Oregon Injury Law Blog
Tag: Medical Expenses

  What Is Oregon Personal Injury Protection (PIP)?

Your liability coverage may include Personal Injury Protection ("PIP") or Medical Payments ("Med Pay") benefits. PIP provides a source of payment for YOUR medical bills and some of YOUR wage loss following an auto accident. Further, PIP is no-fault, meaning that it will begin paying on your injuries immediately, rather than waiting for liability to be determined. Similarly, Med Pay provides some coverage for YOUR medical bills. These are called "no-fault" coverages because they pay even if the accident is your fault.

  How much is my Oregon Personal Injury case worth?

Valuing any personal injury case requires consideration of many factors, and Personal Injury cases are no exception. The first determination in valuing a Personal Injury is determining fault. Who is at fault for the accident? Sometimes the answer is not entirely clear. Even though you may share fault (comparative negligence), you still may be entitled to compensation.

  Will my insurance pay my bills if I am hit by a car and injured while riding my bicycle or walking?

Q: Will my insurance pay my bills if I am hit by a car and injured while riding my bicycle or walking?

A: It depends on what kind of insurance you carry. If you have your own car insurance, an Oregon bicycle accident injury lawyer can help you use your automobile's PIP ("personal injury protection") insurance to immediately provide coverage even if you injured while riding a bicycle or walking.

  Do I need a lawyer if my damages from a Personal Injury are less than $10,000?

Oregon has created a law (ORS 20.080) which is intended to level the playing field for injured parties with smaller claims and to promote these injured parties’ ability to get legal counsel. Generally, the law accomplishes this by awarding lawyer fees to a party who successfully uses a attorney to represent them in recovering their damages (medical costs, property losses, and other expenses including as lost wages). These fees for your Lawyer are awarded if you make a demand for payment under $10,000.00, and the defendant (or their insurance company) declines the offer or offers less than you demand. If you subsequently are awarded more, you are also entitled to attorney fees under the law.

  Causes of Oregon Pedestrian Injuries and Pedestrian Accidents

Increasingly, Oregon sees an increased number of pedestrian injuries or even deaths from being struck by motor vehicles. Every 88 minutes, a pedestrian dies in a car-related accident. Every year, roughly 6,000 pedestrians lose their lives or are injured in accidents where they are hit by motor vehicles. The most common location for these accidents is at intersections or crosswalks when motorists don't yield the right-of-way or stop for traffic devices like stoplights or stop signs.

  What is Oregon uninsured insurance?

In Oregon, every policy carried by a driver is required to carry Uninsured Motorist (or "UM") coverageBy law, the minimum amount of coverage under an Oregon UM policy is $25,000. With uninsured motorist coverage, a person can recover economic damages and noneconomic damages just like they would receive from the negligent driver, all the way up to the limits of an uninsured motorist policy.