Figuring out how medical bills are paid after a car accident in Michigan is one of the most stressful parts of an injury claim. Ambulance charges, emergency room bills, imaging, follow-up care, therapy, and future treatment can add up quickly, and many injured people are not sure which insurance company is supposed to pay first.
Michigan’s no-fault law has specific rules that determine who pays accident-related medical bills, what expenses may be covered through PIP, and what happens if coverage is delayed, disputed, or not enough to cover the full cost of care. This page explains how those rules work, when health insurance or workers’ compensation may be involved, and when an injured person may need to pursue excess or future medical expenses beyond available no-fault benefits.
The first step to getting your medical bills paid after a car accident in Michigan, and protecting your rights under the No-Fault law, is to file an application for No-Fault benefits with the responsible auto insurance company.
This application is also called a written notice of injury. If it is not filed within 1 year after the accident, your claim for payment of medical bills and other No-Fault benefits can be barred under Michigan law. See MCL 500.3145(1).
It is also important to include as much information as possible about the nature of your injuries. If necessary injuries are left out of the application, the insurance company may later argue that treatment for those injuries is not related to the crash.
Who Pays Medical Bills After a Car Accident in Michigan?
In Michigan, according to the No-Fault law, medical bills after a car accident are paid by the auto insurance company that is responsible under the order of priority. See MCL 500.3105(1).
Provide your doctor and other medical providers with the name of the responsible auto insurance company and your claim number.
Michigan’s No-Fault priority rules help determine which insurance company will pay:
How Medical Bills Are Paid After a Car Accident in Michigan
In Michigan, if you do not have your own auto insurance to pay medical bills after a car accident, then your spouse’s insurer or the insurer of a relative who lives in your home may pay. If coverage is not available through those sources, then the Michigan Assigned Claims Plan may assign an insurer to pay.
Which insurer pays depends on Michigan’s No-Fault priority rules and the facts of the accident. That is why it is important to identify the correct insurer early and make sure your medical providers are billing the right company. For a broader explanation of how these rules work, see our Car Accident Insurance & No-Fault guide.
Keep Track of Your Medical Bills and Statements
In addition to asking your medical providers to bill No-Fault, it is important to keep track of your medical bills and statements, make copies for yourself, and keep proof of when each bill was sent to the insurance company.
You can hire a lawyer to help collect and submit your medical bills, but you do not have to. The important thing is to make sure the bills are submitted and paid within 1 year from the date each expense was incurred, or the claim for that bill can be time barred under Michigan law. See MCL 500.3145(2).
If your medical bills are not submitted to the insurance company within 1 year from the date of treatment, the insurer may not be required to pay them. That is why keeping copies of your bills, statements, and dated proof of submission is so important.
Will Workers’ Compensation Pay?
In Michigan, medical bills after a car accident may be paid by Workers’ Compensation if you were injured in the course of your employment. Workers’ Compensation generally pays first for work-related injuries, and No-Fault benefits may apply only to the extent those benefits are not already provided through Workers’ Compensation. See MCL 418.301 and MCL 418.315.
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If you were driving for work or were otherwise injured in a crash while working, it is important to identify that issue early because it can affect which insurer pays first and how your medical bills are handled.
Will My Health Insurance Pay?
In Michigan, health insurance may pay medical bills after a car accident if you have coordinated auto No-Fault coverage. When coverage is coordinated, health insurance is generally the primary payer, meaning it pays first, and No-Fault may then pay for deductibles, copays, or other amounts not covered by the health plan. See MCL 500.3109a.
If you have uncoordinated auto insurance coverage, then your No-Fault insurer is generally the first source of payment for accident-related medical bills. Even so, health insurance may still become important if the available PIP medical coverage is limited, exhausted, or disputed.
Will Medicare Pay My Medical Bills After a Car Accident in Michigan?
In Michigan, Medicare is generally a secondary payer for medical bills after a car accident, which means it usually is not the primary source of payment if No-Fault coverage is available. If Medicare does pay for accident-related treatment, reimbursement issues can arise.
However, after Michigan’s No-Fault changes, some Medicare beneficiaries may choose to opt out of PIP medical coverage if they qualify. The Insurance Commissioner has stated in an official bulletin that Medicare may cover auto accident injuries under certain No-Fault coverage selections available after the 2019 reforms. See Bulletin 2020-05-INS.
Will Medicaid Pay My Medical Bills After a Car Accident in Michigan?
In Michigan, Medicaid is generally a payer of last resort, which means it is usually not supposed to be the primary source of payment for medical bills after a car accident if No-Fault coverage, health insurance, or another higher-priority payer is available. Michigan Medicaid guidance requires providers to use other insurance resources first before billing Medicaid.
If Medicaid does pay for accident-related treatment, reimbursement issues can arise. In many cases, Medicaid paying a crash-related bill may be a sign that another insurer that should be paying first is not paying.
Will the At-Fault Driver Pay My Medical Bills After a Car Accident in Michigan?
In Michigan, the at-fault driver does not usually pay your medical bills first. Those bills are generally paid through No-Fault PIP benefits. But if your accident-related medical costs exceed the PIP medical coverage available under the policy, then you may file a third-party lawsuit against the at-fault driver for excess and future No-Fault PIP medical benefits. See MCL 500.3135(3)(c).
This is one of the most important exceptions under Michigan law. In serious injury cases, the at-fault driver may become responsible for medical expenses that go beyond the available No-Fault medical coverage.
Will All of My Medical Bills Be Paid After a Car Accident in Michigan?
In Michigan, whether all of your medical bills are paid after a car accident depends on three things:
Under Michigan law, the amount of PIP medical benefits available to an injured person is limited by the coverage level selected in the applicable policy. See MCL 500.3107c. Michigan’s available PIP medical coverage levels include $50,000 for certain Medicaid enrollees, $250,000, $500,000, and unlimited, and some Medicare beneficiaries may qualify to opt out completely. See MCL 500.3107c and MCL 500.3107d.
What If My Insurance Company Won’t Pay My Medical Bills After a Car Accident in Michigan?
In Michigan, if your auto insurance company refuses to pay medical bills after a car accident, or cuts off No-Fault PIP medical benefits, you may have to file a first-party No-Fault lawsuit to recover unpaid overdue benefits. If you are dealing with a denial or cut-off, see our page on what to do when insurance denies your claim. Under Michigan law, benefits are generally overdue if they are not paid within 30 days after the insurer receives reasonable proof of the fact and amount of the loss. See MCL 500.3142(2).
However, if the medical bills are not submitted to the insurance company within 90 days after the treatment or care was provided, then the insurer has 90 days to pay before the bills are considered overdue. See MCL 500.3142(3).
You can recover only up to the No-Fault PIP medical coverage level available under the policy through which you made the claim. If your medical bills exceed that coverage level, then additional recovery may require a separate claim against the at-fault driver for excess medical expenses.
Can You Be Sent to Collections for Unpaid Medical Bills?
Yes. In some cases, people injured in Michigan car accidents are sent to collections for unpaid medical bills. To help prevent that from happening, it is important to: (1) file an application for No-Fault benefits and identify all of your injuries; (2) tell your doctors and medical providers to bill No-Fault; (3) personally send your medical bills to the responsible insurance company and keep dated proof of each submission; and (4) take action quickly if the insurance company does not pay within the time allowed by Michigan law.
Remember, you generally have only 1 year from the date of treatment to sue your auto insurance company for payment of that bill. See MCL 500.3145(2).
If you receive a collection notice for accident-related medical bills, do not ignore it. Forward it to the responsible auto insurance company immediately and review whether the bill should have been paid through No-Fault or another higher-priority source. In some situations, disputed charges may also involve balance billing issues under Michigan No-Fault law.
What Is Balance Billing in a Michigan No-Fault Claim?
If your doctor or other medical provider sends you a bill for the difference between what it charged and what it received from your No-Fault auto insurance company, do not assume you have to pay it.
This is called balance billing. In a Michigan No-Fault claim, providers are limited to a reasonable charge for the treatment, products, services, and accommodations they provide, and Michigan law gives providers their own right to pursue overdue benefits directly from the insurer. See MCL 500.3157 and MCL 500.3112.
If you receive a balance bill for accident-related treatment, forward it to the insurance company immediately. In many cases, the issue is a dispute between the provider and the insurer over what should be paid under Michigan’s No-Fault law, not a bill that should automatically be shifted to you.
