Proving liability is the cornerstone of any winning personal injury claim that pays out a maximized compensation amount to the plaintiff. Part of that compensation will – or at least should – include coverage for costs related to the plaintiff’s medical treatment and care. The average personal injury case will take weeks or months to close, and some might take even longer, though; meanwhile, medical bills will show up right away and demand payment right away. If your injury claim is still pending, who is going to pay those medical bills?
Payment Upfront & Out-of-Pocket
For the most part, hospitals, clinics, and doctors do not care who is liable for your injury. They only want to receive their due fees. This means that medical bills are going to be sent to you – the injured party – and you need to respond to them, i.e. pay them. One of the few exclusions to your own upfront liability for medical bills is if you have purchased “med pay” insurance coverage that includes the type of accident that caused you harm. If you have this form of insurance, your insurer will pay a certain amount of your medical bills at once, right up to your policy’s cap. Most basic “med pay” policies provide the first $10,000 of initial medical treatments following an accident, whether it be for a car accident, premises liability case, or so on. But, if you don’t have “med pay” insurance – it is not exactly common for people to buy it – paying those bills is up to you. Many medical bills have the option to pay minimum amounts each month or so, rather than all of it at once; you may wish to use this option to reduce the financial impact on you while your personal injury claim progresses.
What If I Win My Case?
If you do win a settlement or verdict for your personal injury claim or lawsuit, it should hopefully give you more than enough to cover all of your medical bills. But this does not mean the defendant who lost the case is paying your bills. Those will still show up in your mailbox and you still need to be the one who deals with them. Ideally, you would then have the financial means to do so without emptying your savings account. For personal injury representation you can count on, don’t hesitate to contact Williams DeClark Tuschman Co., L.P.A. and our Toledo personal injury attorneys. In addition to having Ohio Super Lawyers® on our team, we have also secured $50+ million for our clients through all manners of injury claims. Call 1-419-719-5195 to speak with our staff and set up a free case analysis.