So I'll start out from the start.

I was cruising North on US1 from my home towards Jacksonville to have lunch with my wife on Friday. Not more than 3 miles from my house I was t-boned by a minivan taxi. This took place not more than a 1/4 mile from the St. Johns S.O. This guy pulled out(didn't see me-no sh!t) and plowed into my right side. He was trying to cross traffic to head South. I forgot to mention I was on my motorcycle. I took the brunt of the hit to my right side smashing my leg into my bike then throwing me into the opposite (southbound) traffic lane. (US1 is a 2 lane each direction with a grass divider) My bike ended up in the median. Luckily I had on my helmet and gloves(I never ride without them) so my head was good to go. Another guy coming South saw this happen and blocked traffic from running my ass over. Thanks dude, whoever you are. I ended up going to the hospital and getting pretty much the entire right side of my body x-rayed and being the tough mutha ****er I am, I walked away with only a possible broken wrist. No road rash! I was cut up a little from my leg and bike becoming one as he slammed into me, but for the most part I feel like Bruce Willis from Unbreakable. I'll go into that in depth some other time when meds aren't making me blurry-I have only 2 of my 9 lives left)

Anyway, I was at my friends place for a BBQ today and was telling him(LEO) the story and he told me to sue. The thought hadn't even crossed my mind until then. I thought I'd get your take on this...

Any lawyers or other victims with a good info to pass?



Edit to add--Anyone know a good lawyer to bounce this off of in NE Florida? I have a old SEAL buddy of mine that got out and is a lawyer now but I haven't heard back from him yet.

Police report filed...

Get copies immediatley...

Find an injury lawyer very close to your area...  You will have no problem finding one with your case as described...

Have your insurance company contact his insurance company about the whole claim...

Full sebregation between the lawyer, courts, and insurance for full compensation...

You are guranteed a min of $ 10,000.00 in the state of Florida for compensastion of any traffic related accident involving injury / hospitol visits not caused by you...

Florida No Fault...

Also you are fully eligible for out of work compensation and all medical coverage costs...

FLORIDA, a great state to live in...

MOVE on this Tuesday morning...

I've been involved in multiple claims in the past...  I know the ropes very well...

Get moving and work the system in your favor....

Thanks for the info.   Maybe I can get a new helmet afterall.

Quoted: Police report filed... Get copies immediatley... Find an injury lawyer very close to your area...  You will have no problem finding one with your case as described... Have your insurance company contact his insurance company about the whole claim... Full sebregation between the lawyer, courts, and insurance for full compensation... You are guranteed a min of $ 10,000.00 in the state of Florida for compensastion of any traffic related accident involving injury / hospitol visits not caused by you... Florida No Fault... Also you are fully eligible for out of work compensation and all medical coverage costs... FLORIDA, a great state to live in... MOVE on this Tuesday morning... I've been involved in multiple claims in the past...  I know the ropes very well... Get moving and work the system in your favor....

All good advice.
Get pictures of injuries and damages ASAP.
Definitely find a good lawyer around your area, most will work on a contingency fee for your total settlement (capped at 33 1/3%) but you can negotiate what you think is fair. Get a journal or some paper and start taking notes about when you feel bad, how bad you feel, how much pain you're in, etc.
If needed, complain to friends, family, co-workers about your levels of stress/pain so you can deposition them later if you need additional statements.

Double Tap!
Headshot!

One of the FDCC'ers is an attorney in PI practice.  
IIRC, he said he'll practice in most venues in NE Florida.

Got any contact info.  My LEO buddy named a few that he had used for one thing or another, but it seems like hitting the yellow pages is just about a guess.  

Quoted: Police report filed... Get copies immediatley... Find an injury lawyer very close to your area...  You will have no problem finding one with your case as described... Have your insurance company contact his insurance company about the whole claim... Full sebregation between the lawyer, courts, and insurance for full compensation... You are guranteed a min of $ 10,000.00 in the state of Florida for compensastion of any traffic related accident involving injury / hospitol visits not caused by you... Florida No Fault... Also you are fully eligible for out of work compensation and all medical coverage costs... FLORIDA, a great state to live in... MOVE on this Tuesday morning... I've been involved in multiple claims in the past...  I know the ropes very well... Get moving and work the system in your favor....

You are wrong on a lot of this, my friend.  Mandatory PIP, aka "No-Fault", does not apply to motorcycles.  You are not "guaranteed" anything.  The state minimums are $10/20/10, and you don't just get those because you got hurt in the accident.  Among other things, PIP allows medical payments to you from your own policy without a determination of fault.

Subrogation is an assignment of rights made to your insurance carrier as a provision of your policy.  When fault is established, it allows them to pursue the at-fault party for reimbursement of any payments made of your policy, as well as any deductible you had to provide.

Twitchy - if you do possess motorcycle insurance, I'd call them at your earliest convenience.  If the police report provides enough information, I'd also suggest that you call the other party's insurance carrier and report the claim.  If you do elect to obtain the services of a lawyer, be careful to understand fully how your lawyer will be compensated.  Also, keep track of everything.  Whether with insurance or the lawyer, the more leg-work you do and the more fully informed you are, the better your outcome is likely to be.

I'm glad to hear that you walked away relatively unscathed, and that you were wearing proper protective gear.  I hope you have a full and speedy recovery.


Edit:  I've sent you an IM with the name and e-mail address of a long time FDCC member who is also a lawyer, as well as the name of another FDCC member who is an insurance professional and a person whom I hold in high regard.  Perhaps they may be able to give you some advice.

Big thanks JE.  I do have USAA and they are all over it.  I passed the info to them as I was being driven home from the hospital.  

Again thank much

Twichy,

Look out for your rights...

Get back with us and tell us about your end result...

That sucks ...One thing to think about is that if the other driver has insurance and has $10k BI coverage with no assets and you hire a lawyer the lawyer will get +30% of your settlement. You may get the whole amount without a lawyer. Just a thought

height=8

Quoted: height=8 Quoted: Police report filed... Get copies immediatley... Find an injury lawyer very close to your area...  You will have no problem finding one with your case as described... Have your insurance company contact his insurance company about the whole claim... Full sebregation between the lawyer, courts, and insurance for full compensation... You are guranteed a min of $ 10,000.00 in the state of Florida for compensastion of any traffic related accident involving injury / hospitol visits not caused by you... Florida No Fault... Also you are fully eligible for out of work compensation and all medical coverage costs... FLORIDA, a great state to live in... MOVE on this Tuesday morning... I've been involved in multiple claims in the past...  I know the ropes very well... Get moving and work the system in your favor.... he Florida state minimum required auto liability limits are actually PIP 10k and PD 10K. 10/20/10 refers to bodily injury liability 10k each person 20k each accident, and 10k in property damage. You are not required to carry bodily injury coverage, tho you definately should carry it. I agree with the rest of what you said. To OP glad to hear your alright, I ride a bike myself and dread the very thought of this happening. Did the peg help your foot from being crushed or what?

Well the limit for insurance is higher for this guy.  It was a MiniVan Taxi.  I talked with a lawyer but haven't commited yet.  

Update on the bike:
I had a friend tow it to my house after the wreck and I didn't look at it until 2 days ago when I pulled it out to take it to the shop.  I had a big oil slick in my garage.  When I looked at it closer the right side of case was spider webbed.  I guess the impact of my leg getting shooved into the motor was enough to break the case.    I drank alot of powdered milk growing up.