In many states, insurance companies have no obligation to pay an injured person’s medical bills until a settlement is reached. The impact of this can be crushing-- as the medical bills mount and the medical bill collectors get more aggressive, the injured party becomes forced to take a low settlement simply to get their bills paid. Fortunately, Montana law prohibits this practice.
In Montana, an insurance company must advance an injured person’s medical bills even before a settlement is negotiated if its insured is clearly responsible for the injuries. The reason for this is to prevent “leveraging” by the insurance company. Montana’s laws against leveraging have been expanded to include lost wages and other tangible damages such as travel expenses and home care.
Insurance companies may fail to inform an injury victim of their right to require the insurance company to advance them their medical bills or lost wages, or they may take the position that their insured is not “clearly” at fault for the injuries. Other times, such as where there are limited insurance monies available or where an injury victim has other means to pay the medical bills, it may not make sense to demand advance payment of medical bills.
An experienced Billings personal injury lawyer can help you determine whether the insurance company should be required to advance medical bills, lost wages or other expenses pending resolution of your claim.