Kentucky car accident victims often have the question as to whether or not they’re going to be paid for the time they are unable to work as a result of the injuries they sustain in an automobile accident. That is whether or not they can collect their lost wages.  If the accident wasn’t their fault, the answer is yes, but that is a qualified yes. This would be the same answer even if the accident was their fault.

The first item I look at is what you can qualify for automatically. I will assume that you don’t have any disability benefits that you qualify for.  Under the Kentucky PIP law, you can collect 80 percent of your lost wages up to a maximum of $200.00 per week. This is what is called Basic Reparation Benefits.  I know $200.00 a week isn’t a lot of money.  It’s not going to pay for your mortgage.  It’s not going to pay for your car payment.  It’s not going to put groceries and food in your family’s mouths, but unfortunately that is what the law is in Kentucky if you have Basic Reparations Benefits. 

The remainder of your lost wages will be paid for at the end of the case by the at-fault insurance company. This is when your Kentucky car accident case is settled. Anything that is not paid by PIP will be paid or reimbursed at the end of the case. Unfortunately, this doesn’t do you a lot of good while you’re trying to pay your bills. 

The best advice that I can give you is if you have not been in an accident. This is preventative. There is nothing that can be done to change your insurance coverage after you have been in the accident to increase your benefits. Talk to your insurance agent and purchase what is called Added Reparations Benefits.  You may be able to raise that weekly lost-wage payment up to $1,000.00 a week with very little additional premium. 

You should also talk to your employer or an independent insurance agent about getting a disability policy that will pay for lost wages no matter how you’re injured; whether you’re in an automobile accident or injured falling at home. 

The Kentucky No-Fault Statute was not enacted as a disability policy for Kentucky automobile accident victims. It was only put in place to supplement your wage loss. The At-Fault party is responsible when the case is settled, but this can be years after the accident. Take matters into your own hands now so you are not wondering how you are going to pay your bills should you be injured in a car accident.

Kentucky is a PIP state for automobile accidents. PIP is short for Personal Injury Protection. You may also hear these benefits referred to as Basic Reparation Benefits or No-Fault Benefits. I am not going into great details hear as to how these benefits work. Here is the nut shell. You have $10,000.00 of benefits that will pay your first $10,000.00 of medical bills and or lost wages.

Those of you that know me have heard me say that this is simply not enough for most accidents. I urge everyone to I run into (just figuratively) to purchase additional benefits called Added Reparation Benefits. For a small increase in your premium you can dramatically increase the coverage that is available to you.

With all of the talk about health care reform I have been looking at what is going on north of the border in Canada. In Ontario government is making plans to reduce their medical rehabilitation benefit from $100,000.00 to $50,000.00 for non- catastrophically injured people.  This is part their no-fault benefits. While I am urging people to increase their benefits in Kentucky the Canadian government is forcing everyone to take a reduction in these benefits. This will significantly alter the quality of care victims of automobile accidents will receive.

Interestingly enough it will increase the attorney fee collected. I am sure that most Personal Injury lawyers in Ontario don’t care about this change because of this.

I ran across an interview done by Brenda Hollingsworth, an Ottawa personal injury attorney, which was a breath of fresh air. Brenda is speaking out against the decrease in medical rehabilitation benefits that will be available to seriously injured car accident victims starting in the summer of 2010. In the video, Brenda talked about how injured car accident victims will run out of their Ontario rehabilitation funds long before the ten-years they are supposed to last. The 50% reductions in benefits will have catastrophic affects on many families.  

Brenda believes this change will increase the number of lawsuits required because injured people will have to sue the drivers who hit them to ensure they can pay for physiotherapy, medication and other medical needs.

I salute Brenda for standing up for the victims of auto accidents. In Kentucky we already have a low amount of PIP benefits that is required. Do yourself a favor and call your insurance agent and raise your coverage today!