Customer Reviews

How to Win Your Personal Injury Claim, 3rd Ed

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I would recommend you buy this book which is published by Nolo Press, which is probably the most prominent self-help legal publisher. It is a very good overview and covers alot. If you had to buy one book only, this is it.


I had also bought "Car Accident Secrets" which is written by an insurance "insider". I don't really recommend it. It only provided general/basic info. which is covered by Joseph Matthew's book. Good luck.

I had a boating accident (I was a passenger) in 2001. I heard terrible stories from people who had hired lawyers and ended up with nothing. I bought this book and after 2 years of medical procedures & appointments, when I was done, I composed a letter requesting $85,000 from the insurance company (who had already been paying all my medical bills), State Farm. The policy was for $100,000 and the boat owner had only made one month's payment. I figured I would negotiate down to $65,000 minimum. I reasoned that if I ended up having to get a lawyer, I would ask for the $100,000 and end up with $66,000 (lawyer would get 30 percent). With my letter, documentation and before, during and after pictures, State Farm ended up awarding me $90,000. $5,000 more than I had requested. I highly recommend this book, but you must be thorough and patient. It's a lot of "legwork". A lot of research and stuff, but who knows your "pain and suffering" better than you. Certainly not a lawyer!!! The money is gone, but I used it to keep my paralyzed 83 year old mom at home with a caregiver until she passed away!

This book gets to the point. It covers many areas of claims. Easy to understand and great examples. It personally worked for me. Well worth the purchase. I'm keeping this book in my library for any, heaven provide, possible future needs.

I bought this book after two big-name lawyers refused to take my case and a third one offered to help me in a small claims court for a third of the final settlement amount. Since the max reward in a CA sall claims court is $5,000, after a third was taken out, I would hardly be able to pay off all my medical bills. But after reading this book and following its instructions on how to collect evidence and how to write a demand letter, I was able to settle my own claim for $4,750.00.
Anyone that is stressed and confused about what to do after being in a car accident will find this extremely helpful.

This is the second NOLO book I've bought ("patent it yourself" was the first), and I'm equally impressed at its organization and vital usefulness. This guidebook is as essential for navigating a damages or personal injury claim as a travel guide is for navigating a new city. It specifically lists steps that you need to take, forms that you need to fill out (including their URLs when possible), letters that you need to write, and walks you through the whole process. It also informs you what types of shenanigans insurance companies can and cannot get away with.

90% of my legal questions were answered in this book, so that when I finally met with a legal ad adviser face to face, I was well prepared and only needed to ask a few more nuanced questions.

My car was totaled and without collision coverage, I was forced to deal with the other guy's insurance company directly (Liberty Mutual, ranked one of the lowest in consumer reports because of their aggressive tactics when filing a claim). Liberty Mutual denied liability without giving any written justification even though their guy hit me while taking a left turn. This book has prepared me for the fight though. I plan to represent myself in small claims court.

This book is also more useful and broadly applicable than just personal injuries. In my auto accident, I was not injured and was not even considering faking, so most attorneys wouldn't take my case. But I just ignored the chapters on personal injury and focused on the sections discussing liability and property damages.

I was rear-ended in 2010 just 18 days after I purchased a brand new car. This car immediately lost its value and I was injured in the crash. I could have hired an attorney to settle my claim, but I first wanted to see what it might be worth and how the system worked. This book was extremely helpful. I was able to successfully resolve the property damage claim for a reasonable amount and the bodily injury claim as well all without hiring an attorney. The book has a lot of good advice and sample letters to assist in writing claims and what to do to negotiate or further pursue the claim after the first few settlement offers. This book, along with a lot of patience, was very helpful in my settling my own claim. I'm very glad I purchased it.

This book is fine, just as described. Only problem is that it is two editions too old and it clearly is just basic info.... speaking from experience: There is no step by step formula for anything in a claim or case or anything dealing with the law or laws. So, yes I would recommend to anyone needing basic steps and procedures but nothing more.

This book has helped me tremendously in dealing with my insurance company after a complicated auto accident. While I ended up hiring an attorney since the driver who caused the accident was uninsured, I still feel this book helped me along the way. It is interesting to note that when I did hire my attorney, suddenly my evasive insurance company couldn't wait to pay the damages on my car. I also negotiated a better settlement that their first offer, which could NOT replace my car realistically. My attorney did not handle this end of the damages, but his presence sure helped. This book is really designed to help avoid hiring an attorney, but it also is helpful to give you an idea about "handling" insurance adjusters (the least friendly part of the experience) and how to keep track of events as they unfold with your case. This knowledge has helped me help my attorney win, which is invaluable.
Insurance sure has changed since my last auto accident over 30 yr. ago, and I needed a map of the territory. This book provided the map I needed. Rather than feel intimidated by "the system" and their bad faith practices, I have been empowered to fight in my own behalf. Highly recommended to anyone in a similar position.

This is an excellent, easy to understand book. It offers a clear way to evaluate the value of your claim. It also helps you understand when you might handle the case yourself and when it might be better to pay a lawyer.

It helped me evaluate my own case, then I bought a copy for my mother after she was hit by a tow truck driver who had a suspended license.

Highly recommended.

This book was a great purchase. It explained the details and steps of a personal injury claim in plain english. It gave sample letters for different types of accidents and provided information relative to each state since state laws tend to vary. Unfortunately our accident ended up being to complex so we needed to hire an attorney, but if it remained a simple case, I'm sure we could have done just fine using this book.