The Personal Injury Seminar in Orlando this past weekend went well. There were over 75 attendees who walked away with some valuable information. There was one guest who asked an interesting question- what factors should I consider when hiring a PIP attorney- which I thought was a really good question!
How much does the PIP attorney charge the medical provider?
Not all PIP lawyers charge the same rate. Some over-charge clients by keeping a percentage of the money they collect. My office (and most others) only keep the interest and the penalty that the insurance company has to pay as the fee.
Example- if a doctor is owed $1,000 then the insurance
company will write one check to the doctor for $1,000.
-If the money comes in from a demand letter then the insurance company will pay
me interest on the $1,000 at 6% and they will pay me a penalty at 10% for
screwing around.
-If the money comes in from a lawsuit that I filed on behalf of the doctor then
the insurance company will pay whatever my attorney’s fees are.
Does the PIP attorney provide good customer service?
Law is a customer service driven industry. If a lawyer doesn’t return calls or answer the phone then he/she will lose customers. It’s hard to always be on the phone (my wife hates it) but I know if I don’t return calls then another lawyer will. Make sure you hire an attorney who will answer your calls.
Does the PIP attorney really know the PIP law in-and-out?
You want a PIP lawyer who is just that – a PIP lawyer. There are so many ins-and-outs in PIP. The law is constantly changing. Make sure you aren’t the guinea pig for a Personal Injury lawyer trying to branch out into PIP. My office has four attorneys solely dedicated to PIP suits.
Does the PIP attorney handle a large volume of PIP cases?
There are two types of PIP attorneys. Some handle a small case load and some (like myself) will handle a large volume of cases. I do this because it allows me to batch together cases with similar issues and settle them as a group. I get phone calls from the insurance company wanting to settle 25-50-100 cases at a time. I’ve settled as many as 800 claims in one shot.
How far away is the PIP lawyer?
Distance doesn’t really matter for PIP suits. I have represented doctors as far as the Panhandle area (about 10 hours away) and collected more money than “the local guys” in a shorter period of time.
