Michigan has what is termed a “No Fault” statutory insurance scheme. In our state, each motorist is required to insure his own vehicle for liability coverage (mandatory) and for collision (voluntary).
Included in your no-fault insurance are PIP benefits. PIP stands for Personal Injury Protection. These benefits cover your own medical care costs associated with any accident. The benefits cover you for your entire life as long as the medical care you receive is directly as a result of an automobile accident.
In addition, PIP benefits provide you with wage-loss coverage for up to three years after your accident. Consequently, your own insurance company has to compensate you for any time lost from work as a result of an automobile accident. Your own company will continue to pay you a percentage of your lost wages for up to three years after the accident provided that you cannot work or must work in a lower paying job as a result of the accident.
Your own insurance company may refuse to pay your medical expenses and/or your wage losses. If so, you should contact an attorney immediately. Your PIP benefits entitle you to those benefits.
If your injury is serious enough (creating a serious impairment of a bodily function), you are also entitled to sue the person responsible for the accident. This could mean the driver of the car you were in or the driver of another vehicle which caused the accident. You can sue a negligent driver for pain and suffering, emotional distress, loss of use of a part of your body, and for lost wages which extend beyond the three-year PIP benefits.
So, if you are injured in an automobile accident and the accident has caused you to be taken to a hospital or has caused you to seek medical attention, you should contact an attorney. Also, it is important to contact an attorney immediately so that pictures of the scene of the accident and the accident itself can be taken. Letting even a small period of time elapse before calling an attorney can mean that the accident scene will never be recorded on film.
Call C. Michael Villar if you or someone you love has been injured in an automobile accident. Immediately, C. Michael Villar will put his experience to work to make sure you are compensated for your injuries. Remember, any delay in calling an attorney is too much delay.
