If insurers get way, drivers can say bye to PIP
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Mar. 16–If you drive a car in Florida, you’ve got to have it: Personal injury protection, the part of your auto insurance that pays your medical bills if you’re in an accident, no matter who’s at fault. Personal injury protection — PIP — was designed to ensure basic medical care for accident victims and avoid frivolous lawsuits. But insurers claim PIP breeds rampant fraud, particularly in South Florida, because people take advantage of a quick-paying system by faking accidents and running up unnecessary medical bills. This legislative session, insurers are pushing state lawmakers to either make major reforms or dump PIP altogether. Another camp, mainly healthcare providers and attorneys, wants to keep PIP just as it is, rather than return to a more traditional system that requires health insurers to pay for medical costs. Lawmakers have to do something — the PIP law, also known as the no-fault law, is set to expire next year. The debate over PIP has the potential to change how drivers are covered by auto insurance and how much they pay for it. A… |