If you have been injured in an automobile, motorcycle, or truck accident in Pensacola, Florida, the laws can be somewhat confusing and the personal injury choices you make initially can dramatically affect your options later. Therefore, it is important that you get good information about your Florida personal injury options upfront to protect your rights.
In Florida (and eight other states), there is a “no fault” or “personal injury protection (PIP)” law. Every driver must purchase PIP insurance -- a minimum $of 10,000 in personal injury protection (PIP) and $10,000 in property damage liability (PDL). If you live in Florida for even 90 days a year, you must carry PIP and PDL.

What this means is that Florida does not care who is at “fault” in an automobile accident for medical bills up to $10,000. If you are the one injured in the auto accident, and are not at fault, you still submit your medical bills to your own auto insurance company. They will pay 80% of your medical bills up to $10,000.
What about lost wages? Your PIP insurance will pay up to 60% of your lost wages, as long as you have a document from your doctor showing your disability and a document from your employer verifying your lost wages. The remaining 40% should be paid by the at-fault driver’s insurance company.
Theoretically, the at-fault driver’s insurance policy should also pay the damage to your vehicle. However, if the at-fault driver has no insurance, your own collision coverage will have to cover the repairs to your car.
To help curtail the mega million dollar lawsuits in personal injury cases, Florida classifies injuries as one of two types: economic or non-economic. Economic wages are covered by PIP. In the state of Florida, you are not allowed to claim non-economic damages (e.g. pain, suffering, mental anguish, etc) unless your doctor declares you have sustained a “permanent injury.” If your automobile injury is not “permanent”, you cannot be compensated for pain and suffering unless the at-fault driver has “Bodily Injury” insurance, which is not required by Florida law. If the at-fault driver has no Bodily Injury insurance, your only recourse according to Florida personal injury law is to sue.
Therefore, if you are in an automobile accident, your first place to turn according to Florida’s no fault auto insurance laws is to claim your no-fault benefits. Once those have been exhausted, you can file a personal injury or wrongful death claim.
If Florida was indeed a pure “no fault” state, drivers would be completely covered by their own auto insurance company and there would be no cause to sue another driver for damages. However, Florida nor any other state uses a pure no fault system.
Although the Florida “no fault” law was enacted to cut down on the litigation between drivers, suing for auto injuries in Florida is not uncommon, particularly depending on the severity of your medical injuries. As with many kinds of laws, Florida’s personal injury laws have gray areas that can best be addressed with a personal injury lawyer.


The Pensacola Fl Personal Injury Lawyer of the Law Offices of James M. Burns are focused on legal matters including criminal law, personal injury, DUI and domestic violence.Contact Pensacola Florida criminal defense attorneys to discuss your case.