Personal Injury Protection (PIP) Car Insurance

Personal Injury Protection (PIP) Car Insurance-What Is It and Should You Have It?

When you or your passengers are harmed in an automobile accident, personal injury protection (PIP) insurance pays for your medical costs and lost income. In most states, PIP is optional. However, 16 states require you to have at least a certain amount of PIP coverage. PIP insurance may overlap with your health or Med Pay insurance, but it is sometimes necessary to have numerous plans.

What Exactly Is Personal Injury Protection (PIP)?

Personal injury protection, sometimes known as "no-fault insurance," covers your medical fees and rehabilitation costs if you are injured in an automobile accident. PIP also applies whether you are a passenger in someone else's automobile or if you are injured by a car while walking or cycling.

PIP insurance differs from bodily injury liability insurance in that, although PIP coverage pays for your personal expenditures, liability insurance pays for the medical bills of other drivers and passengers in other vehicles when you are at fault for an accident.

PIP insurance may provide some of the same benefits as health insurance or a Medical Payments policy. PIP coverage, on the other hand, is created expressly for car-related injuries, which are frequently excluded from health insurance policies, and PIP insurance covers a variety of additional charges not covered by Med Pay insurance.

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What Is Personal Injury Protection?

PIP insurance pays for essential medical procedures as well as reasonable rehabilitation costs as you recover from an injury. The expenditures that are reimbursed vary by state and may include:

•Operations

•Hospitalization

•Professional care that is ongoing

•If you are unable to work, you will lose your earnings.

•Funeral expenditures and benefits in the event of an accident

•Some home care charges, such as day-care or house cleaning, if you are unable to perform these responsibilities yourself.

Is Pip Necessary If You Have Health Insurance?

If you reside in one of the 16 states where PIP coverage is compulsory, you must first make a claim under that policy before you may seek help from your health insurance. Even if it isn't required in your jurisdiction, PIP insurance provides certain advantages that a health insurance policy does not, such as payment for lost income and burial expenses.

In select states, such as New Jersey and Michigan, your PIP coverage will function in tandem with your health insurance policy. For example, if you are wounded in a vehicle accident in Michigan, your health insurance policy may cover your physical injuries, but your PIP coverage would cover extra-economic damages, such as missed income while you were in the hospital.

How Do You File A Personal Injury Protection (PIP) Claim?

You file a claim in the same way that you would for any other sort of insurance, either online or over the phone. PIP will assist in paying for emergency medical expenditures incurred as a result of the accident.

However, for ongoing, non-urgent claims, you will be asked to evaluate or pre-approve your treatment plan with a medical expert chosen by your insurer or an outsourced medical claims processor.

Your motor insurance company may also allow partial reimbursements or have you examined by a medical practitioner of their choosing. The amount covered by your coverage may differ based on your plan and state. In Florida, for example, PIP coverage will only cover 80% of your medical expenses.

It is crucial to adhere to the method and timetable established by your vehicle insurance company. In New Jersey, for example, any medical care or treatment provided during the first 10 days following an accident must be approved and verified by your insurance.

Failure to produce the requisite "Attending Provider Treatment Plan" and related documentation can result in a 50 percent co-payment penalty, regardless of whether the treatment or diagnostic test was medically necessary or reasonably required.

To be eligible for payment in New York, all medical invoices must be presented within 45 days after treatment; otherwise, written justifications must be supplied. Inquire with your insurance agent about the PIP claim process and keep a copy on hand in case you are injured.

How Does PIP Work In Conjunction With Other Types Of Car Insurance?

If you are hurt by another motorist and have personal injury protection as part of your vehicle insurance policy, you should usually exhaust your PIP coverage before considering alternative possibilities. If your medical expenses exceed the limitations of your coverage, you can submit a claim under the other driver's liability insurance policy.

However, if you are seriously and permanently wounded, or if your medical expenditures surpass your state's tort threshold, you may choose to forego PIP coverage and sue the other driver.

State Minimum Pip Requirements

PIP insurance is sometimes known as "no-fault insurance" since a certain amount of PIP coverage is needed if you reside in a no-fault state. Unless a particular level is met, your own insurance coverage will pay your expenditures in certain states, even if another motorist caused the collision. Depending on your state, these "tort thresholds" might be either monetary or verbal.

Medical expenditures for a person or accident must exceed a state-specified level before you can sue another motorist. Verbal thresholds establish the sort of harm that must be sustained before filing a lawsuit.

Although the terminology used differs by state, verbal thresholds often express that an individual has suffered severe and permanent loss of a physiological function, harm or deformity, or death. Other factors, such as whether or not the motorist was under the influence of drugs or alcohol, can also impact how tort standards are used.

PIP coverage is required in four fault-based states in addition to the 12 no-fault states. Other states enable you to purchase it as an add-on. The following are the PIP insurance requirements for the states where it is available:

*No-fault states include Kentucky, New Jersey, and the District of Columbia. Policyholders can choose between a no-fault system and a tort liability system, which permits them to launch a case right away.

What Is The Cost Of No-Fault Insurance?

The overall cost of PIP insurance will vary depending on the coverage level and deductible of your policy, as well as the state you live in.

Should I Get Medical Payments Insurance In Addition To PIP?

Both PIP and Med Pay insurance are intended to cover medical expenses incurred as a result of a car accident. Med Pay, on the other hand, does not cover many of the extra expenditures that PIP provides, such as lost income, rehabilitation programs, or childcare.

As a result, if you reside in a state where PIP coverage is available, Med Pay may be unneeded. In Michigan, for example, insurers are required to provide unlimited PIP coverage, thus extra Med Pay coverage would be unnecessary.

A medical payments policy, on the other hand, may provide extra coverage if your state has a low restriction on how much PIP insurance it requires. Three such states include Florida, Kansas, and Massachusetts. Consider adding Med Pay insurance to your policy if you live in one of these states.