Why Should I Use My Own Insurance When the Accident Wan't My Fault?

     Many times patients are in accidents which are caused by someone else, so they are reluctant to use their own insurance.  They are worried that their insurance rates will go up or that the insurance company will drop their coverage.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  If you have a good driving record and have not made a bunch of claims on your insurance, typically insurance companies are prohibited from raising your rates due to an accident which was not your fault.  If they do or threaten to do so, a quick call to the Texas Department of Insurance should take care of it.  Keep in mind that you are paying for your insurance and if you don't use it when you need to, then you are just giving your insurance company free money.
     The types of insurance coverage you might have, in addition to the state required liability insurance, are PIP (Personal Injury Protection), Med-pay (Medical Payments coverage) and Uninsured Motorist coverage.   Uninsured Motorist, UM,  coverage is coverage you need if you are injured by an un-insured driver or are injured by a hit-and-run driver.  PIP covers medical payments and lost wages.  Med-Pay only covers medical payments.  If you are not sure if you have any of these, call your insurance company and ask.
     If you get injured in a motor vehicle accident and have PIP or Med-Pay, call your insurance company and tell them that you have been injured and are going to the doctor.  Also, give your insurance company the names of any others in your car.   Finally, give your doctor your insurance information and any claim numbers.
     The advantage of using this as well as the other guys insurance is that you simply have that much more coverage so that when you settle with the other guys insurance, there will be that much less that you'll have to use for medical bills and thus, more for your other expenses.
     Some things to remember about PIP and Med-Pay: they provide coverage for both the driver and the other people in the car no matter who is at fault and they can apply to ANY motor vehicle accident.  In other words, if you are injured in a friends car, you can still use your PIP or Med-Pay insurance.