What Does No-Fault Insurance In Florida Mean?
You may have noticed if you were researching new insurance coverage, or perhaps personal injury, that the term “no-fault” and Personal Injury Protection comes up quite a bit in Florida and the rest of the United States. You may also be wondering why you are required to add PIP to your car insurance policy, which is a far question! The concept of PIP itself is very simple, but the terms you may need to understand go beyond the simple idea of determining (or not determining) who is at fault before issuing an insurance payment.
Learn about no-fault insurance below, and if you find yourself in a situation where you have explored all of your options but believe (or just wonder) if you are entitled to more, find a personal injury attorney immediately to explore your options. Services like 1-800 INJURED will connect you to the right attorney for your situation, which can save a lot of work and hassle while you are recovering from your accident.
What Is No-Fault Insurance?
When you have no-fault, or Personal Injury Protection, insurance added to your car insurance (which is mandatory in Fort Lauderdale), you are adding coverage to your policy that will address injuries sustained by you and your passengers in the event of an accident, with no questions asked about who was at fault or how the accident occurred. The idea was to simplify the claims process, as well as cut back on personal injury lawsuits for small amounts.
In Florida, you are required to carry minimum PIP coverage of $10,000, meaning that you or your passengers will able to receive reimbursement for medical costs, lost wages, and other economic damages up to the policy limit.
Do I Need Personal Injury Protection in Florida?
PIP is not available in some states, is optional in others, and is mandatory in Florida. If you want to spend less money, you can work with your insurance agent to find ways to lower your premium, by increasing your deductible or only adding the minimum coverage.
What If My Injuries Exceed My Policy Limit?
You are able to collect on your PIP and then seek personal injury damages if you believe that you were not at fault for the injuries. In that case, you can begin to build a personal injury lawsuit with an attorney in Fort Lauderdale, and determine your options and likelihood of winning your case or receiving a settlement.
Keep in mind that when you file a personal injury lawsuit, you will absolutely need to prove fault for the accident, and must prove that you were not the one who caused it. If there is a dispute about who caused the accident, this will need to be settled before you can move forward with the actual claim.
What If My Passengers Injuries Exceed My Policy Limit?
In the instance that your passengers were injured in an accident, and your PIP policy does not cover all of their damages, they will be able to work with a personal injury lawyer in Fort Lauderdale and build a case to seek the additional damages as well. Unfortunately, this may put you on the line for legal repercussions if you caused the accident. If the accident was the fault of another driver, then they will be able to seek a case against the other driver in addition to the case you may be building yourself.
