April 12th, 2010

What you need to know about personal injury law

Posted by Frederick R. Hovde, Hovde Dassow & Deets

What should I do?

Any time you are involved in an accident call the police or any other persons of authority to document what happened. If you are able, get as much information as possible about the individuals involved. If it is a motor vehicle accident obtain the other drivers address and phone numbers, driver’s license number and the insurance company name and policy number. If there were any witnesses it is important to obtain their name(s) and contact information.

Contact your insurance company. If you are involved in an automobile accident you should contact your own insurance company as soon as possible. You are required to file a form (SR21) with the bureau of motor vehicles to verify that you had automobile liability insurance at the time of the accident even if the accident was not your fault. The failure to file this proof of insurance form will result in the automatic suspension of your driver’s license.

What should I do if the other person’s insurance company contacts me?

Frequently the other party’s insurance company will attempt to contact you shortly after the accident. They will usually want to obtain a recorded statement and have you sign and authorization to allow them to get your medical records. The best advice is to politely tell them you are not ready to discuss this with them and contact an attorney. A statement is not required and if you make a claim, the insurance company will be provided all necessary information over time.

Often the extent of your injuries and symptoms from them are not completely known right after the accident and a statement given without full knowledge of nature and extent of the injuries may be misinterpreted or used against you later in your claim.

Who will pay for my medical expenses?

When you receive medical treatment following an injury you should provide the medical providers with all of your information about your health insurance coverage if you have it. You may also have additional coverage under your automobile policy. If you do it will be medical payments coverage a specific coverage under your automobile policy that is for medical expenses resulting from an accident.

Even though your injuries and medical treatment were the result of the other persons fault, their insurance company will not pay for your medical expenses as they are incurred. These insurance companies only resolve claims with a single lump sum payment at the conclusion of the claim. If you used your health insurance benefit and/or your medical payments coverage to pay your medical expenses and you collect money from the other person’s insurance company, your health insurance company and/or automobile insurance company may be entitled to reimbursement. Your attorney should be familiar with the health insurance and automobile policy provisions that allow for reimbursement and the state law statutes that can be used to determine any reduction in the amount of your settlement proceeds that they may be reimbursed.

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Posted in Personal Injury