We recently handled a case for a client who sustained significant injuries in a car accident. The client underwent emergency surgery and was hospitalized for almost one month before he was transferred to a rehabilitation facility where he stayed for six weeks. Medicare paid almost $100,000.00 for the client’s medical treatment.

The driver of the at-fault car was from Europe. The driver had only recently moved to the United States for a high-paying job. The driver did not own a home and had few ties to the United States. The driver’s automobile insurance had liability limits of $100,000/$300,000, which means that the driver’s insurance would pay a maximum of $100,000 per claimant and a maximum of $300,000 to all claimants for any one accident.

Increasing Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist Coverage

The client’s own automobile insurance liability limits were $250,000/$500,000 and his uninsured/underinsured motorist (UM) coverage was $30,000/$60,000.  Most automobile insurance companies will permit you to purchase UM coverage up to your liability limits. Clients are surprised when I tell them that their rates will not increase significantly if they increase their UM coverage as much as possible.

Medicare Reimbursement

An injured person must reimburse Medicare for the money that Medicare paid for the injured person’s medical treatment. Fortunately for our client, we were able to get Medicare to offer a significant reduction of Medicare’s lien on the client’s case but the client’s insurance company did a huge disservice to our client but not encouraging the client to have the maximum UM limits.
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