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Thinking About a Vacation? by Phil Runyon

3/19/2014

 

Thinking About a Vacation

Believe it or not, even you folks lucky enough to get away for vacations have legal issues to consider!
 
Let's say, for example, that you're reclining on a deck chair with only the turquoise Caribbean all the way to the horizon, but last night's sushi isn't agreeing with you and you decide to see whether you can find where the ship's physician is dozing.  The thing you should know - and you would if you read the fine print on your cruising contract - is that if the doc misdiagnoses your ailment as food poisoning but it's really your appendix that's acting up, the cruise line isn't responsible.  That's right, the doc may eventually be on the hook - if you can figure out where he/she has sailed off to - but not the crafty cruise company. 
 
But what if you don't think the Maalox is doing the trick and you ask to be evacuated to a hospital somewhere on terra firma?  If the captain says you've just got to tough it out in your cabin, and dire consequences ensue, now the cruise line itself has contributed to the problem.  So if you or your travel companion really feels like you need more help than the sea doc can provide, don't take that diagnosis lying down in your stateroom; make sure you insist on a detour - maybe even an air lift - to a bricks and mortar facility.  And, if necessary, point out how the hard-working lawyer back home says the liability works.
 
OK, this time let's say you dozed off on one of those powdery beaches, and now you've got third degree burns because your sunblock deserted you.  The local hospital isn't going to accept your Anthem card, but if you want to be reimbursed by the carrier when you get home, you need to find the hospital door that says the local equivalent of "Emergency Room",  and get your treatment there.  If you just make an appointment to see the local doc for an office visit, you'll likely have your claim for reimbursement denied - even though that bill may be a fraction of what the ER will charge!  
 
Finally, let's say you're fine physically, but you're sick because someone broke into your hotel room and stole your Rolex - the one you shouldn't have brought in the first place but then forgot to put in that little safe.  Or maybe someone grabbed your cell phone while you were uploading your vacation photos and didn't realize you'd wandered into a sketchy neighborhood.  In order to collect on your homeowners' policy when you thaw out back here, you'll need to bring either a loss report from the hotel security officer or from the local police.  And as with the medical bill, if you're someplace where English is a foreign language, you'll do well to have someone provide you with a translation that won't look like Greek to the travel-deprived claims agent.  One more thing to keep in mind:  Unless you've specially scheduled a valuable item like the Rolex or diamond ring at its real value, your policy's only going to cover a fraction of its worth, and that's the case whether you're stuck at home or lounging poolside somewhere exotic.
 
We could think up lots of other legal jams to mess up your R&R, but why ruin your fun.  Just prepare as best you can - you know, leave the valuables at home if you can, take extra copies of all your critical documents with you in case of a mishap, and don't let your good judgment take its own vacation!


Posted 03/19/2014 Misc.

Insurance and More by Phil Runyon

3/14/2014

 

Insurance and More

This time of year - winter, that is - people who slip and fall on the sidewalk or whose cars keep sliding through a stop sign often ask whether they can hold the city or town liable for negligently failing to prevent those slippery mishaps.  There's no question about it; the answer is no.  If it was otherwise, public budgets would be overwhelmed by those claims or they'd have to spend so much on liability insurance that the biggest building in every city would have an insurance company's name on it.  Hey, wait a minute . . . !  So, while there may indeed be negligence going on here and there, the courts have said no dice as a matter of public policy.  

Sticking with insurance, you may be aware - or not surprised - that the "Live Free or Die" State doesn't require motorists to carry liability insurance in order to operate a vehicle.  At least not until they've had their first accident.  That means every time we venture forth in our cars, we're facing a huge percentage of our fellow motorists who are coverage-free, either because they're new drivers who haven't yet run into anything, people without sufficient funds to buy insurance (or pay your claim), or people who've had lots of accidents but blithely drive on without a license.  It's probably occurred to you that this isn't a group you'd like to have hurtling toward you at any speed.  What this also suggests, in addition to defensive driving, is that you'd better compensate for their shortcomings yourself.  In other words, making sure you have plenty of uninsured and under-insured coverage to make up for the other guy's negligence can be even more critical to you than coverage for your own poor efforts.  So take a look at your policy and check with your agent.

Let's switch 180 degrees to marijuana.  While Coloradans can now bake it into their brownies without consequences, even an M&M's worth is still a criminal offense in the Granite State.  And because of that, if your college-age youngster - this is a hypothetical, of course - gets caught with his/her hand in that jar, the resulting conviction will likely have to be disclosed on financial aid applications and may sour the case for much-needed assistance.  So, what to do?  A critical issue is the level of the offense, which will likely be at least a class B (criminal) misdemeanor.  That result could be financially ruinous aid-wise.  If the kid has no prior trouble, however, the prosecutor may be willing to downgrade the charge to a non-criminal violation, and thus not a reportable conviction.  Sometimes - again, only for someone with a clean past - the prosecutor may even agree to "place the charge on file" for a year, and then dismiss it if no further infractions occur.  That could also save the financial aid application - and your retirement account.
 
One last nugget of news.  Although New Hampshire is the only State in the nation that doesn't require adults to wear seat belts, our legislators apparently want to make sure we all live a little longer before we face that choice.  That's because they've now decided that children up to age 7 (previously 6) who are under 57 inches tall (that's a big 7 year-old) must be secured by an approved "child passenger restraint system" - that's a car seat for those who aren't fluent in bureaucrat-speak. You know, of course, that any kid under 18 does have to wear a seat belt, which may be the only saving grace if his text message is interrupted by an immovable object.  Plus, I've noted before that texting while driving is an offense in itself, just don't do it - and do your best to impress that message on your young drivers.



Posted 03/12/2014 - Miscellaneous

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