Fri-Yay

VarunaTT · May 2021

short+sassy said:

VarunaTT said:

short+sassy said:

She's expecting a large settlement from a car accident that happened almost 3 years ago. It seems to me like her only plan has been to put her "hope" hat on, that the charity's help will last until she gets this supposed settlement.

This part falls into my field, and OMG I loathe when my clients start the "But I need money" train. I'm sorry, even if we settled the case right now, it's a 45-60 day process on average for you to get your check. This is not the bank you are looking for, so I suggest you do whatever you would've previously done. Oh and no, we will not sign any paperwork for you to get a loan on your settlement.

Thanks! That is so interesting to hear and gives me some perspective on things she told me early on. She was badly injured and spent a year recovering. She says there is no question it was the other driver's fault, but I've learned to take what she tells me with a grain of salt. As an aside, she was driving for Uber and the other driver was driving for Lyft, at the time of the accident. So, cha-ching, both of those companies have insurance for up to one million dollars, per accident.

I'm not totally sure what she did for money that first year. I think she was on disability and her medical bills were paid by the insurer. I think she also had some draws from her settlement. But she rented the house from me after she had mostly recovered...though there was one additional surgery she would need further down...and was back driving for Uber. Then her car was totaled last Feb. when equipment fell on it during an Uber ride, last Feb. I don't want to go into specific details because it was unusual, but I know it happened and it wasn't her fault because it made local headline news for a couple days! She was physically okay and no one was injured. But she was upside down on her car loan, so she couldn't buy another one. That was when the charity bailed her out and has continued to do so. Then the pandemic hit.

Oddly enough, she didn't apply for unemployment at all, even though she was eligible once the new pandemic guidelines were added in. I wasn't prying, but the subject naturally came up when we were chit-chatting in July. She said she tried once, but she had trouble getting in, so she didn't try again. I was shocked and encouraged her to try again because, at the time, it was about $500/week in Louisiana for independent contractors. But, for someone who keeps complaining she has no money, she looked totally disinterested. It made no sense and I've always wondered if she was worried it would mess up the money she was getting from the charity. I think it would have stopped or been cut down for awhile but, once the UE ended, she could have gotten back on if she still needed to for probably many, many more months. But now she is starting to overstay her welcome with them because she didn't even give them a "break" by going on UE for as long as she could.

For her income verification when she applied, she was able to show through her Uber records that she earned enough to qualify. She also showed me a letter from her lawyer that she could get advances from her settlement. She got one for a few hundred bucks right after her Feb. accident. But that was it. It's possible they have given her more, but not enough to buy another car which is what she has been trying to get. And the settlement agreement...the big one that happened almost 3 years ago...doesn't sound any closer to being concluded than it did when she moved in about 18 months ago. She may not be my favorite person. Especially right now. But I have been sorry to hear how long it has taken for her.

The Uber and Lyft issues might be a fight, as well. 3 years ago...feels like about the time some states/insurance companies started dealing with that question, but it's still a messy grey area for most places. The drivers are considered independent contractors using their own vehicle meaning their own liability insurance provides the coverage (which I think was giving some people issues w/unemployment when lockdowns started, but I also thought the federal government handed down guidance/requirements on that). That's different from a taxi driver who is actually working for XYZ Taxi Company and the company carries the appropriate liability insurance. Some states/companies are dealing with the issue, but not nearly enough. I feel like it's going to take a big lawsuit to really hand down strict federal type rules. IDK what your state does of course, but I know my MO policy now requires a signature that you aren't driving for those companies and if you are, you have to have a different type policy (if you want to be legal about it).

ILoveBeachMusic · May 2021

banana468 said:

@ILoveBeachMusic the daycare we previously used closed.

I think we can just change our sleep schedules so I can drop the kids off for 8 AM and get them at 1 and DH can do his hours to still be home by 5ish. But I'm chafed that this decision done not company wide but by a division within the company has been implemented on such short notice.

And most of the people working there are male engineers so the concept of "What about kids?" is often this antiquated afterthought.

I know a lot of daycares have closed that's why I just don't know what working parents are doing! I don't blame you for being upset at the short notice! I know many companies are allowing employees to work from home permanently but that isn't possible for all jobs so a long term notice is nice. DS2's company told them at the end of April that they would be going back on June 7th. At least their employees got about 6 weeks to arrange childcare - of course that isn't an issue for DS2.

Fri-Yay

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