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In the fall of 2017, Charlotte N., a schoolteacher and mom, was driving on the Long Island Expressway heading to work. The weather was clear, traffic normal, and her thoughts bounced between her family and her to do list for work. She was an optimistic and energetic young woman headed to a job she had worked towards for years; a job where she saw herself retiring from many years down the road.

Unfortunately, Charlotte’s plans for the day, and her life, were soon to be derailed by a reckless driver. Charlotte came to a stop in her lane as traffic ahead of her stopped. The next thing she remembers was her head slamming back and forth against her head rest. She was the front car in a three-car rear end crash. A distracted driver in the rearmost car failed to stop and caused the crash.  

Charlotte felt some neck pain and was evaluated at the hospital. The initial impression was that Charlotte was alright, just a bit sore. Unfortunately, as the days and weeks passed Charlotte’s neck pain only increased. An MRI revealed that she suffered a cervical spine herniation which was impinging on her nerves. Her hands and arms became weak from the nerve damage. She began dropping things as her grip weakened. She noticed difficulty picking up her son as her arms grew progressively weaker. 

Charlotte’s questions grew exponentially as her injuries worsened. She began to receive medical bills in the mail. Who was responsible for these bills? Insurance companies kept calling – should she even speak to them? She was pressured at work not to miss more days; but what if she has to miss work? She needed guidance. 

To compound her problems, the involved insurance companies began their typical abuse of the injury victim. They claimed that Charlotte’s neck problems were not from this accident, but instead from six years prior when Charlotte experienced mild neck pain. They didn’t want to pay for anything. Her own insurance company, who is responsible for her medical bills, “denied” payment of further bills.  

Charlotte’s friends recommended she meet with personal injury attorney John Coco. 

John had seen this all before. A reckless driver causes an injury, but his insurance company becomes the true villain of the story by its treatment of the injury victim. John answered Charlotte’s questions and reassured her that he knew how to deal with these villains. They discussed his firm’s many similar cases in which his litigation strategy which has proven successful. Charlotte retained the Law Offices of John Coco to fight on her behalf. 

The insurance companies were just warming up with their attempted abuse of Charlotte. Unsurprisingly, dealing with this particular insurance company was like trying to catch a slimy lizard by the tail. First, they “blamed the victim,” by claiming Charlotte’s injuries were unrelated to this accident. Next, they claimed the crash wasn’t “hard enough” to cause Charlotte’s injuries. The list of their attempted “defenses” was exhaustive and laughable. 

As John dealt with the insurance company and their defense attorneys Charlotte tried everything to get better including physical therapy, chiropractic care, medications and injections. Surgery was the last resort. Charlotte eventually underwent surgery to replace the herniated disc in her neck.  

When the insurance company finally realized they were in for a fight they sent an investigator to harass Charlotte and her family. First, the investigator hid outside Charlotte’s house to take photos of her and her family. He hoped to get a photo of Charlotte that the insurance company could use against her at trial. He was not successful. The investigator then began harassing Charlotte’s mom, with repeated phone calls asking questions about Charlotte.

These intimidation tactics are common in personal injury cases. Insurance companies attempt to scare an injury victim into dropping their case. John didn’t let them get away with any of their underhanded tactics – he continued to call the insurance company out on their shady moves as he pushed the case closer to trial. 

John’s firm spent many hours and spared no expense in litigating her case. His team of experts including doctors, investigators, medical illustrators, and accident reconstructionists in order to prove Charlotte’s case. John’s medical exhibit team created illustrations of Charlotte’s injury and surgery (pictured above) to show the jury. The exhibits clearly showed Charlotte’s pre- and post-accident condition, confirming that the crash caused her injuries. 

After three years of litigation and much fighting with multiple insurance companies and their teams of attorneys, Charlotte was paid $1,300,000, the full amount of all available insurance. Justice was served and Charlotte could pay for the medical care she needed.

John Coco represented an elderly couple from Queens who were both seriously injured when a distracted driver ran a red light. Both clients suffered multiple fractures and other injuries.

John reached an initial settlement with the defendant’s insurance company for $200,000 and a subsequent settlement with the clients’ own insurance company for an additional $300,000. Thankfully the clients had Supplemental Underinsured Motorist coverage, which provided them with additional insurance in case they were injured and the liable party was underinsured.

The clients used the settlement compensation to pay for medical bills, equipment, and home alterations which were not covered by insurance.

Our client, a Local Union 3 Electrician, was injured after another trade gutted old wiring and left it on the ground where he was working. He tripped and fell on debris injuring his shoulder. Our firm was able to reach a global settlement with various liable parties totaling $510,000.

On a warm and bright May afternoon, Michael G. was stopped in his car at a traffic light. He was headed home from work. Michael was recently promoted at work. His wife and one year old daughter eagerly waited for him, since he was expected home earlier than usual. Michael thought about the moment he would burst into the front door of his home to his family’s smiles and excitement. He was their primary financial support and was proud of that fact.

As Michael waited at a red light, he listened to 1010 WINS on the radio. The weather promised to be warm and sunny for the weekend, and Michael looked forward to a family barbeque on Sunday. This day was unremarkable in every respect – that is, until the unimaginable happened.

The driver behind Michael’s car was driving over 40 miles per hour while looking down at her phone. She didn’t look up, she didn’t touch the brake, and she didn’t sound her horn. It didn’t seem like she saw Michael’s car at all – it was as though he was invisible.

This driver struck Michael’s car with such force that he later described the sound as a “bomb going off”. The force of impact threw Michael’s vehicle forward several feet and his head snapped violently back and forth. Michael thought his neck was broken and felt a burning chest pain from the seatbelt.

After the fog and shock abated, Michael got out of his car to check on the other driver. She seemed ok. Michael figured he was also ok since he could walk — but he couldn’t have been more wrong. Michael had ruptured three discs in his neck, which would require months of physical therapy, multiple injections, epidurals, and ultimately surgery. He would live with this injury for the rest of his life.

This neck injury was incredibly debilitating for Michael and affected every facet of his life. He worked primarily on commission and could not return to his prior pace at work. He required frequent breaks, time off for doctors’ visits, and was constantly distracted by debilitating neck pain. His working hours dwindled, productivity waned, and Michael was eventually fired.

Now jobless, and still suffering from tremendous injuries, Michael faced a potentially devastating financial situation. How would he pay his mounting bills and mortgage? Could he even afford the co-pay to see his doctors? Could he ever be as productive as before the crash?

Perhaps more devastating than his physical injuries were the self-deprecating thoughts that crept into Michael’s mind; “I’m a terrible father, I can’t even provide for my family.” he thought. He confided to his wife, “I feel like I’m disappearing”.

With seemingly nowhere to turn, Michael was referred by a friend to Personal Injury Attorney John Coco, founder of the Law Offices of John Coco. Michael was encouraged that Mr. Coco’s firm had handled many similar cases, often with maximum results. Mr. Coco personally assured Michael that the firm would diligently represent him and press forward until there was just compensation. Mr. Coco gave Michael the advice he gives every client; “Just focus on getting better, and we will do the rest.”
Mr. Coco quickly determined that there was a total of $250,000 in available insurance for Michael’s injuries. The woman who struck him had a $100,000 policy, and Michael had an additional $150,000 from his own insurance policy.

Mr. Coco’s firm immediately filed a lawsuit against the driver that struck Michael’s car. Her insurance company, a nationally known multibillion-dollar company, defended her obvious negligence and argued that the 40 mile per hour crash was a “minor impact”. These typical games played by the insurance corporations delay justice for the injured and wrongly put the personal assets of their insured at risk. Mr. Coco proved that this was a heavy impact through the vehicles’ extensive repair records and post-crash photos. After a six-month battle, the insurance corporation reluctantly paid Michael the entire $100,000 policy. In the interim, Michael got a new job and began rebuilding his career.

Next, Mr. Coco’s firm demanded the remaining $150,000 from Michael’s auto insurance company. Michael had wisely purchased “SUM” (Supplemental Underinsured Motorist) coverage, which was intended for this exact scenario. Surprisingly, Michael’s OWN insurance company, to which he had faithfully paid a premium to for over ten years, refused to pay ANYTHING! Even in the face of overwhelming evidence that Michael’s compensation should be much more than the available insurance. The insurance company representative told Mr. Coco that unless Michael would take less than the $150,000 demand, they would not offer a dime. Mr. Coco had heard this nonsense many times before and just ignored it. His firm filed a second lawsuit against Michael’s own auto insurer – yet another multibillion-dollar insurance corporation, who like the first would not honor its obligation to pay unless forced to in Court. After aggressively litigating this second case, this insurance company paid the remaining $150,000.

The total compensation for Michael’s injuries was $250,000. This was the maximum result possible in this case. With this settlement Michael was able to begin a rebuilding period and avoid bankruptcy. Michael now had enough financial leeway to continue his medical treatments and to begin to flourish in his new job. Artwork by Kailyn Leopold. Disclaimer: Some facts have been changed to protect the parties’ identities.

A Note from John Coco, Esq.

While we are proud of this case result, our firm is not the hero of this story, Michael is the hero. He never gave up. His story could have ended much differently, frankly, in bankruptcy and despair. Despite the horrific crash, Michael is fighting to rebuild his life.

Unfortunately, the above case is not an anomaly, but instead happens to hard working innocent people every single day. Perhaps even more reprehensible than the initial negligent act, is the vigorous defense that the insurance company for the defendant will provide. These multibillion dollar insurance corporations will defend drunk and drugged drivers, individuals who are texting while driving and run over children on the sidewalk, and those who injure hardworking innocent victims from all walks of life. Unsurprisingly, the sole motivation behind the defense of these cases is to avoid paying plaintiffs compensation needed to begin rebuilding their lives. Don’t let yourself be victimized a second time by an insurance company.

JOHN COCO, ESQ of the Law Offices of John Coco, PLLC, recently won $250,000 for a woman who was stopped in traffic when the defendant, a driver who was on drugs, violently collided with her car pushing it into the car in front of hers. The defendant then fled the scene of the crash, but was followed by a Good Samaritan who called the Police. The defendant was arrested and determined to be under the influence of drugs at the time he caused the crash.

The plaintiff suffered shoulder and back injuries from the heavy impact of the collision. She underwent months of physical therapy and eventually a shoulder surgery to repair a tear. She will never fully recover from her injuries, as she suffered a permanent loss of range of motion in both her shoulders and back.

The Law Offices of John Coco commenced a lawsuit on the injured woman’s behalf, which began a complex litigation that spanned the Supreme Court of New York in two counties as well as Surrogate’s Court in Suffolk County. During the course of litigation Mr. Coco was able to prove that the defendant was 100% liable for the crash, which was a major turning point in the case.

The insurance company’s attorneys aggressively defended the case despite the fact that their client was on drugs when he caused the crash, and despite the fact that a Judge had already found that their client was 100% liable. The defense attorney for the insurance company insisted that the case was only worth “about $20,000”. Mr. Coco knew that the serious injuries sustained by the plaintiff warranted much higher compensation and persevered until the insurance carrier eventually paid the $250,000 while awaiting trial. $250,000 was the total available insurance in this case.

I was recommended to John Coco by a friend after I sustained injuries from being involved in an automobile accident. When I first called John, he picked up the phone right away and walked me through the legal process and necessary steps to take. I did not know a reliable body shop to get my car fixed and John helped me find a convenient local shop. He did all of this before I even hired him.

Needless to say, I was impressed at his level of service after speaking with him over the phone for the first time. Once I met with John, I decided to immediately hire him as my attorney. I liked that his firm specializes in personal injury law and that they keep a small case load of serious injury cases only. I also liked that he would personally handle my case, rather than my case being pawned off on someone else like some big law firms do.

The legal process can be a long grueling one. There are definitely times when you become extremely frustrated with the legal process, the games the defense attorneys and insurance companies play, and the amount of time it takes. However, John is there with you every step along the way. He fights for you and is extremely passionate about getting you what you deserve. He informs you of what is going on every step of the way. If you have any questions or concerns, he answers your phone calls, texts, and emails immediately. John made it a point to work very closely with me and consulted with me when it came to decisions that had to be made in my case. Despite the process being a tough one, knowing I had an attorney that was responsive and helpful helped put me at ease and ultimately led to a great result in my case.