Florida No Fault Discussion

Florida is one of nine states in the US that have no-fault insurance, and some lawmakers are looking to change that. The way it works now, if you are involved in a car accident, your auto insurance pays your medical bills and the other insured’s car insurance pays their medical bills, no matter whose fault it is. But that might be changing depending on recent events in the state capital.

Lawmakers are trying to figure out if it is in the state’s best interest to keep no-fault auto insurance, or if it is time to let it go. They say that auto insurance premiums would decrease if the system were to be changed, as it is currently not working due to the expense of medical care being what it is, as well as an abundance of fraudulent claims.

Floridians for Lower Insurance Costs is one of the groups fighting to eliminate the auto insurance system that allows for no-fault, as they say that it is broken and consumers do not benefit from it. But hospitals and doctors say that it needs to remain as people who do not have insurance show up at a hospital after an accident with no way to pay other than their auto insurance. They say that the problem of Floridians with no health insurance is much worse than the no-fault problems.

The state created PIP, or personal injury protection, in 1971 to try and stop some of the lawsuits that were created after auto accidents so that injured people had some way of paying for their care. Motorists pay for PIP, and in exchange they are covered up to $10,000 worth of medical care. However, unless it is re-enacted this October, the system will expire and those without medical insurance will be back to having no way to pay their bills and hospitals will be left trying to collect.

Which leaves the auto insurance and the health insurance businesses fighting over who will have to pay, as health insurance companies say that they will have to increase premiums to make up for those that don’t have insurance; and auto insurance companies say they want to reduce premiums as they feel people that have health insurance are being billed twice. Governor Charlie Crist has not weighed in yet except to say that he does not favor eliminating it altogether.

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