In an car accident in Rhode Island, who pays my medical bills?

ricaraccidentIn Rhode Island, all motorists are required to carry Medical Payments coverage. Medical Payments coverage, or MedPay, will pay for your medical bills if you are injured. However, if you have health insurance, your health insurance will typically pay your medical bills, which means MedPay and health insurance in Rhode Island often overlap. However, MedPay can be used to pay things that your health insurance may not cover, such as copayments.

If MedPay does pay for part of your medical bills, the MedPay carrier has the right to be reimbursed out of any personal injury recovery you obtain from a third party who caused your injuries. That means if you get a personal injury settlement, you have to pay back MedPay for your medical bills. Typically, the same rule applies to your health insurer as well.

It is important to retain competent, experienced representation when dealing with automobile accident injuries to ensure that your medical bills are properly addressed. Furthermore, an experienced attorney will help you achieve the maximum recovery by negotiating with your MedPay insurer and your health insurer to reduce the amount you have to pay back.

If you’ve been injured an an automobile accident in Rhode Island, please contact KPDM Law, LLC today at 617-804-5736.

Investigating Automobile Accidents – the First 24 Hours Is Critical

auto investigationWhenever my firm receives an automobile accident referral, we act immediately, because time is critical. In a serious automobile accident, the early stages of investigation are so important because evidence fades or gets destroyed over time. Seemingly small details, like scorch marks, gouges, or tire marks in the road are valuable evidence that needs to be examined and photographed by experts.

I once represented a person who was so severely injured in a motorcycle accident that he spent weeks in the hospital. Although the police department had an on-site investigator that did his best to preserve evidence and perform an accident reconstruction, that officer only did accident reconstruction on a part-time basis. He made some mistakes in taking measurements of skid marks that ended up being central to the case. Unfortunately, that referral came to us well after the accident took place, so by the time we were able to get our own investigator, the skid marks were all but gone. We still managed to get a good result in the case, but that was much more difficult because we did not have access to the accident scene immediately after the accident.

If you’ve been injured in an automobile accident, hiring an experienced attorney is so important. Many attorneys dabble in auto accident claims, but few have the practical experience of investigating and representing injured people in serious accidents. I have been doing this for over ten years, and have prosecuted these types of cases at the highest levels. If you need help, please contact me.