South Carolina Injury Law Journal

17 Years Of Accomplishments, Reflections, and Experiences

Trey Mills — Tue, 08 May 2012 06:57:35 -0500

I usually reserve these self reflective articles for Fridays or on specific anniversaries but for some reason I felt compelled to sing to the high hills all the wonderful things life has provided me as I reflected this morning not just on my ripe old age of 34 but on my upcoming anniversary from 17 years of remission with leukemia. You see, I doubled my age. That may not be relevant to anyone that has never had a life threatening scare with cancer or some other trauma but it is relevant to me and therefore very relevant to want to express that joy.

First and foremost I am most blessed to be in a loving relationship with a beautiful woman that allows me to call her wifey, among other adoring names. Speaking of anniversaries, we just celebrated our first year of marriage and lucky for my chemo zapped brain my birthday, our anniversary, and her birthday all fall within a two week period of each other. Mrs. Kristen Mills has been a life saving relationship, companion, and lover.

Secondly, my family and her family remain close and constantly involve each other in their daily living. Dealing with clients for a living I see so many instances of where families are not supportive or sustainable for a litany of reasons. I am happy to have my father, step-mother, and more immediate family members along with Kristen's family to be so loving and caring about any time that can be spent as a family.

Thirdly, I am fortunate to have had the professional opportunities to be a partner in a law firm that shares my last name. There are no long lines of doctors or lawyers in my family. Just me. How I got here and down this path to legal litigation, God only knows. More importantly, I am fortunate to absolutely love what I do for a living when I see so many struggle day in and day out at something that makes them miserable. Couple that with the fact that every income I earn comes directly from the operating account of insurance companies and I almost feel like I have a connection straight to heaven where any misdeeds in my life have been erased. Like the crusaders of days past, I am truly doing God's work.

In 17 years after my cancer diagnosis with a two week prognosis and worrying how my family could afford the medical bills and treatment if the health insurance company got its way in wiggling out of their responsibility in paying for them by trying to find loopholes in my parents' benefits:

I am fortunate to have my health;
I am fortunate to have my wife;
I am fortunate that we are so blessed with with such loving families.

Insurance companies are not so fortunate because:

I love what I do;
I hate everything about what they do;
My wife and I like nice things, vacations, and giving back to the community (all paid for directly from insurance companies).

I will never forget someone saying that "insurance companies are just untouchable" when all that was going on and my parents were trying to figure out how to pay for my treatment. No they are not.

You just have to hit insurance companies in the wallet where it hurts because they don't have hearts. --Trey Mills

F___ You If You Have Never Had Cancer!

Living the Dream: While Looking Behind the Curtain

The Greatest New Year's Resolution Ever

Charity Events Don't Just Help the Cause-They Help the Contributor

Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's South Carolina Man & Woman of the Year!

Hello 15 Years of Remission from Cancer, So Good to See You

Crashes and Falls Leading Causes of Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBI)

Trey Mills — Sun, 22 Apr 2012 14:27:17 -0500

Traumatic Brain Injuries are said to be the leading cause of death in South Carolinians from the ages of 1-44, per statistics from the Brain Injury Association of South Carolina. The known leading causes for TBI are said to be falls and motor vehicle collisions according to the Brain Injury Association of America.

As illustrated in a recent article in The Greenville News, TBI affects a range of cognitive, behavioral, emotional and physical functions, which can include anything from problems with short-term memory, personality changes and speech impediment to lack of coordination and persistent fatigue. As awareness of these type injuries is increasing, there are still believed to be over 60,000 South Carolinians living with traumatic brain injuries.

Rebecca Hadel was in a t-bone collision when she sustained a traumatic brain injury, along with other severe physical injuries. The Greenville News article, "Recovering, Step by Step", highlights her personal story along with information about TBI. As Hadel states in the article:

“Brain injuries don’t ever go away...”

To learn more about traumatic brain injuries and the resources available, click on any of the below links:

Collateral Source Rule: Why Your Personal Injury Settlement is Not Valued on Co-Pays

Trey Mills — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 10:22:10 -0500

Inevitably I will have clients that make the poor decision to try and work things out with the at fault party's insurance adjuster, thinking the at fault insurance company would "do the right thing."

As I have written in the past on "How Do Insurance Companies Make Money?" & since copyrighted my favorite quote:

"Would you listen to the devil on how to get to Heaven? Then why do you listen to insurance companies on how to settle claims against them?" -Trey Mills

Having only practiced close to seven (7) years doing 100% personal injury, it is hard not to be cynical and disbelieving of anything insurance companies do or say. As an attorney I am held to a higher standard legally and ethically but for some reason the insurance adjuster can dispense false "legal advice" with no consequences. Most times what you say, can not be proven. Always ask for what the insurance adjusters tell you in writing.

Therefore, when the insurance company offers to pay your medical bills at what you paid in co-pays or reduced costs because you are fortunate to have health or supplemental insurance THEY ARE TRYING TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF YOU.

In South Carolina the law states: The collateral source rule provides "that compensation received by an injured party from a source wholly independent of the wrongdoer will not reduce the damages owed by the wrongdoer." Citizens and S. Natl. Bank of South Carolina v. Gregory, 320 S.C. 90, 92, 463 S.E.2d 317, 318 (1995). A tortfeasor (at fault party) cannot "take advantage of a contract between an injured party and a third person, no matter whether the source of the funds received is `an insurance company, an employer, a family member, or other source.'" Pustaver v. Gooden, 350 S.C. 409, 413, 566 S.E.2d 199, 201 (Ct.App.2002) (citations omitted).

Stop being scammed by the insurance companies and start seeking out legal advice from lawyers. It costs you nothing to sit down and talk with most personal injury lawyers about your issues. Yes, if they take the case it will most times be taken on a contingency fee basis whereby they receive a percentage of the settlement they achieve for you. It's a symbiotic relationship.

Do yourself a favor and ask these two questions before you settle your insurance claim:

Would you rather have someone working for you, ie attorney, or someone working against you, ie insurance adjuster?
Do you think the insurance adjuster gets paid a bonus and/or receives a raise at the end of the year for paying out more money on claims, or paying out less money in claims?

2012 South Carolina Rising Star by Super Lawyers

Trey Mills — Mon, 09 Apr 2012 15:36:38 -0500

Super Lawyers is a rating service of outstanding lawyers from more than 70 practice areas who have attained a high-degree of peer recognition and professional achievement. The selection process is multi-phased and includes independent research, peer nominations and peer evaluations.

For the particular subset category of Super Lawyers "Rising Star", selection is made from those attorneys under 40, practicing less than 10 years, and only the top 2.5% of that group are selected for inclusion. To be included with such a talented group of attorneys, I feel honored and humbled by such an accolade.

Now as we collaborate in the practice of law under Trammell & Mills Law Firm, LLC, I can bring something more to the table as, Ernie Trammell had already achieved a Martindale-Hubbell AV Rating.

Floyd S. Mills, III

visit superlawyers.com

South Carolina's "Alive at 25" Campaign Making a Difference

Trey Mills — Sun, 04 Mar 2012 10:18:11 -0500

"Alive at 25" is a driver's awareness course developed by the National Safety Council and focused on young drivers from the ages of 15-24. The course curriculum focuses primarily on these three areas:

Defensive driving;
Decision making; and
Responsibility taking.

The South Carolina Chapter of the National Safety Council runs the "Alive at 25" program within the state and so far has over 79 high schools that are participating. The hard facts illustrated on the website are alarming:

Traffic crashes are the leading cause of teen fatalities, accounting for 44% of teen deaths in the U.S;
Young drivers are involved in fatal crashes at more than twice the rate of all others;
Young drivers are involved in nearly 28% of all crashes, even though they represent only 14% of the nations’ licensed drivers; and
172 young drivers in 2010 were killed in vehicle collision in South Carolina.

The Greenville News & Pickens County Courier recently reported that Pickens County School District will require students in the next school year that want to park at the district high schools to complete the "Alive at 25" course before hand. This would encompass the following high schools in the upstate:

The facts are hard to argue against helping teens in any way make better decisions on the roadways in this state.

Since the implementation of this program in 2007, the state's death toll among drivers 15-24 has dropped by 38%.

Any life saved is worth the $35 for the cost of the course and 4 1/2 hours the program takes to complete. Ask your high school about this course or get a group of friends together and take this course. You never know-it could save your life or the life of someone else.

Accidents Happen But Insurance Companies are Created

Trey Mills — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 14:40:19 -0500

I have always enjoyed reading, watching, and listening to various recounts of historical information on a wide range of topics. Wikipedia is a scary resource given the ease of access and also in creating of the history online. However, for broad strokes and a general overview it has proven quite resourceful.

Did you know that insurance has been around in some form since humans have gathered together in communities, or societies?
The form of insurance as we know it culminated as a result of the mercantile trade along treacherous rivers and oceans where the chance of loss was great, thus if a merchant received a loan on the shipment they would pay the lender additional monies to cancel the loan if the shipment was lost or stolen.
Did you know the first insurance company in America was created here in Charleston, South Carolina?

I won't bore you anymore with history but just as we have advanced as humans, so to have our societies (at least in most parts of the world), and thus our businesses, or economies.

As stated in one of many lessons learned in Sun Tzu's, Art of War:

It is said that if you know your enemies and know yourself, you will not be imperilled in a hundred battles; if you do not know your enemies but do know yourself, you will win one and lose one; if you do not know your enemies nor yourself, you will be imperilled in every single battle.

Therefore, I try to learn as much as I can about insurance companies and convey that knowledge the best I can to clients that come in with questions. Those questions mainly consist of:

trying to understand how their insurance company can treat them so poorly after they have religiously paid their premiums without ever having an insurance claim;
trying to understand how the insurance company of the negligent, ignorant, or omitting party, will not provide them a fair amount for the injuries, troubles, and ordeals they have experienced through no fault of their own; and/or
why the insurance company will not call them back or appreciate what they have had to experience and instead treats them disrespectfully or with disdain.

Well, it is very simple. It's about money. The money insurance companies want to save by minimizing the payout on your injury, property, and/or life insurance claim. Simply stated insurance companies make money two ways:

Through underwriting, the process by which insurers select the risks to insure and decide how much in premiums to charge for accepting those risks;
By investing the premiums they collect from insured parties.

The whole insurance business model is summed up succinctly as such:

to collect more in premium and investment income than is paid out in losses

Your injury, or insurance, claim is the loss being referred to above. What the at fault party's insurance company pays you cuts directly into their bottom line and therefore the less they can get out of paying your claim, the more they can invest in those really complicated structured asset backed securities, or CDO's. You remember the recession was caused by ____? Greed.

And that greed can work both ways, on your extreme valuation or consideration of the fair amount to be paid and the insurance company's extremely low valuation of your claim-regardless of facts. Thankfully, advocates and plaintiffs' attorneys exist to assist you in this eternal struggle of good vs evil. If you had to pay a plaintiff's attorney the hourly wage the insurance company pays the defense attorneys, or advocates, I doubt you would ever be able to fight a fair battle.

Again we learn from Sun Tzu's, Art of War:

Thus, what is of supreme importance in war is to attack the enemy's strategy.

Please consider disrupting the strategy of insurance companies to make profit off of your injuries by low balling, denying, delaying, and defending against what you know is wrong. Just because insurance coverage has almost been made mandatory doesnt mean those same insurance companies have to make millions in profits off of your backs. Rise up and fight, now is your time!

Ndamukong Suh Tackles Motor Vehicle Collision 101

Trey Mills — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 13:50:50 -0500

The popular Detroit Lions football player was enjoying some "off" time during his recent two (2) game suspension for allegedly kicking a player while he was down and now has jumped right into personal injury law.

Apparently this past weekend in Portland, Oregon, a boy named "Suh" was driving his 1970 Chevrolet Chevelle muscle car when suddenly and without warning he lost control and ran into an inanimate object. Several reports are now indicating that Mr. Suh had two passengers in the car that incurred injuries as a result of the motor vehicle collision.

As I tell my clients, there are always two (2) hurdles to jump in any personal injury case: 1) Who is at fault? and 2) How much is it worth? There are many other factors in summing up those two items and the more information that can be garnered by other parties, ie witnesses, medical professionals, responding police officers, video footage, and pictures, to strengthen your case.

Some reports have Mr. Suh indicating all parties are fine, while other reports have the two female passengers saying they have lacerations, contusions, and other such upper and lower extremity complaints. Mr. Suh says he was trying to pass a taxi and the passengers' version says he was just driving too fast for conditions.

The first hurdle is most likely an easy hurdle in the above story. Mr. Suh was the driver of the car and through his driving it ended up colliding with a stationary object not in the roadway.

Hurdle #1 check.

The second hurdle is going to be harder because of the general nature of the parties, popularity of the driver, and social bias thanks to mass insurance and chamber marketing.

You will have those naysayers that will refute those women were ever even in the car regardless of what facts come out;
You will have others say, the female passengers are just trying to get money because they were in the car with a professional athlete; and
You will have those others that believe those two women were in the car at the time, probably got banged up from the impact of an old 1970 Chevrolet with little safety features but will minimize their injuries because they believe the women should not have been out past midnight and/or should not have fled the scene without seeking assistance.

See how quickly one simple set of facts that only three (3) potential people know the real truth to can get twisted? Mr. Suh's will be more memorialized because of his 911 recorded statement. The other passengers have no record other then what they say that they were at the scene. Just because this case has become famous for the party that wrecked, don't think this scenario doesn't happen every weekend in your own county.

Be smart if you are in a collision and/or harmed by the negligence, ignorance, and/or omissions of others. Don't think some insurance adjuster for the at fault party is going to believe you because you are you. They don't care. Frankly neither does that jury of your peers. They care when they realize it could have just as easily happened to them.

Don't say it, show it. Document it. Picture it. Text it. Friend it. Tweet it. Email it. Link it in.

Single Car Accidents Leave Drivers and Passengers with Few Options

Cops: Suh car crash passenger fears retaliation

Ndamukong Suh reportedly lied to police about accident

Portland police: 2 passengers contradict Ndamukong Suh’s crash report

'OMG': Distracted Driving by Young Drivers a Nationwide Problem

Trey Mills — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 18:08:07 -0500

Drivers getting behind the wheel and texting while driving has become such an epidemic that the United States Department of Transportation has created a website entitled www.distraction.gov. The website is a wonderful research tool and information site for educators, teen drivers, concerned parents, and employers to visit and learn the facts. Along with the website, USDOT has put together a public service announcement with a compelling and interactive video that will launch this week.

If you or anyone you know in the family has a teen, young, and/or distracted driver this website should be a requirement before actually getting on the roadways behind the wheel. The facts section illustrates such points as:

In 2009, 5,474 people were killed in crashes involving driver distraction, and an estimated 448,000 were injured;
Sending or receiving a text takes a driver's eyes from the road for an average of 4.6 seconds, the equivalent-at 55 mph-of driving the length of an entire football field, blind; and
Using a cell phone while driving - whether it's hand-held or hands-free delays a driver's reactions as much as having a blood alcohol concentration at the legal limit of .08 percent.

Did you know that you are 23x more likely to be in collision by texting while driving? That is a scary statistic and something we have noticed here in South Carolina on the roadways of interstate 85. Please use this tool and information to help spread the word.

Go to http://www.distraction.gov/ now!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Trey Mills — Thu, 24 Nov 2011 06:09:04 -0500

As the nation celebrates on Thanksgiving, this the fourth Thursday of the month of November, let us all give thanks.

From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.
Luke 12:48

We hope you all enjoy your time with family, friends, and loved ones.

Hit-and-Run Accidents in South Carolina: What You Need to Know

Trey Mills — Thu, 17 Nov 2011 15:22:10 -0500

I would imagine lawlessness abounds greatly in every state but lately it seems so many people are driving without any automobile insurance and/or not even stopping after being involved in a collision if they are able to drive away.

South Carolina law is clear on the requirements a driver involved in a hit-and-run must meet in order to pursue their own "uninsured" insurance coverage. S.C. Code 38-77-170 copied below states:

SECTION 38-77-170. Conditions to sue or recover under uninsured motorist provision when owner or operator of motor vehicle causing injury or damage is unknown.

If the owner or operator of any motor vehicle which causes bodily injury or property damage to the insured is unknown, there is no right of action or recovery under the uninsured motorist provision, unless:

(1) the insured or someone in his behalf has reported the accident to some appropriate police authority within a reasonable time, under all the circumstances, after its occurrence;

(2) the injury or damage was caused by physical contact with the unknown vehicle, or the accident must have been witnessed by someone other than the owner or operator of the insured vehicle; provided however, the witness must sign an affidavit attesting to the truth of the facts of the accident contained in the affidavit;

(3) the insured was not negligent in failing to determine the identity of the other vehicle and the driver of the other vehicle at the time of the accident. (emphasis added).

Some people will try and manipulate the system so there have to be checks and balances to ensure some validity to what is being offered. Otherwise in rural areas of South Carolina every accident "avoiding a deer" would be claimed as a hit and run. Too bad the deer don't carry insurance or have assets.

State Farm Insurance Gave $2.4 Million to Illinois Supreme Court Judge Campaign, Then Lied About It

Trey Mills — Mon, 03 Oct 2011 12:52:51 -0500

Allegations are rampant that State Farm Insurance Company contributed upwards of $2,400,000.00 to an Illinois Supreme Court Justice's campaign for election. This happened back in 2004 during one of the most expensive judicial races. Why is this really important, you may be wondering? Ever heard of John Grisham's book, "The Appeal"? It was a fictional book, right?

Well funny you ask, you see that same Supreme Court Justice failed to withdraw from participating, or recuse himself, in a billion (that's more than a million) dollar case that was eventually overturned by the Illinois Supreme Court. Or determined that State Farm did not have to pay what a lower court and/or jury had determined they were liable, or responsible, in owing.

Since the Supreme Court justice did not recuse himself, the court did try and determine if there was any bias and it was thought that only $350,000.00 was contributed to the justice's judicial campaign. It was thought this because that is what State Farm Insurance told the Court.

Apparently, that was not true. An FBI investigation found that number to be somewhere between $2,4000,000.00 and $4,000,000.00. Some people have some explaining to do.

I wonder if this could ever happen in little ol South Carolina? You think corporate insurance companies that make billions of dollars in net profits would ever turn their focus on our state? Why do those presidential nominees come from outside their home state to announce they are running in South Carolina?

It's those things that make you go hmmmmmm........

Of course they (insurance companies) are hoping you don't even give it a thought. Look at that shiny thing over there. You already forgot about this story didnt you?

Illinois court asked to review alleged bias by justice

State Farm Secretly Gave $2.4 Million to Ill. Judge in $1B Case

Petition Claims State Farm Secretly Raised Millions for Ill. Justice Who Voted Its Way in $1B Case

Pedestrian and Motorcycle Deaths on the Rise in South Carolina

Trey Mills — Mon, 26 Sep 2011 09:00:55 -0500

The injuries from a pedestrian vs. motor vehicle collision and motorcycle vs. motor vehicle collision are never minor. I just settled a pedestrian vs. motor vehicle collision that occurred in the Five Points area of Columbia, South Carolina. The client was lucky to be alive but his injuries were in no way minor and he had to undergo surgery.

As everyone knows in upstate South Carolina, especially throughout Anderson, Abbeville, Belton, Clemson, Easley, Iva, Oconee, Pickens, Seneca, and Westminster, rural roads can be the most dangerous. As The Greenville News indicated in their Sunday article entitled, "Highway Deaths Start to Rise":

South Carolina led the nation in the fatality rate on non-interstate, rural roads in 2009 with 4.7 deaths per 100 million vehicle miles of travel, according to numbers released earlier this month by the Washington-based nonprofit TRIP.

The news article was prompted from two separate motor vehicle collisions recently that resulted in five fatalities, the statistics are alarming for South Carolina drivers on rural roads.

I have had dozens of motorcycle collision cases and 99% of motorcycle drivers will tell you that they have to constantly watch out for other drivers in upcoming intersections, stop signs, and lane changes.

As for pedestrians on the rural roadways, you need to take every precaution possible. Since most rural roads dont have sidewalks, make sure you are facing oncoming traffic while walking so that you have time to react as the vehicle approaches. South Carolina Department of Transportation is doing their part with infrastructure and enforcement as indicated with the article "Safety Programs Target Rural Roads in South Carolina" listing these improvements:

Adding paved shoulder and safety edge to most rural roadways through roadway resurfacing program to address run off road crashes and shoulder drop-offs;
Installing rumble strips on all high speed rural roadways where adequate shoulder is available to address run off road crashes; and
Provide funding for overtime speed enforcement by the South Carolina Highway Patrol of high crash rural road corridors.

Why Is It Important to Report a Wreck to the Highway Patrol or Local Police?

Trey Mills — Wed, 21 Sep 2011 08:00:59 -0500

First and foremost for accountability when it comes time to be reimbursed for your property damage or personal injuries. Yes, this essentially equates to insurance purposes. The person that causes the collision may be apologetic and a "really nice person" at the scene but a couple days later have a change of heart and not be so forthcoming with their admission of liability. Therefore the primary reason is to ensure that the at fault, or sole contributor, that admits to being inattentive or distracted is memorialized by the reporting South Carolina Highway Patrol or local authorities. The primary goal of any insurance company is to protect their insured and if their insured said it was not their fault, the property damage on your car or medical treatment you incurred is not going to be reimbursed anytime soon, if at all.

Secondly, if this is a serious offense and someone is driving on the roadways under the influence of drugs or alcohol, they need to be stopped! Hopefully, no one is seriously injured and by helping this person realize the gravity of their actions, you may save lives down the road.

Thirdly, you have no idea the true impact this collision will have on any property damage to your car or any personal injuries to your person. (no pun intended). Your adrenaline is pumping, so you feel no pain initially. Or the frame of your car is bent but you don't realize that until you pull off and the vehicle drives crooked. Too late. You let that "nice person" go with a handshake and a smile. That's okay, I am sure you have a couple thousand dollars lying around to repair your car and medical expenses.

A few tips if you are in an accident, from both a personal injury lawyer and person that has been in two accidents (neither of which were his fault):

Call 911 or *HP immediately, regardless of severity. If not life threatening tell the operator and explain the details. Those calls are recorded by the way;
Take pictures of the property damage with your fancy phone or at the very least make a mental note;
Make sure to get any contact information from any witnesses, especially if they do not have time to stick around for the reporting officer. They can still be helpful but not if you don't know how to get in touch with them. It would be better if they could stick around and talk to the officer;
If the other party tries to leave the scene make every effort to get their license tag, vehicle description and/or notify the 911 operator. License tags are usually only 6 characters. You can remember that;
If you feel any pain at all, notify the reporting officer and go get checked out when the ambulance, or EMS comes out. Otherwise, you know what the insurance company for the at fault driver will say? "Obviously you were not hurt because you did not seek immediate medical attention."

Public Service Minded Attorney Advertising: i85lawyers.com

Trey Mills — Fri, 26 Aug 2011 11:48:49 -0500

Driving from Greenville, South Carolina to Anderson, South Carolina every day for work, you tend to notice the regular cars you pass, things going on along the interstate, and creative billboards. Trust me, I knew when the Motivational Seminars were coming into town, southbound and northbound.

A billboard that made its point today gave me cause to pull over and take a picture. It reads:

"Stop texting! You almost hit my client. i85lawyers.com."

For all the bad things you hear about lawyer advertising at least this crowd is trying to get its point across to the drivers speeding by at 80mph+ on Interstate 85 (ironically this billboard is right past the 65mph speed limit sign southbound past Exit 35).

More preventative measures need to be taken so that lawyers and insurance companies don't have to be involved because that means someone is injured or dead. I like my job but I will be successful at whatever, I do. Right now it just so happens to be that I fight for the individual against the faceless insurance company. Maybe with personal injury attorneys turning toward preventative messages and minimizing carelessness on the roadways we are headed for Utopia.

South Carolina Dog Bite Law: Landlords and Common Areas

Trey Mills — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 11:19:40 -0500

South Carolina dog bite law adheres to strict liability when it comes to dogs biting or harming people, S.C. Code Ann. § 47-3-110:. The only defense would be if the dog was provoked in some way by the person that it attacked.

Recently the South Carolina Supreme Court rendered an opinion that helps in better illustrating the specific phrase of the dog bite law, "other person having the dog in his care or keeping." In Clea v. Odom Opinion No. 27029, the court determined that claims for strict liability and common law negligence could move forward against the landlord for a tenant's dog that attacked a child in the common area of the apartment complex. Citing Harris v. Anderson County Sheriff's Office, 381 S.C. 357, 364, 673 S.E.2d 423, 427 (2009) the court stated, the presence or absence of a duty determines liability in situations that involve a statutory claim against a person having the dog in his care or keeping. Id. at 365, 673 S.E.2d at 427. There are three scenarios under § 47-3-110 when the attack is unprovoked and the injured party is lawfully on the premises:

First, the dog owner is strictly liable and common law principles are not implicated. Second, a property owner is liable when he exercises control over, and assumes responsibility for, the care and keeping of the dog. Third, a property owner is not liable under the statute when he has no control of the premises and provides no care or keeping of the dog.

Although each set of facts in a case are unique to that particular case, the SC Supreme Court helps limit the dark corners for the at fault owner or keeper's liability insurance company to hide.

If you know liability insurance companies trying to hide from their duties to pay a fair and reasonable amount for the negligence of their insured, let me know.

What Do You Know About Your Insurance Company?

Trey Mills — Tue, 16 Aug 2011 08:34:45 -0500

If 100 people were polled about the the most important aspect of their insurance company, sadly 90 percent would say the cost, or price. Yet, what good is paying insurance premiums if you are never going to be able to have peace of mind in the time you are in need of that insurance coverage? What? You never thought about actually having to use that insurance coverage?

Automobile insurance is mandated by most states, homeowners and property insurance is mandated by most mortgaged backed lien holders. When your life insurance policy goes into effect you won't have to worry because you're dead but wouldn't it be comforting in your final days to know that your family will have no additional worries or hassles?

Then do your homework or just Google the insurance company you are thinking about engaging in coverage of your most valuable assets-you and your family! My friends ask me all the time what are the best insurance companies on my end to deal with. Of course I am jaded and cynical but there are those insurance companies that are fair and equitable. There are more that are inequitable and immoral but those are easy to find in an Internet search. Try Googling "Allstate sucks" to see what comes up.

Chubb Insurance started a recent advertising campaign entitled, "Who insures you doesn't matter. Until it does." Chubb states the reason for this advertisement campaign:

A new corporate print advertising campaign reminds commercial and personal insurance purchasers and their agents and brokers that an insurer is only as good as its financial strength and its willingness to pay its claims in a fair, prompt and hassle-free manner.

The reason this campaign caught my attention in a recent magazine was not the headline but the photos. I have posted links to two of my favorite photos from their advertisements below.

Be in the 90% of people that talk about insurance costs, not in monetary value, but intrinsic value that go much further in your time of need.

Nationwide Is Not On Your Side: Marketing Jingles are Flashy, Fictional, & Frustrating;

Would You Take Advice from the Devil on How to Get to Heaven?: Insurance Company Lies; and

Allstate Policy Holders and Victims Should Know They Are Not in Good Hands.

Deadly Interstate 85 Takes More Lives This Weekend in Anderson County

Trey Mills — Mon, 01 Aug 2011 12:16:23 -0500

On Saturday, July 30, 2011, a driver of a northbound 18 wheeler apparently fell asleep at the wheel causing his large tractor trailer to cross the median and run head on in to another semi-trailer traveling southbound on I-85 in Anderson, South Carolina. After the two 18 wheelers collided, the southbound semi-trailer's back end jack knifed and collided with an SUV towing a boat. Unfortunately, the drivers of the SUV and 18 wheelers were killed in the collision. Anderson Independent and Channel 7 News reported on this collision shortly after it happened and provided on the scene video of the incident, detailing the carnage and wreckage at the sight.

Channel 7 reports that the northbound tractor trailer driver that crossed over the median into the southbound traffic has been identified as 69-year-old Eddie Wyatt, of Rockmart, Georgia. It is believed from the Anderson County Coroner's Office autopsy Monday that Mr. Wyatt did not have any health problems and most likely fell asleep at the wheel.

Additionally, the driver of the northbound tractor trailer has been identified as Clay Johnson, 38 of Charlotte, North Carolina. The third victim, Jeremy Scott Wilson, 33 of Blacksburg, South Carolina, was driving the Toyota Tundra involved in the accident. Medics airlifted two other people to Greenville Memorial, who were in the SUV. It was a couple from Simpsonville Chris Schulve is listed in good condition at Greenville Memorial and his wife has already been released.

Driving interstate 85 every day from Greenville to Anderson for my daily commute to Trammell Law Firm, P.A., I can personally attest to the massive amounts of unpredictable traffic. You never can predict the actions of others but always be alert to others around you.

Anderson Independent published the picture below, video and story entitled, "Three Killed in Accident on Interstate 85"

Please Click on the link below for the video:

http://www.independentmail.com/videos/detail/three-die-in-head-on-i-85-truck-collision/

Dumb Driver News: South Carolina Motorcyclist Hit Twice: At Fault Driver Calls Boyfriend Before 911

Trey Mills — Fri, 08 Jul 2011 12:26:37 -0500

Recently, one of my clients had the misfortune of being in oncoming traffic while a young girl was talking on her cellphone with her boyfriend. The young girl veered into oncoming traffic and struck my client.

When she got out of the car to check on my client, he begged her to call 911 because he was in a great deal of pain (he was suffering from a broken hip-among other things). She screamed and jumped into the car which did not have the emergency brake on, causing it to roll back over my client in the road. She jumped out and said, "Oh no!" She then used her cell phone to call her boyfriend to ask what to do. Either her boyfriend heard my client screaming in the background for medical help or he was smarter than his fifth grade educated girlfriend and told her to call the POLICE.

Eventually my client was able to get his cellphone from his pocket and call 911 and get much needed medical attention. After a week in the local hospital his medical bills from the collision greatly exceeded the dumb girl's insurance coverage.

This is an excellent illustration for the need in having UIM, or underinsurance, coverage and PIP, or personal injury protection, coverage. There are a lot of dumb drivers out there with minimal limits which in South Carolina is $25,000.00. You don't want to be on the receiving end of their ignorance and negligence.

Yes, this is a true story.

Bad Economy Leads More Drivers to Drop Insurance

Doctors, Patients, and Pain Medication: The Perfect Cure for All that Ails

Trey Mills — Tue, 05 Jul 2011 11:33:39 -0500

Insurance companies and defense attorneys frequently question injury claimants on their specific degree of pain and suffering. Knowing this is a subjective element of damages the big corporations and their hired guns move next to the medical providers to seek better clarity. Inevitably there is the case where the doctor did not believe the patient was truly in pain but subsequently prescribed pain medicine. Why on Earth would a medical provider be at such odds with themselves? It must be because he fears legal repercussions and higher insurance premiums, right? Or is it because he is paid more, or even paid by the pharmaceutical company?

Two articles caught my attention over the past few days:

"Diagnosing a Patient as a Faker" by Melinda Beck of the WSJ- reporting on several issues in medicine and not totally in line with her eye catching headline. However, she cites the Archives of Internal Medicine, 2011 indicating: a) Prescriptions rose nearly 50% from 2000-2009, b) Abuse of opioid pain relievers is the second leading cause of accidental death in the U.S., after car crashes, and c) 15%-20% of doctor visits in the U.S. involve an opioid prescription; and
"Doctors Already Know Secret to Better Health Care" by Walter Ezell in The Greenville News-illustrating the need for more in depth time between patients and doctors, not just quick visits, drugs, and positive reinforcement for negative health habits. To quote Ezell's article:

Only medical doctors can prescribe prescription medicine or perform surgery. This isn’t necessarily because surgery and drugs are the most important contributors to human health, but because in the wrong hands, they are dangerous.

Here is the paradox. Because doctors have a monopoly on drugging and invasive procedures, and spent a lot of money to join the guild, they get paid more for those practices and need to get paid well. There is an economic incentive to do more drugging and surgery, with little incentive to give patients the time, empathy and wisdom that are critical to achieving optimum health.

Doctors who want to address the whole person (and there are many) are swimming against the tide of their own economic interest. Unless they are working in an academic medical center, or already involved in an alternative practice, they may not have time to lavish the needed attention that each patient deserves.

We could all use more in depth time with our doctors in explaining all that ails us. The doctors may prefer more one on one time but being mandated by corporate interests within the hospital administration and/or through pure bottom line views of paying overhead, can't manage this need.

Patients are certainly to blame in going into the doctor's office and not being as detailed as possible in explaining mechanisms of injury or symptoms. Of course, some patients probably take advantage of this being their only human interaction outside their normal day and talk about unrelated issues.

The bottom line is that only doctors can prescribe pain medications and only patients can control their adherence to healthy habits. Unfortunately there is too much subjective gray area in between and too many entities vying for a piece of that control.

Medical Treatment Options for Injury and Accident Victims

Trey Mills — Fri, 01 Jul 2011 09:57:37 -0500

You've been injured through no fault of your own and need medical treatment. What do you do when somebody else is responsible for your injuries but their insurance company will not pay up front for your medical care? Instead they will offer you payment all in one lump sum upon you reaching maximum medical improvement. How do you get from where you are to where you need to be?

Don't sign anything from the at fault party's insurance company or do a recorded statement until you are in a the right state of mind to do so. That does not mean in the hospital bed with a morphine drip hours after the traumatic incident. Regardless of what the insurance adjuster says, it can wait and it will not expedite anything. It could only complicate things. (It's never a good idea to sign anything from an insurance company without at least talking to an attorney-most times without any costs to you);
Seek treatment from an emergency room or minor care facility where there is no appointment or prior consultation necessary. Only you can judge the need for emergent medical care based on your injuries and pain level, no one else;
If you have health insurance, Medicare, and/or Medicaid file all medical care you seek with those providers. Yes, someone else caused your injuries. Yes, you will have to reimburse them for expenses paid. HOWEVER, those expenses will be less than had you not filed through the benefits mentioned above because of the reduced, contracted rates they have with medical providers. (Darren Tobin wrote a great article on this reimbursement process, known as subrogation, entitled "Understanding Subrogation-Why You May Not Be Keeping It All".);
If you have no means of health insurance you can still be seen at the emergent facilities in your area or free clinics. Make sure you have a copy of the form filled out by the trooper if you were injured in an automobile accident. If from other negligence, be sure to indicate to the doctor how you ended up being injured and in need of medical care. Details are important, both in the doctor's understanding to provide efficient & effective care and in determining the proximate cause of your injuries;
If you have a primary care physician you have previously visited and sought care from make an appointment with them and explain how you ended up being injured and be detailed with your specific complaints;
If you are a doctor, nurse, and/or otherwise medically trained & educated do not seek gratis, undocumented care because you know what your injuries are or what to do to make them better without anyone but you knowing. That is the worse thing you could do. As a well known Greenville attorney told me, "Insurance companies are like the Russians during the Cold War...." What does that mean? Don't confuse them. By not having documentation from a third party about your injuries, it confuses them. They don't know how to value that so they don't; and
If you are hard headed or adverse to medical treatment, okay. Just don't expect the insurance company to put a value on your "pain and suffering" sitting at home without anyone knowing what you have endured but your loved ones. If it is not documented, you are not injured in the mind of the insurance company. If you wait weeks after the incident that injured you, insurance companies call that a "gap in treatment". Essentially giving them more reason to low ball you or make excuses on how you were injured other than reality.

I know you don't know what to do. I realize you think the insurance company will take care of you because you didn't ask to be put in this situation. Plus, it was the person, company, and/or entity they insure that put you in this condition. I understand you have values and morals where you would treat others as you would want to be treated.

However, my job is not to help you strengthen misplaced beliefs in how the world SHOULD work. My goals and objectives with every client interaction are three part:

Educate you on the law, specific to your situation;
Help you get compensated for what you have had to endure at no fault of your own; and
Make sure you are satisfied with our attorney/client relationship so you brag about me to your friends, family, and others you know that may need me to fight the faceless insurance companies on their behalf.