After a car accident in California, you may wonder who will pay for your medical bills. In most cases, the answer is “an auto insurance company.” However, which auto insurance company will pay for your medical bills after a car accident depends on the circumstances of your case. And in some cases, the at-fault driver may end up personally on the hook for your bills.
What Medical Bills Can Arise After a Car Accident?
Due to the injuries you sustained in the car accident, you may have various types of medical bills that you need insurance to cover. Some of the most common types of medical bills arising from car accidents include:
- Bills for hospital stays if your injuries resulted in you needing to stay overnight while medical staff monitored your condition
- Bills for surgeries, including emergency surgeries performed in the ER
- Bills for other medical treatments, including getting medical imaging like MRIs and X-rays done, and follow-up appointments
- Bills for medical devices you need because of your injuries, such as a wheelchair, crutches, or a cast
- Bills for prescription medications, including painkillers and antibiotics
- Bills for physical therapy, which you may need if you suffered bone fractures, soft tissue injuries, or a traumatic brain injury
You may also be able to seek compensation for therapy to treat anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder, and other emotional distress injuries resulting from the accident.
Who Pays Your Medical Bills After a Car Accident?
An auto insurer will usually pay for your medical bills after a car accident. California has both mandatory auto insurance coverage and optional coverages for all drivers. And the circumstances of the accident and the types of insurance you and the other driver have will dictate where your medical bill compensation comes from.
Required Liability Coverage
As an at-fault auto insurance state, California requires all drivers to have a minimum amount of liability coverage as part of their auto insurance policy. This minimum includes:
- $30,000 per person for bodily injury or death
- $60,000 per accident for bodily injury or death
- $15,000 per accident for property damage
Motorists can purchase higher coverage, which can protect them from being personally liable for injuries and property damage they cause. If another driver causes the accident that injures you, your first option for seeking compensation is to file a claim against their liability coverage policy.
Medical bills can get expensive fast, and these minimum liability coverage amounts may not be enough to cover your expenses. This is particularly true if multiple victims split the compensation, which is why optional insurance coverages are essential.
Uninsured Motorist Coverage (UM)
One of the optional auto insurance coverages available in California is uninsured motorist coverage. If you have this coverage as part of your policy, and the driver who caused the accident doesn’t have insurance, you can file an uninsured motorist claim with your insurance provider to seek compensation for your medical bills.
Uninsured motorist coverage also applies if you’re the victim of a hit-and-run and the at-fault driver hasn’t been identified. If you recover compensation through an uninsured motorist claim in this way and the police later identify the driver, your insurance company can seek reimbursement from them for the money it paid you through a process called subrogation.
Underinsured Motorist Coverage (UIM)
Underinsured motorist coverage is another optional coverage you can add to your auto insurance policy. This coverage applies when the at-fault driver has liability insurance, but their policy limits prevent them from covering all of your medical bills. If the at-fault driver’s policy limits cap your compensation, you can file an underinsured motorist claim with your insurer to seek additional compensation.
Medical Payments Coverage (MedPay)
Medical Payments coverage, commonly called MedPay, is an optional no-fault coverage for medical expenses. While MedPay isn’t the same as the personal injury protection (PIP) insurance used in no-fault states, it works similarly by applying regardless of who is at fault for the accident. Even if you caused the accident that resulted in your injuries, you can seek compensation through a MedPay claim with your insurer.
MedPay specifically covers medical expenses for you and your passengers, including immediate medical care and long-term medical treatments. The minimum coverage limit is $1,000, but you can purchase higher limits.
Personal Injury Lawsuits
If the at-fault driver doesn’t have insurance, or if their insurance coverage limits prevent them from covering all of your medical expenses and you don’t have additional first-party insurance coverage, you may need to file a personal injury lawsuit. Through a lawsuit, you can hold the at-fault driver directly liable for your medical and other expenses.
However, the compensation you could receive through a personal injury settlement may be limited by the at-fault driver’s assets. If the driver can’t afford the compensation they owe, it can be challenging to recover the full amount of your medical bills. But this shouldn’t stop you from seeking the compensation you need.
Will You Be Reimbursed for Medical Bills in a Settlement?
In some cases, car accident victims pay their medical bills either with their health insurance or out of pocket before their insurance claim is resolved. You should not do this. But if you do, you can seek reimbursement for the bills you paid through your insurance settlement. If you use your health insurance, your insurer can seek reimbursement from you after you receive your settlement, or it can seek reimbursement directly from the auto insurance company.
However, in many cases, healthcare providers will postpone your medical bills until your case is resolved. They may also file medical liens against your settlement. If they do so, they get paid directly out of your settlement before the money reaches you.
Contact Our California Car Accident Lawyers
If you were injured in a car accident in Huntington Beach, California, contact DJA Injury Attorneys at (949) 229-7228. You’ll get a free consultation with an experienced car accident lawyer. Our lawyers can help get medical providers to stop harassing you about payment while you’re waiting for your case to be resolved, and we can represent you in negotiations with insurance companies or at trial, seeking the compensation you need.