Attorneys in Bay City, MI

There are primarily two types of car accident claims a person can file after being involved in a car accident:

1. First-Party Claims

First-party claims are also known as no-fault claims or Personal Injury Protection (PIP) claims. A first-party claim is filed with your own car insurance company. This occurs even if your own vehicle was not involved in the crash.

Under Michigan car accident law, your own insurance company is responsible for paying lost wages and medical expenses resulting from the crash. The amount of medical expenses it pays depends on the amount of PIP coverage on the vehicle.

Because Michigan is a no-fault state, even a person who caused the crash can still get no-fault benefits from their car insurance company.

If an injured person does not have auto insurance, almost everyone is still eligible for PIP benefits. If just becomes a question of which insurance carrier is responsible. Call the Bay City car accident lawyers at the Lee Steinberg Law Firm to find out how you can get medical bills paid, lost wages and other benefits following a car wreck.

2. Third-Party Claims

Third-party claims are filed against the at-fault party and their insurance company. They are also known as negligence cases. All drivers must carry liability insurance, which covers them if they cause an accident that results in someone else’s injuries.

In a third-party case, a person is filing a claim or lawsuit against the at-fault driver for the pain and suffering they have caused. In these cases, the owner of the vehicle may also be included. If an injured person has medical bills and lost wages that are not covered by the no-fault PIP claim, they may also be included in the third-patty case.

In both of these cases, you will need to provide sufficient evidence to prove your injuries. You will also need to show the injuries are related to the car crash. The Michigan no-fault law is not simple. That’s why you need a Bay City car accident law firm who specializes in Michigan car accident law.

Generally speaking, health insurance does cover medical expenses for injuries resulting from a car accident. This is especially true if you have coordinated your no-fault insurance. However, some insurance companies are starting to include car accident exclusions in their policies, which means they might not cover your accident-related medical expenses.

• Coordinated no-fault benefits: If you have coordinated your no-fault car insurance with your health insurance, in general your health insurance will be the primary payer of your accident-related medical expenses. Your auto insurance would then step in as the secondary payer if the health insurance coverage has been exhausted or if the medical services are not covered by your health plan.
• Excess medical bills: Your health insurance will also cover your accident injury expenses if the bills exceed the amount of no-fault benefits coverage.
• Medicare and Medicaid: In general, Medicare and Medicaid do not cover auto accident-related treatment. Instead, the no-fault carrier is always primary. That is why it is so important to open a PIP claim as quickly as possible after a crash. Some doctors and specialists won’t see you without a PIP claim number because they know Medicare and Medicaid won’t pay.

In many cases, whether your medical bills are covered after a car accident will depend on the amount of PIP coverage you have. With Michigan allowing PIP choice after July 1, 2020, many individuals now have a cap on the amount of PIP coverage they get from the auto insurance. After that cap it met, personal health insurance will have to kick in and pay, but this can be a frustrating process.

Some health insurance plans might not fully exclude car accidents, but they might have a secondary payer provision, which means they will only pay after your no-fault auto insurance has paid first. Other health plans also have coverage limitations/exclusions for specific services or treatments for car accident injuries that are typically covered by no-fault auto insurance.

If you want to make sure your injuries will be covered in case of an accident, be sure to pay attention to these details in your policy when signing up for a new health plan. If your health plan has auto exclusions, be sure not to coordinate your no-fault benefits with your health insurance coverage.

Michigan distracted driving accidents are all too common. There are many ways that a driver can become distracted, but some of the most common distracted driving accidents today are caused by cell phone use while driving.

Though Michigan does have a statute that applies to distracted driving and texting, it does not entirely ban the use of cell phones while driving altogether. As such, there are still a lot of accidents in the state that result from driving while using a cell phone.

Other common causes of distracted driving include:

• Paying attention to passengers while driving
• Eating or drinking while driving
• Grooming in the mirror while driving
• Dealing with kids or pets in the car while driving
• Adjusting the GPS or radio while driving
• Reaching for objects in the car while driving

So, how can you prove that another driver’s distraction is what caused the accident?

Well, it’s not easy, but it is achievable with the help of an attorney. A skilled Bay City car accident lawyer will take the necessary depositions, talk to witnesses and obtain information from law enforcement to prove the other driver was distracted and negligent for causing the collision. 

Other evidence you can obtain with the help of your lawyer to prove distracted driving can include:

• A police report
• Eyewitness testimonies
• Phone records
• Video or surveillance footage
• Photos from the accident

Traumatic brain injuries are common after car accidents and can occur even if you didn’t hit your head against anything. Just the force of the impact causing your head to shake back and forth can cause damage to your brain.

Unfortunately, symptoms of traumatic brain injuries are not always immediately apparent. When they do first appear, they might only seem mild which can result in victims failing to seek medical attention. However, if you delay medical attention for a brain injury, it can make a treatable problem much worse and result in life-threatening complications.

As such, it’s important to pay close attention to how you feel after a car accident. If you experience any of the following symptoms, it could indicate a traumatic brain injury. With these symptoms, you should seek medical attention as soon as possible:

• A headache that won’t go away or that worsens with time
• Nausea and vomiting
• Fatigue
• Drowsiness
• Difficulty speaking
• Difficulty concentrating
• Dizziness or loss of balance
• Sensitivity to light and sound
• Blurred vision
• Ringing in the ears
• Changes in taste or smell
• Loss of consciousness
• Memory problems
• Mood changes
• Difficulty sleeping or sleeping too much
• Seizures
• Pupil dilation
• Weakness in extremities
• Confusion
• Agitation
• Clear fluids draining from the nose or ears

While some damages a person suffers after a car accident are easily calculable, others, like pain and suffering, are not. For example, damages such as medical bills and lost income have obvious monetary value, which makes it easy to determine how much a victim should be compensated.

But pain and suffering is an emotional and physical experience that lacks monetary value. Still, victims deserve to be compensated for the suffering that they have had to endure as a result of the accident. This also includes future pain and suffering. Because it lacks a monetary value, however, it can be more difficult to calculate.

As the victim, one of the best ways you can prove the extent of your pain & suffering to increase your chances of being awarded a higher-value settlement is to keep a journal that keeps track of your daily suffering. This can include writing down how much pain you are in, how your pain and injuries limit what you can do day-to-day, and how your pain and injuries are affecting your emotional state.

Once you have provided evidence of your situation, there are two ways that are commonly used to calculate damages for pain and suffering:

1. Adding up monetary damages and multiplying by a number: Your monetary damages are things like medical bills, property damage costs, attorney fees, etc. These will be added up and then multiplied by a number between 1 and 5. This number is determined based on things like the seriousness of your injuries, recovery expectations, and how much pain you are in.
2. Per diem calculation: An amount will be determined based on your level of pain and suffering. That amount will be designated as a daily fee, and you will be paid that daily rate until you have experienced a full recovery.

Michigan and the Bay City area are no strangers to bad weather. However, when weather-related accidents occur, it can make it more challenging to determine who is ultimately the one at fault.

In most cases, accidents cannot be blamed on bad weather and are most often viewed as the result of driver negligence. In Michigan, drivers have a duty to operate their vehicles with care with consideration for the weather. So if the roads are slippery due to snow or ice, you would be expected to drive with more caution than usual. This means driving slower and not following too closely behind other drivers.

Luckily, Michigan is a no-fault state, so no matter who is at fault for a weather-related accident, you can still file a claim with your own insurance to recover compensation. In addition to obtaining PIP benefits, you can also get money for pain and suffering, anxiety, limitations on your life, emotional distress and other similar injuries if you prove the other driver wat at-fault.

In many cases, if you want to prove fault and ensure you are awarded the full and fair settlement you deserve after a Bay City car accident, you will need to work with an attorney. An experienced car accident lawyer can help you:

• Investigate the accident
• Obtain evidence
• Demonstrate what happened
• Handle communications with the other parties involved
• Help you calculate damages
• Protect your rights and represent you in court if necessary
• Guide you throughout the entire process
• Negotiate a fair settlement