SUBROGATION IN PERSONAL INJURY CLAIMS
Subrogation is the legal doctrine that says: if you receive money from a personal injury claim, whoever paid your medical bills may be entitled to repayment for the bills it paid, out of the money to receive.
ENTITIES ENTITLED TO REPAYMENT
Examples of entities that may have paid your medical bills include: your auto medical payment (PIP), a private health care policy, an ERISA health care plan through your employer, Labor & Industries for on-the-job injuries, Medicaid, Medicare, or Medicare Advantage. There are many other examples.
SUBROGATION PREVENTS DOUBLE COMPENSATION
Subrogation is based on the concept that you cannot recover twice for the same injury. In your personal injury claim, you may seek compensation for your medical bills from whoever injured you. But if another entity has already paid for some or all of those medical bills, that entity may be entitled to repayment from your personal injury recovery.
How small or large that repayment must be varies greatly based on the type of entity that paid the bills, and whether or not you receive full compensation for your injuries from whoever injured you. If you have not been able to secure a full recovery, we may be able to defeat a subrogation claim.
Subrogation authored by Paul Stritmatter.
SEATTLE PERSONAL INJURY ATTORNEYS
To answer any questions you may still have about subrogation claims, contact our experienced personal injury attorneys for a free consultation.