CGWC Orlando Injury Attorney Blog

Orlando, Florida

Prepare For Hurricane Season - Sunday, May 31, 2009

Hurricane Season begins Monday and Floridians know from recent hurricane activity that you have to plan for the worst while hoping for the best. Proper planning before the hurricane season can save heartache and pain after a storm strikes.

Stock your home with emergency supplies including a 3-5 day supply of water and non-perishable food. Make sure you have an extra supply of prescription medications, baby supplies, or other items necessary to meet your family's medical needs. Battery operated flashlights, lamps, and radios will be needed when the storm shuts down power in the area, which often can last for days. Have a first aid kit on hand.

For more information on hurricane preparedness and to develop your own family plan for the season, visit the websites of the National Hurrican Center, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and the Florida Division of Emergency Management.

After the storm, if your insurance company denies you coverage for damage to your home, car or personal property, call CGWC for a free consultation with our experienced insurance coverage attorneys about your legal rights.


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Choose The Right Insurance Coverage Carefully - Saturday, May 30, 2009

We've all been there. You are pestered for months by an insurance salesman for an appointment. Then, in a rushed meeting, knowing you need the insurance, you sign the last one or two pages of a lengthy application for the policy, after a half hour of mostly friendly banter, checkered with questions about your health or the number of cars you drive or the number of drivers in your household. The salesman completes the application during this seemingly social chat session, and you sign the last page without carefully reading over the whole document and the answers the salesman checked on the preprinted form. Then you bid the insurance salesman a friendly farewell and assume you've got the "full coverage" you needed.

A few months later, the worst happens. An auto accident that's not your fault. It turns out the other driver is uninsured. Medical bills are going into collection and you're out of work with no end in sight. You finally meet with a lawyer for help. And you learn, you don't have the right insurance to cover your accident - - uninsured motorist coverage -- which pays you when the other driver has no insurance. Or, you die unexpectedly, having thought that you had protected your family with life insurance. Your wife files a claim, and the insurance company investigates the application the salesman filled out and learns a question was answered incorrectly about your health history. The life insurance company denies your claim and returns to your wife only the premiums you paid. And you're not alive to tell anyone that you didn't fill out the application, the agent did.

Bottom line? Applying for insurance is serious business, perhaps one of the most serious meetings you'll ever have. And the insurance agent or broker is first and foremost a salesman, who wants your signature on the dotted line as fast as he can get it, so he can move on to the next prospect. READ YOUR APPLICATION CAREFULLY before signing ANY application for automobile insurance or life insurance. Insist that any errors, mis-statements or false statements be corrected. And make sure you haven't signed anything rejecting important coverage, like uninsured motorist coverage.

If your insurance company has denied a claim, you need an experienced insurance attorney to help you navigate the legal system to get the benefits you paid for. Call CGWC for a free consultation.

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Have A Safe Memorial Day - Saturday, May 23, 2009

Memorial Day began evolving in 1868 in remembrance of Union and Confederate soldiers who died in action in the Civil War. Flowers were placed that year on the graves of Union and Confederate Soldiers at what is now Arlington National Cemetery. New York was the first state to recognize Memorial Day as a holiday, and by 1890 all northern states had followed suit. The South refused to recognize the day, honoring Confederate dead on a different day, until after World War I when the day of remembrance was expanded to include honoring dead American soldier of all wars. Memorial Day became a national holiday celebrated in its current form in 1971.

If you are enjoying a Memorial Day outing, remember the men and women of the United States Military who have given their lives so that the rest of us can enjoy the liberty and freedom our founding fathers sought to guarantee in the U.S. Constitution. Drive safely, wear your seatbelt, don't drink and drive, and remember safety first when enjoying any water sports, cookouts, hiking, or other outings.

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Hospital CEO's Rake In Profits - Monday, May 18, 2009

Despite all the whining about "lawsuit abuse", poor patients unable to pay bills, illegal immigrants clogging up emergency rooms, and insurance companies putting the squeeze on health care businesses, operating a hospital can apparently be a very profitable enterprise. That's especially true in Central Florida. Florida Hospital's CEO made over a million dollars in 2007. The CEO of Florida Hospital's parent company, Adventist Health Systems, made 3.5 million dollars. The CEO of Orlando Health made almost a million dollars. This almost sounds like the horror stories coming from Wall Street. There's something wrong when the CEO of a supposedly non-profit hospital that pays no taxes is making seven figures while the nurses make 15-20 times less. Isn't there?

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Boating Accidents - Sunday, May 17, 2009

Spring is here, and everyone in Florida knows that boating can be fun. Boating can also be very dangerous. According to the U.S. Coast Guard, there are about 5,000 reportable boating accidents annually that result in injuries, deaths, and tens of millions of dollars in damages. The most common causes of boating accidents are operator inattention, operator negligence, recklessness or carelessness, excessive speed and alcohol use. While over 2/3 of fatalities involved drowning, 90% of those failed to wear life jackets. Only 14% of boating accidents resulting in death were on boats whose operators had received boating safety instructions.

Families of those injured or killed in boating accidents face a legal system complicated by state boating laws and possibly federal admiralty statutes when the accident occurs on navigable waters. This is true whether the accident happens on commercial vessels or personal recreational watercraft, like Seadoos, Jet ski's, bass boats, or deck boats. If you or a loved one has been injured in a boating accident, call CGWC for a free consultation.

Forklift Accidents Common Cause of Worker Injuries - Tuesday, May 12, 2009

One of the most common types of on the job accidents at industrial or construction sites are forklift accidents. These accidents are often the result of poorly trained operators, or negligent operation, such at improper backing techniques, improper turning, inadequate warnings to others that a forklift is in operation nearby, poor communication during shared tasks, and fatigued operators. Accidents can also be caused by poorly maintained forklifts, malfunction of steering, brakes or other component forklift functions, inadequate or malfunctioning safety devices, such as back-up alarms, and "blind spots" or obstructions to the operator's view.

Accidents can be the fault of operators, employers or other contractors, or a defective or malfunctioning forklift. Those responsible can include contractors, subcontractors, or even manufacturers, suppliers, or rental companies who sell, rent, service or maintain the equipment. Remedies can include claims for workers compensation benefits as well as claims for personal injury or wrongful death. If you or a loved one has been injured in a forklift accident, call CGWC for a free consultation.

Ten Most Deadly Driving Mistakes - Friday, May 08, 2009

Some driving mistakes cause more deaths than others. The worst mistake is swerving out of one's own lane. In 2007 alone over 15,000 people died from drivers simply swerving out of their own lane of travel. Other fatal driving mistakes include:

Driving while fatigued;

Drinking and driving;

Over-correcting;

Speeding;

Failure to yield right of way;

Reckless driving;

Running red lights;

Not wearing a seatbelt; and

Driving while distracted.

If you or a loved one has been injured in a motor vehicle accident, contact CGWC for a free consultation.


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Hydroxycut Diet Drug Recalled - Saturday, May 02, 2009

Hydroxycut, a popular diet supplement, has been recalled by the FDA. The supplement has been shown to cause serious liver injuries, including liver failure and death. Symptoms of liver injury can include jaundice, brown urine, vomiting, light colored stool, weakness, fatigue, and loss of appetite.

This is another wake-up call that there is no "quick fix" for weight loss and that many popular "magic pills" are not only ineffective but dangerous. If you are taking Hydroxycut, stop immediately and instead, get proper exercise and eat a balanced diet.

If you or a family member have liver damage from taking Hyroxycut or other diet supplements, you may want to know your legal rights. Call CGWC for a free consultation.

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