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Straight
Track #243
| Deal or No Deal: The
Railroad's Game
Gary Babiarz, Chief Investigator
Hoey & Farina
gbabiarz@hoeyfairna.com
1-888-425-1212 |
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I am sure that some of you are familiar with the new
game show "Deal or No Deal." The contestant is faced with 26 briefcases,
each with an unknown dollar amount ranging from $0.01 to $1,000,000
inside. The contestant picks one of the briefcases and sets it,
unopened, next to him. The host asks the contestant to pick one more
briefcase which is opened immediately and the dollar amount revealed.
Once five briefcases have been opened, the banker calls the host with an
offer to buy the contestant's unopened briefcase. The contestant then
has to make the decision – "deal" or "no deal" - and guess if the
banker's offer is better than what is inside the briefcase next to him.
Each time the contestant says "no deal," more briefcases are opened. The
contestant's family and friends shout out advice as to what they think
the contestant should do. The banker keeps calling with his offer. The
game show host keeps asking the contestant for a decision. The
contestant knows the stakes are high. Pressure mounts for the
contestant, while the banker sits calmly in his dark, secret booth.
By now you must be wondering why in the heck I'm talking
about a game show in a Straight Track article. What could "Deal or No
Deal" possibly have to do with anything?
THE RAILROAD'S GAME
If you are injured at work on the railroad, you'll be a
contestant in the railroad's version of "Deal or No Deal." At the time
of your injury, the railroad will immediately place a value on your
case. With each additional piece of information you, the contestant,
provide the railroad – statements to the claim agent, conversations with
case managers, surveillance tapes, release of medical information,
friendly phone calls to the superintendent's office - the railroad, the
banker, will adjust, up or down, the settlement value of your case. The
railroad is not going to tell you, though, what your case is really
worth. It is going to leave that up to you to guess. The railroad knows
you will have family and friends, most probably without any idea of your
rights under the Federal Employers' Liability Act, offering you advice
and participating in your decision. The railroad knows you will be faced
with financial pressures so you will deal with its claim agent, the
host, and take its offer. The railroad's goal is to get you to take less
than what your case is really worth! And who has a better chance of
winning, you or the railroad?
Don't be a contestant in the railroad's game. Know
what's involved in your case from the very beginning. Be able to make
informed decisions. Call Hoey & Farina at (888) 425-1212 for legal
advice.
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