After being hurt in an accident that someone else caused, you’re likely wondering what you do about those medical bills. While it’s certainly a stressful time for you, you must understand that your medical expenses will usually be your responsibility to pay.

In other words, you’ll need to pay medical bills from your settlement to cover any remaining expenses. Florida’s insurance laws may also come into play when you’re dealing with a car accident settlement. Handling medical costs from injury settlements can get confusing, though Injury LawStars can help. Our personal injury law firm explains what you need to know in this article about paying medical bills after a settlement. 

Understanding How Medical Bills Are Typically Handled in Injury Settlements

If you were in a car accident, the medical bills you have accumulated for your doctor visits, emergency medical treatment, physical therapy, and other costs should be covered by your settlement. In some cases, you may have needed to use your health insurance, which you can do directly from the settlement itself rather than have to write a check.

When you have a settlement from a personal injury case, it should also cover your future medical costs. Problems arise when you take too low a settlement, leaving you in the lurch with these hefty medical expenses. 

Where Does Florida’s PIP Coverage Fit Into This?

In the event that your injury claim was for a car accident, you will likely use your personal injury protection coverage, known as PIP. This no-fault insurance is designed to cover the costs of your medical expenses, lost income, and other expenses in a car accident. However, the amount it covers is only up to $10,000. 

There’s another issue involved since PIP coverage only provides 80% of your medical expenses. If your medical bills are $10,000, then you would only have $8,000 of that amount covered. This means that the remaining $2,000 would be your responsibility to cover it out of your own pocket. In a car accident, if you exhaust the limitations of your PIP coverage and still require more medical treatments or need a specialist, you may need your attorney to sign a letter of protection to guarantee that this bill will be paid from your settlement. 

The laws revolving around Florida’s insurance laws change often, making it even more confusing for injury victims. If you have been hurt in some type of accident caused by someone else, especially a car accident, you should contact a personal injury attorney in Clermont to discuss how these laws may pertain to your particular situation. 

What to Do About Liens on Medical Bills

When serious injuries have occurred, using your health insurance may be required. Some health insurance providers have the right to put a lien against settlement proceeds. While you can handle your personal injury claim without being required to have an attorney, you should know what to expect from the law when you have legal representation. Under Florida law, if you have an attorney, the amount that must be repaid for your health insurance lien will be reduced by the percentage of your attorney’s fees and costs. 

You must also be careful since some health insurance policies have disclaimers about not covering medical bills when another person’s negligence is involved. Always review your policy, and if it does provide coverage for medical bills after an accident caused by a negligent party, expect a lien that you will be required to pay out of your personal injury settlement. 

When working with a personal injury attorney, they will pay medical bills from settlement funds on your behalf. In the event there are no liens on your medical bills, your personal injury lawyer can try to negotiate them down to a reduced amount before paying them from the settlement. 

What Happens If My Settlement is Not Enough?

Unfortunately, the sad truth is that most settlements, particularly when making car insurance claims, are simply not enough money. What’s worse, many injured victims sign up for these offers, which prohibits them from seeking additional compensation.

Whether you’re in a car accident or you were hurt in another way through the negligent actions of another person, you do not have to accept the first settlement offer. It is recommended to discuss the factors of your case with a lawyer to determine if any settlement on the table is fair. If it’s not, your attorney can calculate the full extent of your damages and negotiate. 

When negotiations still don’t drum up the desired results, your car accident lawyer in Clermont will be ready to take the case to trial. This can spur a quick settlement for an appropriate amount, as many insurers and companies do not want to drag things out in court. It’s riskier, though, because you could get more, or the judge and jury may rule in the defendant’s favor, leaving you with nothing. 

With solid evidence in your case, you will likely get a fair amount that leaves you with plenty to pay medical bills from the settlement. Ideally, your settlement should include all the damages you’ve incurred as a result of the at-fault party.

What Does a Personal Injury Attorney Do to Get a Fair Settlement?

Legal representation is strongly advised when you have a personal injury matter on your hands. They will have a complete understanding of the laws involved with your case and know how to estimate the total costs of your damages.

Perhaps you only thought about your immediate medical bills, like many injured victims. Attorneys, think ahead about what you will need to pay for these injuries caused to you in the future. They think about these costs along with all your other economic damages, which include any property damage and lost income.

A personal injury lawyer will also be able to help prove your pain and suffering, loss of enjoyment of life, mental anguish, and other non-economic damages. These losses may be intangible, but they could have significant impacts on the quality of your life, making them an essential component of your lawsuit. 

When calculating your fair settlement, your attorney will look at the total of your medical bills that have already been received. They will also consult expert witnesses to estimate your future medical expenses. With these types of experts, they will look at your injuries, their severity, and impacts and evaluate the long-term effects they will have on your life. In doing so, they will be able to arrive at a fair amount that doesn’t leave you with additional debt following this traumatic event. 

How Can Legal Representation Help Me in Handling Medical Expenses from Injury Settlements?

When you have a personal injury claim, it may sometimes go differently than planned. The insurer may deny your claim or offer a paltry sum that doesn’t even come close to covering your expenses. Filing a personal injury case has the intended goal of making your life whole again by seeking damages for your losses. 

Any settlement that you receive should not be instantly frittered away on medical bills, liens, and other expenses. While you will need to pay these bills and take care of the debts associated, you should not have to pay more than what is necessary. 

Hiring a personal injury attorney helps you in several ways. For starters, they protect your best interests. They will fight to get the total and fair amount you deserve while negotiating to reduce your expenses. This will allow you to keep some of the settlement money for yourself rather than kissing it all goodbye with the payments of your hefty medical costs.

Debt collectors are another problem, something health insurance companies will rely on to recover their money. When you are working with a personal injury lawyer, they will prevent this from happening, allowing you to focus on healing from your injuries. 

Personal injury attorneys have many critical roles when representing injured victims. One of these roles is to help you structure your settlement to meet your needs. A lump sum payment may be overwhelming, but a structured settlement can provide you with guaranteed money over the long term to put your mind at ease. 

Steps to Take in a Personal Injury Case in Florida

In Florida, what you do immediately after your accident can impact your settlement. You’ll want to be sure that you report what happened to have documentation. When you’re in a car accident, you’d call the police, but other types of injuries may require filing a report with the owner of the property.

You’ll also want to make sure you get prompt medical treatment to document these injuries. Always follow everything the doctors tell you to do, such as finishing off all medication even if you feel better before you are done with it and keeping appointments with your specialists.

Taking the proper steps to ensure a strong case will help protect your compensation, allowing you to comfortably pay medical bills after your settlement while having money left over for your other needs.

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