Author Topic: Bike Accident - Who pays medical bills?  (Read 3311 times)

NomadMustache

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Bike Accident - Who pays medical bills?
« on: March 24, 2017, 05:23:21 PM »
I was rear-ended by a drunk driver on Saturday night. I won't die, but I did sustain some injuries and go to the ER. They recommended a follow-up with a specialist in town and I've just completed that.

I've never been in any accident before, and have no idea how this process works.

I've been in touch with the driver's liability insurance. They say the driver didn't have PIP (personal injury protection) and therefore that I need to bill my own health insurance first and get compensated later. Some co-workers have mentioned that if I do this, my health insurance will go up. Is this true? Also, what is the likelihood of my auto insurance increasing, as in this article? (http://www.denverpost.com/2017/02/13/higher-premiums-after-not-at-fault-crashes/)

Thanks in advance, Mustachians!
« Last Edit: March 24, 2017, 06:10:50 PM by NomadMustache »

Undecided

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Re: Bike Accident - Who pays medical bills?
« Reply #1 on: March 24, 2017, 09:14:32 PM »
Does your own auto policy have PIP? When I was hit by a car while riding my bike, my auto coverage PiP was my first insurance for my medical care, then my carrier was reimbursed by the at-fault driver's insurance. Have you contacted your auto insurance company? Oddly, it doesn't seem to much matter (or didn't for me) that I wasn't in a car when I was injured.

FIRE me

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Re: Bike Accident - Who pays medical bills?
« Reply #2 on: March 24, 2017, 09:48:42 PM »
My experience is that the at fault driver's insurance company will treat you like shit. Until you get a lawyer. Then they sing a different tune, and quickly.

My own example is that I was hit by a driver that crossed a divided median. My cheap car was totaled, and I had minor injuries. Three days later I still hadn't heard from the at fault driver's insurance (the at fault driver refused to give me her agent information, and police reports here are on line 3 to 5 days after the accident).

So I saw an attorney. Less than one hour after I left his office, the lady's insurance company was calling me and setting up a rental car. And instead of low balling me, they quickly paid me top dollar for my old car.

The lawyer took care of the rest and took the injury case on contingency.

You should have no trouble finding a lawyer to take your case on contingency. Which means all of your medical bills will be covered at no cost to you, and the lawyer will keep about 40% of whatever extra money he extracts from the scumbag drunk driver.

Feivel2000

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Re: Bike Accident - Who pays medical bills?
« Reply #3 on: March 25, 2017, 07:13:00 AM »
Oh the beauty of living in a country with universal health care...

JLee

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Re: Bike Accident - Who pays medical bills?
« Reply #4 on: March 25, 2017, 07:17:03 AM »
My experience is that the at fault driver's insurance company will treat you like shit. Until you get a lawyer. Then they sing a different tune, and quickly.

My own example is that I was hit by a driver that crossed a divided median. My cheap car was totaled, and I had minor injuries. Three days later I still hadn't heard from the at fault driver's insurance (the at fault driver refused to give me her agent information, and police reports here are on line 3 to 5 days after the accident).

So I saw an attorney. Less than one hour after I left his office, the lady's insurance company was calling me and setting up a rental car. And instead of low balling me, they quickly paid me top dollar for my old car.

The lawyer took care of the rest and took the injury case on contingency.

You should have no trouble finding a lawyer to take your case on contingency. Which means all of your medical bills will be covered at no cost to you, and the lawyer will keep about 40% of whatever extra money he extracts from the scumbag drunk driver.

I would absolutely do this.

Hotstreak

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Re: Bike Accident - Who pays medical bills?
« Reply #5 on: March 25, 2017, 08:43:08 AM »
Wow, sorry to hear you were involved in this accident.  Their insurance should cover all your bills and give you additional funds for your pain and suffering.  There's a lot of good info online about how to negotiate each aspect of this.  You will want to keep all receipts, and keep a log or journal of your symptoms, including daily pain levels, missed or rescheduled activities due to pain, trouble sleeping, anxiety with regard to continuing to bike, etc.


When I was researching this last year when I was hit, I found that being hit by a drunk and/or being a pedestrian/cyclist means you will get a much larger settlement.  You are very sympathetic to a jury, and the company REALLY wants to avoid a trial, so they will work to settle.  They will lowball you and you need to be tough and know what your claim is worth.. or just hire a lawyer and let them handle it (they will generally take 30-40% of the settlement for this).


One thing that stands out to me is that it's odd the driver doesn't have PIP coverage.  Is that required in yoru state?  Anyways, if they have cut rate insurance, they may have state minimum coverage levels, which will limit the amount of your settlement unless you want to try and collect from the insured, personally.

MoonLiteNite

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Re: Bike Accident - Who pays medical bills?
« Reply #6 on: March 26, 2017, 03:59:38 AM »
No matter the case with ins, you can always sue him for damages and to get him to pay for medical bills. Most likely you won't ever get a penny from someone like that but, but legally he would owe you the money if you won the case. Plenty of layers are also glad to take on your case IF he has ins, because then that is when they can go for the huge $$$

brian313313

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Re: Bike Accident - Who pays medical bills?
« Reply #7 on: March 26, 2017, 06:48:11 AM »
A friend of mine was hit while riding his bike. The driver was not drunk but she admitted fault on the scene because she had not looked both ways while coming out of a parking lot. He called her insurance and they asked him a bunch of questions. One of them was could he have had any responsibility on the matter and he admitted that he could have done something. Because of that, they said they did not want to pay anything. He wanted re-reimbursement for medical and his bike. Nothing more. They said they weren't going to pay because he admitted fault and they had recorded it. Then he want to a lawyer and asked. The lawyer had no problem getting him the medical, bike, and an extra 10,000 for pain & suffering. The lawyer took part of the 10k so get a lawyer. The sooner the better.

I used to work for an insurance company and if our clients had uninsured motorists insurance or there were any problems, we would pay them and then our lawyers would work out something with the other insurance company, including suing them if necessary. Definitely talk to your insurance company too.

ReadySetMillionaire

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Re: Bike Accident - Who pays medical bills?
« Reply #8 on: March 26, 2017, 11:04:30 AM »
You need to see an attorney.

MrsPete

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Re: Bike Accident - Who pays medical bills?
« Reply #9 on: March 27, 2017, 12:32:31 PM »
I've been in touch with the driver's liability insurance. They say the driver didn't have PIP (personal injury protection) and therefore that I need to bill my own health insurance first and get compensated later. Some co-workers have mentioned that if I do this, my health insurance will go up. Is this true? Also, what is the likelihood of my auto insurance increasing, as in this article? (http://www.denverpost.com/2017/02/13/higher-premiums-after-not-at-fault-crashes/)
Well, what else would they say?  "Oh, my, we're so sorry, we'll send a big fat check your way by special delivery!"  They ALWAYS say you should go through your own insurance ... and then as soon as you do, they can say, "He must've thought it was his own fault; look, he used his own personal resources!"  Their client was drunk (you can prove this, right?)  You need a lawyer. 

Mel70

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Re: Bike Accident - Who pays medical bills?
« Reply #10 on: March 27, 2017, 01:20:19 PM »
Increased premiums won't necessarily be the case, because you were not at fault. You can check your insurance policy to confirm this. An agent can also clarify any questions you may have over the phone. I hope you are well!

 

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