Drinking and driving endangers everyone on the road. In Nebraska, alcohol contributes to more than one thousand collisions each year. These crashes can have life-changing or even deadly consequences for victims. Drunk driving is also an escalating concern, with the Nebraska State Patrol reporting a sharp increase in DUI crashes and arrests in recent years.
Unfortunately, though DUI arrests and prosecutions punish defendants for criminal wrongdoing, they don’t result in financial recovery for victims, who must seek compensation through civil court processes instead.
At the Law Office of Matthew A. Lathrop, we help clients throughout Nebraska and Iowa navigate litigation and fight for the damages they deserve. Keep reading to learn how Matt and his team helped a retiree recover maximum compensation after a drunk driver caused a crash that left her homebound and in a wheelchair.
The Accident
Our client was driving westbound on a busy road in the late afternoon when another car pulled out from a side street, ran a stop sign, and T-boned her vehicle. The impact sent our 60-year-old client's vehicle off the road, while the other driver’s vehicle crashed into a concrete construction barrier on the opposite side.
Dazed from the collision, the client didn’t see what happened next. Fortunately, witnesses did and reported seeing a visibly intoxicated man jump out of the car and throw several liquor bottles over the barrier. The police investigated, found the bottles, and charged the man with DUI.
The Injuries
The client sustained multiple injuries in the crash. When she hired the Law Office of Matthew A. Lathrop to represent her, neck and back issues were her primary injuries. However, this changed when a deep bruise on her thigh became severely infected and wouldn’t heal.
As the infection worsened, the bruise required regular drainage. Our client saw a wound care specialist who prescribed wound vac therapy. This treatment uses negative pressure, or suction, to draw fluid and bacteria out of the wound, promoting closure. Bonnie’s wound vac treatment continued for four months. Because of how severely the injury affected her mobility, she was homebound and used a wheelchair during this time.
Doctors told her that she was fortunate they’d discovered the infection when they did, as these types of deep infections can quickly become limb- and life-threatening without prompt care.
The medical bills for treating our client’s neck, back, and thigh injuries totaled roughly $75,000.
The Resolution
From the moment he took the case, Matt was determined to help the client recover as much compensation as possible for her debilitating injuries. Here are some of the things he and his team did to ensure a fair recovery:
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Pursued a claim against the drunk driver’s insurance, receiving a prompt, full policy-limits settlement of $25,000.
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Filed a claim against our client’s uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage, receiving a full, policy-limits settlement of $100,000.
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Found and pursued a claim against a second uninsured/underinsured motorist policy and convinced the insurance company to stack the coverage, collecting an additional $50,000 for our client.
Next, they began what Matt jokingly calls, “the real work” -- negotiating the subrogation claim from the client's health insurance company. The insurer paid $32,400 of her medical bills and, now that her claim had been settled, wanted reimbursement. More determined than ever to ensure the best outcome for the client, he convinced the company to use the client's own Medpay coverage to pay the $32,400 subrogation claim.
Matt also used a legal principle called “the made-whole doctrine” to prevent the Medpay insurer from making its own subrogation claim. Under this doctrine, insurance companies can’t seek reimbursement for medical bills until the policyholder has been fully compensated or “made whole” for their injuries.
Throughout the case, Matt and the team at the Law Offices of Matthew A. Lathrop fought tirelessly to help his client secure the compensation and justice she deserves. They ultimately recovered $175,000 and a vital waiver of health insurance payback.
Get Help From Our Experienced Omaha Injury Lawyer
Do you need a Nebraska injury attorney you can trust to protect your rights and fight for your best interests? Complete the contact form or call 402-281-9668 to schedule a complimentary consultation to discuss your case and discover how we might assist you.
