Life has been passing at an increasingly rapid rate for us.
Dale has had the cast removed and is about half way through his physical therapy. It's slow going. It's often painful. The therapist says he should have full recovery in around a year's time.
The other party's insurance has agreed to settle for policy limit. Unfortunately, it's a VERY small policy. In the end we'll pay the lawyer, pay his medical costs and if we're really lucky, we might have a little to put in the bank, though we're not counting on that.
People have asked about the accident and I've come to realize that a lot of people out there don't really understand how the game works. More than once people have encouraged us to sue the person who hit Dale. We considered it, but once we looked at the whole situation, we realized it would be a lost cause.
To sue and benefit, the person you're suing has to have assets. This person did not. Sure we could go after future wages, tax returns and any monies he might receive in the future. However, the one part people don't realize is that when you sue someone in a case like this, they can easily get out from under the judgement. All they have to do is file bankruptcy. And, once you go after the individual, you've waived your right to any settlement from their insurance policy.
In the end, we decided the best course of action was to go for what was guaranteed - the insurance policy. And while it has a pretty low limit, it should still be enough to cover what we need as a result of the accident.
While it won't make up for the job that Dale lost, we are very fortunate that he will be able to go back to work soon.
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