What Happens to Your Personal Injury Settlement if Health Insurance Covered Your Medical Bills?

Mar 27,2018

If you have been injured in an auto accident and have filed a personal injury lawsuit, it can take some time before your claim is settled. The damages you claim in your lawsuit will include the cost of the medical care you’ve received because of your injuries. In the meantime, your medical bills must be paid. You might opt to have your health insurance take care of your medical bills. In this case, how will your personal injury claim be affected?

How Does Health Insurance Affect Your Personal Injury Claim?

If your health insurance company covers your medical bills before your case is settled, they will most likely be entitled to subrogation once the case is settled. This means that your health insurance company can recover the cost of the medical bills from your settlement.

Let’s say your health insurance covered $25,000 worth of medical bills, and you received a settlement of $100,000. The health insurance company may be entitled to recovering $25,000 from the settlement.

Why is the Health Insurance Company Entitled to Subrogation?

If you are receiving a settlement for your injuries from an auto accident, that money is intended to cover the medical bills you incurred from your injuries. If your health insurance has already paid these costs, then they are generally entitled to be reimbursed for that expense. Otherwise, you would be essentially receiving compensation twice for the same damages.

Our firm has been handling personal injury cases throughout the California Low Desert and High Desert communities for over 30 years. With a 95% success rate, the California personal injury attorneys at Walter Clark Legal Group will fight to hold those responsible for your loss accountable and win compensation to cover medical bills, lost wages, and pain and suffering. If you have been injured in an auto accident and want to discuss your legal options, contact us today for a free consultation with an experienced personal injury lawyer. We have offices in Indio, Rancho Mirage, Victorville, and Yucca Valley and represent clients through the entire California Low Desert and High Desert communities.

DISCLAIMER: The Walter Clark Legal Group blog is intended for general information purposes only and is not intended as legal or medical advice. References to laws are based on general legal practices and vary by location. Information reported comes from secondary news sources. We do handle these types of cases, but whether or not the individuals and/or loved ones involved in these accidents choose to be represented by a law firm is a personal choice we respect. Should you find any of the information incorrect, we welcome you to contact us with corrections.