Health Insurance Claim Portion of Your Lawsuit Settlement
When you file a personal injury lawsuit, remember that you are not the only one looking for compensation. In fact, there may be several parties competing for the funds – one being your health insurance company. One of the biggest surprises to accident victims is that their health insurance carrier may actually place a claim on their lawsuit settlement.
It is best to have a personal injury attorney represent your case to ensure you do not lose any or all of your settlement to your insurer. Your attorney will advise you as to if your health insurance company can claim any of your settlement and ways to mitigate those losses if you are successful.
How Claims Can be Placed on Your Claim
The subrogation process, which you will hear often during a personal injury lawsuit, occurs when your health insurance company places claims on the settlement from your personal injury case. These claims are not the same as reimbursement claim requests. In order to get a portion of your settlement, your insurance company will have to follow specific instructions.
Subrogation Notices
After you have been in an accident, you will receive a letter from your health insurance company that requests additional information about your accident. The letter will particular request any information about if the injury was work-related – since your health insurance will want you to first seek workers’ compensation for your injuries. Insurance adjusters will also want to know if there was a third party involved in your accident.
Lastly, the letter will request any information about an attorney you have retained for your case—including his or her contact information.
Your insurance carrier may include information regarding your policy and how that policy states that the insurance carrier has rights to reimbursement out of any personal injury lawsuit settlement you recover.
The Purpose
The purpose behind a subrogation notice letter is that your health insurance is there for you when you are ill—not when you are injured. While insurance will cover you initially, they won’t cover you when someone else causes your injuries; therefore, they will want reimbursement for covering you during the interim.
The insurance company will request that the at-fault party’s settlement will cover their costs and any medical bills that they have paid on your behalf.
Also Read : What are the Stages in a Personal Injury Case?
Tips for Handling Subrogation
1. Get a copy of your insurance policy. Be sure to look for any specific terms regarding subrogation and whether or not your health insurance carrier has access to your settlement funds. You will want to give a copy of your policy to your attorney for his or her review, and to help protect you from an unfair settlement.
2. Check your local state laws. You will want to find out if there are any restrictions – since most states limit how much a health insurance carrier can recover from your settlement. Your attorney should know the local laws.
3. Request an elimination. Any medical care that you received and your health insurance company paid for that was not related to the injury may be included in their request. You can request that those expenses be eliminated so that you only reimburse insurance for the costs of the accident.
4. Get assistance from your attorney. When insurance carriers stake a claim against your settlement, it could mean that you lose a large portion of that settlement to a third party – and you are left with limited compensation for your own costs and pain. Your Boca Raton FL personal injury lawyer can ensure that you are given a fair settlement that includes reimbursing your health insurance carrier.
For assistance with your personal injury claim or for additional questions on subrogation, contact Glotzer & Kobren for a free consultation. We can help protect your settlement from insurance carriers and ensure that you have funds to compensate you for your injuries. Call us now at 561-361-8677 to get started.
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