I had a personal injury case in 2016 that a different attorney screwed up. I had a back fusion and needed a hip replacement. Things were not looking very good till Mr Colbach got involved. He settled my case for policy limits within a few months. His staff is very professional, He is truthful and attentive. He always replied to any questions I had. That was very different from what I had been dealing with. I just highly recommend you giving him a call. -->More
Over $78 million in verdicts and settlements in 19 years.
FAQs :: Personal Injury Protection PIP Insurance
All Oregon non-commercial auto insurance policies have no-fault Personal Injury Protection (PIP) healthcare and wage loss coverage.
It is possible to have a higher PIP coverage but the $15,000 is the minimum amount required by law in Oregon.
If you are injured in an auto, bicycle, or pedestrian accident, your auto insurance provides all reasonable and necessary expenses of medical, hospital, dental, surgical, ambulance and prosthetic services incurred within two years after the date of the person's injury, but not more than $15,000 in total for all such expenses of the person.
Wage Loss Coverage: In addition to medical, dental, and ambulance expenses coverage, your personal injury protection insurance provides wage loss coverage if your disability continues for at least 14 days, providing 70 percent of the loss of income from work during the period of the injured person's disability until the date the person is able to return to the person's usual occupation. This benefit is subject to a maximum payment of $3,000 per month and a maximum payment period in the aggregate of 52 weeks.
Funeral Expenses: If a person dies in an auto accident, PIP will cover all reasonable and necessary funeral expenses incurred within one year after the date of the person's injury, but not more than $5,000.
Child Care: If the injured person is required to be hospitalized for a minimum of 24 hours, PIP will cover $25 per day for child care, with payments to begin after the initial 24 hours of hospitalization and to be made for as long as the person is unable to return to work.
Essential Services such as house cleaning, cooking, when the injured person is not able.
You can find the Oregon PIP statute here: 742.524 Contents of personal injury protection benefits; deductibles. The subsequent laws further parse the details of what you are and are not entitled to.
PIP coverage is mandatory for all Oregon auto insurance, but not motorcycle insurance.
It is possible to have PIP benefits for a motorcycle but you would have to specifically ask your insurer for the PIP coverage and pay for the additional coverage. If you do not have health insurance, I highly recommend paying for the addition of PIP benefits as it will not increase your monthly insurance costs significantly while providing real benefits: healthcare, dental, and wage loss coverage. Having PIP coverage can be a huge help in recovering after a crash. If you do not have nor want PIP coverage, there do exist other forms of insurance coverage types to give you similar coverage.
What if I am on my bicycle or a pedestrian?
Even if you are on a bicycle or a pedestrian, your auto insurance personal injury protection should pay your medical expenses if you are struck by a motor vehicle. If you do not have auto insurance and do not have health insurance, than the other driver’s insurance should pay your medical bills. If your Oregon personal injury protection coverage limits are reached, the other driver’s personal injury protection may also cover you if you do not have healthcare insurance.
How much wage loss will my personal injury protection insurance pay?
Your PIP insurance will pay up to 52 weeks of wage loss. You can receive 70 percent of the loss of income from your work up to the maximum monthly amount of $3,000.
Tye Strong
Will my insurance company pay all of my medical bills?
Your insurance company is required to pay all of your medical expenses within the first two years that are reasonable and related to the accident, up to your policy limit ($15,000 for most people).
This does not mean that they will pay these bills. Insurance companies do not pay bills if they don’t have to. They can deny payment and send you to an insurance company doctor. The vast majority of the time these doctors say that your treatment is not necessary, that is why the insurance companies use these doctors rather than talking to your treating doctor.
What can I do if they refuse to pay my medical bills?
If the accident was not your fault, the best course of action is to pursue the at fault driver’s auto insurance company for your medical expenses as well as your pain and suffering.
You can also sue your own insurance company. Due to recent changes in the law, they are forced to pay for your lawyer if you sue and win. This makes it very expensive for your auto insurance company, so they are much more likely to pay your bills if you sue them.
Do I have to pay my insurance company back for my personal injury protection benefits?
Whether or not you have to pay your personal injury protection benefits back out of any settlement or award depends largely on what your attorney does early on in your case. Most of the time I can force the insurance companies to elect to pay me a fee to recover personal injury protection benefits or waive recovery out of my client’s settlement or award. Insurance companies do not want to pay me a fee, so the vast majority of the time the insurance companies do not require any repayment by my clients.
What happens if my medical expenses exceed my personal injury protection coverage?
If you have healthcare insurance, your healthcare insurance will usually pay any additional amounts. If you do not have healthcare insurance, you will be billed personally for any amounts in excess of your PIP coverage. Oftentimes I can work with providers to get them to wait for payment until the case is resolved.
If more than one person in my household has Oregon personal injury protection insurance can more than one policy apply?
In certain circumstances Oregon personal injury protection benefits “stack” for household members. What this means is that you could have double the personal injury protection coverage.
How much personal injury protection insurance should I buy?
That depends on whether or not you have healthcare insurance. If you have good healthcare insurance with low co-pays, than buying more than the minimum personal injury protection coverage is not as important. If you do not have healthcare insurance, than you should buy more than the minimum personal injury protection coverage.