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Most people in South Florida have seen the billboards, heard the radio ads, and see the television ads that promise a minimum of $10,000 in return if you call a phone number when you have been involved in an automobile accident. The $10,000 is the personal injury protection prescribed by Florida law. A lawyer referral service does not mean that you get connected with an experienced or competent personal injury lawyer Boca Raton.

The lawyer referral service industry has been the target of legislation and lawsuits in Florida since 2010. The aim of the legal actions has been to make the advertising more realistic, protect people from some practices that cost them money they should never have to pay in any injury claim, and stops actions between physicians and attorneys that are not legal.

A lawyer referral service connects a person to a call center. The call center does not employ a lawyer. The purpose of the call center is to connect an individual who has been involved in an accident with a lawyer near their location. There is no representation of the quality of the legal expertise of the lawyer provided.

The idea behind the majority of lawyer referral service firms is to make money on the high volume of cases handled. There is no real intent to examine the detail of an individual case or to get the maximum amount of settlement for the client. Some but not all of the services are in the business to make money for the lawyers and the doctors who own the services.

The court cases and investigations by local newspapers should make any person wary of a lawyer referral service.

Chiropractors have paid a fee to be a part of the same network of services as the lawyers in lawyer referral services. This gives the physician an incentive to prescribe unneeded treatments. The injured party may not get the treatment that they actually need to recover from their injuries. Investigative reporters have found that many injured parties had huge bills to pay above and beyond what the personal injury protection paid to the chiropractors that practiced collusion with the lawyers.

A major health care insurance company filed suit for $15 million against one of South Florida’s most prominent lawyer referral services. The physicians associated with the service are accused of violating Florida laws against kickbacks, patients who refer themselves, and advising tests that were totally unneeded. The case had not gone to trial.

Lawyers from lawyer referral services have made illegal unsolicited visits to people in hospitals who were injured in automobile accidents. The ongoing investigation claims that the call service told the lawyer where the person was.

The idea here is very simple. Select a personal injury lawyer Boca Raton based on advice from people who have experience with the firm and the individual attorney. You will get better representation and can potentially get more money for your claim.