How Does PIP Insurance Work?

PIP insurance could be an abbreviation for Personal Injury Protection insurance coverage. This type of car insurance coverage may be compulsory in 12 states, some of which may be Pennsylvania, District of Columbia, Minnesota, Kansas and Utah. When opting for PIP insurance coverage, it may be important to understand what the concept may be and how it might be carried out.

PIP insurance coverage could be a form of auto insurance coverage that might only kick in when there may have been an accident and the driver might have suffered injuries that could require medical attention. PIP coverage may thus be used to help cover medical bills for all injuries sustained by the driver in whose name the policy might be, regardless of whose fault the accident may be.

There could be a big difference between PIP coverage and liability insurance coverage. PIP insurance coverage might not aid in taking care of a victim’s medical bills caused due to injury. This could be what liability insurance coverage might be for. With PIP insurance, only the driver who has the PIP insurance might be protected. One driver’s PIP insurance may not pay for the other driver (victim).

PIP insurance may be compulsory in no-fault states, where the law of the land could suggest that each individual may be liable to pay for his or her own personal injuries. In no-fault states, it could thus be compulsory for each auto insurance policy to have a section on PIP coverage. After all, if one might be paying for oneself, the higher the maximum limit, the better it may be. This could be why folks in no-fault states may pay higher premiums for PIP so they could enjoy a higher maximum limit ceiling.

This no-fault insurance law may have first been created in Canada in the year 1947, and caught on in terms of popularity, since it could have reduced the number of lawsuits that might have been filed on one basis: to get money for medical bills from the driver, even to the extent of causing the driver to go bankrupt. Since then, 12 states may have adopted the no-fault insurance law.

However, in cases where the victims may have been injured extensively such that their PIP coverage limit might be reached, they could also opt to sue the driver, especially if there may have been a clear case of negligence (e.g. the driver might have been texting, drunk driving or speeding).

In some instances, PIP coverage may not just be for medical bills, but also for those things that an injured person may have lost or activities that he or she might no longer be able to perform. Some things that may be covered by PIP could be lawn maintenance, lost wages and gas costs to and from the hospital for appointments, and so on. In a no-fault state, it may get easier for everyone if their own PIP insurance could kick in.

The rules for the no-fault insurance law might be quite interesting and relevant for those living in no-fault states. To find out more on this law, please visit the article No-Fault Insurance.