Drivers who are at-fault for an auto accident in Texas are financially responsible for the damages they cause during an auto accident.
However, you can protect yourself further after being injured in an accident caused by another’s negligence by purchasing personal injury protection (PIP) insurance when you purchase an insurance policy. Unfortunately, recovering the compensation auto accident victims need from their insurance can be complicated.
Anderson, Cummings & Drawhorn’ car accident attorneys are ready to help if an insurer has provided you inadequate compensation for your injuries. Below, we discuss what you may be entitled through PIP coverage in Texas.
What is PIP Insurance?
PIP is coverage that can be added to your insurance policy to compensate you for your medical expenses, 80 percent of lost wages and the costs associated with hiring a caregiver after being injured in an accident.
PIP insurance is a no-fault policy, which means you do not have to prove the other driver caused the accident in order to file a claim. It also means the at-fault driver can be compensated for his or her medical expenses and lost wages by filing a PIP claim with his or her own insurer.
Texas requires that insurers offer a minimum PIP coverage of $2,500 when an applicant first purchases an insurance policy. If you choose, you can decline to purchase PIP coverage if you provide your decision in writing, according to INS 1952.151.
However, PIP coverage only compensates you for the amount you purchased in your insurance policy. This means that if the cost of your medical treatment exceeds the monetary amount of PIP coverage listed in your policy, you will not be compensated for the difference.
Who Does PIP Insurance Cover?
If you purchased PIP coverage, it will apply to you, the drivers you include with your policy and any passenger who is in your vehicle when the accident occurs.
PIP coverage can also apply individually to all people covered by your policy. This means that if there were multiple people injured in your vehicle during an accident, each will be able to file a PIP claim with your insurer.
If a passenger has his or her own PIP coverage, he or she can file a PIP claim with your insurer as well as his or her own insurance policy.
Combining PIP coverage from multiple policies can be a very useful if the cost of your medical treatment is higher than the amount listed under a single PIP policy.
What if PIP Insurance Does Not Cover All Damages?
In many cases, a car accident victim’s PIP coverage may not fully compensate him or her for the damages he or she suffered after the accident.
An insurer may also believe the cost for medical treatment is too high and deny the victim the PIP coverage he or she deserves.
If your PIP policy does not fully pay for the expenses associated with your injury, you may have the option of filing a personal injury lawsuit against the at-fault party to recover the compensation you need.
Our personal injury attorneys will work to recover the compensation you should have received after the accident. We have seen many auto accident victims with PIP coverage treated unfairly by insures who are unwilling to uphold to their obligations.
You should collect any records and reports associated with your accident, such as medical documents that describe the cost of your treatment, as well as police reports that show the other driver caused the accident.
We can use this information to build a case on your behalf and hold an insurer accountable if it fails to provide you with the PIP coverage you are owed.
Our auto accident attorneys are well-versed in Texas’s insurance laws and will use this knowledge to help support your case and recover the compensation you deserve.
Contact Our Fort Worth Lawyers
If you were injured in a car accident in Fort Worth and did not receive adequate compensation from PIP coverage, contact us as soon as you are able.
The car accident injury attorneys of Anderson, Cummings & Drawhorn will fight to recover the maximum compensation you deserve for your injuries.
We will provide you with a free, no obligation consultation to review the terms of all PIP policies that apply to your claim. Our injury lawyers in Fort Worth only work on a contingency basis, which means you only pay legal fees if we recover compensation on your behalf.
Call (817) 920-9000 or complete our Free Case Evaluation form to get started.