IS THERE ANYTHING I CAN DO TO AVOID BEING PUT INTO COLLECTIONS?
Incurring massive medical bills is an extremely common circumstance for automobile injury victims. Just as common is when an injured person cannot afford to pay these bills and is immediately threatened with being put into collections by a hospital or bill collector. These threats come in the form of letters, final payment notices, and constant phone calls. Do yourself a favor and do not be victimized by these scare tactics.
Injury attorneys can absolutely put a stop to all threatening letters, phone calls, and improper collection tactics. Injury attorneys are vital in ensuring that all bills are compensated through medical insurance, or automobile medical payments or personal injury protection coverages.
Furthermore, injury attorneys can stop improper attempts by hospitals to balance bill accident victims. This involves an attempt to collect the difference between what health insurance covers versus what your total medical bill from a given hospital may be. This tactic is completely improper and illegal if your health insurer has entered into a contract with the hospital in question where the hospital has agreed not to balance bill patients in return for gaining “in network provider” status with the insurance company.
Another common improper tactic utilized by hospitals is telling you that you are required to submit your bills to an at-fault driver’s insurer. Suffice it to say that hospitals know that the at-fault party’s insurer will never pay your bills. Instead, what will happen, is that the bill will go unpaid and the hospital will create a lien upon any personal injury recovery you may have. Medical providers do this because they figure the amount they can collect through a lien will exceed the amount your health insurer will pay them.
At Ryan, Ryan & Viglione, we stop all improper collection tactics. We fight to reduce any and all liens created upon your right of recovery and put the most money possible in your pocket. An injured victim deserves fair and reasonable compensation. That is exactly what we aim to provide.