As an attorney that handles auto collision injuries, I get asked frequently, “If I use my own insurance for a wreck I did not cause, can my insurance company raise my policy rates?” Before answering that question, I believe it is important to discuss what auto insurance coverages are applicable to injuries caused in a collision and what is required by law in Florida. Due to space limitations, I will address the same questions for property damage, in a separate issue.
Florida is a “no-fault” auto collision state, meaning that if you are injured in a wreck, you use your own insurance coverage to pay the costs associated with your injuries, medical expenses, and costs of loss of wages if you cannot work. Personal Injury Protection, or PIP, is the part of your car insurance coverage that applies to these expenses cause by a collision.
Florida law mandates that every vehicle registered in the state carry at least $10,000 in personal injury protection, which is subject to a deductible chosen by the policy holder. PIP pays up to 80% of reasonable medical costs related to injuries from a collision; up to 60% of lost earnings; and $5,000 in death benefits. PIP pays for these expenses and losses, regardless of whether the injured person causes the wreck. PIP coverage applies to all family and household members of the insured, and any passengers or operators who do not own their own vehicle.
If you are injured in a collision, it is important to know that you must seek medical treatment within 14 days of the wreck. The insurance company can deny future claims under PIP if the claimant did not receive treatment from a physician, chiropractor, emergency room, or certain other providers within the first 14 days after a wreck.
Florida auto insurance companies offer Medical Payments coverage, or MedPay, that pays for medical expenses only due to a collision. MedPay covers medical expenses for the car owner, passengers in the owner’s vehicle, and even for injuries as a pedestrian if struck by a car. MedPay may cover the 20% of the medical bills that are not covered by PIP and all of the remaining medical expenses until the selected policy maximum is reached.
What happens if your medical bills and lost wages exceed the mandatory PIP coverage of $10,000? In that event, the at-fault driver’s bodily injury (referred to as BI) insurance policy could provide coverage for the additional expenses, as well as compensation for your personal injuries, such as physical pain, disability, disfigurement, and loss of earnings. BI coverage applies to injuries caused by negligence of the car owner, or a driver with the owner’s permission, to other drivers, passengers, cyclists, or pedestrians.
Since Florida currently does not require vehicle owners to carry BI coverage (with some limited exceptions) to pay for injuries caused by negligence, insurance companies offer coverage for underinsured and uninsured motorists (referred to as UIM and UM respectively.) UM coverage applies when another driver causes a wreck and does not have BI coverage to pay for costs of the injury. UIM coverage applies when the at-fault driver has BI coverage, but the limits of the coverage is insufficient to pay for all of the costs of injury.
Now for that insurance rate question. In Florida, our state laws prevent insurance companies from raising insurance rates for personal injury protection solely because you the policy holder, or other insured person, was in a collision that was not his or her fault. These laws also prohibit insurance companies from cancelling your insurance policy for making a claim for a wreck you did not cause. Other facts may allow the insurer to raise insurance rates, such as added expenses across the market, added risks such as speeding violations, or adding a new driver to the policy.
Steve Walden, Attorney at Law
The Carlson Law Firm
333 3rd Ave N, Suite 220 | St. Petersburg, FL 33701 (727) 373-4655 | swalden@carlsonattorneys.com