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You suffer a car accident. A few days later you get a call. It’s a chiropractor. That’s right. A chiropractor you’ve never met is now calling you. He asks if you are hurt. He suggests you schedule an appointment. If you are not hurt, he may still offer to help. If you show any interest, he suddenly suggests a specific lawyer.
One moment you are sitting in your den. The very next moment you have a strange chiropractor and strange lawyer ready to “work” your case. What started as a personal injury scam in other states has now made its way to Alabama.
Let me just stop at this point and tell you the obvious. This is a scam to enrich the chiropractor and lawyer at your expense. Ethical lawyers don’t call you out of the blue. Good trial lawyers don’t chase ambulances or make deals with chiropractors to chase cases. When your case is done, the ambulance chasing chiropractor and lawyer will walk away with the bulk of your settlement. Don’t think I’m criticizing all chiropractors. I’m certainly not. I’m only criticizing those lawyers and those chiropractors who engage in this bad behavior.
Earlier this year, I received a call from a gentleman hurt in a car wreck. He hired a well known Alabama television and billboard lawyer who used this trick to sign clients. Why was he calling me if he already had a lawyer? He was upset. The chiropractor had run up huge charges based on very questionable treatment. Then, he learned that the at-fault driver only had minimum liability coverage of $25,000. He was genuinely hurt in the wreck. He went to the hospital and had a significant bill for that care. His case, before the chiropractor / lawyer duo became involved, was already worth all the available coverage. Why incur more needless charges? Now, the lawyer was telling him his settlement money would pay the chiropractor for “questionable” treatment instead of going into the hurt man’s pocket. Why did the lawyer not explain the process at the beginning so the client could choose a different option?
A bad Google review for a different billboard lawyer in Huntsville makes the same point – when the case was done the chiropractor and lawyer took almost all the money. These ambulance chasers put the interest of their clients last.
When I’m talking with someone who calls our office after an injury, they will often tell me their cell phone has been ringing “off the hook” with calls from chiropractors, investigators or lawyers. Years ago, a Huntsville DUI lawyer would access arrest reports and send letters to people fishing to be their criminal defense attorney. The same guy now has billboards angling for all types of cases. These tactics may be legal but they are a terrible blight upon the legal profession and courts.
This chiropractor “scam” hurts injured people in many ways. Here are six:
If you are hurt in a car or truck crash, don’t fall for these ambulance chasers. Take your time. Focus on healing. Research and discuss your legal options before making any decision.
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At the Blackwell Law Firm, we specialize in personal injury cases. Our philosophy is to prepare every single case as if it is going to trial. We believe this preparation makes a huge difference for our clients.