Personal Injury FAQs
Plain answers to the questions injured people ask first.
How to use this guide
The twelve questions below are the ones people ask on the first call, answered the way we would answer them on the phone. The short sections that follow group them by topic and add the Oregon rules behind them, so you can read the part that fits your situation and skip the rest. Each section points to the questions it relates to. If you would rather ask than read, call 541-948-8830; the consultation is free and covers the same ground.
The answers are written the way we talk on the phone: short, plain and without a hedge on every sentence. Where an answer depends on facts we do not yet have, it says so instead of guessing. If one seems to contradict something an adjuster told you, that is the moment to call; adjusters explain the rules in the way that suits the claim they are handling, and the difference is worth a ten-minute conversation.
The first days after a crash in Oregon
Get checked, even if you walked away. Adrenaline hides injuries, and a gap between the crash and the first visit becomes the insurer’s argument that something else caused the pain. Photograph the vehicles, the road and anything visible on your body, and get names and numbers from witnesses before they drive off; they are almost impossible to find later. Ask the officer for the report number. Oregon’s DMV has its own collision-report requirement that is separate from the police report, so ask about that too.
Then protect the claim from the mistakes that cost the most. The other driver’s insurer will call within days and ask for a recorded statement; the questions on what to do right now and on talking to the other side’s insurer cover both, and the short version is: treat, document, decline the recording. Keep a folder, paper or on your phone, with every bill, letter and receipt, and write down how you feel each week while it is fresh.
Deadlines and notices
Three clocks can run at once. For most injury claims, Oregon gives two years from the date of injury to file suit under ORS 12.110. A wrongful death claim has its own limit, generally three years, under ORS 30.020. And if a city, county, school district, transit agency or the state is involved, ORS 30.275 requires a written tort claim notice within 180 days, long before the lawsuit deadline; miss it and the claim can be lost.
The dates that matter most are usually earlier than any statute. Store and traffic video is overwritten in days or weeks, vehicles are repaired or scrapped, and witnesses move. The question on how long you have to file gives the rule; this is why the answer ends with “call early.” Deadlines are one of the first things we confirm on the call, using the date and place you give us. If a road design or a public agency’s vehicle was involved, say so; the 180-day clock is the one we treat as urgent.
PIP and the insurance calls
Two different insurers will be in your life, and they are not on the same side. Your own auto policy carries personal injury protection under ORS 742.520 to 742.524: it pays your medical bills, up to $15,000 for one year, regardless of who caused the crash, and carries wage-loss benefits as well. Your own policy also holds the uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage that matters if the other driver had too little insurance. Report the crash to your insurer; they are contractually on your side for those benefits.
The other driver’s insurer is different. It owes you nothing until fault and damages are established, and its adjuster’s job is to close the claim for less. That is why the answers on the other side’s insurer, on who pays medical bills and on drivers with no insurance read the way they do. Bring the declarations page to the first call; it tells us which of these benefits you actually have.
Fault and comparative negligence
Oregon splits fault by percentage. Under ORS 31.600, whatever you recover is reduced by your share of the blame, and if your share reaches 51 percent you recover nothing. Adjusters know this, which is why so many early conversations steer toward what you could have done differently: your speed, your phone, your footwear on the ice. A few points of fault shifted onto you is worth real money to them.
Fault is decided by evidence, not by who sounds sure. Photos, the police diagram, vehicle damage patterns, witness accounts and, increasingly, video settle most disputes. If you are being told the crash was partly your fault, the question on whether you have a case is the one to read first; the answer depends on what can be proved, not on what the adjuster says today.
Comparative fault also reaches cases that are not crashes. A store will argue you should have seen the spill; a landlord that the stairs were obviously dark; a dog owner that you approached the animal. The same 51 percent line applies, and the same evidence answers it: photos taken that day, the maintenance record, prior complaints, witnesses. Keep whatever you were wearing and carrying, unwashed and unrepaired, until someone has photographed it.
What a claim is worth, and why nobody can say on day one
A claim has parts. Medical bills already incurred and those still to come; wages lost and, for lasting injuries, the earning capacity lost; and the noneconomic harm, meaning pain, the activities you cannot do and the way your days changed. The bills are the easiest part to count and usually the smallest. The rest depends on how the injury resolves, which is unknown until treatment has run its course.
That is why an early number is a guess, and a low first offer is a bet that you will accept before you know. The questions on the insurer’s first offer and on how long a case takes explain the trade-off: settling before the medical picture is clear trades certainty for money you may need later. If someone quotes a value before reading your records, ask them what they read.
Part of any recovery goes back out. PIP and health insurers can have repayment rights, and medical providers may hold liens. Those figures are tracked from the start so that the number you hear at the end is the number you keep, and the settlement statement lays them out line by line. The question on who pays medical bills is where this begins; the fee agreement is where it is spelled out.
Working with the firm
You work with the attorney, Emmanuel Miller, and with Jill Miller, the paralegal and case manager who keeps the case moving and keeps you informed between the big steps. Once you hire us, the insurers deal with the firm; we gather the records, track the bills and liens, and tell you what came in and what it means. Your job is to get treatment, follow it, keep us updated on how you are doing and stay off social media about the crash. The questions on trial, on timing and on whom you work with describe the rest.
Expect the case to move in phases. The first weeks are about records and notice. The middle stretch is treatment, during which the file grows and you hear from us as things change. The end is a demand to the insurer, negotiation and, when the number is wrong, filing in the circuit court for the county where you were hurt. Ask for a status update at any time; a call or an email to the office gets one.
Fees and costs
A contingency fee is a percentage of what is recovered, so it costs nothing to start and nothing if there is no recovery. The percentage, and how case costs such as medical records, filing fees and expert witnesses are handled, are spelled out in the written fee agreement you review before any work begins; ask about both on the first call and expect plain answers. The question on what it costs gives the short version. There is no charge for the consultation, whether or not you hire us.
Costs are different from the fee. Costs are money spent to build the case, such as the charge for a hospital’s records, the filing fee at the circuit court and an expert’s time, and the fee agreement explains when they are advanced and how they are repaid from a recovery. Ask how a case that produces nothing is handled, and ask for the answer in writing; a firm that will not put it in writing has told you something.
What does it cost to hire you?
Nothing up front. We work on a contingency fee: we don’t get paid unless you get paid. The consultation is free, and there is no fee until you win.
How do I know if I have a case?
If someone else’s carelessness hurt you and you have medical bills, missed work, or a life that looks different than it did, call. We’ll tell you where you stand in plain language on the first call. If we’re not the right firm for it, we’ll say so and point you somewhere better.
What happens on the first call?
You tell us what happened. We ask about your injuries, your treatment and who was involved. You hear back from the attorney who would handle your case, not a call center, and you leave the call knowing your options.
How long do I have to file in Oregon?
Generally two years from the date of injury (ORS 12.110). Claims against cities, counties and the state have much shorter notice deadlines. Evidence disappears long before any deadline, so call early.
Do I have to talk to the other side’s insurance company?
No. You must notify your own insurer, but you don’t owe the other driver’s adjuster a recorded statement. Give them our number instead.
Should I take the insurer’s first offer?
Almost never before you know the full extent of your injuries. A first offer is priced on the chance you’ll accept before you understand what the claim is worth. Once you sign a release, the claim is over.
Who pays my medical bills while the case is pending?
Usually your own auto policy’s personal injury protection (PIP) first, then your health insurance. We track every bill and lien so the recovery covers them.
What if the person who hurt me has no insurance, or not enough?
Oregon requires uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage on every auto policy. We look at every policy that might apply, including your own, and every party who may share responsibility.
Will my case go to trial?
Most cases settle. Every one is prepared as if it will be tried, because that preparation is what changes the offer. We settle when it’s right and go to trial when it isn’t.
How long will it take?
Straightforward claims can resolve in months. Serious injuries and disputed fault take longer, often a year or more, because we don’t settle before your medical picture is clear.
Will I work with the attorney or a case manager?
The attorney. You have direct access from day one, and the same person who takes your call builds your case.
What should I do right now?
Get medical care and follow it. Keep photos, names, the police report number and every bill. Don’t post about what happened. Then call 541-948-8830.