Seatbelts Save Lives-and Recoveries!

When injured in an automobile accident, one damages component you frequently hear about is Pain and Suffering. While many politicians have tried to correlate "pain and suffering" with "frivolous," pain and suffering is just a catchall category for what we call the intangible damages. Things like the frustration at not being able to go throw the football with a child, not pursuing a hobby, not being able to dance with a spouse or climb that last fourteener. Very real losses, but one's that are very hard to monetarily quantify. In the cases that my firm handles, these losses can often far exceed the economic losses like medical bills or wage loss.

Did you know that if you are injured in an accident and were not wearing your seatbelt, the Colorado Legislature enacted a law that says you forfeit the ability to be compensated for non-economic damages? I know it seems crazy that the at fault party could be less responsible for the damages they cause just because of you didn't have a seatbelt on.

These type of laws are collectively referred to as "Tort Reform." Every time you hear about a new "tort-reform" law, what it really means is that some injured person will have fewer options to get compensated for their very real damages. As the House and Senate in Washington debates "Health Care Reform" beware of any provisions that purport to "stop lawsuit abuse" or to "protect doctors." These are carefully crafted ways of saying Tort Reform, and in the end, an injured party will lose out.

So, today's message is WEAR YOUR SEATBELTS, and look out for Tort Reform-It kills a case that could be your only hope!