PIP lawsuits have gotten out of hand. They use their considerable resources, no matter what economics dictate, in order to defeat or attempt to defeat the PIP suit. Judges have not awarded the full attorney's fees or costs requested by the prevailing party and, as a result, it has become economic suicide to pursue a PIP lawsuit. Carriers have attempted to discourage these types of actions, and they have been successful. The above examples indicate another problem.
Insurance carriers choose doctors who render biased opinions, regardless of logic or medical basis.
The examples given above certainly could not have passed any medical peer review, but gave the insurance carrier enough information to deny a claim and force an injured party to make some very serious economic decisions. Each doctor was completing between five and ten examinations a month with more than fifty percent of their income coming from these examinations. There was nothing independent about these examinations. If these examinations were truly independent and these doctors were truly objective, there would have been no need for Senate Bill 78. The abuses outlined above were the reasons for Senate Bill 78.