtain compensation for their loss.

How could we be the ones who are responsible the high cost of medical care? In fact it is the insurance companies who are responsible for the high cost of medical malpractice insurance. I would like to think that the cost of malpractice insurance is based upon risk, but we all know the insurance companies exist to make a profit and that is it.

Now I like doctors, we all like doctors. They are the ones we turn to when we are sick. They make mistakes just like the rest of us, and they should be made to pay if lets say they cut off the wrong leg, fail to diagnose a serious condition, or leave tools in a patient after surgery. You get the picture.

With that being said, maybe doctors should adopt more stringent guidelines to discipline and police themselves, so that the bad doctors are weeded out. Maybe that will decrease their malpractice insurance rates.

California has had a cap of $250,000.00 on general damages for medical malpractice cases since the 1970’s. General Damages are damages such as pain and suffering, loss of enjoyment of life, emotional distress, etc. Imagine only being able to get a maximum of $250,000 if a doctor cuts off the wrong leg, or fails to diagnose a cancer that would have been curable it caught in time, etc. Victims are still entitled to out of pocket losses.
So there it is.

The cost of health care is through the roof. If anything it is greed that is driving up the cost. If universal health care was adopted, then maybe our nation would see some relief.

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Health Insurance Companies Are Discriminating Against Bikers; Maybe It Is Time for Universal Medical Insurance!

Written on February 11, 2008 by Norman Gregory Fernandez in Articles, Biker and Motorcycle Law, Biker Rights, Editorial, Education, General Legal, Insurance Information, News, Other, Personal Injury

Motorcycle Accident Lawyer Norman Gregory Fernandez discusses discrimination against bikers by Health Insurance Companies. I have read and heard reports that some employer based health insurance plans, and individual health care plans are now refusing to cover bikers and motorcyclist because they are classifying us as hazardous recreational vehicle users. Under this classification, they are refusing to provide health insurance coverage to us based upon new plan changes effective in January 2008.

I am sure this is a huge shock to bikers and motorcyclist who are suffering as a result of this practice, because it means that they are no longer covered for medical cost if they are in a motorcycle accident. What is more disturbing to me, is that I am quite sure that many people lost coverage for these types of accidents and were not notified! Check your insurance people.

This is flat out blatant discrimination against bikers and motorcyclist. This battle must be fought in every State and with every Health Insurance provider that is practicing this type of discrimination. What they are effectively doing is making it so motorcycle riders cannot obtain health insurance for the times that they ride their motorcycles.

What is further truly disturbing, is that hundreds of thousands of bikers and motorcyclist commute to work on their motorcycles each day, and use their motorcycles as a primary means of legal transportation! How can this be classified as recreational use?

The only other option for some persons is to buy Med Pay insurance as a part of their vehicle insurance package, but most policies only cover approximately $1,000.00 or less of medical bills.

It looks like the big corporate health insurance companies are tying to shut us bikers and motorcyclist down! Well there is an answer; that answer is mandatory universal health care coverage, whereby everyone is required to have health care, and no health insurance company can turn down anyone for anything, including pre-existing conditions or so called recreational use on a motorcycle.

The bottom line is that if we do not fight this blatant discrimination as bikers and motorcyclist, we will be screwed if we get into an accident. There are a heck of a lot more car accidents than motorcycle accidents in this country! This type of discrimination of ridicules and uncalled for. Pretty soon we will have health insurance companies telling us they won’t cover us if we eat a certain type of food.

It is time to fight these bottom crawler health insurance companies who are screwing our nation, and most of all us.

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Do not ride your Motorcycle in the State of California without having mandatory minimum Liability Insurance! Check your Insurance People, This is becoming Ridicules!

Written on November 16, 2007 by Norman Gregory Fernandez in Articles, Biker and Motorcycle Law, Biker Rights, Editorial, Education, General Legal, Insurance Information, News, Personal Injury, Regulations

Motorcycle Lawyer Norman Gregory Fernandez discusses California mandatory minimum insurance requirements. I have had a run of bikers who have had motorcycle accidents call me lately that do not even have basic liability insurance. I am not talking about the type of insurance that will cover your motorcycle in case of an accident for your own property damage. (Comprehensive and Collision Coverage) I am talking about liability coverage that will cover someone or a passenger in case you are at fault in an accident.

The biggest reason you need this insurance is that it required by California State Law. The voters enacted proposition 213 some time ago. The law requires that all drivers of motor vehicles on public roads in the State of California have at least minimum liability coverage’s of $10,000 for property damage, $15,000.00 for bodily injury per person, and $30,000.00 per incident.

You may think; “oh well, I am riding a motorcycle, what damage can I do?” This is not the issue, the issue’s are; (1) You can lose your drivers license for up to a year if you drive without liability insurance, this goes for driving cages too; (2) Your vehicle can be impounded and sold at auction if you are caught driving it with no insurance; and (3) You will face up to a $2,000.00 fine or ticket if you are caught riding or driving without insurance.

If this is not enough to scare you there is more! Proposition 213 precludes anyone who is driving a motor vehicle (motorcycle, car, truck, etc.) on public roads, without the minimum liability insurance coverage, from recovering general damages in an accident! You are only entitled to Special Damages.

What are General Damages? They include pain and suffering, loss of enjoyment of life, and emotional distress! These are the big money items that are compensable in a motorcycle accident!

What are Special Damages? They include out of pocket losses such as property damage, medical bills, loss of use of vehicle, etc.

Imagine being taken out in a motorcycle accident, losing a leg, and finding out that you will not recover the big bucks for general damages because you were foolish enough to let your liability insurance lapse and be cancelled!

Most insurance companies give you 30 days to declare a new motorcycle on an existing policy, but I for one do not take any chances. Anytime I buy a new bike, I cover it before I ride it period.

Now my law firm does accept some so-called Proposition 213 cases for bikers and motorcyclist, (Bikers and Motorcyclist who are not at fault but have no liability coverage.) However, the vast majority of all personal injury lawyers reject these types of cases.

Come on guys and gals, get your shit together and at least carry minimum liability insurance coverage just in case! It is required by law, and if you are taken out in an accident that is not your fault you will not be precluded from full compensation, not to mention all of the penalties that go with being an uninsured motorist.

If you have been in a motorcycle or other type of motor vehicle accident anywhere in the State of California, you may call me for a free consultation at 800-816-1529.

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Motorcycle Injury Accidents; Why do Bikers and Motorcycle Riders Not Want to Protect their Rights?; Thoughts from a California Biker Lawyer!

Written on April 5, 2007 by Norman Gregory Fernandez in Articles, Biker and Motorcycle Law, Biker Rights, Courts, Editorial, Education, Fatal Motorcycle Accident, General Legal, Insurance Information, Medical Treatment, Motor Vehicle Accidents, Motorcycle Accidents, News, Other, Passenger Injuries, Personal Injury

California Biker and Motorcycle Injury Accident Lawyer Attorney Norman Gregory Fernandez As a biker lawyer, I handle many motorcycle injury accident cases. I also give many free consultations for bikers and motorcyclist who are injured in motorcycle accident cases.

Bikers and Motorcycle Riders are a tough breed. This goes for the female bikers that I represent as well. In most cases, they call because they know that they have legal rights when they have been injured in a motorcycle accident, but they waffle as to whether they should retain a lawyer to get what they deserve.

I gave a consultation and signed up an interesting motorcycle accident case yesterday. The gal who was riding her motorcycle was hit by a negligent cager who swerved into her lane, and admitted that he did not see her. She has broken bones and is in severe pain.

Although she is a female, she exhibited the exact same macho biker personality that I see with all of my male clients. It made me think to myself; why do us bikers not want to protect our legal rights when we are injured in an accident due to no fault of our own?

Most bikers are just worried about getting their motorcycles fixed after an accident. I had one guy laying in a hospital bed with broken bones, and a punctured lung and all he cared about was his motorcycle. I see this time and time again. I can relate, I have been injured in a motorcycle accident and all I cared about was my bike.

Does this make sense? None of us can take our bikes to our grave, nor will the bike do us any good if we are too messed up to ride it anymore. We have to think about ourselves and our family in situations such as this. Why cheat ourselves and our family out of just compensation if a cager hits us?

I try to make things easy for bikers and motorcycle riders who are injured in motorcycle accident cases in the State of California. I send my investigator out to them so they do not have to hassle coming to my office, we assist in handling all of the property damage portions of the case for free without taking a percentage of property damage like some other personal injury lawyers do. Why would anyone sign up with a lawyer that would take a percentage of your property damage loss? The only job of our clients is to get better, and to cooperate with us in case we have to sue the people who caused the accident!

Even then some bikers and motorcyclist are apprehensive about retaining a lawyer. I am telling you now, don’t be apprehensive; pick up the damm phone and give me a call so I can help you! (My Firm handles motorcycle accident injury cases in California)

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Don’t be a Fool; If you have are involved in a Car, Motorcycle, or Other Motor Vehicle Accident, Call a Personal Injury Lawyer As Soon As Possible!

Written on March 16, 2007 by Norman Gregory Fernandez in Articles, Biker and Motorcycle Law, Biker Rights, California Motorcycle Accident, Car Accidents, Damages, Editorial, Education, Fatal Motorcycle Accident, General Legal, Insurance Information, Medical Treatment, Motor Vehicle Accidents, Motorcycle Accidents, Passenger Injuries, Personal Injury, Wrongful Death

the frustration of California Personal Injury Lawyer Attorney Norman Gregory Fernandez by people trying to settle injury accidents without a lawyer I cannot tell you how sick it makes me feel when someone calls me after they have been in a car, motorcycle, or other motor vehicle accident, after they have already allowed themselves to be screwed out of the money that they are entitled to by a savvy insurance company adjuster.

I just gave a consultation today to a person (sex and name removed for privacy) who was involved in a serious car accident with serious injuries. This person was driving a brand new $40,000.00 car that was hit so hard that frame damage was caused to the car.

They were also seriously injured in the accident, and are still treating for their injuries. What did this person do? They signed a settlement agreement for the bodily injury portion of their case for $750.00, which only allows for 3 months worth of medical treatment and/or a total of $3,000.00 in medical treatment; that is it. They got $750.00 and an allowance for only 3 months or 3k in medical treatment. They got royally screwed!

They called to see if I could get them out of the settlement which they had signed. They also wanted to see if I could help them force the insurance company to pay for the fair market value of the car of the new car that suffered frame damage, rather than them being forced into accepting a repair of a car that has suffered frame damage.

I absolutely could not believe it. The person who called me is basically shit out of luck. It would be almost impossible to get the rock solid settlement agreement with the insurance company set aside. They called me too late.

I do the property damage portion of personal injury cases for free minus cost and expenses that I incur in getting the property damage portion of the case settled. I recover cost and expenses for property damage settlement at the end of the case. I do this as a service to my clients so that they can get their cars fixed or so that they can get another car to replace one that has been totaled. How can someone get their car repaired or replaced if a personal injury lawyer takes a percentage of property damage? Do not sign up with any personal injury lawyer that would take a percentage of your property damage loss!

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You just had a Car, Motorcycle or other Motor Vehicle Accident; Now What?

Written on March 8, 2007 by Norman Gregory Fernandez in Articles, Biker and Motorcycle Law, Biker Rights, California Motorcycle Accident, Car Accidents, Damages, Editorial, Education, Fatal Motorcycle Accident, General Legal, Insurance Information, Medical Treatment, Motor Vehicle Accidents, Motorcycle Accidents, Passenger Injuries, Personal Injury, Wrongful Death

Personal Injury, Car Accident, Motorcycle Accident Injury Lawyer Norman Gregory Fernandez

The statistics are amazing. 9 out every 10 persons who drive a car will eventually be involved in a car accident in their lifetimes. 3 out of every 9 persons will be in a car, motorcycle or other motor vehicle accident that involves alcohol.

You can see an article about what to do if you are involved in a car accident or other motor vehicle accident on my personal injury website by clicking here now.

You can see an article about what to do if you are involved in a motorcycle accident on my motorcycle accident lawyer website by clicking here now.

Many car, motorcycle, or other motor vehicle accidents involve someone in the car being injured and some do not. Most personal injury lawyers will not represent you on a contingency basis (no money out of your pocket unless there is a recovery) unless there are injuries involved in an accident. Some firms including mine can provide representation on a fixed fee or hourly basis to help you recover for out of pocket losses when you are in an accident with no injuries.

My firm will represent you on a contingency basis (no money out of your pocket unless there is a recovery) if you have an injury case that we accept.

You will see in the articles that I posted links to above, that it is critical to try to retain an attorney within the first 24-48 hours after an accident to get the prosecution of your case started.

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The Dirty Little Secret that the Insurance Companies Don’t Want You to Know!

Written on January 20, 2007 by Norman Gregory Fernandez in Articles, Biker and Motorcycle Law, California Motorcycle Accident, Car Accidents, Damages, Editorial, Education, Fatal Motorcycle Accident, General Legal, Insurance Information, Medical Treatment, Motor Vehicle Accidents, Motorcycle Accidents, Passenger Injuries, Personal Injury, Product Defects, Slip and Fall, Wrongful Death

California personal injury and accident lawyer Norman Gregory Fernandez

Most of us are good citizens and purchase liability insurance to cover us in case we cause an accident. Some people purchase minimum liability coverage and some people purchase more.

When you buy this insurance you are doing it to not only comply with the law, but to protect you and your assets in case you cause a car, motorcycle, or other motor vehicle accident.

Now let’s say that you get into an accident that is your fault; you report the accident to your insurance carrier; you think that your insurance company will cover you pursuant to your insurance policy right? WRONG!

If you read the fine print in your insurance policy you will notice a bunch of language that most non-lawyers would not understand. The gist of the language in plain English is that by accepting the insurance policy, you agree to cooperate with the insurance company if they decide to litigate, and the insurance company is the one who decides whether a case will be settled, not you.

The insurance companies are all about making tons of money and paying as little as possible. Since the advent of legally mandatory insurance coverage (Proposition 213 in California) the insurance companies have become very cavalier because their coffers are full of your money.

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DOG BITE CASES IN CALIFORNIA; YOU BETTER WATCH YOUR PUP!

Written on December 1, 2006 by Norman Gregory Fernandez in Articles, Damages, Dog Bites, Editorial, Education, General Legal, Insurance Information, Medical Treatment, Personal Injury

Dog Bite Cases by Attorney Norman Gregory Fernandez
There is no doubt that Americans love their pets. Human beings and dogs have been living together for tens of thousands of years. There is a saying that “a dog he is a man’s best friend.”

I am myself have three dogs; two Siberian Huskies, and a good old-fashioned American Mutt that I rescued from a pound.

Although a dog may be your best friend, a dog could turn into your worst nightmare if the dog bites and/or otherwise attacks a person.

In the state of California; dog owners are strictly liable for the actions of their dogs. In other words if your dog bites a person, you are strictly liable for all damages that the dog causes.

No matter how well trained your dog is, you really never know when they will bite. Even small breeds can cause bites that result in permanent scarring, and significant damages.

It is your responsibility as a dog owner to ensure that your dog does not bite another person. You should always walk your dog on a leash; secure your yard and home so that the dog cannot run away and bite someone; and secure your dog in a room when you have visitors at your home. If you do not take precautions when it comes to your dog, you could get hit with significant damages in a lawsuit if your dog bites someone.

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YOU BETTER CHECK OUT THE PERSON THAT YOU LOAN YOUR CAR TO; YOU COULD BE HELD LEGALLY LIABLE FOR THEIR ACTIONS.

Written on November 21, 2006 by Norman Gregory Fernandez in Articles, Biker and Motorcycle Law, California Motorcycle Accident, Car Accidents, Damages, Editorial, Education, Fatal Motorcycle Accident, General Legal, Insurance Information, Medical Treatment, Motor Vehicle Accidents, Motorcycle Accidents, Passenger Injuries, Personal Injury

Norman Gregory Fernandez Law Articles

The tort of negligent entrustment in simple language means that you were negligent by allowing a person or persons to use your property such as a car, motorcycle, etc.

Negligence is a legal term of art. It would be very difficult to explain negligence to a non-attorney. However I will try.

Negligence in simple language, is that one person owes a duty of due care to another person, and breaches that duty of due care thus causing damages. The key to negligence is that it must be reasonably foreseeable to an ordinary prudent person that the conduct will result in damages. I will be frank, negligence is much more complicated than the description I just gave, however it will suffice for the purposes of this article.

An example of simple negligence would be one person not paying attention and rear ending another person in their car. The person who did the rear ending would be liable in most circumstances for negligence.

With respect to negligent entrustment, I will give you an example of where you could be held liable for this tort. Let’s say you loan your car to a person who has a suspended driver’s license. Let’s say this person subsequently gets into a car accident. You would most likely be held liable for the damages caused in the accident, because you owed a duty of due care to ensure that you did not loan your car to a person with a suspended driver’s license. In other words, you were negligent by allowing a person with a suspended drivers license to use your car.

Another example would be loaning your car to a person who was obviously intoxicated, who then subsequently gets into an accident. You can be held liable for negligent entrustment for loaning you car to a drunk.

There is a vast array of possible scenarios in which you could be liable for the tort of negligent entrustment. It’s not rocket science, it’s really about common sense. The purpose of this article is just to make you aware of the tort.

Basically it’s a matter of common sense. If you are going to loan a person your car, motorcycle, or other property, you better make sure they have a driver’s license and automobile insurance before you give them the keys unless you’re not concerned about being legally liable for their actions.

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