The personal injury protection (PIP) portion of auto insurance law was adopted in 1972 to ensure anyone injured in an car accident would be able to quickly get treatment for their injuries. That legislation provided that a driver’s insurance company pay up to $10,000 to cover medical bills and lost wages after an accident.

The new legislation passed recently by the Florida legislature requires an accident victim to obtain treatment within 14 days of an accident. The full $10,000 PIP medical benefit is available only if a physician, osteopathic physician, dentist, or a supervised physician’s assistant or advanced registered nurse practitioner is seen within that time limit, and that health care provider determines that the insured has an “emergency medical condition.” Otherwise, the PIP medical benefit is limited to $2,500.

Be aware of this new time limit!  And if you feel, as we do, that this time limit is unreasonably short (accident victims often do not begin to feel pain or physical limitations for several weeks following an accident), then contact your Florida legislator and tell him/her!

If you need a personal injury lawyer because of an auto accident, or you want more information, call Stuart or Jeff at 561-721-2500 in Palm Beach County or 772-419-0999 in Martin County.  Call Jeff on his cell phone any time  561-827-5333.