Category: Personal Injuries
Homeowner's Insurance: Dusting Off the Policy
December 8, 2010 | Adriel B. VillarrealYou probably took out your first homeowner’s policy when you bought your first home and have not looked at it since. This can be costly. While I know it is as exciting as going to the dentist or sorting your sock drawer, it is important to look at your policy and talk to your agent to assure your policy meets your current situation. The other option is to find out the hard way: when you have a loss and find out that you did not have the coverage that you thought you did. Myth vs. Reality Most people think that their homeowner’s policy provides absolute or “strict” liability for injury that occurs on your premises. This is not entirely accurate. Most insurance policies provide a limited amount of of medical insurance coverage or “med pay” coverage for anyone who is injured on the insured premises. Thus, if your drunk neighbor stumbles and falls down the steps in your home and breaks his ankle, your policy will provide limited medical expense coverage. However, in order to recover more, an injured person has to prove that you were at fault in some way causing the injury. This “med pay” coverage does NOT cover injuries to your own family members that live with you nor is…
Read MoreRFN's (Radio Frequency Neurotomies): What Are They and Can They Help Your Pain?
December 8, 2010 | John T. BuchmanRFN’s are a way to treat certain sources of neck and back pain that have not responded to medications, physical therapy, chiropractic care or massage therapy. RFN’s have been used for over 30 years. They have been used more frequently in the last 10 years to treat neck and back pain arising from car crashes. There is a lot of medical literature discussing them and their effectiveness over time. Visit the Mayo Clinic website for more information about it. The RFN treats a damaged “facet” joint(s) in the spinal vertebral column. A damaged joint sends pain messages to the brain along a known nerve pathway. To determine if the facet joint is the cause of the patients pain, a pain killing agent is injected along the nerve with the aid of a fluoroscope on two different trials. If the pain is then relieved, the next step is to interrupt the nerve’s ability to transmit pain signals through the application of heat. This sounds worse than it actually is since I have undergone RFN’s several times myself. A successful RFN procedure will virtually eliminate the patient’s pain for 8-12 months. I have heard my clients explain how relieved they were to finally be without pain. However, the process has to be repeated since the…
Read MoreSmall Town Friendly, Big City Experience and Expertise
November 23, 2010 | Adriel B. VillarrealWhen someone is injured, they can quickly find out that the insurance companies that could not be nicer to them when they paid their premiums, may not be fair in their assessment of an accident. For that reason, Personal Injury attorney John Buchman advises his clients “to not become a victim twice. The first time can’t be helped-something happened to you. Don’t assume that your insurance company will be fair. You can prevent being a victim a second time by hiring a good lawyer. Why wait and hope they might be fair?” Our Minnesota Personal Injury lawyers have experience in may different types of cases and they will work with you to learn everything about your injury. At BGS, you will work directly with an attorney working on your case. You will receive personal attention and be treated like your case is important. We think every case is important because it is important to you. Unlike some large personal injury-only law firms, we take a very personal approach to helping you. We can offer a local, small town friendly feel, but have the experience and expertise to support your case.
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