Fires on Commercial Properties in Mississippi Carry Substantial Costs

Commercial Property Fire Damage Lawsuit Lawyers

Fires cause damage that is often irreversible, and in many cases, buildings are completely destroyed by fires. However, the damage alone is just one part of the story. Fires require extensive cleanup, repairs, replacements, business interruption costs, and other financial harm directly resulting from the commercial property fire. In Mississippi, business owners heavily rely on insurance policies to help in a time of extreme need. Business owners pay insurance premiums to ensure they have coverage for damage or injuries resulting from a fire.

Insurance companies do not always act in a way that business owners believe is fair and reasonable. In some cases, insurance companies may dispute the cause of a fire and may even assert a fire was set deliberately for the sole purpose of filing an insurance claim. While some insurance claims are fraudulent, the vast majority are not, and many businesses file claims that are denied or woefully underpaid. 

The cost of fighting with an insurance company to recover much-needed compensation through an insurance policy can be detrimental to a business. Therefore, business owners who need assistance with the insurance claims process – especially an insurance claim involving a fire at a commercial property – can find the help they need by contacting a Mississippi Fire Damage and Injury Lawyer. Legal professionals who routinely deal with insurance companies in Mississippi know what to expect and have the resources ready to fight when business owners are denied necessary coverage for fire claims.

NO FEE UNLESS WE RECOVER FOR YOU.

Do you deserve monetary compensation for your property damage, losses, or any other damages?  

Barrett Law PLLC has recovered millions of dollars on behalf of victims.  Please visit our Case Results and Client Testimonials & Reviews pages to learn more about how hard our firm works to recover full compensation on behalf of our clients.

To find out if you have a fire damage claim, the value of your claim, or you are interested in finding out if you can file a fire damage lawsuit against an insurance company or the at-fault party, contact Barrett Law PLLC at 1-800-707-9577 to receive your free initial consultation.

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Mississippi Personal Injury Attorneys Share The Benefits of Hiring a Personal Injury Attorney

Personal injuries come in many forms, from slip-and-fall accidents to car accidents and all kinds of other catastrophes. Whatever type of personal injury you have experienced, you might feel confused about what to do next. You may also be concerned about what your future will be like, both in the short term and in the long run.

Family and friends may be offering you help with everyday tasks if your injury prevents you from doing things like grocery shopping and taking care of your home and children. Those helpful acts of kindness are fantastic and can go a long way towards helping you recover from your injury. Your doctors are also likely working closely with you to create a treatment plan that will help you recover from your injuries. Their assistance is also critical for you during this challenging time in your life. In addition to friends, family, and doctors, there is someone else who can provide you with critical assistance after a personal injury – a Mississippi personal injury attorney. It is to your advantage to connect with a personal injury attorney as soon as possible after you experience a personal injury so that you can begin to receive all of the benefits that come from working with them.

Personal injury attorneys understand the rights of injured individuals like you. They have extensive training and experience that has prepared them to stand up for your rights. Each day, personal injury attorneys help clients like you stand up for their rights and pursue claims for compensation for their personal injuries.

Right now, your job consists of healing from your injury and managing the details of your life as best you can. Your attorney knows how to take on all of the tasks associated with filing and pursuing a personal injury claim from start to finish. It’s a lot of work, but they have done it many times before for other injured clients, and they have helped those clients receive the compensation that helps them recover financially from the effects of their injuries.

One of the essential components of a personal injury claim is evidence. Personal injury attorneys know what evidence they need to present in support of your claim. What’s more, they know how to go about obtaining that evidence, even if other parties are not willing to give them the information that they ask for. With the proper evidence in hand, your personal injury attorney may be able to obtain compensation for your claim promptly.

However, insurance companies are not always quick to settle personal injury claims, even when they are presented with clear and convincing evidence in support of those claims. Insurance companies are notorious for denying claims, dragging out the claims process, and extending settlement offers that are far short of the amount needed to compensate injured individuals adequately. One of the best benefits of working with a personal injury attorney is that they have experience with negotiating with insurance companies, and they can push for a settlement offer that is as close to the value of your claim as possible. If a settlement cannot be reached, your personal injury attorney can take your case to court and continue to press for the compensation you need.

Working with a personal injury attorney has many benefits. If you would like to know whether you have a personal injury claim, ask a personal injury attorney. Call the seasoned Mississippi Personal Injury Attorney at our office at 1 (800) 707-9577 to schedule a free initial consultation.

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Mississippi BP Oil Spill Attorneys Say Gulf Coast Residents and Business Are Bracing for Another Economic Crisis

The Gulf Coast environment and economy are in the process of recovering from the BP oil spill disaster. Now, a new concern threatens the health and economic stability of the region. It is not as visible as oil-drenched wildlife or beaches littered with balls of tar, but the coronavirus could cause a great deal of damage in this area that had just gotten back onto its feet after the oil spill. The spread of the coronavirus across America has changed everyday life dramatically over the span of only a few weeks. The impact that the coronavirus will have on the residents of the Gulf Coast cannot yet be estimated, but many are already preparing to weather the storm.

As concerns about the coronavirus cause businesses across America to temporarily close up shop, Gulf coast residents wonder how their health and economy will survive the pandemic. Tourism is a large part of the Gulf Coast economy, and people are not traveling now. Some people are even canceling vacation reservations for later this year. Beaches are closed, and all of the fun things people do when they visit the Gulf Coast have come to a standstill, from fishing charters to casinos and even Bourbon Street in New Orleans. Hotels in the region are closed. Restaurants have either closed or are offering take out or delivery to a fraction of their usual clientele.

The health of some Gulf Coast residents is particularly vulnerable to the coronavirus, as the oil spill and the chemical dispersants that were used to clean it up left many people with chronic respiratory illnesses. The Gulf Coast is a popular place to retire, and many residents in the area are older adults. Older adults make up the segment of the population who are at higher risk of becoming severely ill or even dying if they become infected with the coronavirus. To complicate things even further, it seems as though not everyone started practicing social distancing as soon as it was recommended, and that creates further health risks for area residents. For example, beach closures in Alabama took place after larger than usual numbers of college students decided that their spring break parties must continue. Despite warnings not to travel, many of those students came to visit Alabama from neighboring states like Florida, which had closed beaches and other attractions sooner.

Gulf Coast residents recently went through all of the economic and health challenges that were brought about by the BP oil spill. Some residents are still dealing with lingering health concerns and financial setbacks. However, many Gulf Coast residents learned how to make it through tough times, so they are prepared to handle the challenges that the coronavirus is bringing their way.

Are you still recovering from the economic or health impacts of the Deepwater Horizon disaster? You are not alone. Some residents of the Gulf Coast are still waiting for their claims to be resolved. To learn more about BP oil spill litigation, call the Mississippi BP Oil Spill Attorneys at Barrett Law PLLC at 1 (800) 707-9577, to arrange an initial consultation.

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Mississippi Automobile Accident Attorneys Remind Drivers and Passengers That Seatbelts Save Lives

A woman is dead after a single-vehicle rollover wreck on Interstate 55. The early morning crash happened as the woman was traveling south. As her vehicle rolled, she was ejected from it. She died from the injuries that resulted from the crash. An investigation into this terrible accident indicates that the woman was not wearing her seatbelt. It is unclear why the wreck occurred, and authorities continue to investigate.

For years, messages concerning seat belt use have been all over the news, especially whenever there is news coverage of an ejection accident, such as the one described above. Despite the frequent, tragic reminders of what can happen when someone does not use a seatbelt, people continue to drive and ride without them. Seat belt use has increased over the years, but it is still not at one hundred percent. Highway safety agencies and law enforcement officials plan to continue enforcing and reinforcing the importance of seat belt use as long as there are people on the roads who are not buckled up.

In Mississippi, as in many states, seat belt use is required by law. Under Mississippi law, drivers and passengers in the front seat who are age seven or older must wear seat belts. Kids who are over four and under seven years old must buckle up no matter where they sit in a vehicle. Small children who are less than four years old must be buckled in a properly-fitted, properly-installed child safety seat. Drivers who do not ensure that they and the other occupants of their vehicle follow the seat belt law may be required to pay a fine.

Seat belts have proven to be the device that prevents more car accident deaths and injuries than any other vehicle safety feature. One way that seat belts save lives is by keeping people inside of vehicles. Ejectment accidents like the one described above are horrific, and the survival of drivers and passengers who are ejected is uncommon. When someone is ejected from a vehicle during an accident, there is a seventy-five percent chance that they will die. Their death may be instantaneous, or it may occur hours or even days later, as a result of their injuries. The effectiveness of seatbelts in preventing ejection is overwhelming – fewer than one percent of the people who wear seatbelts are ejected from wrecked vehicles.

In addition to decreasing the risk of death by ejectment, seatbelts also lessen the severity of injuries that result from car accidents. Automobile accident victims who do not wear seat belts report medical bills that are, on average, fifty percent higher than the medical bills reported by car accident victims who were wearing their seat belts.

Adults who drive or ride with children in a vehicle are responsible for ensuring that they wear seatbelts or are buckled into properly-fitted, correctly-installed child safety seats. Children are more likely than adults are to be hurt or killed in car crashes. Child safety seats and seat belts can prevent up to eighty percent of the child and infant deaths that result from motor vehicle wrecks .

If you were hurt or you lost a loved one in a car crash, we’re here to help. Call the Mississippi Automobile Accident Attorneys of Barrett Law PLLC at 1 (800) 707-9577 to arrange a consultation.

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Mississippi Automobile Accident Attorneys Warn Against Drowsy Driving

A woman died after she was ejected from her vehicle in a recent rollover accident on I-20 near Bovina. An investigation into the wreck revealed that the woman might have fallen asleep at the wheel. She was also not wearing a seatbelt at the time of the early morning wreck.

Approximately fifteen hundred people die, and thousands more are hurt every year in crashes caused by drowsy drivers. While fatigue can cause a driver to have any motor vehicle accident, many drowsy-driving wrecks are similar to the single-car rollover crash described above. Unfortunately, despite the media coverage of these horrible crashes, many Americans continue to drive when they are fatigued.

Sleep habits affect driving in much the same way that alcohol use affects driving, yet many people who would not dare to drink and drive think nothing of getting behind the wheel when they are tired. Sleep deprivation is a significant problem in America, but most people do not believe it is that big of a problem since they and many people they know are tired almost all of the time. It is a significant concern, and researchers have been working hard to understand the impacts that sleep, or the lack thereof, has on our bodies and our minds.

Research has revealed that driving drowsy is very similar to driving drunk. Everyone knows how often drunk drivers cause death and destruction. People must learn to make the connection between drowsy driving and drunk driving and think twice before driving when they are tired. As does a drunk driver, a tired driver moves along the road in a state of decreased awareness and impaired judgment. Tired drivers’ reaction times are slow, just like drivers who are intoxicated, creating a delay in their response to everything from curves in the road to vehicles or pedestrians in their path.

One crucial point that Americans must understand about drowsy driving is that it is not only the chronically sleep-deprived who are at risk for a crash caused by fatigue. Even a single instance of not getting enough rest can increase your risk of a wreck. If you think that stay-awake strategies like coffee, gum, mints, or energy drinks can help you stay alert enough to avoid an accident, know that they do not decrease your crash risk. You might feel alert for a short time following the use of those items, but your body is still tired, and that tiredness may overtake you without you even knowing it. Remember – no one tries to fall asleep at the wheel. If you start to feel tired, the safest thing you can do is stop and rest.

If you were hurt or someone that you love died in an accident involving a tired driver, contact a Mississippi Automobile Accident Attorney right away. The Mississippi Automobile Accident Attorneys at Barrett Law PLLC are here to serve you and your family. Call us at 1 (800) 707-9577 to learn more.

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Mississippi Workplace Accident Attorneys Remind Workers of Their Rights

Some workplaces are more dangerous than others are. In any workplace, there is a risk of injury or death. Workplace accidents can cause injuries ranging from cuts and broken bones to vision or hearing loss, loss of a limb, paralysis, and even death. Some workplace injuries, like respiratory difficulties or carpal tunnel syndrome, can happen after long term exposure or repetitive work. Fortunately, many workplace accidents are preventable. Proper training of employees and safe work habits can go a long way towards preventing accidents at work. However, even careful workers in safety-conscious workplaces can be hurt or killed on the job. If you are injured or if someone you love dies in a workplace accident, you have important rights that are protected by law. 

Shock and disbelief often follow a workplace injury or death. Whether you are the injured person, or someone in your household was hurt or killed at work, you may feel confused, in addition to the grief, hurt, and anger that you feel in connection with your injury or the injury or loss of your loved one.

Compensation for a work-related injury or death cannot restore your health, heal your family member, or account for the loss that you have experienced. However, it can help you and your family pay the medical bills associated with your injury or your family’s loss and possibly even replace some or all of the wages lost because of the accident. Injured individuals and their families could receive compensation for pain and suffering, disabilities, loss of earning capacity, and loss of quality of life, in addition to lost wages and medical bills. Most people who are injured at work or who lose a family member in a workplace accident can receive compensation. A workplace accident attorney can help you determine whether you can file a claim for compensation. They can also help you determine the potential value of your claim and assist you in deciding whether to accept or reject any possible settlement offers you receive.

It is critical that you not attempt to pursue compensation for your injury or loss on your own. There are multiple types of workplace accident claims, and you must file the correct type of claim within the proper amount of time to be eligible for compensation. For example, injuries caused by coworkers or supervisors and many injuries caused by items in your work environment give rise to workers’ compensation claims. However, in some instances, a third-party claim for compensation may be the more appropriate type of claim to file. For example, if your injury or your family’s loss was caused by someone who does not work at your workplace, such as a subcontractor or a service provider, your workplace accident attorney may choose to file a third-party claim.

If you were injured at work, or if a family member died in a workplace accident, do not attempt to file a workplace injury claim alone. A Mississippi Workplace Accident Attorneys can walk with you through the process of evaluating your workplace injury or loss claim and pursuing compensation. Call the Mississippi Workplace Accident Attorneys at Barrett Law PLLC at 1 (800) 707-9577 to learn more.

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Mississippi Whistleblower Attorney Describes Three Ways Whistleblowers Can Prepare Themselves Before Taking Action

It is well known that blowing the whistle on fraud, waste, or corruption is risky. However, the good that can come from the actions taken by employees who are brave enough to step forward and bring their employers’ misdeeds into the light is tremendous. Some laws protect whistleblowers, and if you are considering blowing the whistle on your employer, it is wise to educate yourself about whistleblower protection ahead of time.

For example, you must understand the concept of “protected activity” before you make any report. To be eligible for compensation for any retaliation that you might experience after you make a report, you must make your report correctly. The reporting or other activities that you did to expose or respond to your employer’s conduct must fall within the definition of a “protected activity” that is contained in one or more whistleblower protection laws. Reporting is one activity that is protected, provided that you have a reasonable belief that the conduct you are reporting violates the law. It is critical that you know that protection often extends to internal reports and complaints to management or supervisors as well as reports to external agencies. Refusing to violate the law and refusing to work in an unsafe environment are other examples of protected activities.

Blowing the whistle is not a matter to be undertaken spontaneously. Careful preparation before you make a report is critical. To make your report as credible as possible, gather evidence that will support the allegations you plan to make. Documents and photos may be accessible to you, and these can help support your claims. However, do not copy any documents or pictures unless you are sure that doing so does not violate your employer’s code of conduct. Personal notes, meeting minutes, and journals can also support your claim. Use caution when gathering evidence of conversations, as recording conversations is not always legal. If you find that you can legally record conversations that you are involved in, know that audio evidence discussing plans to violate the law has proven valuable in many whistleblower cases.

If you’re thinking about blowing the whistle, plan your steps carefully before you take action. You might be able to make an anonymous report under one or more whistleblower programs, such as the whistleblower program that is operated by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). If anonymous reporting is available to you, you might want to take that avenue to decrease the possibility that you will experience retaliation. Unfortunately, not all conduct that needs to be reported can be reported anonymously. If anonymous reporting is not available in your particular situation, you may have to boldly move forward and take your concern through whatever process is available to you, even if that means disclosing your identity while doing so.

Careful preparation is key to a successful whistleblower claim. Study the applicable laws and gather the information that will help you as you move forward with making your report. If you have questions, a whistleblower protection attorney is a valuable resource who may be able to help you find the answers. To learn more about whistleblower protection, call the Mississippi Whistleblower Attorneys of Barrett Law PLLC today at 1 (800) 707-9577 for an initial consultation.

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Mississippi Whistleblower Attorneys Report Some Whistleblower Cases Take Years to Resolve

Thirteen years after a Mississippi hospital’s former chief operating officer filed a whistleblower lawsuit, a jury has finally returned a verdict. The lawsuit alleged that the hospital’s owner, his wife, and another individual were receiving fraudulent payments from the Medicaid program. However, the jury verdict is not the final event in the proceedings that will put money back into Medicaid’s pocket as well as the pocket of the whistleblower, who has waited a long time to collect his reward.

The jury found that Ted Cain, the owner of Stone County Hospital, cheated Medicare out of nearly eleven million dollars. That same jury found that Cain’s wife Julie had improperly collected just under ten and a half million dollars in Medicare payments. Tommy Kuluz, who served as CEO of Stone County Hospital, was found to have received just under ten million dollars in fraudulent Medicaid payments. The jury also found the hospital and a management company liable for damages.

In addition to recovering Medicaid funds, the lawsuit will involve the collection of damages and fees. The exact amount of damages and fees is unclear at this time because the judge must still hear arguments on the issue of whether to award triple damages. Triple damages are an available remedy provided by the federal whistleblower law under which the case was filed. Under the federal whistleblower law, the man who filed the lawsuit will be paid a reward that is somewhere between fifteen and twenty-five percent of the damages collected in this case.

James Aldridge had only been on the job as the chief operating officer of Stone County Hospital for two months before he filed the lawsuit. The investigation into his claim took over eight years to complete, and it took several more years for prosecutors to bring the case to trial. Some whistleblower cases have a criminal component to them, but this case does not. The aim of this lawsuit is to return money to the Medicaid program and collect the damages and fines assessed by the court.

Tommy Kuluz completed eleven of the twelve Medicare cost reports that were submitted between 2004 and 2015 to reimburse the Cains’ pay. During the trial, jurors learned that at one point, Ted Cain was earning more than a thousand dollars an hour. He and his wife are proud of the millions of dollars’ worth of investments they made in the hospital. Some of those investments came from their pockets and some which were funded by loan guarantees. However, Ted Cain is unable to produce much documentation of exactly what work he did to earn over fifteen million dollars as the CEO of the hospital. Julie Cain worked as the hospital’s administrator during that same time, earning just under two and a half million dollars even though she was not often present at the hospital.

One of the attorneys for the Cains says his clients plan to appeal the case, which he claims was brought by an unhappy former employee. Aldridge’s attorney says that this case is a powerful example of what jury trials can accomplish, restoring payments to a federal program after the program was cheated out of millions of dollars. 

When individuals defraud federally funded programs like Medicaid, courageous individuals like James Aldridge can help those programs and the people they serve to get their money back. The Mississippi Whistleblower Protection Attorneys of Barrett Law PLLC support whistleblowers in their efforts to expose every type of fraud. Call us today, at 1 (800) 707-9577, to arrange an initial consultation with the Mississippi Whistleblower attorneys of Barrett Law PLLC.

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Mississippi Trucking Accident Attorney Talks About Trucking Accidents Involving Hazardous Materials

A tanker truck recently rolled over and ruptured, spilling diesel fuel into a creek in Alton. The truck went off of the Homer Adams Parkway Extension as it attempted to navigate a curve in the road, and it rolled down an embankment to the edge of the creek. As the tanker rolled, rocks punctured it in multiple locations, and the top hatch of the tank came loose. Fortunately, the truck driver was not hurt. Traffic was diverted from the area for hours after the wreck to allow cleanup efforts to take place.

 Trucking accidents involving hazardous materials like diesel fuel require an immediate and comprehensive response from more than the usual police, fire, and emergency rescue workers. Special teams of workers who are trained to manage releases of hazardous materials must be summoned to the accident scene as soon as possible. The type of personnel and materials required to respond to a hazardous materials trucking accident depends upon the type of hazardous materials released in the accident. Sometimes, people must be evacuated from the area surrounding a hazardous materials trucking wreck. It does not appear as though evacuation occurred after this tanker wreck.

After the aforementioned wreck, the Madison County Hazardous Materials Team rushed to the crash scene. A nearby fuel refinery sent a foam truck and several of its firefighters to aid in containment and cleanup efforts. As happens with many hazardous materials trucking accidents, multiple teams worked together to contain the diesel fuel and clean up the area. Heritage Environmental Services sent a group of workers to the accident scene to help with the task of cleaning up the spilled fuel.

Depending upon the size of the vehicle involved in the crash, a hazardous materials trucking accident can release any amount of hazardous material into the environment. The accident mentioned above did not cause a small release – over three thousand gallons of spilled diesel fuel were reportedly recovered from the crash site, and that number was not the final count. There are multiple ways that firefighters and hazardous materials response teams can remove hazardous materials from the environment. In the situation described above, firefighters used absorbent materials to remove some of the spilled fuel from the area. A vacuum truck also helped remove the spilled fuel. A tanker truck removed the fuel that remained inside of the wrecked tanker. Emergency workers kept track of where the spilled fuel was going as it headed down the creek. They placed an absorbent boom in the creek ahead of where the fuel had traveled and prevented it from going farther down the creek.

Trucks haul many kinds of things over American roads every day. Some of those things, like diesel fuel, can cause severe environmental damage and personal injury if they are released into the environment through a truck wreck. Hazardous materials truck wrecks are dangerous, and they are sometimes deadly. If you were hurt in a hazardous materials trucking accident, call the knowledgeable Mississippi Trucking Accident Attorney at Barrett Law PLLC, at 1 (800) 707-9577 today.

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Mississippi Workplace Accident Attorney Talks About Struck-By Accidents

An employee at an Illinois workplace died earlier this month after he was struck by part of a machine. The man was an employee whose work consisted of traveling to various locations to provide repair and maintenance services for generators that were manufactured by his employer. OSHA is investigating the fatal accident.

Many types of workplaces contain struck-by hazards. Each day as they work, employees run the risk of being hit by one or more items as they go about their day. Struck-by accidents can injure people by breaking bones, causing head injuries, and even killing them instantly. While workplace accidents that are caused by being struck by a machine or object can sometimes look similar to workplace accidents where an employee becomes caught in machinery, they are not the same. Struck-by injuries are a different type of workplace hazard than caught-in injuries. In a struck-by workplace accident, the victim’s injury is caused solely by the impact of the object or machine that hit them. In a caught-in accident, the injury occurs when the victim is crushed between objects, or between an object and a surface. Struck-by accidents account for approximately ten percent of American workplace fatalities.

There are several ways that struck-by accidents can happen. For example, the object that strikes the accident victim could fly through the air before hitting them. For instance, sometimes, parts of tools or machines break off during use and fly through the air. Alternatively, it could fall on them from above, potentially pinning them to the floor or crushing them completely. Swinging objects can strike employees, especially when equipment like mechanical lifts or cranes are in use in the workplace. Workers can also be hit by objects that roll, like vehicles.

While each workplace that contains a struck-by hazard is unique, there are some safe work practices that employees can follow to reduce the chance that an object or a machine will strike them while they are on the job. For example, workers must use caution when working with compressed air tools, using them only after they have received training, and always operating them with guards in place. The same rule applies to hand tools. Additionally, some struck-by accidents can be prevented by regular inspection of air and hand tools – look at your tools before you work. If parts of the tool are loose or broken or do not look right, do not use them. If you are working at a height, secure all tools and materials in your work area so that they do not fall. When using equipment that swings, block off the work area to provide a safe space for the operation of the machinery. Use personal protective equipment like hard hats, eye and hearing protection with any tools or equipment that require it.

Workplace accidents can bring unexpected and sudden injury or loss. If your family lost a loved one or if you were injured in a struck-by accident at work, call the Mississippi Workplace Accident Attorney at Barrett Law PLLC today, at 1 (800) 707-9577.

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