Travelers
Insurance

An Accident Attorney Filing Claims with Travelers Auto Insurance for Clients in the Greater Chicago Area

Auto insurers vary in size, quality and market experience, and Travelers has been in business in some form or another since 1864. One aspect all insurance companies share in common, however, is a conflict of interest with their customers: The more they pay out in claims, the lower their profits become. This is, of course, an inherent liability of the insurance industry. Although you may never have really thought about this reality before, it begins to matter as soon as you assert an auto accident claim against Travelers, whether the policy at issue is your own or the at-fault driver’s.

If your claim is small, things may go smoothly. If it is substantial, however, you can expect resistance. Your claim may be denied altogether based on frivolous reasoning. More likely, Travelers will counteroffer a paltry sum that doesn’t even begin to cover your needs. What’s worse, if you are seriously injured and under financial pressure from mounting medical bills and lost work time, you are not likely to be in a good position to argue with streetwise insurance company executives who negotiate personal injury claims for a living.

That is where we come in. At Malman Law, we resolve personal injury cases for a living. We win 95 percent of our cases, almost all of them through out-of-court settlements rather than lawsuit verdicts. After serving over 20,000 clients in the last 25 years, we have heard it all from stingy insurance companies, and we won’t fall for any of their tricks.

Although only five percent of our cases are resolved in court, our courtroom record is so spectacular that insurance companies generally prefer to settle with us than risk facing us in front of a judge. All told, we have recovered over $200 million for our clients, including a number of multimillion dollar verdicts and settlements.

One of Our Success Stories

“Two years ago I was involved in a trucking accident involving a 14-wheeler truck that nearly disabled me for life. Steve fought to make sure that I received the most possible compensation for my injuries. I was about to take the insurance company’s lowball offer, but decided to call Steve first – it was the best decision I’ve made yet.” – Malman Law client

This website, unfortunately, is not big enough to hold the thousands of success stories that we have in our files.

Practice Areas

• Personal injury: A personal injury claim arises when someone injures you through wrongful conduct. “Wrongful” can refer to mere carelessness, to recklessness, or even to intentional criminal behavior. As such, a personal injury claim can be asserted in response to just about any type of injury other than pure emotional trauma.

• Nursing home abuse: Over 100,000 Illinois residents live in nursing homes and other types of assisted living facilities, and most of them are treated well. As unpalatable as it may be, however, some nursing home staff abuse their patients through mistreatment or neglect. A typical nursing home claim is based on violation of the many strict regulations that govern nursing homes.

• Vehicle accidents: Traffic accidents kill tens of thousands of people every year and injure hundreds of thousands more. Different types of accidents invoke different concerns – a trucking accident, for example, results in a different set of facts than a collision between a motorcycle and a pedestrian.
• Workers’ compensation: The workers’ compensation program is designed to compensate employees who suffer job-related injuries. The Illinois Workers’ Compensation Act governs workers’ compensation payments in Illinois, and unfortunately it can make workers’ compensation claims more complicated than they really need to be. Indeed, a lawyer is often required to navigate the system effectively.

• Medical malpractice: Medical malpractice kills and injures a shocking number of Americans every year. These cases can be quite complex, requiring significant investigation as well as the testimony of expert medical witnesses. Indeed, since not every medical error constitutes malpractice, you may need legal assistance simply to determine whether you even have a valid claim.

• Slip and fall accidents: You may have fallen down a flight of stairs when a railing collapsed, or you may have slipped on a recently mopped floor in a restaurant. Either way, the owner or proprietor of the premises has an obligation to remove certain dangers or at least warn you of them. Failure to do so can result in a slip and fall claim when an injury results.

• Product liability: The manufacturer of a product with a manufacturing defect, a design defect or even a “warning defect” (failure to warn of the product’s dangers) can be held liable for an injury caused by a product if the court finds that it is unreasonably dangerous. An injured party need not have purchased the product to file a claim.

• Dog bites: Unlike many states, Illinois has no “one bite rule” – dog owners are responsible for the actions of their dogs even if there has been no prior indication of aggressive tendencies. Homeowners and renters usually carry insurance that will pay out on dog bite claims.

• Wrongful death: A wrongful death claim is a claim asserted by the personal representative of the estate of the deceased victim of a personal injury that was caused by someone else. Close relatives are the main beneficiaries of compensation, although the victim’s probate estate is often awarded damages as well.

What are my rights if I slip and fall on someone else’s property?

If you fall on someone else’s property, the property owner may be liable for your injuries. You need an experienced accident attorney to provide a competent evaluation of your case and engage the proprietor or the insurance provider(s).

Our slip and fall attorneys at Malman Law will collaborate with experts to assess the extent of your case. We have a proven track record of success in evaluating accidents that are usually hard to prove. By consulting with specialists, we can establish the amount of recovery you are entitled to.

How much is my case worth?

Each claim will differ based on the type of injury sustained and where the accident took place, whether on private, commercial, or public property. What other factors will we consider in determining the value of your case? Here are a few:

• Severity of your injury
• Past, current, and future medical bills associated with the slip and fall injury
• Lost wages if you were unable to work while recovering from the injury
• Pain and suffering

At Malman Law, we have handled more than 25,000 cases over 25 years of experience. We are uniquely qualified to assess the nuances of your case so you can obtain the maximum amount possible for your claim. Take a look at some of our success stories and you will see the value of our experience.

How do I know who is liable for my injuries?

We all have a basic duty to act in a safe manner given the conditions that we find ourselves in. With that said, property owners have a certain degree of responsibility in how they maintain their premises. Property owners must take reasonable steps to ensure that their property is free from dangerous conditions that would cause a person to slip or fall.

A slip and fall accident may involve various liable parties, such as property owners, managers, and sometimes multiple insurance companies. How do you know whom to contact? Having a reputable liability injury lawyer is crucial to your success in determining liability and, ultimately, in obtaining a favorable judgment and settlement.

I’m not sure I have a case…

It is easy to get discouraged when talking to friends and family, or even by the unsolicited “friendly advice” of strangers, about your accident. Only an experienced injury attorney can tell you for sure whether you have legally valid claim. They will take into account the legal standards for fall acci

• The owner of the property created the condition.
• The owner of the property knew the condition existed and negligently failed to correct it.
• The condition existed for such a length of time that the owner should have discovered and corrected it prior to the slip and fall incident.