Quote Originally Posted by vt_maverick View Post
Good point on the lawyer - there are certainly enough ambulance chasers out there that offer free consultations.
Yes, it's worth a free consultation for sure.....but keep in mind, if the attorney is one of the many "mills" out there, (any that advertise!) they're not viewed very highly by the claims adjustors. And the insurance will think they can low-ball you on any issue$ because your attorney is from a "mill". A "mill" is an operation where they "turn 'em and burn 'em"....they take many many cases, and settle them very rapidly to keep up a good cash flow, and not always very indicative of the true value of a case. Caliper, skill level and reputation of plaintiff attorneys are well known by claims adjustors and defense attorneys.

Because you don't have any immediate, obvious "bloody" injuries, AND the other guy appears to be uninsured and/or problematic....the "mill" type firms will not be that interested in your case, too much work and uncertainty. I'm sure you've already thought of this, but you and Mahalia should be examined, especially Mahalia if there was a seat belt or car seat or anything any where near her abdomen.

You can call your own insurance and ASK if this scenario will cause them to raise your premiums. Be very specific in describing the issues, and like wise, make sure your insurance gives you very specific info and examples of when they WOULD raise your premium. That's what I did for my Las Vegas accident with the Lexus.

I ended up filing it with my own, as I was assured no increase would result since the cab driver was ticketed and deemed 100% at fault.

But since I handled claims, I then took it over myself and dealt with the insurance adjustor for the cab's insurer.

** But since your "other party" here is questionably insured and may or may not have had permission to use the car....I'd file it with and let your insurance handle it right away. And you can monitor and shadow it closely. **