New Florida PIP Law And What It Could Mean For Drivers
After years of repeated attempts, Florida is inching towards the finish line for repealing its motor vehicle no-fault law, which has been in place for five decades. However, many in the industry oppose legislation the Florida Senate passed, along with the companion bill the House Judiciary Committee approved. Some note that the proposals will end up raising rates for many Florida drivers and are ineffective at pinpointing fraud. Currently, Florida’s no fault law stipulates that drivers must carry personal injury protection coverage of up to $10,000. If passed, the new law would require drivers to have bodily injury liability coverage with limits beginning at $25,000 per person. Read on to learn more about the potential new legislation and how it could impact drivers in Florida.
Potential New PIP Legislation
House Bill 719 and Senate Bill 54 would also establish a different framework to govern third-party bad faith failure and motor vehicle claims handling when settling actions against motor vehicle insurance carriers. The bills also require policies to have a medical payments option of $5,000, although the House version allows insureds to opt out of buying the coverage. SB 54’s minimum liability requirements for motor vehicle operation or ownership include:
- Retaining the existing $10,000 financial responsibility requirement for property damage
- For bodily injury (BI) or death of a single person in any single crash, $25,000, and $50,000 for BI or death of two or more people in a single crash (subject to that limit for a single person)
- Taking out limitations on recovering pain and suffering damages from PIP insurers. Currently, PIP insurers require bodily injury that causes significant and permanent injury or death.
Insurers may also provide medical payments coverage within limits of $10,000, with no deductible, to handle medical expenses. Insurers are able to provide other policy limits exceeding $5,000, and may have deductibles of up to $500. SB 54 requires that insurers must reserve the first $5,000 of MedPay benefits for 30 days to pay providers of hospital inpatient care or emergency services.
What Does This Mean?
According to the Office of Insurance Regulation, overall loss trends for automobile insurance losses in Florida are continuing to go up for the most significant coverages like PIP, BI liability, and comprehensive coverage. Factors like Florida having a higher rate of fatal crashes than the rest of the country, higher loss trends for PIP and BI, and the expense of auto insurance-adjacent services like hospital care and medical care all drive costs up. All of these auto insurance trends will probably continue, regardless of PIP or BI.
Contact Us Today
No matter if the new legislation is enacted or not, it is important to protect yourself and your loved ones in a crash. If you or somebody you love are the victim of a Florida auto accident, you should immediately speak to an experienced auto accident attorney to determine your next steps. Call Izquierdo & Leon Law to schedule an appointment with an expert car accident lawyer today.
