No Fault Insurance, PIP, & Protecting Your Rights

Sarasota, Florida Personal Injury Attorneys

Florida is a "no fault" insurance state. In essence, this means your insurer is responsible for paying a portion of your medical bills and lost wages even if you were partly at fault. Under state law, motorists are required to carry a minimum of $10,000 in personal injury protection (PIP) and another $10,000 in property damage liability (PDL) coverage. However, most car, truck, and motorcycle accident injuries quickly exceed $10,000. For this reason, it's in the best interest of a driver to carry bodily injury liability, collision, and uninsured / underinsured coverage as well. Even though Florida is a no fault state, you can still be held legally liable for injuries you cause that exceed the amount of your PIP protection. Likewise, you can sue another driver to recover all of your medical costs and lost wages if his or her PIP coverage is not enough.

If you've been in a motor vehicle accident, it's important to understand what your options are and how Florida's "no fault" laws could affect you. To schedule an appointment and discuss your case, contact personal injury lawyers at the Parker Law Group today.

What Should I do if I've been in a Car Accident?

1. Consult an Attorney Before Signing or Agreeing to Anything

Insurance companies are in business to make money. In order to reduce the amount they have to pay in claims, insurers use a number of tactics to question the scope of an injury and the nature of an accident. A claims adjuster may try to ask you questions about your injuries or an accident in order to gather statements that can be used against you later. If you release your medical records, a doctor working for the insurance company will try to find a pre-existing condition or some other excuse to reduce or dismiss your claim.

2. Read Your Policy

A surprising number of people never read their car insurance policy. As a result, when they call to report an accident or ask questions about coverage under the terms of their policy, they're often misled by customer service representatives and claims adjusters. Just because an insurance agent claims you aren't eligible to recover damages under your uninsured / underinsured coverage, doesn't mean it's so. If you read your policy, you'll be in a better position to protect and assert your rights.

3. Talk to an Attorney Before Accepting a Settlement for Your Totaled Car

Insurers have been known to offer a settlement for a totaled car only to impound and destroy it before a case could go to trial. If you accept a claims payout on your vehicle, it becomes the property of the insurance company. They can then legally destroy it, making it impossible to recover any evidence from it should you decide to go to trial at a later date to recover additional damages.

4. Have Your Attorney Review Any Proposed Settlement Offer

Insurers realize it can take months for the full impact of a head, neck, or back injury to become apparent. If you accept a settlement offer in the weeks following an accident, your final medical expenses and lost wages could exceed the claims payout you agreed to. Since most settlement offers include a clause that prohibits you from seeking additional damages at a future date, if you accept an offer prematurely, you may forfeit your right to seek additional compensation later.

Protect Your Rights - Contact the Parker Law Group Today

As personal injury attorneys, we've spent years protecting and asserting the rights and interests of injury victims. We understand how claims adjusters think and we can anticipate the tactics insurers employ in order to reduce claim amounts. If you've been injured in an auto accident and need information on how to protect your rights, contact the Parker Law Group today.