Tag Archive
Doyle Raizner Files Workers’ Compensation Bad Faith Suit Against ACE, Sedgwick
Doyle Raizner filed a workers’ compensation bad faith lawsuit on April 29, 2011, against Indemnity Insurance Company of North America (“ACE”)–an ACE Group insurer–Sedgwick Claims Managment (the third party claims administator), and their adjuster, on behalf of an employee who was injured on the job in April 2010. Despite documentation of his injury from his employer, ACE denied the employee’s claim for the medical and income benefits he was entitled to under Texas law. ACE only initiated benefits after being ordered to do so by the Texas Department of Insurance, Division of Workers’ Compensation.
Doyle Raizner is proud to assist this injured employee in seeking justice for the actions of ACE, Sedgwick, and their adjuster.
Jeff Raizner Speaks In Front of TAPIA
Jeff Raizner will address the Texas Association of Public Insurance Adjusters (TAPIA) at its meeting on April 20,2011. Jeff, who is an attorney member of TAPIA, will join a panel discussion to provide an update on Texas legislation affecting Public Adjusters and discuss practical and ethical practices for Public Adjusters.
Click here for more information on our work with public adjusters, including TAPIA members.
Doyle Raizner Sponsors 2011 Strake Jesuit Scramble
Doyle Raizner LLP will serve as a shirt sponsor for the 2011 Strake Jesuit Scramble–a golf tournament to benefit Strake Jesuit College Preparatory School. The Scramble will be held on Monday, June 13, 2011, at the Sweetwater County Club in Sugar Land.
Registration is available on Strake Jesuit’s website for sponsorship or to participate in the event.
Doyle Raizner Property Damage App Now Available on iTunes
Doyle Raizner has lauched its second iPhone app, a Property Damage Law Center that provides tools and information in the that will be useful in the event of a property claim due to accidents, fires, natural disasters, and other losses that create a need for homes and businesses to file property insurance claims.
The app is available now for free at the Apple iTunes Store.
The Property Damage Law Center App features include:
- Property loss report form to capture details of your claim
- Tips and information to help you in dealing with your insurance company before and after a claim
- Photo and audio capture to submit with the form
- Access to Doyle Raizner video and social media resources
- Ability to easily contact our attorneys from your iPhone
Business Interruption Claims Begin Arising in Natural Gas Shortage in New Mexico and Texas
The natural gas shortage affecting businesses in New Mexico and Texas resulted in thousands of medium and small businesses without the ability this winter to heat their buildings, manufacture products, or otherwise operate normally. Besides basic operations, closed businesses also lost out on key opportunities.
The losses incurred by business–whether in operations or in lost opportunities–are often covered by business interruption insurance. Under many policies, the loss of utilities can be a covered business interruption claim.
A claim due to a loss of electricity, gas, or other utility can be very complex. The first steps are to determine whether your business’s policy has the appropriate policy provision and to file a claim.
If your business interruption claim has been wrongfully denied, contact an attorney to preserve your rights.
Doyle Raizner Launches Maritime Injury iPhone App
Doyle Raizner has lauched its first iPhone app, a Maritime Injury Law Center aimed at providing resources and easy access to emergency tools in the event of an offshore injury.
The app is available now for free at the Apple iTunes Store.
The Maritime Injury Law Center App features include:
- Offshore injury report form to capture details of an accident
- Photo and audio capture to submit with the form
- Access to Doyle Raizner video and social media
- Ability to easily contact our attorneys from your iPhone
Doyle Raizner Files Workers’ Compensation Bad Faith Suit Against Zurich
Doyle Raizer filed a workers’ compensation insurance bad faith suit on March 23, 2011, against American Zurich Insurance Company (Zurich) and its adjuster. The suit was filed on behalf of an employee who was physically assaulted while working on the job in December 2009. In spite of a wealth of medical and other evidence, Zurich denied the claim, failing to complete even a basic, reasonable investigation. As a result, the injured employee was left without the medical care and income benefits she was entitled to under the law until winning her case at a hearing in front of the Texas Department of Insurance, Division of Workers’ Compensation.
Doyle Raizner stands with this injured employee in seeking justice due to the groundless dispute in her case by Zurich and its adjuster.
TDI Releases Biennial Report on Workers’ Compensation to Texas Legislature
The Texas Department of Insurance, Division of Workers’ Compensation (DWC), recently released its Biennial Report to the Texas Legislature. The report highlights what DWC considers “significant improvments in the system.” These “improvements” include the following:
- Decrease in workers’ compensation insurance premiums of 40% since 2003;
- Increased number of employers who are workers’ compensation policyholders;
- Increased number of workers’ compensation health care networks; and
- Decrease in non-fatal workers’ compensation claims of 19% since 2005.
While these and many of the other statistics from DWC’s report may appear promising at first glance, the report merely presents statistics and does not analyze several areas of Texas workers’ compensation law where change is most urgently needed. The report is focused on selected statistics, and even those numbers do not tell the whole story.
The expansion of health care networks has removed some of the best-qualified doctors from injured employees’ access, and it has stripped injured employees of the ability to choose and retain a doctor of their own choice. They are left with a few doctors that have been hand-picked by their insurance companies to cut corners and prematurely cut off care to injured employees.
Injured employees in rural areas are especially hard hit, and they are frequently left without a nearby network doctor and cannot even get travel reimbursements from their insurer.
A mere decrease in claims fails to account for an increase in the number of claims that are not pursued due to insurer denials. And the report does not even present denial statistics, besides to note that they are being “tracked.” Moreover, this statistic is unreliable due to decreased economic activity overall.
And Texas still remains the only state in the nation that permits employers to opt out of workers’ compensation coverage, leaving 17% of Texas employees uncovered by workers’ compensation insurance if they are injured on the job.
DWC is focused on statistics, but
Doyle Raizner Files Workers’ Compensation Bad Faith Suit Against Liberty Mutual
On March 4, 2011, Doyle Raizner filed a workers compensation bad faith suit against Liberty Mutual insurer Wausau Business Insurance Corporation and its adjuster on behalf of an employee who was injured on the job in June 2009. Wausau initially approved only some of the medical care requested by the injured employee’s doctors, including denying medical attention for the injured employee’s spinal injuries. At the same time, after initially approving treatment for the employee’s other injuries, Wausau denied follow-up treatment for the employee’s pre-approved surgery, including complications that caused permanent and grave damage to the employee’s urinary and reproductive systems. Wausau even denied income benefits to the employee while he was recovering from this injury.
Doyle Raizner is proud to help this injured employee in his fight to recover from the damage caused by Wausau and its adjuster.
Workers’ Compensation Attorney Sues Texas Department of Insurance
John Gibson, a Lubbock, Texas workers’ compensation attorney, filed suit against the Texas Department of Insurance, Division of Workers’ Compensation (DWC), on February 21, 2011. Mr. Gibson is seeking a declaratory judgment, permitting him to continue the publication of his blog, dedicated to Texas workers’ compensation law. DWC had sent Mr. Gibson a cease-and-desist letter on February 7, 2011, that cited the Texas Labor Code in requesting him to stop the use of the words “Texas” along with either “Workers’ Compensation” or “Workers’ Comp.”
Mr. Gibson’s petition, available through his website, points out that DWC’s reading of the Texas Labor Code would prohibit virtually any use of these terms by doctors, lawyers, politicians, or other professionals. Among other rationales, Mr. Gibson’s petition states that the statute is unconstitutional under the First Amendment.
More information is available here and through Mr. Gibson’s website.
