No-Fault, also called Personal Injury Protection (PIP), is designed to pay promptly, regardless of who is at fault or whether there was any negligence, for economic losses (meaning medical/health expenses, lost earnings, and certain other reasonable and necessary expenses related to injuries sustained), up to $50,000 per person ("basic No-Fault coverage"), to the driver and all passengers injured in your car as well as any pedestrians injured by your car, because of its use or operation in New York State.
The purpose of No-Fault insurance is to restore individuals hurt in auto accidents to health and productivity as swiftly as possible. Because of New York's No-Fault law, lawsuits due to auto accidents can be brought only for economic losses that exceed No-Fault benefits and for non-economic damages (such as pain and suffering) only if a "serious injury" (as defined in the Insurance Law) is sustained.
Under this coverage, your insurer provides you and all relatives who reside in your household with protection against economic losses arising from injuries sustained in motor vehicle accidents anywhere within the United States, its territories and possessions, or Canada. It also provides coverage for any passengers injured in accidents in New York State while in your vehicle, as well as any guest passengers who are New York State residents injured in your vehicle anywhere in the United States, its territories and possessions, or Canada, if they are not covered under another auto insurance policy in New York State.
If, however, your vehicle is used or operated in another state or Canadian province that requires higher liability limits than the above New York mandated limits or what is purchased, your policy will provide coverage for those limits required by such other jurisdiction.
Suing another party would be your own personal action, and does not involve your insurance company under the provisions of your policy. If you decide to sue someone else, your insurer under your own policy is not required to provide or pay for a lawyer you might want or need to handle your claim against another party.
Another important feature of your auto insurance policy is bodily injury protection for you, all family members who reside in your household, and occupants of your car, in the event you or they are injured as the result of negligent actions by an uninsured vehicle or hit-and-run motorist. This mandatory coverage applies only in regard to bodily injury due to accidents occurring in New York State, and does not cover auto body damage to your car or damage to other property.
For New York accidents, the amount of uninsured motorists protection required to be provided is the same minimum bodily injury limits as required for liability insurance. For a small additional charge, this uninsured motorists coverage can be extended to provide coverage for out-of-state accidents by endorsement, so you should check with your agent, broker or insurer if you want this extension of coverage.
If anyone in your car is injured by the driver of an uninsured vehicle or a hit-and-run motorist, a claim should be filed with your auto insurance company under this coverage. Similarly, you should file a claim with your automobile insurer if you or a member of your family is injured while unknowingly occupying an uninsured vehicle, or injured as a pedestrian by an uninsured or hit-and-run motorist. If you do not own a car, but a relative in your household does, you may file a claim under that policy.
Be aware of the importance of maintaining required motor vehicle insurance coverage on a continuous basis as long as you own a car. The New York Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) has a system, called the Insurance Information and Enforcement System (IIES), that detects uninsured vehicles.
Car rental agreements vary from one car rental company to another. However, all car rental companies must provide the minimum coverages required by law. Car rental companies may sell a Collision Damage Waiver (CDW), also known as "Optional Vehicle Protection" (OVP). For rentals of 30 consecutive days or less, car rental companies in New York State can sell CDW, or, if not purchased, charge a renter for the total value of a stolen (lost) or damaged rental vehicle. The daily cost of the CDW may be as high as $12, depending on the value of the vehicle.
If you are currently insured under a New York auto insurance policy and you rent a car for 30 days or less anywhere in the United States, its territories and possessions, or Canada, you do not need to buy a CDW/OVP from the car rental company regardless of whether you have collision or comprehensive coverage on your own car. At present such coverage is currently provided without any extra charge. Furthermore, many credit card companies also provide some form of "collision damage coverage" to their cardholders for vehicles they rent with that card. This is separate from any other coverage and usually covers losses only in excess of amounts collectible under other existing coverages. It should be noted that credit card companies do not extend this coverage to all vehicles. You may wish to check with your credit card company to verify exactly what protection it provides and what types of vehicles are covered. Coverage under these agreements is regulated under the New York State Insurance Law and must be underwritten by a licensed New York State insurer.
In addition, some car rental companies offer higher liability limits than the required 25/50/10 at an additional cost. You may want to purchase this additional coverage if you do not own a car. If you already have a policy with higher liability limits, it will provide the coverage while renting a car. Some rental car companies are also licensed to sell additional accident and health coverage (beyond required No-Fault benefits) and coverage for personal items stolen from the vehicle. These coverages are also regulated under the New York State Insurance Law and must be underwritten by a licensed New York State insurer.
Damages is an American legal thriller television series created by writing and production trio Daniel Zelman, Glenn Kessler, and Todd A. Kessler. It premiered on July 24, 2007, on FX and aired for three seasons before moving to the DirecTV channel Audience Network in 2010, airing for two further seasons, and concluding in 2012.[1][2]
The series is known for its depiction of season-long cases, from the point of view of both the law firm and an opponent. It is also noted for the technical merit of its writing, including its effective use of plot twists and non-linear narrative. It has received critical acclaim and various award nominations, with Close and Željko Ivanek winning Primetime Emmy Awards for their performances. Other established actors in the cast include Ted Danson, Tate Donovan, William Hurt, Marcia Gay Harden, Timothy Olyphant, Martin Short, Lily Tomlin, John Goodman, Ryan Phillippe, Dylan Baker, Janet McTeer, and John Hannah.
A young woman, Ellen Parsons, is found running through the streets half-naked and covered in blood. During the ensuing police investigation, her fianc, David, is found in the couple's apartment, bludgeoned to death, and Ellen is arrested.
Ellen becomes engrossed in a major case that Hewes & Associates is pursuing. Patty has been retained in a class action lawsuit by the former employees of billionaire Arthur Frobisher (Ted Danson). In a case reminiscent of the Enron scandal, Frobisher is accused of insider trading and lying to his employees about his company's health, even as he unloaded hundreds of millions of his own stock, depriving his employees of their retirement funds and benefits. Early in the season, Patty shows she is willing to go to extreme, unethical, and illegal lengths to win her case. As the season progresses, Ellen becomes increasingly involved in the case and in Patty's tradecraft.
Ellen deduces that one reason she was hired was her personal connection to the case; her fianc's sister turns out to be an important witness. Throughout much of the season, Ellen skirts the edges of unethical behavior, and she eventually crosses that line. As Ellen becomes increasingly devoted to the case, her relationship with her fianc, David, becomes strained. The situation worsens when Patty betrays his sister. Eventually, Ellen and David tire of Patty, and Ellen publicly leaves Hewes & Associates. Nevertheless, she maintains an interest in the case and soon becomes personally and professionally embroiled in it again.
Throughout the first season, the series plays with time. Instead of unfolding in the present and showing flashbacks of the past, the main narrative unfolds several months in the past and is interspersed with flashes of events that are taking place in the present. These flashes gradually reveal that Ellen's fianc, David, has been murdered and that Ellen, while staying at Patty's apartment, appears to have been attacked.
By the finale of the first season, the past-tense main narrative of the show has caught up with the flashes of the present, and most of the questions raised by those flashes have been resolved. The murder charges against Ellen are dropped. The identities of David's murderer and Ellen's attacker are revealed to the audience, and the Frobisher case is resolved. As a result, Frobisher gives two billion dollars of his personal fortune to the employees, in exchange for a guarantee that no criminal charges will be filed against him. He is later shot and left for dead by a former employee, whom he had double-crossed earlier by manipulating him for information.
Glenn Close, Rose Byrne, and Tate Donovan return as regulars in the second season of the series. Season one recurring star Anastasia Griffith became a regular, while season one regular Ted Danson returned for five episodes. William Hurt, Timothy Olyphant and Marcia Gay Harden also joined the regular cast, while John Doman guest starred.
Six months earlier, an old acquaintance of Patty's, scientist Daniel Purcell (William Hurt), convinces Patty to take a case involving a conspiracy between Purcell's scientific firm and a huge energy corporation, Ultima National Resources (UNR). Patty's initial refusal to assist Purcell is understood better when it is revealed that Purcell is the father of Patty's son, Michael, a relationship she abused to win a case during Michael's childhood. Currently, Purcell is having an affair with Patty's opponent in the courtroom, Claire Maddox (Marcia Gay Harden), the attorney of UNR's CEO. On a similar note, a partner in UNR, Dave Pell (Clarke Peters), conspires against her with Patty's husband, Phil, while Phil is also having an extramarital affair. When Phil's affair is anonymously leaked to the press (found to be by Patty), Patty kicks him out of their apartment. Ellen, still believing Patty had tried to have her killed, deals with her past by attending group grief counseling sessions and working with the FBI to bring Patty down. Patty's partner Tom Shayes, whose wife is pregnant with a son, continues to be in the dark on certain issues regarding cases. Eventually, Ellen uses Tom to further the FBI investigation, causing him to get fired in the process.
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