barbados5

I thought maybe all of you travelers would have some good advice for me.
My husband was injured on our flight to SXM.An unsecured beverage cart slammed into his knees.He has permanent damage to one knee and it is wait and see and an MRI on the other to see if the cartilage repairs itself on the other.
My problem is.I cannot get anyone from US AIR to contact us about this.
Anybody have any ideas? Or, similar circumstance?Any ideas would be so appreciated.

Statia

I don't have any particular advice on your situation, but I'm very sorry to hear of this accident. How awful.

You might want to also post this on the airlines forum, as well as www.flyertalk.com. I think you might get some helpful reponses on those two boards.

Good luck.

Tango

I would get a lawyer to call them.

cantstayhome

Ditto on the lawyer - if he's got permanent damage it sounds rather serious. Don't wait.

cantstayhome

By the way, if you do look for a lawyer, don't just look on the back of the yellow pages or call your local 1-800 guy. Try to find someone you know, or someone you know knows, or call your local bar association for a competent referral. Cases involving injuries on a plane are not all that common and there may be unusual legal issues involved. My 2 cents! Or was that 4 ....

mah1980

I am an attorney, and unfortunately, these types of things happen all of the time. I do not know who USAir's liability carrier is, but I went on their website and found their customer complaint information which I've pasted below.

If I were you, I would write to the address below, Attn: Claims Dept., before you go to an attorney. The reason being is that any plaintiff's atty. will take 1/3 of any recovery you get/hope to get. If you can resolve this without an attorney I would suggest doing so.

The airline will forward your husband's information to their liability insurer, who will then assign your claim to a claim rep. This person will then contact your husband and ask for any medical information that you all have, and will also ask that your husband sign a HIPAA release so they can obtain your meds. They will then probably try to offer you a small amount of money to settle.

As long as you have insurance and are okay paying the co-pays I would see how far you can get after a couple of months. If you feel like you are getting low balled or the runaround, I would then try to contact a reputable attorney (read: not an attorney who has ads on tv that say things like "when everyone gets paid, everyone is happy&quot.

Finally, once a dialogue starts between your husband and the insurance rep., make sure you keep in regular contact with them. I don't know what the statute of limitations are where the injury occurred or the state in which US Air has selected in their contract of carriage (each cruise/plane ticket is essentially a contract whereby the airline/cruise company sets forth where any suit must be tried and which state's laws apply), but at the very least there is a 1 year statute of limitations on your husband's injury. Therefore, he would have to file any suit against USAir and their insurer before that period expires. Because of that time issue, many insurance companies drag their feet for quite a while. If you keep in touch with the claims agent and let him/her know that you are proactive and are litigation savvy, then you are decreasing your chances of being jerked around.

To respond promptly to written complaints within 30 days, or sooner.
To promote the Office of Customer Relations as a resource for customers. The Office of Customer Relations can be reached in the following ways:
By e-mail through usairways.com
By telephone: 1-866-523-5333

By US Mail:
US Airways
4000 E. Sky Harbor Blvd
Attn: Customer Relations
Phoenix, AZ 85034

By fax: 1-480-693-2300

cantstayhome

I, too, am a lawyer, but would still recommend finding one sooner rather than later - mainly, as mah1980 mentioned, the statute of limitations could be significantly shorter than you might expect due to any number of reasons. Whether the carrier can contractually shorten the limitations period is questionable, as it would likely be against public policy, but if there is a choice of law provision in the tiny unreadable print somewhere in your ticket terms, you may be stuck with the law of a state that has a shorter period than your own. Yes, a lawyer will take probably 1/3 (you may be able to negotiate an agreement that provides for a lower fee in the event the case is settled before trial), but there are many statistical studies showing that parties represented by lawyers recover more than those who do not. Once their insurance carrier is involved, I would be concerned about whether you'll get a fair shake. I have also been privy to anecdotes from my insurance company worker-friends that insurance companies generally pay less to people who do not have counsel (and definitely less to those represented by Mr. "I'll get you what you deserve!&quot I just don't trust insurance companies! Good luck to you, whatever you do, and I hope that your husband does continue to recover.

One other thought - have you contacted USAir by phone, or in writing? They tend to deal with a piece of paper, so put it in writing if you haven't already.

JAGIRL

I'd get a reputable, experienced, lawyer on that case.
Whatever you decide to do, make sure you only part with the original documents after youve made good copies of them. And always send a covering letter and by courier wherever possible so that you have a receipt.

audreyleigh99

Funny, there are a lot of lawyers on this board! I'm also a lawyer and second the advice given above about finding a reputable lawyer if the injury is that serious. A referral from your state bar association is a great place to start. If you choose not to go that route the other advice about getting/putting things in writing, sending it certified mail/fedex and generally being proactive so they know they can't get away with giving you the run around is good. Good luck and I'm so sorry this happened to you!

ScottB

Considering how much lawyers charge, should't all you folks be working on someones case rather than surfing the travel boards? LOL

barbados5

Thank you so much for all of your advice.
I have gone ahead and gotten in touch with a firm in NYC that deals in avation injury.
I still haven't heard anything from USAIR.
Again, that you all for your help!
I will keep you posted!

cantstayhome

Hey, ScottB, don't worry, I'm not billing anybody else for this (at least not today)! Your bill, however, is in the mail.

JAGIRL

I guess we lawyers have given away the secret of how we spend our time when we're not billing our clients to pay for our vacations!! ;-)

cantstayhome

Of course, JAGIRL, if we were billing time instead of wasting it here (I really don't think it's a waste of time, but others in my office - namely the boss! - might think so) then we could actually GO on our next trip rather than slave away to pay for it!