Medical Payment Coverage for Car, SUV and Truck Accidents

One relatively rare coverage contained in car, truck, and SUV insurance policies is Medical Payments Coverage or MPC. It usually has small limits, e.g., $1,000; $5,000 or $10,000, but I have seen limits as high as $100,000 once. Like the other coverages in your automobile policy, it is triggered when you have an accident. Unlike the other coverage in your automobile insurance policy, it applies without regard to fault. That is to say, even if you ran a red light, caused a collision and incurred medical expenses, you would be able to pay for some of your medical expenses up to the limits of your coverage.

This is also very handy if you are the victim of a car, truck or motorcycle wreck. The insurance company for the at-fault driver will only pay once, and then they expect a release, which would bar any further claims against them or the at-fault party. So, you would likely complete your treatment (which may weeks or months) and then make a claim. In the meantime, you are paying co-pays, getting billed, getting balance-billed and the like.

It is unfair for you to have to come out of pocket, sometimes for even thousands of dollars when you did nothing wrong! This is where your medpay comes in. You can use your medical payments coverage for those bills, so you don’t have to come out of pocket. Oftentimes this does not lessen the amount you can recover from the at-fault driver for your medical expenses, and it has no impact on you getting compensated for your lost wages and pain and suffering damages.

If you don’t have medical payments coverage, ask your insurance agent about it. It is usually not a very expensive addition to your premium, and you’ll be thankful if you even need it.

This article is provided for general information only and not intended to be legal advice for your specific situation. Kenneth Crawford is a lawyer practicing in Douglasville, Villa Rica, Carrollton Hiram, West Cobb, Marietta and Atlanta. He handles car accidents, truck wrecks, tractor-trailer accidents, dog bites, products liability and other personal injury cases. Contact us for a free consultation today!

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