Jason Vigo <quux@excite.com> wrote in news:4058FF97.163364E1@excite.com:
I live in New York State. One night last month I was struck by a car
while crossing the street on my way home from work. Because I was a
little bit in shock, I made the unwise decision to get up and walk away
without getting any information from the driver. After I got home, a
relative convinced me to go to the emergency room. Now my insurance
company won't pay for the visit because, they say, it is a "no fault"
case, and I'm not even sure what they mean by that. I've heard of
no-fault auto insurance, but I have never owned a car and don't know
much about it. Do I have any recourse?
"No fault" refers to the automobile insurance scheme adopted by a number of
states. With "no fault" insurance, each driver involved in an accident
files a claim with his/her own insurance company, rather than trying to
collect from the at-fault's insurance. The idea was to get faster claim
completion and reduce the number of lawsuits.
Anyway, I don't see what that has to do with your medical insurance. If you
had the driver's information, you would certainly have been entitled to
have your medical bills payed by him or his auto insurace. If you were
really injured, or suspected you were, your medical insurance should cover
the incident (unless your policy has a clause limiting that type of claim).
In many cases similar to yours, the injured party would submit insurance
claims to his own medical insurance carrier in order to get the immediate
medical treatment required, and his insurance company would get reimbursed
by the auto insurance company once all the claims/lawsuits were settled.
You should appeal the decision of your insuranc company (your policy or the
insurance company should be able to tell you how), and you can always take
your case to the insurance regulation board in your state if you still
disagree with their decision.
BTW, glad you don't appear to have been seriously hurt!
