D.R. Patti & Associates Obtains Six-Figure Settlement in Las Vegas Scooter Accident

Las Vegas scooter accident settlement

From our extensive experience as personal injury attorneys, we have seen our fair share of unfortunate Las Vegas scooter accidents and the injuries and other damages they cause. Thankfully, we have been able to obtain compensation for Las Vegas scooter accident victims. Recently, we were able to obtain a six-figure settlement for two people riding an electric scooter who was struck and injured by a truck. Unfortunately, based on statistics, we know that this may not be the last Las Vegas scooter accident we see and work on.
In an unstable economy and averaging between 60 to 100 miles per gallon, mopeds and scooters have been the cheaper option for many people, particularly those on college campuses, and their popularity has been increasing.[1] The popularity of this economical mode of transportation is evident on the Las Vegas Strip all the way to downtown, with tourists opting for this cheaper way to see the sights and casino-hop. One study estimates that moped and scooter sales have increased by as much as 60% in recent years.[2]

Unfortunately, the increased use of mopeds and scooters has led to more accidents, crashes, injuries and even fatalities. A recent Florida study found the following to have been common factors in those accidents resulting in severe injuries and fatalities: lack of a helmet, the speed of the moped or scooter, the speed limit in the area of the accident, and the amount of traffic in the area.[3]

It is no surprise that the lack of a helmet has contributed to the more severe injuries and fatalities. In many of these tragic events, the operators of mopeds and scooters were not wearing helmets.[4]The Florida study revealed that only 17% involved in moped or scooter crashes wore helmets. In Nevada, while motorcyclists are required to wear helmets that meet standards set by the U.S. Department of Transportation, those driving mopeds 50 cc or under, with less than 2 horsepower and capable of no more than 30 mph are not.[5]

The Florida study also found a high correlation between the speed of the moped/scooter, the speed limit in the accident site, and the amount of traffic. The number of accidents and severity of injuries increased when the street had three (3) or more lanes of travel.[6]The number of accidents resulting in severe injuries or fatalities also increased when the scooter/moped was driving above 20 miles per hour and the speed limit in the area was over 30 miles per hour.[7]All of these factors make sense – mopeds and scooters traveling in a busier area with faster cars will have greater chance of being involved in an accident and a greater chance of causing severe injuries or deaths. Like motorcycles, mopeds and scooters are sometimes difficult for other drivers to see on the roads. Thus, car drivers, who are likely not anticipating them or looking out for them, will likely not watch out for moped and scooter drivers.

Moped and scooter drivers must watch out for themselves. The lessons from the Florida study: wear a helmet and avoid driving in high traffic areas. Be safe out there.

If you are a moped or scooter driver who is injured in a car accident, call the Las Vegas scooter accident attorneys at D.R. Patti & Associates, or email us and see how we can help you obtain the compensation you deserve.

Low Property Damage in Las Vegas Car Accidents

Las Vegas Personal Injury Attorneys

The extent of property damage in car accidents is important in determining how a car insurance company deals with personal injury claims. What most Las Vegas personal injury attorneys know and the public may not is that low property damage in Las Vegas car accidents equates to low offers and a take it or leave it attitude from insurance companies.  Such cases have often been categorized as MIST cases—Minor Impact Soft Tissue injury cases. The experienced Las Vegas personal injury attorneys at D.R. Patti & Associates would agree with such classifications, as low property damage in Las Vegas car accidents does not necessarily equate with minor impact, but that is a blog for a different day.

But insurance companies do equate minor property damage with low impact, as part of their “delay, deny, defend” strategy. They developed this strategy in the mid-1990s as a way to increase their profits. By taking a hardline approach, insurance companies made the car accident cases with less property damage more expensive and more time-consuming to fight. They take this approach regardless of whether the accident victim is an eggshell plaintiff or how other extenuating circumstances. An eggshell plaintiff is someone who is more susceptible to injury. The insurance company’s goal is to deter MIST or claims for personal injuries based on low property damages.

Unfortunately, automobile insurance companies are winning. Quite a few Las Vegas personal injury attorneys are now less inclined to take cases with low property damage in Las Vegas car accidents.  Even when an attorney has taken on such a case, some are less inclined to litigate even when the insurance company offers a mere pittance, sometimes offers below the personal injury client’s medical bills.  On some few occasions, automobile insurance companies lose, and sometimes lose big, but these occasions do not make enough of a big dent in the trillion dollar insurance industry pockets to stop this strategy. According a book by Rutgers law professor, Jay M. Feinman, property/casualty insurance companies collect $440 billion in premiums and pay only about $250 billion in claims each year.

The “delay, deny, defend” strategy works well for the automobile insurance industry in Las Vegas because they know Clark County jurors’ reputation as conservative.  To me, Clark County jurors in general are skeptical.  They generally have bought into the idea that a person cannot be possibly injured. They tend to see persons making personal injury claims as simply out to make money, seeking a reward rather than compensation.  A CNN article referenced a case where the victim of a rear-ender who incurred $15,000.00 in medical bills and lost wages received only $1,500.00 because the jury did not believe she could be injured when her car only had dents.  According to the article, three of the jurors said that blow-up photos of the minor property damage sealed the plaintiff’s fate.  That case could very well have occurred in Las Vegas.
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Can’t Afford Hospital Bills After Las Vegas Car Accidents?

Las Vegas Personal Injury Attorneys

From our extensive experience as Las Vegas personal injury attorneys, we have seen the huge hospital bills after Las Vegas car accidents our clients receive. For the injured victims of Las Vegas car accidents without health insurance, those hospital bills could prove devastating. One emergency room visit to a Las Vegas valley hospital after a car accident can amount to thousands of dollars. In many cases, when a hospital knows that someone was injured in a car accident, the hospital bills after Las Vegas car accidents are usually higher than for any other type of injuries. In Las Vegas car accident cases, the hospitals know they can assert a lien against the car insurance company of the negligent driver that caused the accident.
Despite the Affordable Healthcare Act, many people still do not have health insurance, and many more people than that cannot afford the hospital bills resulting from a car accident, which bills could be in the thousands of dollars. Nevada hospitals can hold off on receiving payment until a settlement or the personal injury claim is resolved by issuing a hospital lien.  Section 108 of the Nevada Revised Statute governs hospital liens. NRS 108.590(1) provides:

Whenever any person receives hospitalization on account of any injury, and the injured person, or a personal representative after the person’s death, claims damages from the person responsible for causing the injury, the hospital has a lien upon any sum awarded the injured person or the personal representative by judgment or obtained by a settlement or compromise to the extent of the amount due the hospital for the reasonable value of the hospitalization rendered before the date of judgment, settlement or compromise. 

To be able to put the hospital bills on a lien, the hospital must be made aware that the treatment is a result of a car accident. The hospital will also want to know the car accident’s personal injury attorney and the car insurance company of the person who caused the accident. A hospital lien, however, will not necessarily stop the hospital from sending the bill into collections or reporting the outstanding bill on your credit report. Speak to the hospital about this at the time of your treatment or soon after.

To be valid and enforceable, the hospital lien must be recorded with the county recorder’s office and sent by certified or registered mail to the insurance company of the person responsible for the car accident, as well as that person. NRS 108.610 provides:

NRS 108.610.  Notice of lien required: Recording and service.  In order to perfect the lien, the hospital or the owner or operator thereof shall: 

  1.      Before the payment of any money to the injured person or to a legal representative as compensation for injuries received, record a notice of lien, substantially in the form prescribed in NRS 108.620, containing an itemized statement of the amount claimed. The notice of lien must be filed with:
     (a) The county recorder of the county wherein the hospital is located; and
    (b) The county recorder of the county wherein the injury was suffered, if the injury was suffered in a county other than that wherein the hospital is located. 
  2.      Before the date of judgment, settlement or compromise, serve a certified copy of the notice of lien by registered or certified mail upon the person alleged to be responsible for causing the injury and liable for damages on account thereof and from which damages are claimed. 
  3.     Before the date of judgment, settlement or compromise, serve a certified copy of the notice of lien by registered or certified mail upon the insurance carrier, if known, which has insured against liability of the person alleged to be responsible for causing the injury and liable for damages on account thereof and from which damages are claimed. 

Additionally, the hospital is required to provide a thirty percent (30%) uninsured discount if you make payment arrangements in advance. Under § NRS 439B.260(1), hospitals generally must reduce charges by 30 percent to inpatients who lack insurance “or other contractual provision for the payment of the charge by a third party,” are not eligible for public medical payment assistance, and arrange within 30 days of discharge to pay the hospital bill. See Bielar v. Washoe Health Sys., Inc., 129 Nev. Adv. Op. 49, 306 P.3d 360, 361 (2013). In that case, the car accident victim, after paying the hospital its full bill, sued the hospital claiming that the hospital’s charges were unreasonable and that the hospital failed to give her the mandatory 30% discount under NRS § 493B.260.  She presented evidence at trial that the hospital had made a 185% profit margin on the victim’s bill and that the hospital overcharged the victim.  The district court held that the victim was ineligible for the 30% statutory discount because of the personal injury settlement she received much later after her hospitalization.  On appeal, the Nevada Supreme Court held that the victim was eligible because at the time the victim received the hospital services, she had no health insurance or other insurance that would cover her bills. According to the Court, the subsequent personal injury settlement cannot be considered as “other contractual agreement.”

The hospital lien is enforceable only against the insurance company of the person responsible for the car accident, otherwise known as liability insurance. This means that the hospital cannot enforce its lien against a car accident victim’s uninsured (UM) or underinsured motorist policy. See Washoe Medical Center, Inc. v. Reliance Ins. Co., 112 Nev. 494, 915 P.2d 288 (1996) (holding that Nevada’s hospital lien statute does not encompass an individual’s UM benefits for several reasons).

If you were in a Las Vegas car accident and have medical bills piling up, contact the experienced Personal Injury Attorneys of D.R. Patti & Associates to help you. We obtain not only fair compensation for the injuries suffered by our clients but also negotiate with hospitals and other medical providers to reduce our clients’ medical bills. We have helped many clients with their hospital bills after Las Vegas car accidents.

Drugged Driving: Alcohol Is Not the Only Cause of Las Vegas DUIs, Car Accidents, and Personal Injuries

Las Vegas impaired driving accidents

In our over 26 years of experience as Las Vegas personal injury attorneys, we have seen our fair share of car accidents caused by drivers who were impaired or high on drugs, both illegal and legal drugs. A while back ago, the Las Vegas car accident attorneys at D.R. Patti & Associates represented the families of two victims of a car accident caused by an individual who was under the influence of prescription drugs. The at fault party was so high she did not even realize she had hit another car and killed one of the victims. In another case, our Las Vegas personal injury lawyers represented an individual who was rear-ended by a Porsche driving at 70 miles per hour at least. The police questioned the Porsche driver, who kept falling asleep, and ultimately the driver admitted to having taken Ambien, a sleeping pill, within 30 minutes before driving. In another case, a client was injured when her car was rear-ended; the person who rear-ended her apologized profusely and asked her not to call the police, saying that he was on new prescription pain medications and should not be driving.

It is no surprise that certain legal prescription medications can affect driving ability.  At this day and age, we should be familiar with the warnings that accompany many prescription drugs against the operating of machinery—including motor vehicles.  This means that certain medications, even when taken legally and according to doctor’s instructions, can cause car accidents.

Despite such warnings, driving under the influence of such medications, alone or in combination with alcohol, the number of people found to drugged driving remain relatively significant.  The 2007 National Roadside Surgery by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), more than 16% of weekend, nighttime drivers tested positive for medications, whether illegal, prescription, or over-the-counter.

A 2009 NHTSA study found that 18% of drivers who died as a result of a motor vehicle accident tested positive for at least one drug.  This represented an increase of 5% from the 13% in a 2005 NHTSA survey.
The number of people driving under the influence and not caught is even greater.  Results from a 2009 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) revealed that about 4.2%, or approximately 10.5 million people 12 years and older, self-reported driving under the influence of illicit drugs.  For those 18 to 25 years old, the percentage is even greater, rising to 12.8%.

A problem with apprehending drugged drivers is that there is no test like a breathalyzer that can be performed, investigating law enforcement officers must look for other outward signs of drug impairment, such as by performing field sobriety tests.  Education of drivers against the dangers of driving while under the influence of medication, whether legal or illegal, should hopefully help curb these incidences.

Under Nevada law, drivers don’t have to “blow” the legal limit for drugs or alcohol to be impaired. Section 484C.110 of the Nevada Revised Statutes (NRS) prohibits driving under the influence of any combination of substances that renders the driver unfit to drive.  Such substances include properly prescribed pain medication.  The statute, NRS § 484C.110, provides in pertinent part as follows:

NRS 484C.110. Unlawful acts; affirmative defense; additional penalty for violation committed in work zone.
. . .

  1. It is unlawful for any person who:

(a) Is under the influence of a controlled substance;
(b) Is under the combined influence of intoxicating liquor and a controlled substance; or
(c) Inhales, ingests, applies or otherwise uses any chemical, poison or organic solvent, or any compound or combination of any of these, to a degree which renders the person incapable of safely driving or exercising actual physical control of a vehicle, to drive or be in actual physical control of a vehicle on a highway or on premises to which the public has access. The fact that any person charged with a violation of this subsection is or has been entitled to use that drug under the laws of this State is not a defense against any charge of violating this subsection.

If you’ve been injured in a car accident in Las Vegas that was caused by a driver under the influence of drugs then call and speak to a car accident lawyers at D.R. Patti & Associates.