What Happened?
On December 4th, 2018, Stephen was driving in the left lane when another driver suddenly pulled out of a gas station near the intersection of Bartow Avenue and Edson Avenue in the Bronx, and crossed over the right lane into the left lane where Stephen was driving and slammed into the passenger side of Stephen’s car! The other driver claimed in their report to the police that it was Stephen’s fault for causing the accident because Stephen “cut him off and side-swiped his vehicle causing damage.” Initially, Stephen did not feel pain and went home after the accident. He started to progressively develop low back pain which prompted him to go to Montefiore Hospital where he was evaluated, treated, and discharged home with a prescription for pain medication.
Stephen injured his lower back (lumbar spine) as a result of the accident. He described his back injury as throbbing and aching with stiffness that was aggravated with flexion, extension, and rotation. On average, he graded his back pain as a 7/10 with exacerbations that would push his pain level to 10/10. Stephen also experienced numbness and tingling through the front of his legs and into his toes. Medical professionals confirmed that Stephen suffered multiple lumbar spine disc bulges, disc herniation, and an annular tear at L3-4. He attended therapy for months and underwent a pain management injection. He was totally disabled for approximately 6 weeks due to the accident.
Stephen’s brother told him about The Case Handler team. Thanks to his brother’s recommendation, Stephen contacted our team a week after the accident. The Defendant and the Defendant’s insurance company refused to take responsibility and compensate Stephen for the accident. Although they pointed the finger at Stephen for causing the accident, our Bronx merging accident attorneys, Matt Goodstein and Adam Handler, from Pollack, Pollack, Isaac & DeCicco, LLP successfully helped Stephen pay his medical bills and recover a $40,000.00 settlement from the Defendant’s insurance company!
