What is PIP Insurance Coverage?

auto insurance policy

Working for an auto accident lawyer, I hear terms and phrases about insurance being thrown around all day. Most of the time I have no idea what people are talking about. Which gives me good enough reason to do my research. Because I know that I am not the only one who has questions about these terms. Today, I am going to discuss personal injury protection (PIP for short) and why it is a great add-on to any car insurance plan. If you have been injured in an accident, contact an accident attorney in our office. Consultations are free!

Accident Attorney | What is PIP Insurance?

Personal injury protection, or PIP, is along the same lanes as MedPay. Meaning, it is an additional coverage that you add on to your policy. Both PIP and MedPay help cover you and/or your passenger when you need to go to the hospital and be treated after an accident. PIP will come into play whether you were the at-fault party or not.

PIP Claims

PIP is not unlike MedPay in the way that when you file a PIP claim, it will cover medical expenses. and in some states, it can help out with lost wages and other damages due to your accident. PIP insurance will cover you, any passengers in the vehicle. in they way, if you or someone you know is a pedestrian and is hit by someone with PIP insurance coverage, it will cover the pedestrian injured.

Furthermore, if you have PIP coverage on your own insurance but you were in someone else’s vehicle at the time of the accident. However, if the driver of the car you are in also has PIP coverage, you will need to exhaust their PIP coverage before yours kicks in. Seeing as this is an optional coverage and not required, our accident attorneys highly recommend that you include this add on in your plan.

PIP claims normally have to be filed in a certain amount of time. Check with your auto accident lawyer at Silverthorne Attorneys. We will do this for you!

Benefits of PIP Coverage

One of the benefits of having PIP coverage is that you don’t have to wait until you complete medical treatment to make a claim. Though we prefer to do this in order to have a firm grasp on what to demand. If you prefer, we can send in medical bills as a supplementary claim and then when you have completed treatment, we will then ask for the rest of the damages. PIP’s do have a maximum limit that is paid out, however, there are no deductibles that you will need to pay.

Auto Accident Lawyer | Medpay

We want to briefly touch on MedPay one more time. as MedPay is similar to PIP coverage. Since California is an “at-fault” state, MedPay and PIP coverage are optional. However, it is not uncommon for people to have both. If you can afford to do so, there are great benefits.

PIP and Medpay Claims | What to Watch For

If you have one or both of these coverage’s and you make a claim, your insurance carrier may try to deny it. This will be especially true if your claim is larger than what the insurance company wants to settle for. Some reasons the insurance companies may not want to pay out are because:

  • Doctor’s bills are “too high” or they are not considered ordinary or customary;
  • The insurance company thinks you are getting “too much” treatment or your treatment is deemed unnecessary or excessive

Now, our auto accident lawyer is not saying that these are fair. in fact, we know that insurance companies are just out to save money. Even your own insurance company is not on your side. This is why we stress that having an accident attorney is so important. With that being said, if your case is considered to be “big” and you have medical bills that are piling up, they may ask you to be evaluated by one of their medical professionals. in cases where the demand for settlement is high, this is quite common.

If you are one of those who have both of these coverage, the PIP coverage will be primary. Meaning that you will use this for payments first and then MedPay will kick in after PIP coverage is exhausted.

PIP/Medpay and Health Insurance

Having PIP and MedPay is just an added bonus onto your car insurance policy. It’s like additional health insurance that is specifically there just in case of an accident. What usually happens after your accident and you receive treatment is your PIP and MedPay will be billed before your actual health insurance is billed. However, if you are filing a claim against another driver and your medical bills are included in the settlement, you may need to repay the insurance company for the PIP and/or MedPay benefits. That being said, an auto accident lawyer at Silverthorne Attorneys will guide you through it all.

Contact Us Today!

We know that suffering from injuries after a car accident is stressful. and you should not have to deal with the insurance companies on your own. Especially when you are trying to heal from your injuries. That is where we step in. the accident attorneys in our office are here to make sure that the only thing you need to do is focus on healing from your injuries. If you have been injured in an accident, please do not hesitate to contact us to discuss your case. Consultations with one of our attorneys are free!

We will do everything in our power to make sure that you get the settlement you deserve.