Walk-in-Wednesdays Free consultations

The Judnich Law Office is pleased to announce our community program of allowing anyone to simply come into our office without an appointment and discuss any legal issue they wish free of charge. We call this, "Walk in Wednesdays". Anyone has the opportunity to speak to a licensed attorney for a free consultation about a legal issue that they would like to discuss. From questions about your rights in criminal cases, to complicated legal analysis of civil issues, our office will attempt to answer any question you like, for free and without any obligation.

As the name suggests, we are offering this program every Wednesday from 9am - 4pm. All you need to do is show up to our office located at 2419 Mullan Road, Suite B, Missoula, MT 59808. You don't need to call first, or bring any money. You need only bring yourself and any paperwork that may assist us. This is on a first come first serve basis, so you may have to wait your turn, but no-one will be turned away. For more information on this program, and others, please visit our website www.judnichlaw.com

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Medical Bills

Who pays your medical bills? This is the most common question that we are asked. The reason it is so common is that it is a complicated answer. In a vehicle collision claim there is a hierarchy of which insurance company pays the bills, and in what order. This can vary from state to state, and commonly varies depending on what type of insurance YOU have. Yes, your insurance coverage is central to this issue.

The usual hierarchy of insurance payments for medical bills only goes like this:

1^st Your private health insurance should initially pay all (or part) of any medical bill. This is because in Montana, you usually do not have to pay back your private health insurance from the proceeds you receive from the responsible driver’s insurance. Repayment is called subrogation, and that does not typically happen for health insurance, so this is money that you are saving, thus why they pay first.

2^nd Your personal vehicle insurance is the next in line to pay your medical bills. If you have an optional coverage called “medical payments coverage.” This is a premium you pay for that is there to pay your medical bills when you are in an accident, regardless of who is at fault. Again, you don’t pay this insurance back out of the proceeds from the responsible driver, so you are saving money again.

3^rd The responsible party’s insurance coverage. This is called Third Party coverage (see glossary). They are the last and final party to pay for your medical bills, unless you do not have the above coverages. This is because they will pay for your medical bills regardless of if they are paid by health insurance or med pay. Thus, you are paid twice for the medical bills if you have the other insurances available, and you get to keep any money that is more than what the medical bills are.

This is fairly complicated, and usually takes a fair knowledge of insurance law and policies. It is the main reason to have an attorney represent you, as most people we talk to have no idea about what insurance coverage they even have, let alone are able to navigate the insurance system to ensure that they receive the most money they can and deserve in an injury event. Please contact us today for a free evaluation.

Do I actually need an attorney?

Most people wonder if they actually need an attorney or not. There are always going to be some reservations of whether you can handle something on your own, or hire a professional to help you with it. Many reservations revolve around the hassle of taking the time to meet with an attorney and the expense of an attorney. The truth is, that in an injury/accident situation, you will almost always come out ahead monetarily with an attorney. This is because an attorney will accurately value your claim, and get you the top dollar that it is worth. Even after attorneys fees are taken out, most people will walk away with more money than without an attorney. Plus, the attorney handles the headaches of dealing with the insurance company. For a few tips and tricks to determining what to look for in an attorney please link to our website and read all about it. Click here.

Walk in Wednesdays

The Judnich Law Office is pleased to announce our community program of allowing anyone to simply come into our office without an appointment and discuss any legal issue they wish free of charge. We call this, "Walk in Wednesdays". Anyone has the opportunity to speak to a licensed attorney for a free consultation about a legal issue that they would like to discuss. From questions about your rights in criminal cases, to complicated legal analysis of civil issues, our office will attempt to answer any question you like, for free.

As the name suggests, we are offering this program every Wednesday from 9am - 4pm. All you need to do is show up to our office located at 2419 Mullan Road, Suite B, Missoula, MT 59808. You don't need to call first, or bring any money. You need only bring yourself and any paperwork that may assist us. This is on a first come first serve basis, so you may have to wait your turn, but no-one will be turned away. For more information on this program, and others, please visit our website www.judnichlaw.com

Medical Payments Coverage or Med Pay

The single biggest learning experience and regret that the majority of my personal injury clients have is either not having any, or not enough Medical Payment Insurance Coverage, or Med Pay. Med Pay is a coverage that you can purchase from your auto insurance agent. Med Pay is CHEAP!!! The reason you may not have it, or may not have much of it, is because insurance agents don't make any money on selling this coverage. This coverage actually covers you, and the people you care about in your car.
Med Pay coverage pays for any related medical bill that you suffer if injured in a car accident. It does not matter if a crash is your fault, or the fault of another driver. If you have medical bills, this coverage pays for it. That is a very big deal when you are looking at tens of thousands of dollars in medical bills for a serious accident. I would suggest having at least $25,000 in med pay coverage for you and your family. This should only cost a few dollars a month for any insurance company. Considering that this great coverage is cheap, but can really cover very serious medical bills, I consider it a must have. Every single client I have ever had, has wished they not only had med pay, but wished they knew this information and that they had as much med pay as they could afford.

As an example of how much money med pay can save you, consider this: You are in a collision and it is the other driver's fault. You incur $10,000 in medical bills. The other driver's insurance gives you their policy limits of $25,000 to settle your case. With no med pay $10,000 of the $25,000 will be paid to your bills, leaving you $15,000 on your own, or to pay an attorney with. If you had at least $10,000 in med pay coverage, your bills would be paid by med pay and you would keep the entire $25,000 from the other driver's insurance. Med Pay is not paid back if you recover from another party. So, every dollar you have in med pay coverage, is a dollar that you put in your pocket, and not pay out to a medical provider.
If you have any questions about this or any other insurance issue, please call our office for a free evaluation and consultation.

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