This happens quite a bit to innocent, hard-working people who are hurt on the job due to no fault of their own. What can be done in this situation when there is no workers’ compensation insurance available? In Massachusetts, the Department of Industrial Accidents has a Trust Fund which is set up for this very purpose. […]

No, and here is the Massachusetts law on the subject: Exclusion of Seat Belt Belt Evidence “Failure to wear a properly fastened safety belt shall not be considered as contributory negligence or used as evidence in any civil action.” G.L. c. 90, § 13A, as added by 1993 Mass. Acts 387, § 3.

Does the fact that you were partly at fault mean you cannot bring a claim for personal injuries in Massachusetts? No. In Massachusetts, as long as you are not more than 50% responsible for a car crash, then you may still make a claim. However, the amount of your settlement will be reduced by the […]

Generally in Massachusetts, if you slip and fall at a retail store, the store will refuse to give to you a copy of the incident report. The insurance adjuster assigned to your claim will also refuse to give to you a copy, even if you have an attorney working the case for you. Usually, the only way […]

I receive many calls each year from people injured from slip and fall, and trip and fall accidents on Boston sidewalks. Sometimes, if it can be shown you fell on a privately owned section of the sidewalk, your case may be a decent case. However, if you fell on a publicly owned section of the […]

Yes, absolutely you need to carry automobile liability insurance in Massachusetts. The minimum bodily injury policy requirement in Massachusetts is $20k/$40k. That means that if you cause an accident, and only one person is injured, that person can collect up to $20k in bodily injury payments from your auto insurance carrier. If you injure more […]

Congratulations to all the courageous, dedicated and inspiring individuals who ran the 115th Boston Marathon yesterday. The women’s race was especially exhilarating to watch as it came down to the very end. I recently took up running about two months ago, and I could not imagine running 26.2 miles! I hope to run a half-marathon […]

The aftermath of a personal injury accident can be unnerving. If for example you were injured in a car accident, you may be receiving phone calls from an insurance adjuster. People understandably want to know if they need to speak with the insurance adjuster who is calling. The answer is no, they do not have […]

Yes. If you have been injured in a Massachusetts slip and fall accident, and you have MassHealth coverage, and MassHealth pays for your medical bills, they will have a lien against monies you obtain via settlement. A lien means MassHealth has an enforceable legal interest in money that you recover from the person or company […]

Ann Douglas of doorfly.com has requested that I post her article on the topic of flood insurance called “10 Ways To Know You Need Flood Insurance.” Hopefully this article is useful for my readers inside as well as outside of Massachusetts. Here it is: 10 Ways to Tell You Need Flood Insurance Posted on April 11, 2011 by admin […]