Posts Tagged ‘PIP’

PIP party in poor taste for Florida doctors, lawyers

Tuesday, August 17th, 2010
How low can you go? When a group of doctors and lawyers put on a party that glorifies car crash injuries, there is no bottom.  The first “PIP Thursdays” cocktail party event was held at the Blue Martini lounge in Fort Lauderdale in early August.

The organizers and attendees — many of whom were doctors and lawyers — showed no class in celebrating accidents that leave people injured or worse. There were almost 236,000 crashes resulting in 2,563 fatalities in 2009 on Florida roads. There is no justification for turning those tragedies into an excuse for what organizers call social networking.

The lack of taste was visible in the invitation: A tanned, young brunette in a racy blue dress appeared in the foreground with pictures of an accident-damaged car, ambulance and scales of justice in the background above a filled martini glass. The invitation touted “PIP Thursdays” as the “hottest new social networking group for professionals in the business….Come and meet the biggest and best players in personal injury care in the State of Florida”.

Yes, you read it right.  These doctors and lawyers call themselves “players”.  It’s unbelievable what PIP has turned into in the State of Florida.

The invitation and event caught the eye of Sun-Sentinel Insurance Writer Julie Patel.  Her House Keys blog post reported that about 40 people, mostly legal and medical professionals, attended.  We were pleased to read on the Sun-Sentinel blog that the Coalition Against Insurance Fraud put the postcard on its Facebook page and brought copies of it to a state-sponsored roundtable on PIP fraud. We were not surprised to see that the party organizers did not respond to the newspaper’s calls and e-mails. They are too busy out “playing”.

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No ‘PIP time machine’ for auto insurance claim, says Miami-Dade court

Saturday, July 17th, 2010

Been in a car accident? No insurance policy? No problem. At least that is one driver’s thought when she bought insurance from United Automobile Insurance Company (UAIC) after her daughter was injured in a collision.

Now, more than four years and seven months later, a Miami-Dade County circuit court, sitting in its appellate capacity, says that county court judge Teretha Thomas erred when she found a UAIC adjuster could promise coverage despite there being no insurance policy in effect.

A driver was involved in an accident on Dec. 7, 2005, at 7:55 a.m., in which her daughter was a passenger, according to court records. At 10:23 a.m., the driver purchased an insurance policy with UAIC. The next day, the daughter began receiving treatment for injuries allegedly received in the accident, and made a claim for payment through UAIC.

When the medical provider submitted the bill, UAIC did not pay and was sued. When the provider’s attorney, Todd A. Landau, took the deposition of UAIC’s claims adjuster, that person erroneously said the company had no issue with regard to coverage.

Landau argued to Judge Thomas that the adjuster’s testimony meant UAIC had no objection to paying the claim. The judge agreed and ordered a judgment before the lawsuit went to trial.

UAIC appealed and three circuit court judges sitting in their appellate capacity agreed that UAIC never promised to pay the medical bills. The judges unanimously ruled that while insurance coverage cannot be forfeited, it also cannot be created where it doesn’t exist. And any agreement to change the effective date – or time – of coverage cannot come after a lawsuit is filed.

It’s obvious to us that any responsible driver that you should have insurance before you get behind the wheel. You cannot force an insurance company to pay for an accident when no insurance policy was purchased or in effect. That’s plain common sense.

The appellate court agreed with our reasoning and granted UAIC’s motion for attorney fees. The court found the appeal was frivolous as there was no reasonable basis in fact or law to uphold Landau’s argument that coverage should exist despite no insurance policy being in effect. Landau wrote a check to UAIC for $15,250.

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UAIC to LaBovick: Let’s get to truth on PIP lawsuits

Wednesday, May 12th, 2010

Our report on April 13 that LaBovick & LaBovick was filing hundreds of small-dollar lawsuits in Broward County apparently got the attention of the law firm and its managing shareholder, Brian F. LaBovick. Don’t think he caught United Automobile Insurance Company (UAIC) in the act of something devious, as the headline of his blog post would suggest. We were the ones who lifted the veil on his operations. Now, he is howling about “bringing the insurance giant to justice” in an April 27 blog post.

Thanks to our enterprising work, Mr. LaBovick now admits in his blog post that his firm has flooded the Broward courts with at least 1,000 lawsuits that are Personal Injury Protection (PIP) related. He also acknowledges that the plaintiff in every case is a company he controls, Gulfstream Medigroup. And Mr. LaBovick also admits that many of the lawsuits are for small sums of money.

Mr. LaBovick has a lot to say in his post about how he thinks his firm is undertaking a noble effort. He says his firm stands up for the rights of doctors and medical providers. There is a big problem with his argument: the doctors and medical providers he claims he is standing up for are not the ones filing suit and claiming they have been underpaid.

Mr. LaBovick also raises the question, “How much is the ‘right amount’ to be ripped off before a doctor sues?” Sadly, he has no numbers or statistics to back up the claim that anyone has been cheated. In reality, Mr. Labovick is filing lawsuits for bills that were previously paid in full, or were paid at an amount that the medical clinic accepted as full and final payment.  In one case, UAIC erroneously paid the medical clinic twice for the same services, with both checks cashed by the provider, and the LaBovick firm still filed a lawsuit claiming UAIC underpaid!  These are the numbers and statistics that will come out in court.

If you want to talk about rip-offs, cite numbers, such as the fact that the Florida Department of Insurance Fraud gets as many tips about PIP fraud as all other types of insurance fraud combined. Or read about the busts of medical clinics that excessively overcharge, submit bills for services never rendered, or treat people who stage accidents. Those people are the criminals who Mr. LaBovick should be criticizing.

So, Mr. LaBovick, let’s get down to what this is really about: your legal fees. In every case, LaBovick & LaBovick is seeking the same thing: attorney’s fees from insurance companies like UAIC.  If it weren’t about the attorney’s fees, then the lawsuits would have never been filed.  Why else would Mr. Labovick file a lawsuit for an alleged underpayment of $3.89 when it costs a minimum of $55 to file the suit?

Gulfstream Medigroup and LaBovick & LaBovick (which, of course, are one and the same) are just another group in a long line of attorneys that are out to milk Florida’s no-fault PIP system for exorbitant attorney’s fees.  This is a game to them, and the ones who ultimately pay are taxpayers and honest Florida drivers. The game needs to end.

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Jury finds fraud in PIP lawsuit in Miami-Dade County court

Tuesday, February 9th, 2010

The injury claims were fake. The medical treatment was not needed. And the plaintiff was not even at the accident. So said a Miami-Dade County jury on January 28, 2010, when it tackled a big problem in local courts: Personal Injury Protection fraud.

The jury’s finding was a great victory for justice and Florida drivers that the jury saw through the lies presented in court. The decision shows that the fight against fraudulent PIP claims is finding support in the justice system.

Silver Chiropractic in Miami had sued UAIC in Miami-Dade County court for PIP payment on behalf of Cassandra Smith. She had signed over her claims, a common practice in PIP lawsuits. Attorney Christian Carrazana, of Panter, Panter & Sampedro in Miami, had argued for payment – and his fees – for injuries that Smith supposedly suffered in a car accident. Carrazana represented Cassandra Smith, (UAIC insured whose vehicle Ms. Smith was allegedly in), and the clinic, Silver Chiropractic.

The jury was not deceived. It told the court that Smith had submitted fraudulent claims because the evidence showed she was not involved in the accident. As a result, the jury found that none of the medical treatment allegedly rendered by Silver Chiropractic to Smith was payable.

Florida drivers pay PIP premiums to cover their accident-related medical bills up to $10,000, but many claims are fraudulent. Florida’s Office of the Department of Insurance Regulation has stated that more than 80 percent of all automobile accident injury claims are in fact falsified or overstated in some way.

The problem of PIP fraud is becoming greater, says the Florida’s Division of Insurance Fraud. It reported last August that PIP fraud jumped 41 percent in the fiscal year that ended June 2009. Much of the increase was due to staged accidents, which investigators said is “one of the most lucrative vehicle fraud schemes perpetrated in the insurance industry.”

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South Florida plaintiff attorneys rack up big hourly fees

Monday, February 8th, 2010

South Florida’s county courts have become the home of the big payday for attorneys who file lawsuits related to personal injury protection (PIP) claims. An analysis of court records by United Automobile Insurance Company (UAIC) shows that a couple of lawyers in Miami-Dade County now command $500 an hour for filing legal paperwork. In Broward County, a dozen attorneys get paid $400 an hour for lawsuits.

The hourly rates put some attorneys on the same level as South Florida lawyers who perform multimillion-dollar mergers or handle sales on properties worth tens of millions of dollars. The difference: PIP lawyers sometimes sue for as little as $2.59 for their clients. And in many instances, the lawsuits seek payment on medical treatment related to a fender bender.

Plaintiff attorneys in PIP cases have turned consumer protection into a professional money machine. Time and time again firms like UAIC object in court to these fees because ultimately all drivers pay those expenses. Sadly, not enough judges can be convinced that these fees are out of line.

The UAIC fee study found that about 39 Miami-Dade attorneys have obtained the OK from county judges to charge $400, or more, per hour. Another 48 attorneys received $300 to $375 an hour. (See list below.)

The situation is similar in Broward County. There, UAIC found 15 lawyers who had received court approval to charge $400 an hour when they filed lawsuits related to PIP claims. Another 25 lawyers received $300 to $375 an hour. (See list below.)

Even if the lawsuit is for a small amount, an attorney will sometimes bill 100 hours or more and judges will award them $35,000 to $45,000, UAIC found. The county courts have a jurisdictional limit of $15,000, yet judges will freely award attorneys fees well in excess of this amount.

UAIC has seen fee awards in PIP cases in excess of $100,000 when the benefits recovered were only a couple thousand of dollars. This phenomenon of inexplicable attorney fee awards has fueled the fraud and abuse that permeates the PIP system.

** HOURLY BILLING RATES FOR ATTORNEYS IN MIAMI-DADE COUNTY COURT**

Miami-Dade attorneys, hourly rate: $500.00

Marlene Reiss

Michael L. Silverstein

Miami-Dade attorneys, hourly rate: $475.00

Bernard H. Butts, Jr.

Miami-Dade attorneys, hourly rate: $450.00

Bartram Billbrough

Carlos A. Lopez

Michael I. Libman

Stuart L. Koenigsberg

Virginia Best

Miami-Dade attorneys, hourly rate: $425.00

Amado A. Alvarez

Gary A. Friedman

John S. Seligman

Michael Feldman

Juan Montes

Kevin Whitehead

Marc Goldman

Michael Feldman

Stuart B. Yanofsky

Miami-Dade attorneys, hourly rate: $400.00

Daniel L. Kaufman

DeWayne Terry

Gabriel Sanchez

Anthony L. Tolgyesi

Brian Rodier

Carlos A. Lopez-Albear

Jacinto Gonzalez

Jeannie Jontiff

Jose Iglesia

Kenneth B. Shurr

Kenneth Dorchak

Kevin Whitehead

Mari Sampedro-Iglesia

Mark D. Feinstein

Mark Feldman

Richard E. Doherty

Rina Kaplan

Robert A. Trilling

Russel Lazega

Scott Jontiff

Steven Singer

Stuart B. Yanofsky

Miami-Dade attorneys, hourly rate: $375.00

Fernando F. Freire

Frank Allocca

Frederick W. Hoethke

Gregg Pessin

James D. Payer

Jeffrey S. Altman

Jon Freeman

Jonathan Friedland

Martin Berger

Michael Kaplan

Michael Leader

Neil Gonzalez

Sadie Naveo

Spencer Morgan

Thomas J. Morgan

Todd Landau

Valerie Manno

Miami-Dade attorneys, hourly rate: $350.00

Lourdes Alvarez

Donald Kerner

Armando Brana

Christian Carrazana

Cornel D. Williams

Dagmar Llaudy

George A. David

Gladys Cardenas

Ivan M. Tobias

Jeffrey G. Hess

John C. Llarena

Julie Terry

Kevin D. Mercer

Lisa Sanders

Lisa-Ann Gordon

Peter DePrimo

R. Brian Boyd

Rita Baez

Robert Seitz

Stephen A. Cameron

Stephen S. Nuell

Todd Link

Miami-Dade attorneys, hourly rate: $310.00 to $325.00

Sebastian Lissa

Kertch J. Conze

Travis Greene

Eric Shapiro

Miami-Dade attorneys, hourly rate: $300.00

Craig Blinderman

Deborah A. Green

Jose A. Yanez

Meena M. Lopez

Patricia Saintvil-Joseph

** HOURLY BILLING RATES FOR ATTORNEYS IN BROWARD COUNTY COURT**

Broward attorneys, hourly rate: $400.00

Adolfo Podrecca

Amir Fleischer

Charles J. Kane

Cris E. Boyar

Gary Marks

Harley Kane

Jay Spechler

Joseph R. Dawson

Laura M. Watson

Marc Finkelstein

Mary Margaret-Monk

Michael Bendell

Michele Muir

Paul A. Adams

William Ruggiero

Broward attorneys, hourly rate: $375.00

Andrew J. Weinstein

Angela Cohn

Nichole Pacella

Paul S. Adams

Robert Stein

Robert Bradford, Jr.

Keith Schafer

Steven Ainbinder

Steven Lander

Broward attorneys, hourly rate: $350.00

David M. Spitz

Douglas  Harrison

Emilio R. Stillo

Nathan J. Avrunin

Nicole R. Malick

Rafael I. Katz

Broward attorneys, hourly rate: $325.00

Brian H. Malamud

Caroline Perlegas

Mark P. Mullen

Michael Fischetti

Steve Phillips

Timothy A. Patrick

Helen Stratigakos

Broward attorneys, hourly rate: $300.00

Chris Pole

Vanessa Casullo

Kathy Eikosidekas

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United Automobile Insurance Company finds abuse of PIP-related appeals in South Florida courts

Thursday, December 17th, 2009

United Automobile Insurance Company, a property and casualty insurer focusing on automobile insurance and premium finance,  has launched a blog that reveals how the South Florida courts are misused in personal injury protection lawsuits. United Auto Courts Report (http://www.unitedautocourtsreport.com/blog)   highlights the questionable conduct of plaintiffs, their attorneys and judges in Miami-Dade and Broward counties in PIP-related lawsuits.

“For too long, PIP plaintiffs and their attorneys have used the legal system to enrich themselves at the expense of Florida’s hard-working residents who pay some of the highest rates in the country,” said UAIC founder and CEO, Richard Parrillo, Sr. “Sadly, many county court judges have done little or nothing to stop these abuses. We intend to shine a bright light on all of them.”

The blog launched Dec. 14 by reporting that one plaintiff attorney appealed a court settlement on a personal injury protection (PIP) payment for an additional $1.19. Attorney George David of George A. David, P.A., Coral Gables, is seeking that tiny amount for his client plus legal fees for himself of about $400 an hour. Legal precedents say he should not be wasting the court’s time and the taxpayer’s money.

“This is just one example of how the court system is used as money machine for plaintiffs and their lawyers” said Parrillo. “The public needs to know just how far fraud and abuse have spread in the PIP system and courts. Through our reporting, we hope to see meaningful reform of Florida’s insurance laws and legal system.”

United Automobile Insurance Company has been at the forefront of fighting this monumental fraud problem in the Florida Legislature and in county, circuit and appellate courts. But this battle has been very expensive and seemingly unwinnable in part to what the company sees as an uneven playing field in Miami-Dade and Broward County courts.

The United Auto Courts Report blog updates its readers on the cases, verdicts and appellate decisions that impact the state of Florida’s automobile insurance market.

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Lawsuit on auto insurance claim proceeds even though amount being sought is…who knows?

Thursday, December 17th, 2009

Here is a lawsuit that needs to go away, if for no other reason that it is a waste of time and money. A client of Coral Gables attorney George David of George A. David, P.A., has sued in Miami-Dade County court for as little as 17 cents as and no more than $9.63. Just how much? No one knows. David is not saying.

This type of litigation has prompted United Automobile Insurance Company to step up its fight against needless and unjustified billing of auto insurance claims. Ultimately, policyholders, taxpayers, and insurers pay the costs of large demands for tiny sums. Court reform is needed to clear the dockets for more substantial matters of law and speed the justice system.

The dispute started almost five years ago, when a United Auto policyholder sought reimbursement for an MRI related to an automobile accident claim. After deductions and such, the company issued three checks: one for $139.83 for benefits, a second for $30.89 in interest expenses, and a third for $19.19 in demand penalty and postage fees.

Did that satisfy the customer? Apparently not. In March 2008, David sued on behalf of the client, claiming extra interest was due. Three months later, the three checks were cashed and David did not specify a dollar figure. As of early December 2009, the lawsuit was still pending but the claim amount remained a mystery.

As part of the lawsuit, a litigation adjuster calculated just how much more might be owed to David’s client. The answer: as little as 17 cents and no more than $9.63.

United Auto has asked the judge to throw out the lawsuit, arguing in part that, “One can only conclude that the lawsuit was filed solely for the purpose of billing attorney fees.”

In Miami-Dade County Court, judges routinely award attorneys fees ranging from $300 to $500 per hour for simple fender-bender accidents.

An isolated incident? No. In May 2009, the 13th Circuit Court heard an appeal from a medical provider for an additional 89 cents in interest. The court ruled against the provider, saying it had used the wrong interest formula.

Administrative Judge James M. Barton, who was on the panel that heard the appeal, wrote in his opinion that attorneys for both sides, a county court and the circuit court had spent considerable energy on the case. He stated, “In my view, the time has come to say, ‘Enough!’” The court should not spend its time on unimportant matters. Barton also noted that as long ago as 1858 the Florida Supreme Court refused to send back to trial a demand for less than $11 in interest.

“The court showed good judgment then. It’s time for all Florida courts to follow the same practice.”

“The PIP fraud is just so prevalent, and we believe it is driven 100 percent by the staggering legal fees being awarded to PIP attorneys representing unscrupulous storefront clinics and imaging centers,” said Richard Parrillo, Sr., Founder and CEO of United Auto Insurance Company.  “There is no question that these cooperative arrangements amount to organized PIP fraud rings, but unfortunately, the laws are full of loopholes and the penalties for committing the fraud equate to a slap on the wrist.  Something needs to be done about this untenable situation that is costing Florida’s drivers hundreds of millions of dollars each year.”

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Wasting the court’s time and money: an appeal for $1.19

Monday, December 14th, 2009

Is it worth suing over $1.19?

One Miami-Dade attorney seems to think so, especially when you can bill about $400 an hour in legal fees.

Attorney George David of George A. David, P.A., Coral Gables, is asking a panel of appeals court judges in Miami-Dade Circuit Court for $1.19 — plus his fees, of course — in payment related to an auto accident injuries claim. At issue is not whether his client got paid, it did, but whether the client was shortchanged. David says “yes” in his appeal, but legal precedents say he should not be wasting the court’s time and the taxpayer’s money.

Miami-Dade County Court Judge Lawrence King had awarded David’s client, Stand-Up MRI of Miami, $16.38 in interest on a bill payment. United Automobile Insurance Co. sent a check for $20. The response? Not that the judge erred in calculating the interest owed; that was never contested. The amount billed was also not contested.

Rather than asking the county court to correct its judgment, David appealed to circuit court, claiming a little more interest and a lot more in legal fee.

The law has a term for minuscule differences that waste court and professional time: De minimis no curat lex, which translates to “the law does not care about small things.” Disputes over a dollar or two, or even 10, do not deserve the court’s time. And taxpayers should not accommodate attorneys who waste the money spent processing such appeals.

In fact, the Florida Bar has sanctioned attorneys for such behavior. One attorney appealed for an additional 23 cents in 2007. The Florida Bar complained about his behavior to the Florida Supreme Court, which barred the attorney for 91 days. In its opinion, the Court said of the attorney, “The pettiness of his behavior hurt his clients, the opposing party, and ultimately, the profession…”

Sadly, that incident was not an isolated one. And this is not David’s only instance of running the legal meter for matters worth no one’s time.

United Auto is committed to fighting needless and unjustified billing of auto insurance claims in an effort to reduce the financial burden on its policyholders, the general public and the company. The company will expose abuses of the insurance system and the courts in an effort to promote reform of the legal system.

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