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Posts Tagged ‘health’

Fronting’ Insurance For Children

July 16th, 2010

Insurance fronting describes the process by which somebody purchases insurance in their own name on behalf of someone else who will be a named driver on the policy. By any standard, insurance fronting is illegal.

A typical example of insurance fronting involves parents who purchase motor insurance policies in their name but which are to be used by their children. As an example, a policy taken out by Mr Smith for his son’s vehicle with Mr Smith as the main driver and his son as a named driver would constitute insurance fronting.

In the UK, insurance fronting is quite common as children may be subject to high premiums if they are young or novice drivers and parents endeavour to cut down their motoring costs.

According to figures released by Co-operative Insurance, 41 per cent of parents have fronted insurance for their children at one time or another. This astonishing figure suggests that either many parents are oblivious to the law or simply feel that inflated insurance premiums are worth avoiding.

Accident claims which involve insurance fronting are invalidated due to the fact that the insurance itself is invalid. Naturally, the relatively minor cost of insurance in the event of an accident, is nothing compared to the problems and expense that could result.

Criminal prosecutions could be brought against parents as well as their children facing driving bans if they are found to have been insurance fronting as this is fraud. Repair bills are another consideration, as is the fact that personal injury claims against insurers cannot be pursued.

According to the Co-operative, 57% of people who carried out insurance fronting were aware that it was illegal when they accepted their policies and 61% of people would consider doing it again after trying it in the past. In addition 33% of parents know at least 2 people who have committed the crime as well.

Chief Operating Officer of Co-operative Financial Services, Tim Franklin said: “The view that motor insurance fronting is harmless and doesn’t hurt anyone could not be further from the truth. Parents who believe they are helping their children to save money by fronting are not only risking prosecution, but harming their chances of obtaining insurance in the future”.

Accident Attorney

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What Are The Benefits Of Structural Settlement For The Liable And Injured Parties?

July 13th, 2010

Structured settlements are becoming increasingly common. These settlements are a way to pay injury damages in a personal injury award.

If you are injured and win your case for damages, you may be awarded a structured settlement rather than a lump sum payment. Lump sum payments were quite common in the past but structured settlements are gaining in popularity.

A structured settlement basically divides up your award. Then, the liable party pays out in scheduled periods, a set amount each payment, until the entire amount is paid. It is almost like when you make a car payment on your car, until you have paid off the entire balance, except in a structured settlement there is no interest paid.

The period of time for a structural settlement can vary. Generally payments are monthly, and are paid out over years. Depending on the monthly sum and the total award amount, the payout term will be shorter or longer. If you have a settlement that is very large, it may pay out over decades even.

Both the injured party and the liable party can benefit from this setup. The injured party often does better when they get their money over time instead of all at once.

When you get a structured settlement instead of a lump sum payout, it can help to ensure that you have money coming in over the full length of time you are still having effects from your injury. You may not know how long this will be, and if you get – and spend – a lump sum settlement, then there is nothing else coming in to cover your medical needs or replace lost income.

It isn’t just the injured party that benefits when damages are awarded via structured settlement. The liable party also benefits. The liable party ends up avoiding a huge tax burden. The tax amount is reduced since the settlement is paid over time.

When you have a personal injury case, a structured settlement may be your best option. It helps to know how these work. Such a settlement can ensure you have income over a long period of time, which can really be a major plus.

Legal Advice

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Are You Most Safe At A Highly Ranked Hospital?

May 21st, 2010

Whenever you head into the lobby of Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, you simply can’t miss all the signs informing you that Hopkins is ranked No. one hospital in the United states by U.S. News & World Report. Hopkins is justifiably proud of achieving that best position year after year, but does it mean something for patient safety and quality of care?

A recent survey in Annals of Internal Medicine uncovers that for the 50 top-ranked hospitals, there is little relationship between their U.S. News rank and any objective standards of quality of treatment. But when the authors ran the data, they found the hospital’s subjective reputation among doctors accounted for 90 to 100 percent of the hospital’s overall U.S. News ranking. In other words, the word of mouth reputation of the hospital among medical doctors — not among patients — counts for a large amount of the news magazine’s popular ratings system.

Getting the right hospital is not uncomplicated. But there are some easy guidelines. Focus on the brand-name hospitals like Hopkins only if you have an exotic issue that hardly any medical doctors have ever seen.

In its 20 years of rating hospitals, U.S. News has never questioned a single patient what they think; its ratings of a hospital’s reputation in a specific specialty is based exclusively on what physicians in that specialty think. However now Medicare has started requiring hospitals to have patients fill out a standardized survey when they leave the hospital, and the questions focus on a lot of concerns that people care about and have a large influence on the quality and safety of their care, such as:

Did the physicians and nurses always communicate well? Was the bathroom always clean? Was your pain always well-controlled? Was the area around your room always quiet at night?

Note that little word “always.” These are things patients have a right to expect – always.

You are going to find that numerous community hospitals do a better job than the mega-hospitals of taking care of patients in the ways that patients notice.

Legal Advice

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A Personal Injury Demand For Compensation In Canada

April 22nd, 2010

When seeking a personal injury demand in Canada, you have similar options as in other places. There is very little difference, except in the rules of set procedure. Regardless of where you live, there are set procedures in seeking these claims. In Canada, if you happen to be an accident victim, you are then entitled to receive compensation for any damages or losses, and to make a claim in that regard. The procedures are not hard, but they are governed by two main key points.

There can be a huge list of the many kinds of accidents that may occur, and just as big a list of the many injuries that may be suffered. You could be involved in a pedestrian type accident, or a car accident, motorcycle, malpractice, or just fall and hurt yourself on a public property or on private property. Accidents can occur where you least expect it, and in ways you never expected.

One of the two main keys for this process in Canada, is providing proof of the extent of any liability. The liability factor is definitely a key factor. As in most accidents, there can be some negligence or recklessness involved, that played a key role in the accident taking place. In such cases, a claim is made in order to be compensated for the damages suffered because of this accident, from the party who was negligent or reckless. If the liability is proven, then the negligent party should pay.

If they are liable, the negligence has been proven, then they will be held responsible, and will be made to pay compensation to the injured party. They are then seen to be at fault, which means they will be made responsible for the accident, and therefore liable for a certain amount of the damages that were incurred due to the accident. Both parties are given the chance to prove their innocence in the case.

Once fault and liability has been proven, the case moves on to the second key point, and that is what amount of responsibility and compensation the negligent party should be held to. The injured claimant needs to show evidence and proof of suffering, and why they are making the claim against the negligent party. The extent of their proof will help determine the amount of compensation.

With their case being made, and proof provided, an amount is reached for compensating them for their sufferings. They can measure the amount of their suffering by way of financial, mental, or their physical pain due to injuries from their accident. Again, the amount of suffering will be the main factor in the amount the are given in compensation.

If you are in Canada, and are involved in an accident, you have a certain amount of time to make any claims for compensation, or you can pass up your chance for any satisfaction. All people are encouraged to make their claims as quickly as they can. Once the deadline has passed, there are no more avenues for pursuing damages. This is a very important thing to remember.

So when seeking a personal injury demand in Canada, remember not to let the deadline pass you by, and be ready to provide ample evidence of your pain and suffering. This will enable you to get the compensation you deserve for recovering your losses. The system is designed for punishing those who are reckless and negligent, and accidents result from it. Be sure to stay aware of these things, should anything like this happen to you.

Injury Attorney

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