How Does Personal Injury Protection (PIP) Work in Texas?
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Personal injury protection (PIP) is an auto insurance coverage that pays for your own medical care, lost wages and other related expenses if you're hurt in a car accident. PIP pays for you and anyone riding in your car, and it covers you regardless of whether you were responsible for the crash.
In Texas, PIP insurance is not mandatory, but you have to sign a waiver if you want to decline the coverage.
How does PIP coverage work in Texas?
Personal injury protection coverage in Texas pays for you and your passengers if you're in a car accident that results in injuries, no matter who is at fault. PIP covers:
- Reasonable medical costs, including necessary surgeries, X-rays, dental or eye treatments, medical procedures, prosthetic devices and professional nursing
- Ambulance services
- Rehabilitation therapy
- Funeral services
- Lost income resulting from the accident
- Replacement of necessary services provided by the injured party, such as family care or household maintenance, if the injured person is not an income producer
Texas requires insurance companies to offer every driver at least $2,500 of PIP insurance. You can typically increase your coverage to $5,000 or $10,000 if you want additional financial protection. The policy limit, which extends to each person injured in an accident, refers to the total amount your insurance will pay per person.
You do have the option to decline coverage, but you'll have to submit your refusal in writing, and being without PIP could leave you and your loved ones footing some serious medical bills if you're ever in an accident.
So, if you and your spouse were involved in a car accident, and you had $5,000 of PIP insurance in place, your insurance would cover up to $5,000 in expenses for you and $5,000 in expenses for your spouse. If you were to break your leg in the accident and be taken to the hospital, that $5,000 could be used for an ambulance trip, X-rays and a cast, but that $5000 would be the maximum amount of money available from your PIP coverage for all costs total.
Can I reject PIP coverage in Texas?
Yes, you have the option to decline PIP in Texas. While insurers are required to offer the coverage, you don't have to take it. But to opt out, you'll need to submit your refusal in writing.
If you do reject PIP coverage in Texas, you'll still be covered by the other driver's liability insurance if they are at fault in the accident. Texas doesn't have a tort threshold, so no claim is too small for the driver's liability insurance. However, if you are at fault for the accident and don't have PIP coverage, insurance won't help you pay any resulting medical expenses for yourself or your passengers.
How much does PIP insurance cost in Texas?
The cost of personal injury protection insurance in Texas varies, depending on where you live, the amount of coverage you want and your driving history. We recommend comparing quotes from at least three or four insurers before choosing a policy to make sure you're getting a good rate.
The cost of PIP insurance typically increases just a bit if you purchase more coverage than the $2,500 minimum. As you can see in the sample quotes below, a driver with the state's minimum liability insurance requirements could pay less than $39 per month for$10,000 in PIP coverage.
No PIP coverage | $2,500 PIP | $5,000 PIP | $10,000 PIP | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly cost of PIP | $0 | $20.48 | $28.05 | $38.91 |
| Total monthly premium | $101.24 | $121.72 | $129.29 | $140.15 |
How and when to file a PIP claim in Texas
Personal injury protection insurance only provides coverage for costs that occur within three years of an accident, but we recommend reporting all of your injuries and expenses as soon as you're aware of them to the insurer.
When filing a claim, include all receipts, bills, documentation of payments and other associated documents to help ensure it's processed quickly. Depending on the type of expense, a PIP claim provides different levels of reimbursement:
- PIP insurance pays for 100% of the costs of medical treatment, ambulance services and funeral expenses, up to the maximum coverage amount. It's important to document all such treatments and their costs, as well as obtain documentation from the appropriate service provider to show that these were related to the car accident. Otherwise, you may not obtain full reimbursement.
- PIP covers only 80% of lost wages due to an accident and often requires proof of what your income was prior to the collision and proof that the loss of income was directly associated with the injuries.
- Similarly, PIP covers 80% of expenses for a caregiver while you're injured.
MedPay vs. personal injury protection
Insurance companies in Texas aren't required to offer medical payments coverage (MedPay) as they are with PIP insurance. If your insurer offers both options, you can only choose one, because Texas law prohibits having both on an auto insurance policy.
MedPay and PIP both cover medical expenses, hospital bills and similar costs related to injuries from car accidents, no matter who was at fault. However, PIP insurance also covers lost wages and certain services that MedPay does not cover. If you were to be injured severely enough in a collision that necessitates missing work, PIP would reimburse you for lost wages, while MedPay would not. For similar levels of coverage, MedPay is less expensive, because it provides fewer benefits than PIP.
In addition, MedPay in Texas is subject to subrogation, but PIP coverage is not. This means your insurance company can ask the other driver's insurance to reimburse them for MedPay coverage. This could reduce the total amount of money you receive from a claim if you exhaust the other driver's liability protection.
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