Allstate is the Worst of the Worst

Allstate’s advertising slogan is “You’re in good hands with Allstate.” However, in 1999 the company was exposed for trying to persuade injured people to take less than full recovery for their claims – and those same insurance practices continue to this day.

More than 10 years ago, several states took action against Allstate, alleging deceptive insurance practices, and two class action lawsuits were filed by consumers. Despite those legal cases, Allstate is still engaging in similar practices.

Allstate’s procedures are aimed at holding down the company’s costs in claims payouts. Allstate seeks out injured claimants who have not hired an attorney, and tries to settle claims with them directly in order to produce a lower settlement.

In 1999, the procedure was performed in a number of steps, including:

• Making the injured person believe they were dealing with an advocate, not an adversary;

• Sending letters to anyone not represented by counsel;

• Sending a brochure titled “Do I Need an Attorney?” to claimants who had not retained counsel;

• Rewarding claims representatives based on the percentage of unrepresented claims they processed.

Two primary concerns were raised about Allstate’s policy. First, Allstate failed to disclose the true nature of the relationship between itself and the driver. Allstate referred to the injured driver as its “client,” but that is not true. The injured driver was actually Allstate’s adversary in the claim; the party who had injured the driver was Allstate’s client.

Second, Allstate was talking to injured motorists about whether an attorney was needed for their claim. They were also advising accident victims about the statute of limitations deadline for their claims. Giving that type of advice is usually considered an unauthorized practice of law.

After over a decade, Allstate still follows many practices aimed at tricking claimants without attorneys into a settlement that s lower than they deserve.

If you have been injured by a driver who is insured by Allstate, you may need the advice of an attorney. If you have legal questions, contact the Frank Jenkins Law Office today. It’s our job to fight for your rights so that you can concentrate on your health and family, while we deal with the insurers and those responsible for your injuries. Call us today at 1-800-CAR-WRECK or contact us via email.

Another Win for Kentucky Workers!

I believe that when a lawyer takes a case, he should be willing to take it all the way. Sometimes that means all the way to the Kentucky Supreme Court.

We were hired by a nice lady who was injured at the American Greetings factory. She tried to get lost wage and medical benefits, but American Greetings and their workers compensation insurance carrier refused to pay her one dime. They claimed that the injury did not "arise out of her employment".

We argued that the insurance company should be ordered to pay what they owe. Unfortunately, the original judge on the case sided with the insurance company, and dismissed our lady's case. We thought that was totally wrong, so we appealed to the Kentucky Workers Compensation Board, and we won.

But the insurance company still refused to pay! Their lawyer appealed to the Kentucky Court of Appeals, so we had to keep on fighting, and we won. But the insurance company lawyer appealed again! This time to the Kentucky Supreme Court.

We kept on fighting for our client, and we won.

If you read the opinion, it will show you just how hard insurance companies are willing to fight in order to NOT PAY BENEFITS to injured workers. Get on the internet and check out:

http://opinions.kycourts.net/sc/2010-SC-000179-WC.pdf

At the Frank Jenkins Law Office, we take pride in how hard we fight for our clients. If you hire us to handle a workers comp case, or any other type of injury case, we will fight for you as hard as we can!

Are your wages being stolen?

We all know the economy is in bad shape. People and businesses are struggling. But unfortunately, some companies are trying to raise profits by short-changing their workers.

EXAMPLE: One chain of retail stores in Kentucky has been forcing its hourly workers to “clock out” for lunch, but then continue working through their lunch hour! Each worker therefore has an hour’s work stolen from them, every day. That kind of money adds up!

This practice is highly illegal and WRONG! Several workers from the company described above contacted us and told us what was happening. So now we are filing a lawsuit against the company, and fighting to get back the workers’ wages that were stolen.

Unfortunately, this type of “wage theft” has become common among companies today. And there are many other, different ways, in which employers can rip off their workers. This is just one example of what has been happening. You may see this type of situation described as wages and hours cases.

If this type of wage theft is happening to you, I urge you to FIGHT BACK! If you or someone you know is having their wages stolen (Whether by the "lunch hour" method, or through some other scam) Give us a call!

We’ll talk to you about your situation for free, with no obligation. We will tell you honestly if we think you have a case. And as always with the Frank Jenkins Law Office, if you choose to hire us, you will owe us nothing until we win or settle your case.

So give us a call ASAP, and let us help you hold onto your hard-earned wages!

3rd Readers' Choice Award in a Row

I'm happy to report that the Frank Jenkins Law Office has won the "Favorite Attorney" award in the 2010 Readers' Choice Awards through Kentucky.com, the website for the Lexington Herald-Leader.

This award is won by whomever gets the most votes from readers, either mailed in or through the website. People from all over Lexington and Central and Eastern Kentucky vote on this award, so I am very proud to win it, now for the THIRD year in a row!

We try very hard to provide the best in client service, and I believe winning this award shows that we succeed in taking good care of our clients.

I you've been injured in a car wreck or at work or in any other way, please don't hesitate to give us a call to talk about your injury case. Call toll-free at 1-800 CAR WRECK; local at 859-389-9344; or visit our website at www.frankjenkinslaw.com

Injured by Toyota?

By now I’m sure you have heard about the problems people have had with certain Toyota vehicles accelerating uncontrollably. Toyota recently issued a recall of thousands of their vehicles relating to this dangerous problem. (Including some Lexus models, which Toyota also makes)

There was a case in California where a family of four was killed when a Lexus they were riding in began accelerating uncontrollably. The car roared to speeds up to 120 mph on a busy highway. The father driving was an off-duty California Highway Patrolman. He tried the brakes but they didn’t work. He called 911 on his cell phone and frantically told them what was happening, but of course there was nothing they could do. One minute later, the car flew over an embankment, rolled several times, and burned. The entire family of four was killed.

Numerous examples of this type of terrifying incident have happened across America. We believe that design or manufacturing defects are causing this and other incidents, and that innocent people are being killed or severely injured as a result.

If you or someone you know has experienced this type of incident with a Toyota (or Lexus) vehicle, and you or someone else has been severely injured or killed as a result, you may be able to make a claim against Toyota for money damages for your losses.

Call us as 1-800 CAR WRECK or visit our website at www.frankjenkinslaw.com and fill out the contact form and we will get back with you ASAP to talk about your case. Please act quickly, because as always, there will be deadlines for filing a claim.

Let us hear from you!

Should you "go to court" on your KY injury claim?

When you’ve been injured due to someone else’s carelessness, you already have a lot on your mind: How to pay for medical bills? Who will pay my bills while I can’t work? Who’s going to drive the kids to practice? Or daycare?

Then another question arises, later in the process: Should you settle your injury case, or Go to court?

There is no easy answer to this one.

Once you’re finished with medical treatment, your attorney should promptly put together a settlement package to send to the insurance company. If this “takes forever”, then that’s a bad sign about your lawyer.

Later, when the insurance company makes a settlement offer, discuss it at length with your attorney. Ask questions. It usually takes several rounds of back-and-forth before a reasonable offer is obtained.

Okay, then what? If you’re not satisfied, what do you do? Your attorney should explain all the potential outcomes. Is the insurance company’s offer reasonable? Should you accept the offer, or file a lawsuit? If you feel like you are being reasonable, but your attorney is “strong-arming” you, then that is another bad sign about your attorney. (Of course, the key is for you as the client to be reasonable and realistic. Insurance companies never pay what you think your injury deserves.)

Ask your lawyer if she thinks the offer is reasonable. If the lawyer says it’s too low, then you should file suit. But keep in mind: There are no guarantees! You could lose your case at trial and end up with nothing. Also, pursuing a lawsuit is expensive. Your lawyer will probably pay your expenses along the way, but when the case settles or wins at trial, you will have to repay the expenses, on top of your attorney fee.

Different insurance companies do things differently. Some will pay fair settlements without you having to go to court, but some won’t. Nowadays, it’s common to have to file a lawsuit to in order to get fair value on an injury claim. Talk this over with your lawyer early on! Ask them if they are willing to go to court if necessary. Then when the time comes, hold them to it!

Great News for Kentucky Workers!

The Kentucky worker's compensation law sets out the benefits you get when injured on the job. It basically pays for lost wages and medical treatment made necessary by your work-related injury.

There is a formula in the law that determines how much money you get per week for a permanent "partial" disability. The most important part of the formula is the "impairment rating". The impairment rating is determined by doctors, using a big book put out by the AMA (American Medical Association) called the Guides to the Evaluation of Permanent Impairment.

The Kentucky system has been using the 5th Edition of the AMA Guides for years. Recently the AMA came out with a 6th Edition, but the lawyers who represent injured workers smelled a rat. It turned out that the new edition would have slashed percentage ratings on many common work injuries! This means that money benefits for injured workers would be slashed!

So a group of concerned people worked hard and convinced the KY Legislature to pass a bill keeping the 5th Edition permanently. This bill should become law very soon. It maintains current benefit levels, and keeps injured workers from financially sinking even farther in their time of need.

Worker's Comp benefits are "stingy" enough as it is. So it's great news that the 5th Edition AMA Guides have been made permanent!