The Michigan legislature is once again discussing no fault insurance. The discussion is centered around reforms to no fault insurance in the automotive industry. Outside of the state budget, the most discussed topic in the legislature of late has been no fault insurance and the automotive industry in the state of Michigan.
The state of Michigan has some of the highest automotive insurance rates in the country. The state also has the highest payout rate for catastrophic injury claims stemming from vehicle crashes in the entire country. The legislature is working to figure out how to maintain coverage options while containing costs. There has been no plan introduced in the legislature yet, but many lawmakers believe it is coming soon.
The Coalition Protecting Auto No-Fault discussed some ideas on Tuesday that lawmakers think will help to reduce costs. One of the ideas is for the acceptance of fee schedules, which means agreeing to standardized costs for victims of car accidents. The coalition is made up of advocates and providers of people who have long-care medical needs stemming from crashes.
At the same time, the coalition recommended setting a limit for the hourly rate for family-provided attendant care. Both of these ideas were opposed by the group in the past, but are said to likely help people save money. In return for these ideas, the coalition wants insurance companies to end their practice of using credit scores to determine rates. They also want insurance companies to acquire approval prior to raising rates.
The coalition is also asking for the Michigan Catastrophic Claims Association to go public. This is a $20 billion fund. The coalition wants to know how the rates are set by the fund and its liabilities. These ideas were simply presented Tuesday. No action was taken.
Were you involved in a no fault insurance motor vehicle accident? An experienced lawyer in Michigan can answer all of your questions about the case and how to handle it.
Source: WOODTV, “No-fault insurance up for discussion in legislature again,” Rick Albin, May 16, 2017
