Is It Ok to Phone Someone who Hit Me?
- Thread starter m_bambour
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- #22
Friday, my club brothers spent some time in the county recorders office. Requested a title search on his property and title for his home is in his name.
Also discovered he owns a business but he's incorporated so its untouchable.
Talked to my lawyer. He td me about the computer software insurance companies use to evaluate claims called Colossus and how unfair it is. I googled the Colossus software and it was an interesting read. Attorney said insurance adjusters are encouraged and offered incentives and rewards for saving the company money on low ball settlements. It was a quite interesting convo. Never really like attorneys much but need one. Don't know who I dislike more. POS adjusters or Lawyers.
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- 15,041
You seem mistaken. His business being incorporated does not protect his investment from his personal liability. It merely protects his personal assets from business liability, if properly done.
In fact, being incorporated makes it easier to take it from him. I hope he has an umbrella policy for his sake.
Not really.
Being incorporated protects business assets from personal liability as well.
You are correct, his investment in the business is a personal asset, but the business itself is not, unless he was driving for business at the time.
At this point though, let the lawyer earn his keep. This is what he does.
And as a side note, of course settlement software will be weighted in favor of the insurance company. It should be fair and frequently there are many rules/laws in various states that limit what can be paid for what or what needs to be paid for what and how your own coverages sometimes play into what can be paid, etc. It gets complicated pretty quickly on larger claims. This one seems strange though.
Dan
Being incorporated protects business assets from personal liability as well.
You are correct, his investment in the business is a personal asset, but the business itself is not, unless he was driving for business at the time.
At this point though, let the lawyer earn his keep. This is what he does.
And as a side note, of course settlement software will be weighted in favor of the insurance company. It should be fair and frequently there are many rules/laws in various states that limit what can be paid for what or what needs to be paid for what and how your own coverages sometimes play into what can be paid, etc. It gets complicated pretty quickly on larger claims. This one seems strange though.
Dan
- 15,041
As I said, it does not protect his investment.
You can't attach assets of the business, unless you pierce the corporate veil. But you definitely can take his ownership stake from him.
One of the few times being a sole-proprietor offers better protection. The court is unlikely to take away your livelihood. But they definitely will take away your shares in a business.
- 10,830
As I said, it does not protect his investment.
You can't attach assets of the business, unless you pierce the corporate veil. But you definitely can take his ownership stake from him.
One of the few times being a sole-proprietor offers better protection. The court is unlikely to take away your livelihood. But they definitely will take away your shares in a business.
Just the fact that he owns a business, drives a nice car, & has a nice house means there is potential to collect through multiple means.
You cant go after business assets, but as Vol mentioned you could go after his shares, or a portion of them, in his corporation.
More likely, if it is a Scorp or LLC, you go after the income derived from the business. If it is a Ccorp he could potentially shelter income/assets within the corporation. Then you would need to worry about going after his ownership.
But it is likely that he has some outside investments, such as a brokerage account, CDs, or just a Money Market or savings account. Everything but the 401k or Pension would be fair game (annuities or life insurance could be shielded to a point depending on the state).
To the OP. Like Dan said, at this point let the lawyer earn his money. Just sit back and concentrate on recovering. Also, make sure your buddies do not do anything stupid... let the law run its course.
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- #27
I would laugh at them, contact an attorney, and stay out of it. It is bad news to speak to an insurer, or an insured, yourself. You may dig a hole you cant climb out of.
If he owns a business he may have non-owned auto coverage on his general liablity policy. If he was using the car he was driving for business then his
Also, it doesnt matter if he is underinsured. Have your inurer pay and subrogate against his insurance company. Just because he may have low limits of liablity doesn't mean he is not responsible for your pain and suffering. Sue him!
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Keep this in perspective. You are pursuing a pain and suffering claim. I don't think the settlement will be any where near as large as you are starting to think. This is not punitive damages, its pain and suffering.
Most states have caps on what you can collect for this and there are formulas they use. Don't get ahead of your attorney.
While its based on the injuries, its also based on how long the injuries last, your income, your insurance coverage and many, many, many other factors. Your attorney knows this well.
To answer your question though, if its in trust, he doesn't own it. If he owns it, its not in trust.
Don't cash your settlement check till you have it in hand.
Dan
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- #30
Thanks.. I work as a linemen for PG&E. My yearly wages are somewhere around $125,000. To date since the accident, Ive missed six months work and I'm told I've still got a couple months of physical therapy left and even after that may not be able to return to my job because now I have a plate and pins in my hip and my job requires me to climb power poles, etc. I know I'm not going to be sueing for punitive damages but general damages. my medical bills total $147,234 and that's only to date. Yes I have medical ins and that's being worked out between them.
I was suppose to get married in November but was in the hospital that day. My girl and I paid for everything ourselves. $25K for a wedding we postponed. Much of that money was lost due to deposits and up front fees.
This guy who hit me is on the hook for all of it and considering the extent of my injuries, I'd say he owes me a lot. However, you make a valid point and I won't count my chickens before they hatch.
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