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Walker, Billingsley & Bair Blog
Walker, Billingsley & Bair BlogHow Can Driving for Uber, Grubhub, DoorDash, etc. Could Cost You Everything? 6 Feb 2025, 5:54 pm
When you purchase a car insurance policy, it covers you and any consent drivers that are not excluded from the policy. However, a normal car insurance policy does not cover any businesses that you operate and Uber, Grubhub, DoorDash, etc. is considered operating a business. So, if there is an accident while you are conducting business then chances are that your insurance company will deny coverage. What does it mean if your insurance company denies coverage?
- If you injure someone in a motor vehicle collision then you will have no insurance coverage, may lose your driver’s license for being uninsured and have a judgment entered against you for the injuries and property damage that you caused to the other person.
- If you allow your child, your friend, or someone else to operate your vehicle with your consent and they injure someone, then you will be liable for the damage caused by the consent driver.
- If there is an accident that does not involve another vehicle and your vehicle is damaged or totaled, even if you have collision coverage, you may be left holding the bill and paying for a loan on a vehicle that is no longer drivable.
- If you are driving and a driver with no insurance or not enough insurance causes you to be injured, then normally you would have UM/UIM insurance coverage. But if you are driving while operating your business this may also be denied leaving you with injuries and little, if any, compensation.
The above can all be avoided by purchasing the proper insurance that covers your business. You may find out that the insurance costs are too high and decide to no longer drive your vehicle as a business, or the money that you are making may far exceed the increase in your insurance premiums. The point is, that if you are running a business by driving your car, then you need to contact your insurance agent and/or insurance company to make sure you have the correct coverage in place to prevent something that could cost you tens of thousands of dollars.
Where Does Iowa Rank on Cancer Rates? 20 Aug 2024, 6:39 pm
Last Updated: 8/29/2024
Nearly all of us want to live long and healthy lives and Iowa politicians have been bragging for years about how “business-friendly” our state is and how our taxes are going down. However, did you know that Iowa is the only state in the US to have increasing cancer rates since 2015? Iowa now only ranks 2nd behind Kentucky for the highest rates of cancer in the US. In the past 8 years overall, Iowa has dropped from being the 15th healthiest state to the 22nd. This is a disturbing trend that all Iowans should be concerned about, but why are politicians and the media not talking about this?
The Iowa Cancer Registry, a health research group housed at the University of Iowa recently reported that Iowa has the second-highest and fastest-rising incidence of cancer among all states. An estimated 21,000 new cancer cases are expected to develop this year and 6,100 Iowans will die from cancer, Iowa Cancer Registry Director Mary Charlton said in announcing the new report. While some researchers blame increased alcohol consumption other point to the agricultural industry including the heavy use of pesticides and fertilizers along with 100 million plus farm animals that make Iowa the No. 1 producer of feces. When you combine feces from humans and farm animals in Iowa it is like we have 168 million people living in our state.
What good is wealth without health? Iowa lawmakers should address things like water quality and reducing cancer rates along with financial matters like keeping jobs in Iowa and keeping the tax burden as low as possible.
Iowa Fun Facts 8 Aug 2024, 7:48 pm
March 2025
1. How long is it believed that people have lived in Iowa?
2. How many years after the Europeans explored Iowa did it become a state?
3. How many frontier forts were originally built in Iowa and how many survive today?
Past Months Facts
Tractor-Hay Rack Ride Dangers: Protect Your Family from Injury 18 Oct 2023, 6:50 pm
Fall is finally here and with that people are enjoying the nice weather at pumpkin patches and hay rack rides. But sadly not all rides are put together with safety in mind. Each year hundreds of Americans are injured and many are killed while on hay rack rides.
How They Pose A Danger:
There are no federal laws and very few state laws that govern the safety of the passengers. A hay rack is not designed to be pulled fast, as it has no suspension and is designed to haul hay, not humans.
Most hay racks are pulled by a tractor which may have a top speed of around 20 mph. Using a truck or other vehicle with a higher top speed will cause the ride to become dangerous fast!
Serious injuries such as broken bone, concussions, etc. can be caused by a driver going too fast, causing passengers to be thrown from the hay rack. Other common causes of injuries ca be caused when the tractor driver makes an improper turn causing the trailer to tip, the tractor driver gets too close to alady bird deed michigan ditch causing the trailer to lean or tip, the trailer coming unhooked from the tractor or several other reasons.
Questions you should ask before going on:
1. Does the tractor driver have experience pulling humans on hay racks?2. What is the top speed that the tractor driver will be going?
3. Has the tractor driver has been using alcohol or drugs?
The above suggestions along with some common sense should help keep you and your family safe. The recent incident with the 7th Graders from the Sigourney school district in Keokuk County, Iowa (click here to read more) serves as a heartbreaking reminder of the potential dangers associated with tractor-hay rack rides. While these outings can offer wonderful opportunities for community and family bonding, safety must always come first.
For more information about Iowa injury laws including “8 Common Costly Mistakes Made by Injured Iowans and How to Avoid Them” request a copy of our Iowa Personal Injury book which is available to you at no cost or risk. We offer the book at no cost because over the past 30-plus years we have seen far too many hardworking Iowans who were taken advantage of by insurance companies or made preventable mistakes costing them thousands of dollars.
Des Moines People's Choice Award Winners! 17 May 2023, 3:35 pm
WE WON!!
1st Place Gold Workers Compensation Law Firm
AND
1st Place Gold Personal Injury Law Firm
Thank You again to everyone who took the time and voted for us in the Des Moines People's Choice Awards.
You can see the listings here:
Workers Comp: https://bit.ly/421retS
Personal Injury: https://bit.ly/3p7ZV2u
How You Can Help Keep Kids Safe at School? 11 Aug 2022, 3:38 pm
It seems that every summer goes by faster and faster. It is hard to believe that the Iowa State Fair and school will be starting again in the next few weeks here in Iowa.
Here are a few things that we can all do to help keep our kids safe at school:
1. Avoid distracted driving, especially in school zones. Remember that law enforcement officers will now be pulling people over and giving them significant fines and possible jail time for texting, sending emails, using the internet etc. on their phones while driving. So please pay attention to the road instead of your phone.
2. Teach your children to resolve problems without fighting. Remind them to use their words instead of becoming physically aggressive. This can include reminding them to count to 10 before responding when they are upset, telling them that it takes a bigger person to walk away from a confrontation, recommending that they find an adult at school if they are put in an uncomfortable situation, etc.
3. Talk to your children and/or grandchildren about their day. Sometimes kids will not tell you right away if they are having problems, but if you ask, they may let their guard down and tell you about being bullied, problems with friends, issues with teachers, inappropriate touching, etc.
While these are some basic recommendations, if everyone talks to the children in their lives about these, then we will all help to make our schools a safer place for our kids.
Iowa Motor Vehicle Fatalities on the Rise. What are 3 Things You can Do to Protect You and Your Family? 10 Mar 2022, 5:17 pm
Last Updated: 11/9/2023
The Iowa State Patrol recently announced that we are seeing a disturbing trend of increased motor vehicle fatalities now for a 3rd year in a row. 2019- 337 death, 2020- 343 deaths and 2021- 354 deaths. Many of these deaths are caused by excessive speeding, reckless and distracted driving. For example, in 2021 the Iowa State Patrol alone issued 1,205 citations to drivers who were going more than 100 miles per hour. This is compared to 629 tickets citations issued in 2019 for 100 mph plus speeds. In one month alone they issued tickets to drivers going 138 mph on Interstate 29, 122 mph to a driver without a valid license near Cedar Falls and 117 mph on Interstate 35 north of Des Moines.
In Des Moines alone there were 24 traffic related deaths in 2021 which is also the 3rd year in a row that deaths have increased. Excessive speed was a factor in 46% of those crashes and impairment by alcohol and/or drugs caused 29% of the fatal crashes. Earlier this year two men were arrested while street racing during the winter on their motorcycles when the 3rd rider wrecked and later died. One motorcycle rider admitted to going more than 160 miles per hour while the other admitted to 180 plus. Similar trends are being seen by Polk County Sheriff’s deputies and other law enforcement agencies around the state.
What can you do to protect yourself and your family?
1. Wear a seatbelt. 93 of the motorists killed in 2021 were not wearing a seatbelt.
2. Drive defensively. You cannot assume that the other driver will see the stop sign and then actually stop for it. Be prepared when approaching intersections to use your brakes and take evasive action to avoid a collision.
3. Pay attention and avoid distracted driving. April is National Distracted Driving Month and look for our April newsletter where we will have more information about how you can help save the lives of fellow Iowans.
If you, a family member, friend or co-worker are dealing with injuries from a car accident then they should learn How to Avoid 7 Common Costly Mistakes made by Iowans every year.
We offer our Iowa car accident book at no cost or risk because after having represented hundreds of Iowans injured in car accidents our personal injury attorneys have seen the consequences of Iowan's costly mistakes. We are committed to educating you, so you can avoid making a mistake.
What do other Iowans have to say about our book?
"Gives you a step-by-step guide about car accidents." Randy of Perry
"Get the book, helpful, helpful, helpful." Marty of Melcher
Finally, you can learn about car accidents in the comfort of your own home with no risk or obligation. If you or a loved one have been hurt in a car accident and do not have an attorney claim your copy and join the hundreds of Iowans who already have the book by Calling Now 641-792-3595 or go to www.IowaCarCrash.com.
Halloween Safety Tips 2021 7 Oct 2021, 4:21 pm
We all hope that we can enjoy Halloween with our children and grandchildren safely this year. For those of you trick or treating with children this year, we want to remind you of some basic safety items to ensure everyone comes home safely.
Here are some tips and common-sense things to do:
- Remember there will be lots of kids walking around in costumes some of whom may not be paying attention so when you are driving a car, please use extra caution and drive extra slow in areas where there may be children.
- Instruct your children not to eat any candy or treats until you or another responsible adult looks to see what they have. We know this one can be difficult especially with older children.
- Children should be accompanied by a responsible adult who will help look out for cars and generally watch out for safety.
- Instruct your child to never go into the home of a stranger or get into their car.
- Make sure that children have reflective tape on their costumes and carry a flashlight or glow stick to make them more visible to vehicles.
The excitement of going trick or treating can sometimes make children and even adults forget some of these common-sense safety tips. Go through this checklist with children before they go out as they may help prevent a tragedy. We hope that you and your family have a fun and most importantly Safe HALLOWEEN!
We are proud to welcome Nicole to our attorney team 9 Sep 2021, 5:32 pm
We are proud to welcome Nicole to our attorney team. She joins our firm with a great deal of experience after having been in private practice in Chariton, Iowa, followed by working as an attorney with the Iowa Coalition Against Sexual Assault and then being a civil rights specialist at the Iowa Civil Rights Commission. In 2015, Nicole began working as an administrative law judge in the Unemployment Appeals division of Iowa Workforce Development and was promoted to Chief Administrative Law judge in 2019. Nicole lives in Ankeny with her two children and many pets. She enjoys travel, being outdoors, and cooking.
Nicole will be handling a variety of legal matters based out of our Ankeny office including employment law, workers' compensation and estate planning including wills, trusts and powers of attorney.
What Summer Adventures Will Corey and Beth Take on This Summer? 13 Aug 2021, 2:49 pm
If you have been reading the newsletter for very long, then you know that we usually take a hiking trip to the mountains of Colorado each summer. However, the past few months have involved Beth having surgery to repair a torn meniscus in her left knee and Corey in physical therapy dealing with plantar fasciitis in his right foot. So unfortunately, no hiking trip to Colorado this summer, but we are remaining active. We try to get in at least 2 bike rides a week of 30 plus miles each to stay in shape and enjoy the outdoors. Thankfully, we have hundreds of miles of trails in Iowa to explore including more than one hundred miles accessible from our home in Ankeny. While it may not be our hobby of choice, we can still have fun spending time together riding our bikes in Iowa this summer.