Nassau County No Fault Insurance Lawyer

Experienced No Fault Insurance Attorneys Serving in Nassau County, NY

If you are a Nassau County resident and are involved in a car accident, or a resident of another area but involved in a car accident in Nassau County, you are entitled to New York State no fault benefits. Simply put no fault is a system of insurance that is aimed at making sure that an auto accident victim is provided with medical coverage, lost wages and out of pocket expenses related to their car crash. For more information, consult with a Nassau County No Fault Insurance Lawyer.

Which Insurance Carrier Do You File A No Fault Claim With?

If you are involved in a motor vehicle collision as a driver or passenger you will need to file your no fault claim with the insurance company for the vehicle that you were occupying at the time of your accident regardless of whose fault the crash was. If you were a pedestrian or operating a bicycle you will file your no fault application with the insurance company of the vehicle that stuck you. If you were operating a motorcycle, you are not eligible for no fault insurance and will have to use your private health insurance unless you specifically added no fault coverage to your motorcycle insurance policy.

What Will No Fault Cover?

All No fault insurance policies offer a minimum of $50,000 in coverage for medical bills, lost wages and out of pocket expenses. Some policies provide additional coverage for those expenses. You should check the declaration section of your policy to determine the exact amount of coverage that you have.

No fault also provides a minimum of 80% of your salary up to $2,000 a month. However, it is possible that your policy provides additional coverage for lost wages. That information is again provided in your declarations section of your policy.

Finally, no fault will also provide payments for certain out of pocket expenses associated with your car accident. For example, you can receive payments for travel expenses to and from medical treatment or reimbursement for household help.

No Fault Insurance Deadlines

A no fault application must be filed within 30 days of the date of your accident. Failing to do so will jeopardize your rights to no fault benefits. Further it is important that you send your application certified mail so you can prove it was filed in time should an issue arise. Sometimes it’s a good idea to enlist the help of a qualified Nassau County no fault lawyer to ensure all deadlines are complied with and there are no issues with receiving your benefits.

Nassau County No Fault Insurance IME’s

If you’re injuries are taking time to heal and are costing the No fault carrier extensive money, they may request that you attend an Independent Medical Exam (IME) with a doctor. The purpose of this exam is to determine whether or not the insurance carrier will continue to pay for your medical treatment and lost wages. If the IME doctor determines that you no longer need treatment, the insurance carrier will discontinue payments for your medical bills and lost wages. Also, don’t be fooled by the term, “independent.” The doctor that examines you is far from independent. While it is true that they are not a direct employee of the insurance carrier, the doctor was subcontracted to perform the exam by the insurance carrier. Further, that doctor may conduct hundreds of exams for that carrier a year. So there is certainly a financial benefit for that doctor to find in favor of terminating your benefits.

Usually being summoned for an IME exam is an indication that your insurance carrier is going to start giving you trouble with respect to your benefits. It’s not a bad idea at that point to contact a Nassau County no fault lawyer to see what your options are.

Compensation Above and Beyond Your No Fault Insurance Benefits

Since New York State requires all occupants of the vehicle to be provided medical benefits and lost wage protection through no fault, lawmakers have established an injury threshold in order to become eligible for compensation above what no fault insurance provides. This threshold law can be found in the New York Civil Procedure Law & Rules (CPLR.) It is in many ways a confusing section of the law. It is always recommended that if you have suffered injuries related to a car accident that you speak to a Nassau County no fault lawyer with experience determining threshold issues. This way you can be best informed as to whether your injuries qualify as serious, thus entitling you to compensation.

Hire a Nassau County No Fault Insurance Lawyer for Your Case

Palermo Law is an experienced No fault law firm that concentrates its practice on injury cases. We have over twenty five years of experience interpreting no fault laws to determine exactly what our clients are entitled to and we are able to fight for them for just that. We always offer a free initial consultation and are available for in home or hospital visits. Finally, if we take on your car accident case, we never charge a fee to handle your no fault claim. Contact us today.