Health Insurance in Camden County Bicycle Accidents

It is important to have health insurance in the event of a bicycle accident. Otherwise, your options for recovery would be limited, and you may incur out-of-pocket expenses for medical treatment. Coverage providers are responsible for reimbursing a claimant for his or her losses and covering their medical costs after an accident.

Health insurance in Camden County bicycle accidents can make a substantial difference in the amount of damages you can recover. Ask a local bicycle accident attorney about how health coverage can impact a compensatory award in a civil suit.

Insurance Options

When a licensed and insured driver is involved in an accident, he or she can use personal injury protection (PIP) through his or her coverage provider to offset their losses. PIP benefits are covered under car insurance and will pay his or her medical bills. According to NJ Revised Statutes §39:6A-4, PIP benefits also cover bicyclists. An injured bicyclist could file a claim through his or her car insurance to pay their medical bills if he or she does not have health insurance.

If the bicyclist does not have PIP or car insurance at the time of an accident, he or she could apply to the New Jersey Property-Liability Insurance Guaranty Association (PLIGA) to receive medical benefits. It is a limited amount, whereas health insurance in Camden County bicycle accidents would be unlimited.

Benefits of Health Coverage in a Bicycle Accident

If someone is covered when he or she is involved in a bicycle accident, his or her health insurance provider would pay for their subsequent medical bills. If he or she uses their PIP benefits or PLIGA, his or her recoverable damages would be limited by those policies. Otherwise, health insurance would grant a cyclist unlimited access to funds to pay for his or her medical bills after an injury.

Impact on a Civil Claim

When an individual has life insurance under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), he or she is allowed to put a lien on his or her personal injury recovery. He or she may recoup the money they spent on life insurance if his or her health coverage has a lien able interest. However, doing so would decrease the amount he or she would receive from a civil settlement for his or her injuries.

Reimbursing Your Coverage Provider Upon Reaching a Settlement

Someone with an ERISA-based plan may be required to reimburse his or her health insurance company for some or all of the covered damages after a bicycle accident. If a federal employee has health coverage through the government, he or she may not put a lien on the case. But, if he or she has a government funded health insurance like Medicaid or Medicare, they would automatically have a lien on his or her case.

Insurance Ratings

A bicycle accident usually has no effect on a person’s insurance rate. Using PIP benefits through a coverage provider after being injured in a bicycle accident is not a premium raising event. It should not affect an injured person’s insurance rating, even if he or she is found at fault for the accident. If you have questions about how a bike crash can impact your coverage rates, ask an attorney from our team about health insurance in Camden County bicycle accidents.