Personal Injury Protection Current Rates, News & Information

How to Make Sure Your Auto Insurance Covers Your Injury

Posted in Auto Insurance , Auto Insurance Claims , Personal Injury Protection

July 13th, 2010
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The cost of medical care and health insurance in America is astronomical. Even though health reform measures have been passed, one of the great concerns is that health insurance rates will rise prior to all the reform taking place.

Only time will tell regarding that subject. However, a new study from the Insurance Research Council indicates that to help offset the low reimbursement to hospitals from public health insurance programs for auto accident injuries, automobile insurance companies are being targeted for the funds.

There is much crossover between auto insurance and medical coverage, though the laws dictating the minimum auto insurance coverage a person needs to carry vary from state to state. Depending on where you live, your auto insurance policy may offer some medical benefits to be used in case an auto accident causes personal injury resulting in a claim.

According to FAQ: What is the Best Medical Coverage with Auto Insurance?, “medical payments coverage will pay for the medical (and/or funeral) expenses for you or one of your passengers in case of an accident, or will also cover the insured if they are a passenger in another vehicle or if they are struck as a pedestrian.”

This bridge is usually a great tool for ensuring that car accident injury settlements can be prompt and swift. However, since the cost of medical care is on the rise, hospital costs are shifting, too.  The IRC report estimates “Bodily Injury (BI) liability claims in 38 tort [liability based] and add-on states, cost-shifting in 2007 resulted in $1.2 billion in excess hospital charges.”

As a result, consumers who fall victim to auto personal injury need to take extra precautions to ensure medical expenses resulting from an auto accident are covered. Some important steps include:

• Report the accident immediately to the police and exchange all insurance and contact information.
• Regardless of how you immediately feel after the accident, let a paramedic check you and then go to the emergency room.
• From the second you go to the hospital, start documenting everything you can by saving receipts and getting photocopies of your medical reports.
• Report every ache and pain you may have experienced.
• Some injuries, like whiplash, may not surface immediately. If you experience any delayed pain due to the car accident, make sure the doctor you meet with documents the event that could have caused the pain.
• In case you or your passengers should be in too poor of condition to follow the above steps, inform your emergency contact of these procedures in advance.

Car accident injuries can range from mild to severe and may end up costing the victims thousands of dollars. By fully understanding how the insurance system works, you can prevent large medical bills from adding major insult to major injuries.

Should I Get Property Damage Liability Only?

Posted in Auto Insurance , Low Cost Car Insurance , Personal Injury Protection , Property Damage

July 15th, 2009
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It is a fact, to legally own and operate an automobile in the United States, a minimum amount of auto insurance coverage is required in some states. Although the minimum coverage amount is determined by law, the state in which a policyholder lives and registers the vehicle determines the amount essential for each vehicle. The minimum levels of auto insurance is comprised of both bodily injury liability limits and the the property damage liability limit. If you want to drive legally and provide a level of respect and responsibility to your fellow man, you need to have both in your car insurance coverage and not just property damage liability.

Do You Need Property Liability?

Property damage liability is a great type of insurance to have. If a policyholder is found at fault for causing an accident, the property damage liability portion of the policy will kick in to cover the cost of fixing or replacing the victims vehicle or other property damaged in the accident. This limit is capped by the maximum property damage liability insurance you purchased in your policy.

What Does Property Damage Liability Cover?

Property damage liability only covers property. If you get involved in a collision and are found at fault, you may also become responsible for paying the medical bills of the injured driver or passengers in that vehicle. That is where the bodily injury liability insurance comes in handy. If you choose to only get property damage liability, and are liable for the accident, you may have to pay large sums of money, based on the level of medical expenses they incur due to your driving.

Opting to only get property damage liability is not a smart decision. Not only is it probably illegal in your state, it is a foolish risk to take just to save a few dollars in the short-run as it could destroy you financially. Did you know that medical debt accounts for 60% of new bankruptcy cases? It’s true, and medical bills can come about due to medical illness or, you guessed it, bodily injury caused by accidents.

Do you need a car insurance policy that covers the all-important personal injury protection and property damage liability? If so, Go Insurance Rates can give you access to free online auto insurance rate quotes. The process only takes minutes and is absolutely secure.

Does a PIP Claim Increase My Rate?

Posted in Auto Insurance , Personal Injury Protection

July 13th, 2009
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Personal Injury Protection, or PIP, originated in 1930 as a way to streamline the litigious nature of insurance claims for accidents. The hope was by moving the fault determination out of the overwhelmed court system and putting it into the hands of the negotiating insurance companies, the process would be faster, the resolution would be less costly and that premiums would be less expensive. Initially, insurance rates in no-fault states were lower then their litigious neighbors, but that was short-lived and typical auto insurance requiring personal injury protection tends to be more expensive. Another unfortunate side-effect is that a PIP claim can increase your rate even more.

There are many factors that influence your car insurance rates and quotes. Age, gender, experience, profession and driving history can either positively or negatively impact the rate you need to pay for auto insurance. If you are involved in an accident in a state that is no-fault, you cannot have your rate raised when you cause an accident because no one is at fault. However, by making a claim of any type against your auto insurance policy, the provider will consider you a risk and will need to find a way to protect themselves against future claims. That is why a PIP claim could indeed increase your auto insurance rate.

Regardless of where you live, your state mandates a minimum requirement of car insurance to legally navigate the highways and byways of your area. Some states are no-fault states that require the driver’s auto insurance company to pay for their injuries and the injuries of their passengers regardless of who caused the accident. To have insurance for that arrangement, a level of PIP or personal injury protection is required by law.

Despite the best of intentions, if the most careful and skilled driver can have an accident. If you put in a PIP claim your rate could indeed increase, but auto insurance is the law, so what can you do about it?

PIP or No – Fault Car Insurance

Posted in Auto Insurance , Auto Insurance Claims , Compare Auto Insurance , Personal Injury Protection

May 28th, 2009
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Car insurance can be confusing, especially if you are moving to a different state. Each state has their own laws not only governing the amount of coverage you need to maintain for your auto insurance, but your state may operate differently from your previous state regarding their status as a no-fault state. In a no-fault state, regarding auto insurance, the driver’s insurance provider is required to pay the claim of the injured plus their passengers, regardless of who caused the accident.

No Fault States

In no-fault states, personal injury protection or PIP, is required as part of your auto insurance policy. PIP will cover the funeral expenses, medical expenses or lost wages for the driver and their passengers in smaller valued accidents (typically up to $10,000 worth of expenses).Because of the laws of the state being no-fault coverage, sometimes personal injury protection is also called no-fault insurance coverage.There are currently 16 states that have no-fault laws requiring PIP insurance as part of the states legally mandated minimum insurance coverage. However many states are trying to phase out this type of insurance and adopt atort-based (liability-based) set of laws.

Personal Injury Protection History

PIP or no fault insurance originated in 1930 as a way to reduce the sluggish and costly process of traditionallitigation claims. The theory was that by reducing the time-frame of the process and shifting the dispute reconciliation process from the court system to the insurance company, the premium rates would drop. Initially they did but over time, the rates crept up over those of the tort-based system.

Although most states have tort-based insurance coverage and procedures, PIP is still available as an additional feature of some auto insurance policies. If you are considering additional personal injury protection, investigate your existing health insurance as many times the coverage provided from these two policies overlap.

Are you looking for the best car insurance rates? If so, Go Insurance Rates can help by providing you with free rate quotes from leading auto insurance companies.

Do All Car Insurance Policies Have Personal Injury Protection?

Posted in Auto Insurance , Auto Insurance Claims , Compare Auto Insurance , Personal Injury Protection

May 12th, 2009
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PIP stands for personal injury protection insurance and will cover the medical expenses, lost wages or funeral costs for up to $10,000 for either you or any passenger in your vehicle involved in a collision in a no-fault insurance coverage state. That means your car insurance will be responsible for paying the claims for the injuries regardless of who caused the accident. In the states that legally mandate PIP coverage, their auto policies are already designed to include the personal injury protection feature.

Personal Injury Protection Required States

PIP is a portion of auto insurance required in:

• Colorado
• Delaware
• Florida
• Hawaii
• Kansas
• Kentucky
• Maryland
• Massachusetts
• Michigan
• Minnesota
• New Jersey
• New York
• North Dakota
• Oregon
• and Utah

Even if you do not live in a no-fault state, it is quite possible to purchase PIP insurance. However, not all policies automatically have that feature and it may require a conversation with your auto insurance provider to see if they offer personal injury protection in your state of residence.

Types of Car Insurance States

In the auto insurance business there are three types of states that require different approaches to auto insurance coverage. They are:

• No-fault states (which requires each driver’s insurance provider to pay for their expenses regardless of who caused the accident)
• Choice states (grants drivers the flexibility of designing their own auto insurance policy as long as minimum state requirements of coverage are met)
• Tort-liability (insurance companies pay claims based on the degree of fault from each participating party)

Because there are several different ways the insurance is provided varying from state to state, you cannot nor should not automatically assume that all auto policies have PIP included. It is important not only to ask your auto insurance provider if they offer PIP, but you should also investigate your health insurance as well. Many times, there may be an overlap from your PIP policy and your health insurance coverage, thus making the added expense of personal injury protection a waste of money.

Are you looking for the best rates on an auto insurance policy with personal injury protection? If so, fill out our online auto insurance form and within minutes you’ll receive rate quotes from leading auto insurers. The process is fast, easy, secure and absolutely free! It doesn’t hurt to check as auto insurance rates change daily.

What Does Personal Injury Protection (PIP) Generally Cover?

Posted in Auto Insurance , Auto Insurance Claims , Comprehensive Insurance , Personal Injury Protection

April 28th, 2009
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If you want to legally drive your car, you need to secure your license, obey all the laws of the roads and make sure to have the proper auto insurance policy required by your state. In many states, personal injury protection (PIP) is mandatory and offers a great layer of insurance protection during your time of need. Not only will having the proper minimums of auto insurance help you to be a law abiding citizen, it can end up preventing financial ruin that can be triggered by a severe auto accident.

Personal Injury Protection Coverage

PIP in your auto insurance policy coverage generally covers costs incurred as the result of an accident without having to assign fault to any one of the participating parties involved in a collision in no-fault states. No fault states require that a driver’s own insurance policy will cover their damages regardless of who caused the accident or has been determined “at fault” by the police. The purchase of personal injury insurance is commonly required in addition to liability coverage in no-fault states. PIP coverage typically kicks in for smaller auto accident insurance claims, usually up to around $10,000 worth of claims.

PIP Requirements

If you and your passenger are injured in an accident, personal injury coverage is the portion of your insurance policy that will help cover some expenses. PIP covers the medical expenses incurred by the accident for both you and your injured party, plus any lost wages that may come from not being able to work and funeral expenses in the worse case scenario collision. 16 states require personal injury protection in their insurance coverage. They are:

• Colorado
• Delaware
• Florida
• Hawaii
• Kansas
• Kentucky
• Maryland
• Massachusetts
• Michigan
• Minnesota
• New Jersey
• New York
• North Dakota
• Oregon
• Utah

Even in the states that require personal injury protection coverage, there are some exceptions to what the policy will cover. They are:

• Injuries caused by farm equipment, recreational vehicles or motorbikes.
• Voluntary self inflicted intentional injuries
• If a felony was occurring the time of the accident

Car Insurance Term: Bodily Injury Liability

Posted in Auto Insurance , Personal Injury Protection

February 27th, 2009
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If you have auto insurance, or are thinking about getting auto insurance, then you need to know how your policy deals with bodily injury liability. Bodily injury liability refers to your responsibility for any damage done to another person’s body should you be the cause of the accident that injured them.

Let’s say you accidentally hit a pedestrian while driving. He’s alright, but his arm is broken, and the trip to the emergency room and his treatment are going to cost a lot. As the person at fault in the accident, your insurance coverage will kick in. If you have a policy that offers $25,000 in bodily injury liability coverage, then you will more than likely be covered for the man’s treatment cost (minus your deductible, of course).

If, however, you are responsible for an accident that harms another person, and their medical bills exceed the amount of your bodily injury liability coverage, then you will be responsible for the amount of the medical bills after the bodily injury liability coverage has been exhausted. So, if your bodily injury liability coverage is $50,000, and the injured person’s bills come to $55,000, you will be responsible for that $5,000 difference. As with all aspects of insurance, the more you pay for your monthly premium, the greater the amount of money the insurance company will kick in should you get into a difficult situation.

If you have questions about bodily injury liability or any other aspect of auto insurance, be sure to sit down with a qualified insurance expert who can answer all your questions.

Here are other important auto insurance terms you should know:

1. Personal Injury Protection
2. Property Damage Liability
3. Comprehensive Auto Insurance