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Can You Trust Your Insurance Company To Cover You After An Accident?

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When you pay your insurance premiums every month, you expect your insurance company to cover you if something happens. Unfortunately, they don't always do so. Here are some of the problems you might encounter, and why you should work with a personal injury lawyer to head them off.

Having To Pay Your Deductible

Your deductible is basically the amount your insurance company will never cover after an accident. Even if you're not at fault, your agreement with your insurance company says you pay your deductible before they provide coverage.

If someone else caused your injuries, you can file a claim against them or their insurance company to cover your deductible. Your own insurance company may try to collect this as a courtesy, but they often decide it isn't worth the cost. This means you might end up needing to hire a lawyer to sue for your deductible anyway.

Insurance Policy Exclusions

Insurance contracts are often filled with exclusions. This might include refusing coverage if you were participating in high-risk activities, like sports or outdoor adventures. It might also exclude specific items, such as types of injuries, the way you can receive treatment, where you can receive treatment, or who can approve treatment.

If you're injured in a way that falls outside of your insurance policy, your own insurance company likely won't help you. You'd need to find out if the person who caused your injury has liability insurance, or you may need to file a lawsuit against them.

One thing to keep in mind is that insurance companies don't always deny your claim right away. It may take months or years before they decide a certain expense wasn't covered. At that point, it may be too late to bring a lawsuit, so you'll need to talk to a personal injury lawyer as soon as possible.

Insurance Policy Limits

Insurance policies are often limited to a certain amount of dollars in coverage. If your expenses for a covered injury are $200,000 and the policy limit is $100,000, you have to pay the remaining $100,000 out of pocket.

If someone else injured you, you can sue for that difference. They may have an insurance policy that covers that amount. If not, you would need to file a lawsuit and hope they have enough assets to cover any judgment that you can win. If not, you can try to garnish their wages in case they earn more in the future.

To learn more about what to do when insurance doesn't cover you, talk to a local personal injury lawyer today.


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