South Carolina Injury Law Journal - Anderson and Greenville Lawyer & Attorney Workers' Compensation Cases, Product Liability Lawsuits, and Accidents

I can't stand by silently watching so many people be duped by the calm, collective gentleman touting the wonders of Allstate Insurance Company through it's "accident forgiveness", "safe driving bonus", & other cute deductible programs through a commercial or website. Reminding people they are in "Good Hands" with Allstate. Those "Good Hands":

• garnered the #1 spot as the worst insurance company in 2008;
• have a website entitled Allstate Insurance Company Sucks that has garnered national attention and received accreditation by Forbes as the #1 Best Corporate Complaint Site;
• Allstate was banned from writing automobile insurance in Florida last year (2008);
• David Berardinelli wrote a book entitled, "From 'Good Hands', to Boxing Gloves", it tells the story of the key role played by management consultant McKinsey & Co. in re-engineering auto insurance claims operations at Allstate Corp. (ALL ) -- and it's a story Allstate doesn't want told.

Let me share another perspective of Allstate Insurance Company (sucks) that you will not find out about until you actually need to use them through a claim, injury, or traumatic event where someone hits you and has Allstate Insurance. Or better yet, and I love it when I explain this to clients, YOU have Allstate Insurance through your Uninsured or Underinsured insurance coverage and they:

• deny your claim or play hardball;
• Delay your claim; and
• Or the funniest, make you have to file a law suit while they defend the at fault party. That's right they (Allstate) defend the party that caused you injury while you try and get compensated through your Underinsured coverage.  Ask a representative today if you think I am lying.

If you have never had to file a claim or utilize the benefits of your own insurance coverage then you have no idea the process that you have to go through when dealing with Allstate. 

Allstate may provide you with a couple dollars savings over another insurance company on the front end but what good is paying an insurance premium if you are not going to be able to utilize those benefits when you need them?--Trey Mills

When Allstate gives you problems, hold on tightly and give us a call to try and get their hands off from around your neck.

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We know insurance companies are hard enough to deal with on domestic claims. Can you imagine having to deal with insurance companies as a foreign, or international, person not able to speak the language and working in a war zone?  It appears that not too many foreign workers really have to worry about that because they never are informed of their rights or benefits to begin with. Benefits that are paid for by U.S. taxpayers to insurance companies.

The Los-Angeles Times and Pro-Publica did a joint investigation entitled "Forgotten Warriors" & "Disposable Army", respectively, highlighting the blatant and rampant abuse into the federally financed program that is supposed to provide workers' compensation insurance to civilian contractors working in Iraq and Afghanistan. A program that has failed to deliver medical care and other benefits to many foreign workers and their survivors.

The series of articles illustrate in more depth the following highlights:

• Defense Base Act- a law requiring insurance for civilians working in war zones. Companies providing services to the U.S. government must secure a special type of workers' compensation coverage for their employees, both American and foreign. The insurance covers all injuries and deaths, whether caused by workplace accidents or roadside bombs. Companies bill the cost to U.S. taxpayers as part of their government contracts.
• AIG, Or A.I.U,- whatever they call themselves now- is the largest Insurer involved in this debacle. Insurers collected more than $1.5 billion in premiums paid by U.S. taxpayers and have earned nearly $600 million in profit, according to congressional investigators.
• A military audit was done and determined that A.I.G's premiums were "unreasonably high".
• Insurance Companies -A.I.G & CNA Financial Corp were cited as the main culprits.
• DynCorp, KBR Inc., Prime Projects International of Dubai, & Qatar International were some of the higher employers of foreign nationals in war zones.

"It's almost like we're this invisible, discardable military. Once we've done our jobs, they can actually sidetrack us and not worry about us anymore," said Tim Newman, a sheriff's deputy from South Carolina who lost his leg to a roadside bomb in Baghdad. Once back home, he fought an insurance company for a year to get a prosthetic leg that his doctors recommended.

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I graduated from Mid-Carolina High School in 1996 after having gone through some trials on a personal level and then actually living to come back 13 years later as the commencement speaker was not only emotional but very special, to say the least.

It was great seeing all the talented, hard working, dedicated, and truly special teachers that impacted my life a decade or more ago, still passing along their gifts.  The new high school facility is amazing and I am so happy to see those educators, administrators, students, and parents being provided the framework. They already had the content, now they have the beautiful exterior cover.

Thank you Mid-Carolina for having me. I have posted the transcript of my speech online and you can click on Mid-Carolina Graduation Speech 2009-Trey Mills  for those that had requested same.

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The amount of traffic and pedestrian fatalities seemed to be one article after another this past week/weekend.  As summer begins don't let your focus change. Always remember your duties to be responsible on the roadways of South Carolina. Here were some of the articles reported by The Greenville News & Anderson Independent:

• Easley Man Killed on 183- a one car crash involving Mr. Oswaldo Carrera Hernandez, speed was indicated as a factor in the wreck;
• Motorcyclist, Moped Rider Die in Taylors Crash-the motorcyclist, Joe Pannell, who was wearing a helmet, died of blunt-force trauma on the way to the hospital Friday. The moped driver, Brian Cote, died Saturday morning, about 11 hours after the crash. Highway Patrol Lance Cpl. Bryan McDougald said Cote, was eastbound in a 35 mph zone on East Main in Taylors when he turned into Pannell's path. Cote was not wearing a helmet;
• Pickens Man Dies in Moped Crash- A 41-year-old Pickens man was killed Saturday night when the Honda moped he was riding crashed on Mount Bethel Road, when he lost control of the moped and hit a ditch. He was pronounced dead at the scene. The article went on to report that, "Nationally, there were almost 5,200 motorcycle deaths in 2007, up 6 percent from the almost 4,900 deaths from the year before, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration."
• Dodge Ram Sought in Fatal Greer Hit-Run-State troopers are investigating a Greer pedestrian's death as a hit-and-run and are trying to confirm who was driving the pickup that struck him.The driver of the Dodge Ram left the scene after striking the man, who was westbound on the shoulder of State 290 at 8:55 a.m. Sunday.  The pedestrian has been identified as James Roper James, 49, of Greer;
• Brothers Killed in Westside Crash- Two brothers from Mexico were killed in a freakish three-vehicle accident on Farrs Bridge Road near the Greenville-Pickens line on Wednesday evening. Jesus and Juan Zamora-Barrera were killed when their Ford pickup collided with the cab of a tractor-trailer cab that was towing a backhoe on a lowboy trailer; and

• Belton Woman Faces Charges After Fatal Wreck-as reported by the Anderson Independent-A 21-year-old woman, Kelly McCoy of Belton, was arrested and charged with felony driving under the influence and open container after a wreck that killed 56-year old Jack Hall Jr. of Fork Shoals. McCoy was driving her 2005 Honda north on Fairview Road when she crossed over the center line and struck Hall’s Chevrolet pickup truck, killing him instantly.  

If you, a loved one, friend, family member, and/or enemy need a free consultation after having been injured as a result of someone's ignorance, negligence, or omission, please feel free to call upon an experienced personal injury attorney that can assist you in this delicate and confusing process.

Remember:

"Insurance companies don't make money paying it out in claims. They make money, keeping it away from you. Personal Injury attorneys make money based on a percentage they get for you from the insurance companies. Whose interest are aligned with yours and whose interest are not aligned with yours?"  --Trey Mills

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Our South Carolina Governor, Mark Sanford, has been in a long and very publicized battle with the General Assembly over how to appropriate the State Fiscal Stabilization (SFS) funds under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, aka Federal Stimulus monies, allotted to South Carolina.  The battle has finally come to a head with the South Carolina Supreme Court ruling in Edwards and Williams v. State and SCASA v. Sanford:

We hold under the circumstances presented that a writ of mandamus is warranted and issue a writ of mandamus* to compel Governor Sanford to apply for the SFS funds and take all legal and necessary steps to effectuate the State’s receipt of the SFS funds for the purposes as set forth by Congress.

*(Excerpt from the case explaining writs of mandamus)

The Supreme Court has the power to issue writs of mandamus.  S.C. Const. art. V, § 5; S.C. Code Ann. § 14-3-310 (1976).  Mandamus is the highest judicial writ known to the law.  Brackenbrook N. Charleston, LP v. County of Charleston, 360 S.C. 390, 400, 602 S.E.2d 39, 45 (2004).  It is a coercive writ which orders a public official to perform a ministerial duty.  Wilson v. Preston, 378 S.C. 348, 354, 662 S.E.2d 580, 582 (2008); Ex Parte Littlefield, 343 S.C. 212, 222, 540 S.E.2d 81, 86 (2000). 

For a writ of mandamus to issue, the following must be shown: (1) a duty of the Respondent to perform the act; (2) the ministerial nature of the act; (3) the Petitioner’s specific legal right for which discharge of the duty is necessary; and (4) a lack of any other legal remedy. Wilson v. Preston, 378 S.C. at 354, 662 S.E.2d at 583.  A ministerial act or duty is one which a person performs because of a legal mandate which is defined with such precision as to leave nothing to the exercise of discretion. Id. at 354, 662 S.E.2d at 583

(Picture from The State article entitled, "Stimulus Battle Might End by Weekend + Video")

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