Don’t let your insurance company shortchange you on medical mileage reimbursement after a car accident.

Medical mileage reimbursement is an important insurance benefit that is provided under the Michigan No Fault Act.  It is available to anyone injured in an automobile accident in Michigan, provided there is no fault insurance coverage for the car or truck involved in the motor vehicle accident.  Pedestrians hit by motor vehicles are also covered.   With gasoline prices now so expensive, doctor visits and physical therapy appointments frequently can result in thousands of dollars in mileage.   And insurance companies in Michigan are not reimbursing many of these claims at a fair rate. 

How Can All lawyers in Michigan be The Best?
As a lawyer myself, I have always been bothered by how many lawyers advertise.  And the internet seems to make most of these problems worse.  When it comes to selecting a lawyer to help you, there are very few rules to protect the public from false or misleading advertising.  This lack of rules is the reason why so many personal injury lawyers have websites and advertisements calling themselves the “best lawyer in Michigan” or “Michigan’s top personal injury lawyer.”

I was surprised by the recent editorial by Michigan Supreme Court Justice Maura Corrigan that appeared in the Detroit Free Press on December 19, 2007.  Justice Corrigan wrote about her efforts in protecting children.  I note Justice Corrigan chose to ignore her own role in the Cameron case from last year in her article.   For Michigan lawyers already familiar with Cameron, and for those lawyers representing children injured in car accidents throughout Michigan, it seems that Justice Corrigan’s notion of protecting children does not extend to protecting children who suffer serious injury in automobile accidents in this state.   The Cameron decision has and will continue to negatively impact the lives of thousands of children.    
 
Justice Corrigan helped write, and signed onto, the majority opinion in Cameron v. ACIA, 476 Mich 55 (2006).  In Cameron, the Michigan Supreme Court stripped away critical legal protections for children injured in accidents.  Justice Corrigan ruled that Michigan’s no fault “one year back rule” cannot be tolled for both minor children and for the legally incompetent, such as people incapacitated due to traumatic brain injury.  As a result of Corrigan’s decision, a four year old child injured in a car accident in Michigan is now treated the same way as an adult when complying with the one year back rule of the Michigan No Fault Act.   A person rendered legally incompetent due to a traumatic brain injury or other incapacity has the same obligation, even if they cannot understand the legal requirements.   It is an insane opinion that changed 26 years of Michigan law and now holds young injured children to the same legal standard as competent adults.