Back

Public Service Law Tip #3 | Yonkers Personal Injury

Ira Maurer | 584 Views | 07/25/2016

No-Fault Law Public Service Tip

I’m Ira Maurer with a public service law tip on the No-Fault Law in New York.

What is the No-Fault Law and why does it exist? Several decades back, our court systems were overwhelmed with too many claims, and the only way they could free up the logjam was to limit which cases could be brought in our court system. You must have a serious injury as defined by the No-Fault Law in order to pursue a lawsuit in New York, or your case will in fact be dismissed before trial on motion by the defendant.

Secondly, what benefits are you entitled to under No-Fault? Regardless of who is to blame, you’re entitled to receive wage benefits and have your medical treatment paid for. In New York, every insurance policy must have $50,000 first-party benefit available, payable over a period of 36 months. You are entitled to receive wage benefits not exceeding $2000 a month. You can get 80% of your wage loss, but it won’t exceed $2000 a month.

Second of all, your medical treatment has to be paid for. You don’t have to obtain preauthorization from your own No-Fault insurance company. They must pay reasonable and customary charges for your treatment. If they think you don’t need the treatment, they’ll send you for an independent medical exam to have a doctor cut off your benefits. But initially, they don’t have a right to decide whether or not you’re entitled to the care, and they don’t get to preauthorize anything.

That’s different from your own healthcare insurance, which may require pre-certification for an MRI, for example. So, No-Fault means your own insurance pays those benefits for wage loss and medical treatment. It doesn’t matter who is to blame. Your own insurance pays for it. And, you can purchase additional insurance beyond the $50,000 in first-party benefits when you purchase your policy. That’s something you should speak to your insurance agent about.

For more information about pursuing a claim under the No-Fault Law for personal injury from a car accident, visit the Maurer Law webpage at maurerlaw.net.

Public Service Law Tip #3 | Yonkers Personal Injury

No-Fault Law Public Service Tip

I’m Ira Maurer with a public service law tip on the No-Fault Law in New York.

What is the No-Fault Law and why does it exist? Several decades back, our court systems were overwhelmed with too many claims, and the only way they could free up the logjam was to limit which cases could be brought in our court system. You must have a serious injury as defined by the No-Fault Law in order to pursue a lawsuit in New York, or your case will in fact be dismissed before trial on motion by the defendant.

Secondly, what benefits are you entitled to under No-Fault? Regardless of who is to blame, you’re entitled to receive wage benefits and have your medical treatment paid for. In New York, every insurance policy must have $50,000 first-party benefit available, payable over a period of 36 months. You are entitled to receive wage benefits not exceeding $2000 a month. You can get 80% of your wage loss, but it won’t exceed $2000 a month.

Second of all, your medical treatment has to be paid for. You don’t have to obtain preauthorization from your own No-Fault insurance company. They must pay reasonable and customary charges for your treatment. If they think you don’t need the treatment, they’ll send you for an independent medical exam to have a doctor cut off your benefits. But initially, they don’t have a right to decide whether or not you’re entitled to the care, and they don’t get to preauthorize anything.

That’s different from your own healthcare insurance, which may require pre-certification for an MRI, for example. So, No-Fault means your own insurance pays those benefits for wage loss and medical treatment. It doesn’t matter who is to blame. Your own insurance pays for it. And, you can purchase additional insurance beyond the $50,000 in first-party benefits when you purchase your policy. That’s something you should speak to your insurance agent about.

For more information about pursuing a claim under the No-Fault Law for personal injury from a car accident, visit the Maurer Law webpage at maurerlaw.net.