STYLETHREAD -- LET'S TALK SHOP!

Yesterday, I learned that in New York you can get hit by a car, and as long as you don't break anything, you won't be compensated for pain and suffering.

A couple of years ago I was walking across the street in Soho and got hit by a taxi. I rolled over the hood and landed in front of the cab on my ass. Hard. I was in the crosswalk and not jaywalking for a change. An ambulance took me to the emergency room and I learned that luckily nothing was broken.

Next comes the saga of getting the insurance company to pay for the medical bills and the physical therapy that my doctor says I need. I get massive runaround from the insurance company, but eventually most of the bills get paid. And whatever doesn't get paid, I am able to convince the people I owe money to waive the fees. (The jerkoff cab driver didn't give the correct insurance information so all the bills came to me instead of to his insurance. I also learned that he never reported the accident to his insurance company or to New York's Taxi & Limousine Commission as he was required.)

The accident happened a few days before Christmas and I'd taken off two weeks from work to go to L.A. to visit my family and see my sister and her kids who very visiting the U.S. for the first time. We'd planned on going to Disneyland and other touristy stuff. Of course, that didn't happen because I was on crutches, uncomfortable and hopped up on painkillers. I didn't tell my mother about the accident because I knew she would flip out; at the airport she burst into tears when she saw me in a wheelchair (I had to use a redcap.)

The insurance company's doctor ended up denying my claim and I had to stop physical therapy. I wanted to sue for pain and suffering because I was unable to walk, missed some time from work and hurt for a long time.

I went to court yesterday and was told that because New York is a no fault state, I can't sue for pain and suffering. The court lawyer explained that my injuries don't meet the threshold for damages. It would a totally different story if something had been broken. Also, in some states, even though I'd taken vacation time, I could be reimbursed for the time off.

I'm not an ambulance chaser asking for thousands of dollars, but dagnabbit, my life was severly affected by this accident for months.

Deborah