Who pays for my medical bills after a car accident?

After a serious car accident, where medical bills were incurred, one of your first questions is going to be who is going to pay for the bills? Typically there are four main types of insurance benefits available to people injured in a South Carolina car accident:

1. PIP or Medical Pay Benefits on your car insurance policy:  If your car insurance pollicy contains these benefits (usually no more than $10,000) then you can file a claim with your insurance company. These benefits will be paid regardless of whose fault the accident was.

2. Liability Insurance: If you can establish that you were not at fault for the accident the insurance company for the other driver may be responsible for your medical expenses. In South Carolina many policies are limited to only $25,000 in benefits. The liability insurance company will not pay your bills as they accrue - but will make a single settlement to you or pay a judgment received by Court.

3. Workers' Compensation: If you were injured in a car accident while on the job your employer's Workers' Compensation policy may pay your medical bills and some portion of your lost wages. Unlike liability insurance, Workers' Compensation payments are made while your case is ongoing.

4. Underinsured Coverage: This is a type of coverage that you have to purchase from your own insurance company before an accident. It will pay to settle your case for a Court judgment in excess of the liability insurance held by the at-fault driver.

5. Uninsured Coverage: Like underinsured coverage, you have to purchase uninsured coverage from your own insurance company before an accident. This coverage is used of the at-fault driver was uninsured (many drivers in South Carolina are illegally driving without insurance).