Health Insurance and Auto Accidents- What to Expect
Brian O Sutter
Accident Lawyers
You have recently been involved in a car accident and sustained injuries. Now the medical bills are beginning to pile up, and you are unsure of what you need to do to file a claim so that the insurance provider of the other party responsible can step up and pay these bills. Do you have to use your own health insurance to cover these costs?Who Caused the Accident?
If the other driver was responsible for the accident, then the liability for bodily injury should fall to their car insurance for the medical expenses. Your own car insurance, despite who is at fault or not, should also pay for your medical expenses.
However, there are also times when you can and cannot use your health insurance as a replacement for your car insurance for injuries and medical expenses.
Health Insurance of PIP
Florida is one of the few states that requires that you carry personal injury protection insurance (PIP) in addition to your other coverage. PIP is used to cover any injuries sustained due to the accident, rehab costs, and even lost wages.
While PIP and health insurance basically do the same thing, there are a few significant differences you should know about. In Florida, you are required to use the limits of your PIP before you can use your health insurance. PIP limits generally start around the $10,000 mark and could go up as high as the $100,000 mark depending on your coverage.
There is no out of pocket deductible associated with PIP either, and once you have reached the limits as stated in your policy, you can then turn to your health insurance coverage.
What Does PIP Typically Cover?
PIP will typically cover a variety of things and people including the passengers in the car at the time of the accident- even if they are not listed anywhere on the policy. In addition, it can also cover lost wages, rehab costs, funeral costs, and can be used if back up health insurance claims are being denied.
Health insurance, on the other hand, does not cover the passengers in the car, it will not cover any lost wages because of the accident, will not cover any funeral costs and expenses, and the health insurer can easily deny the claim.
Car Insurance Coverage for Injuries
A lot of car insurance companies offer coverage that will help pay for medical expenses in addition to PIP. These include liability coverage, medical payments coverage, and uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage. In many states, liability coverage is the minimum amount of coverage a person is required to have for car insurance which means that this coverage only applies if the other driver is found to be at fault.
Medical payments coverage is very similar to PIP and will kick in when you have overextended your typical health insurance limits. This coverage applies to passengers, if you are a passenger in someone else’s car during an accident, or if you are a pedestrian that has been struck.
If you have been involved in an accident and have sustained injuries, you may want to discuss your case with a personal injury attorney to make sure you are taking the right steps when it comes to receiving compensation for injuries, lost wages, and medical bills and other damages associated with the accident.
They will be able to guide you on the coverage as well and will be able to help determine which insurance company is going to be responsible for paying the bill for all these accident-related expenses.