topic Re: Medical Bills from Auto Accident Killing My Credit--- Don't Know What To Do... in Rebuilding Your Credit

Medical Bills from Auto Accident Killing My Credit--- Don't Know What To Do...

Anonymous — Thu, 05 May 2016 01:24:20 GMT

I was in an auto accident 1 year 4 months ago. It will probably settle in 6 months to a year from now. In the interim I have the ER, Ambulance, Doctor in the ER, & Radiology reporting negatively on my CR. My attorney has sent out Letters of Protection (LOP), which basically say that they cannot report on the debt until after the case settles and at that time they will be paid. I contacted the CA and they all said they don't have LOP's on file so the attorney said they would send them out. AmeriFinancial Solutions (AFS) CA said that if I provide them with a Letter of Coverage from Medicare then the bill will just "go away". Is there anything I can do until these bills get paid, or just sit back and let my credit take a huge hit. It went from 760 to 599. A month ago it was 640. I'm hoping it doens't go down further. I called a non-profit Credit Counseling Agency and they said to write a Letter of Explanation to the CB's. I understand the HIPAA Process is for after the bills are paid and to get them off my CR (from what I can gather), so that's not for me yet. I can't afford to pay all of them out of pocket and be reimbursed. It would total around $10k. Looking for Advice???

Re: Medical Bills from Auto Accident Killing My Credit--- Don't Know What To Do...

Anonymous — Thu, 05 May 2016 13:34:23 GMT

Google whychat HIPAA process and follow those steps listed on the site.

Re: Medical Bills from Auto Accident Killing My Credit--- Don't Know What To Do...

gdale6 — Thu, 05 May 2016 16:27:48 GMT

Welcome to the board

I would just let your attorney handle this especially if you are under protections from reporting they will have to remove it. As far as getting them paid at the end of the case I would go for an agreement to pay in exchange for it not reporting.

Re: Medical Bills from Auto Accident Killing My Credit--- Don't Know What To Do...

RobertEG — Thu, 05 May 2016 19:29:07 GMT

Can you explain the basis for your attorney imposing a requriment on a creditor that they not report to a CRA until the legal case is settled?

For exampe, is the "Letter of Protection" sanctioned by some order of the court, or is it being "imposed" by you, through your attorney, based on some other statutory provision?

Curious as to how you can unilaterally order non-reporting........

Re: Medical Bills from Auto Accident Killing My Credit--- Don't Know What To Do...

Anonymous — Thu, 05 May 2016 19:43:18 GMT

My attorney is for the auto accident. LOP's are common practice in personal injury cases. They protect the individual from having to pay for services because it will be paid from the settlement. So it's kind of a fringe benefit of the LOP that they don't report on the CRA. The LOP simply states, "the amount due for this bill will be paid upon completion of the case once a settlement has been reached". The CA told me to add, "please do not report this on the file" for safe measure.

The advice for PFD at the time of settlement is definitely a smart move. Will ask my attorney about that if it's still showing up.

Re: Medical Bills from Auto Accident Killing My Credit--- Don't Know What To Do...

Marcos8 — Sat, 07 May 2016 03:36:08 GMT

What state are you in? Is it a No Fault state where there would be a viable car insurance policy that would pay these bills? Also, in NJ at least, I deal with LOPs all the time in my medical practice but I have never seen one that prohibited a creditor from reporting delinquency. Also be aware that it is very common once these cases settle that the attorney will try to settle your outstanding debts not at full value so some of these bills may be paid for less. ( also be aware that attorneys are notorious for taking their money off the top of the settlement first and then conviently forget to pay a few of your bills as to make it seem that more money winds up in your pocket. Make sure at settlement you know where all of your debts are and that they are all addressed. )

Re: Medical Bills from Auto Accident Killing My Credit--- Don't Know What To Do...

Anonymous — Sat, 07 May 2016 04:10:39 GMT

@Marcos8 wrote:
What state are you in? Is it a No Fault state where there would be a viable car insurance policy that would pay these bills? Also, in NJ at least, I deal with LOPs all the time in my medical practice but I have never seen one that prohibited a creditor from reporting delinquency. Also be aware that it is very common once these cases settle that the attorney will try to settle your outstanding debts not at full value so some of these bills may be paid for less. ( also be aware that attorneys are notorious for taking their money off the top of the settlement first and then conviently forget to pay a few of your bills as to make it seem that more money winds up in your pocket. Make sure at settlement you know where all of your debts are and that they are all addressed. )

Yep I had that happen here in NC, now I have still 2800 to pay on an accident that happened almost 2 years ago

Re: Medical Bills from Auto Accident Killing My Credit--- Don't Know What To Do...

Anonymous — Sat, 07 May 2016 19:45:29 GMT

Yes Florida, a no-fault state. Good to know! Thanks.

Re: Medical Bills from Auto Accident Killing My Credit--- Don't Know What To Do...

Marcos8 — Sat, 07 May 2016 20:02:35 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
Yes Florida, a no-fault state. Good to know! Thanks.

In NJ which is a no fault state ( check your laws for Florida) ...wether you are right or wrong in the accident your own car insurance will pay your medical bills as a result from the accident. If you do not have a vehicle registered to you and no subsequent car insurance under your name, a household resident relative auto insurance policy will pay your medical bills. If you do not live with any relatives that have a car and car insurance, the car insurance of the host vehicle you were in at the time of the accident will pay your medical bills. If you were a pedestrian hit by a car and have no car insurance of your own, no resident relative with car insurance, no host vehicle ( since you were a pedestrian and not in a car at the time) , it will be picked up by the state ( in NJ our state fund is called PLIGA ...Pedestrians Liability Insurance Guarantee Association)

Make sure you ask your lawyer if he/she has exhausted every possible avenue to get an open medical claim with any viable auto policy. That would definitely reduce your expenses, give all these creditors something to bill now, and then maybe your LOPs would only have to cover copay and/or deductible.