In Alabama, over 150,000 traffic crashes happen each year. These accidents hurt more than 40,000 people. Victims often face huge medical bills while trying to recover. Emergency room visits alone can cost thousands.
At Cartee & Lloyd Personal Injury Lawyers, we know how to pay medical bills after a car accident. Our team works with healthcare providers and insurance companies to get you the money you deserve. We've helped many clients throughout Alabama with their medical bills from car accidents.
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When you face mounting medical bills after a car accident, you need experienced legal representation. Our personal injury attorneys make sure your health insurance and the at-fault driver's insurance company pay everything you are legally entitled to recover. We help you seek compensation and reimbursement for medical expenses from your accident.
We collect records of all the costs of your medical treatment, including:
Our firm has won millions for car accident injury victims in Alabama. When a case goes to trial, we request the jury to compensate you for all of your past and future medical expenses as well as other damages such as pain and suffering, lost income, mental anguish, permanent injury, property damage, etc.. Unlike large insurance companies, we give personal attention to each client. You'll work with attorneys who understand how medical bills are paid and the insurance claims process.
Medical billing is confusing after a car accident. Many injury victims are shocked by the charges from different healthcare providers. You need to know what these bills mean so that the at-fault party's insurance covers all your expenses.
The billing process involves many people: hospitals, doctors, specialists, and insurance companies. Each has its own system, creating a mess of paperwork that's hard to understand during recovery.
Car accidents cause many types of medical expenses:
Some car accident injuries heal quickly. Others need months of treatment. This affects how much your medical bills will be.
The type of injuries you get in a car accident affects your medical bills. Minor injuries like sprains might cost $1,000 to $5,000. These usually need fewer doctor visits.
Serious injuries sustained cost much more. Brain injuries, spinal cord damage, and internal injuries can lead to bills over $100,000. These need emergency surgery, long hospital stays, and lots of therapy.
Insurance companies often try to pay less by saying your injuries aren’t bad. Our personal injury attorneys work with medical professionals to show how serious your suffered injuries are. We make sure the responsible party pays the full medical treatment costs you face.
When the driver’s fault is clear, we fight to cover medical expenses and fully compensate you for all of your injuries and damages.
What you do right after a car accident affects how your medical bills get paid. The steps you take in the first few days help build your insurance claim and personal injury lawsuit.
Many people make mistakes after accidents. They wait to see a doctor or don't tell their insurance company right away. This can cause problems with payment and hurt your personal injury claim.
Have all of your medical providers file on your health insurance like you would normally do if you are sick, so that you only have to pay co-pays and deductibles for your treatment. Filing on your health insurance will also help to avoid any medical providers sending your account to collection for nonpayment while you are waiting on your case to settle or go to trial. Your attorney will seek reimbursement for everything you are out of pocket for medical treatment, and also seek reimbursement for everything your health insurance company had to pay related to your accident.
Your personal injury attorney will request itemized bills from every doctor or hospital that treats you. These detailed bills show exactly what services you got and what they cost.
If you receive any bills, carefully review them for mistakes, which are common. Look for:
Up to 80% of medical bills have errors that can add thousands to your costs. If you find mistakes, call the billing office right away to fix them.
Paying for medical care after an accident is often confusing. You might have several payment options available. Knowing these options helps you get treatment without money problems.
The best approach depends on your insurance coverage and the at-fault driver's policy. Alabama is an at-fault insurance state. This means the driver who caused the crash must pay your medical bills if they are determined to be at fault.
Your personal health insurance can pay for accident-related treatment first. Most health insurance plans cover these bills, though you'll still have deductibles and copays.
When using health insurance for accident care, tell all your doctors that the injuries came from a car accident. This helps them code your bills correctly. Your health insurance company will want repayment from any settlement you get later.
Medical Payment Coverage (MedPay) is car insurance that pays medical bills regardless of who caused the crash. In Alabama, MedPay usually offers $1,000 to $10,000 in coverage for you and your passengers.
MedPay has several benefits:
Personal injury protection (PIP) is similar to MedPay. PIP coverage pays for your medical treatment regardless of fault. To use your MedPay benefits, first file a claim with your health insurance, and after all of the claims have been paid by health insurance, your attorney may submit a claim for medical payment benefits with your auto insurance company to help cover any copays or out-of-pocket medical expenses that you have incurred.
After getting treatment for car accident injuries, you'll hear terms like "lien" and "subrogation." These legal tools let healthcare providers and insurance companies take money from your settlement.
Medical liens can greatly reduce your settlement if not handled well, which is why hiring an experienced trial attorney is important. Without a full understanding of subrogation law, much of your settlement might go to paying these claims instead of compensating you for pain and suffering.
When your health insurance pays for accident treatment, if allowed by law or the policy, it can take that money back from your settlement. This process, called subrogation, puts your health insurance company in line to get paid before you do.
Different health insurance providers handle liens differently:
Medicare liens go through the Medicare Secondary Payer Recovery Center. Medicaid liens go through the Alabama Medicaid Agency. Both need specific paperwork and timely reporting. An experienced trial attorney will know how to get these liens reduced to the extent allowed by law, which can save you thousands of dollars.
Not all medical liens are fair, and many can be reduced. Healthcare providers often charge more than what insurance companies normally pay.
One good strategy is to check all your medical bills for errors or duplicate charges. Our personal injury attorneys often find billing mistakes that, when fixed, lower the lien amounts.
Professional lien negotiation is one of the best services a personal injury attorney provides. Without legal help, healthcare providers have no reason to reduce their claims. We have good relationships with major medical providers in Alabama.
In Alabama's at-fault insurance system, the driver who caused your accident must pay for your injuries. This means the at-fault driver’s insurance company is responsible for your medical bills and other damages.
Understanding how liability coverage works helps set proper expectations. Unlike MedPay or health insurance, liability insurance usually doesn't pay until you reach a final settlement. This creates a gap between when you get treatment and when bills get paid.
Getting payment from the at-fault driver's insurance company starts with filing a claim. Contact the at-fault insurance company soon after your accident, but only give basic information about the crash.
As your treatment continues, we build a demand package that includes:
Insurance companies assess whether the treatment was necessary, related to the accident, and reasonably priced. They often dispute these factors to pay less. Our attorneys gather proper documentation from your healthcare providers to counter these tactics.
Insurance companies use many tricks to avoid paying fair compensation. Common tactics include:
Low settlement offers are common, especially for people without attorneys. Initial offers often cover only a fraction of your medical bills and ignore future medical expenses.
Large insurance companies might try to see your complete medical history to find pre-existing conditions. They may misrepresent policy limits. Our attorneys fight these tactics by investigating coverage, gathering all of your medical records and preparing for legal action if needed.
Dealing with medical bills after a car accident adds stress during recovery. Many victims don’t realize that personal injury attorneys do more than file lawsuits—we actively assist with making sure claims are timely paid by insurance companies.
We start by helping you understand payment options and making sure you keep getting treatment so that you can fully recover. We work with healthcare providers, insurance companies, and billing departments to avoid collection actions if possible during your personal injury case.
One valuable service we provide is negotiating with healthcare providers to reduce your medical bills. Many hospitals will accept lower payments when working with an attorney.
For clients with health insurance liens, we use legal precedents like the Alabama common fund doctrine to help reduce the amount of liens which means more money for our client. This requires insurance companies to share in the cost of recovery. Similar rules apply to Medicare and Medicaid liens.
A fair settlement must include all medical expenses—both current and future. Insurance companies often push victims to settle quickly before knowing the full extent of their long-term medical needs.
We work with medical professionals to estimate future treatment costs for serious injuries. These estimates include:
Insurance companies often dispute future medical expenses. Our attorneys counter with expert testimony and medical evidence that shows why continued care is necessary. This helps you get fair compensation for all costs related to your injuries.
After a car accident in Alabama, many victims have questions about medical billing. Here are answers to common questions:
Without health insurance, you still have options. Many medical providers will treat you and wait for payment until your case settles or allow you to make payments on your account. MedPay on your auto insurance can help pay medical bills that are reasonable and necessary due to the accident.
Although you may have to reimburse your health insurance out of any recovery, you actually benefit from having health insurance coverage that you pay for every month. For example, you have a $50,000 hospital bill, your health insurance pays $5,500 to the hospital, and the hospital adjusts the remainder of your balance based on their contract with your health insurance. Instead of having to pay $50,000 out of your settlement funds to the medical provider, you only have to pay $5,500 to reimburse your health insurance for their subrogation lien or payments on your behalf. This process actually allows you to keep more of your settlement funds, which is fair because you worked hard to pay your health insurance premiums every month to provide your coverage in the event of an accident or injury. While your health insurance company has the right to repayment, your personal injury attorney will usually negotiate a reduced subrogation lien amount, which will result in more funds for the client as well.
How Long Do I Have to Submit Medical Bills to Insurance in Alabama?
You should have your medical providers file with your health insurance within 30 days of your treatment, if possible. Time limits for medical payment benefits depend on the terms of the insurance policy, so your attorney will want to review your policy carefully for time limits. In order to make the at fault driver’s insurance pay for your medical expenses, you generally must file a lawsuit within two years of the date of your accident, however, there are shorter time requirements that may in some situations (ex: claims against a municipality in Alabama, etc), so you should contact an experienced personal injury attorney as soon as possible so that you do not miss any filing deadlines.
What if the At-Fault Driver Doesn’t Have Enough Insurance?
If an uninsured or underinsured driver hits you, you can:
Vehicle repairs areprocessed separately from injury claims. The at-fault party's car insurance should pay for your vehicle repairs regardless of your medical claims status.
Don't let medical bills ruin your finances after a car accident. At Cartee & Lloyd Personal Injury Lawyers, we fight to make sure healthcare providers and insurance companies treat you fairly. Our personal injury attorneys have helped many Alabama accident victims get the money they need for medical bills.
Time matters when dealing with accident-related medical bills. Evidence must be preserved, deadlines met, and the proper notices filed. The sooner you determine fault and begin your legal claim, the better your chances of getting fair compensation.
Call us today for a free consultation. We'll review your case, explain your options for handling medical bills, and outline our strategy for getting you paid. We work on contingency—you pay nothing unless we win your case.
We listen to your story and understand your struggles. We handle the insurance companies and hire the experts and do the things necessary to win your case while you focus on going to the doctor and recovering from your injuries.
Through over 77 years of combined litigation experience, we have learned that the best way to make an insurance company pay you fairly for your damages is to be well prepared, fully investigate every detail, hire experts and prepare your case for trial even if most cases will settle without trial.
We know the law and have decades of experience in the courtroom and dealing with insurance companies. We use all of our resources to hire the experts necessary for trial, fully investigate, and pay for your medical records and litigation expenses so that you do not have to come out of pocket yourself while you are struggling to recover. We fight the big insurance companies for you and only get paid for our time and expenses if we recover for you.
Don’t fall for lawyer ads telling you Ai will tell you the value of your car wreck case or believe flashing dollars on a lawyer tv commercial. The real value of your case is what a judge or jury decides is the value of your case after hearing all of the law and evidence. An experienced personal injury lawyer will know the issues that affect the value of your case. We have over 77 years of combined litigation experience and we stand ready to take your case to trial if an insurance company refuses to fairly compensate you for your injuries and damages.
Your success matters to us. Since 1992, we have helped over 11,000 clients in Alabama and recovered millions of dollars in settlements and verdicts for our clients. We measure our success by helping you receive the justice and fairness that you deserve.
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