by Guest » Fri Jun 27, 2008 02:17 pm
My son was in a car accident in 2004. We had thought that we had paid all of his medical bills out of his settlement money, regarding the accident. We got a bill about a month ago (2008). The health insurance company is claiming that he owes money that wasn't paid by the car insurance. Don't they have a statute of limitation on when they can ask for money?
Posted: Sat Jan 07, 2012 04:28 am Post Subject:
First, start a new thread.
You did not want to have spoken to the collection company perhaps without first having spoken to an attorney. It appears that the statue of limitations runs 5 years from the date of service. Doctors offices can be idiots when it comes to billing. Was this doctor under contract with your health carrier? If so, the doctors office is probably obligated to bill your health carrier. If you need to speak to the collection company, tell them to bill your health carrier from that time. Certainlly the doctor obtained that info. Expect the collection company to give you all kinds of crap and tell you that you are personally responsible. As I said, you may want to pay a lawyere for a 30 min consultation.
Posted: Wed Jan 11, 2012 05:42 pm Post Subject: auto Insurance subrogate?
What does it mean to subrogate,and is a good thing to do,and how do you do it?
Posted: Thu Jan 12, 2012 02:32 am Post Subject:
the doctor had inexperienced help and they did not send their bill to my insurance. Now, after all this time am I required to pay them?
If you signed one of those "papers" the doctor requires that permits them to collect claims from your insurance company directly -- making the doctor your "agent" -- you are not obligated to pay the bill. The agent's failure (aka: negligence) removes the obligation from your wallet and puts it in his.
Who sent you to collections? The doctor or the insurance company? I'm guessing it was the doctor. Call him and tell him you will only pay what the insurance would NOT have covered if he filed the claim on time. Beyond that, if he insists on continuing the collection activity, you need to do two things:
1) Write a "FDCPA" letter to the collection agency notifying them that the debt is not yours and that you have no intention of paying it, and that they must cease all communication with you, except to let you know they are dropping the matter or to inform you that they are pursuing a legal remedy under a contract (which they probably have no right to do). In that letter, you also state that any derogatory information submitted to a credit reporting agency will subject them to being sued in civil court for violations of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act and Fair Credit Reporting Act.
2) You write a letter to the doctor essentially stating the same things. The debt he sent to collection is his, not yours, and that you have no obligation to pay him as the result of his employee's negiglence. You also tell him, if he persists in attempting collection of a debt you do not owe, you will file a counterclaim for violations of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act and relevant state laws.
You are doing that to put everyone on notice. It should stop all the collection activity for the time being. If the $800 bill would have been paid for with $600 of insurance company money, then you still owe the $200 difference you would have paid five years ago. Negotiate that with the doctor and write a check -- after the doctor recalls the debt from collections.
Posted: Thu Jan 12, 2012 02:35 am Post Subject:
What does it mean to subrogate,and is a good thing to do,and how do you do it?
Subrogation is your insurance company's right to collect its loss on your behalf from any other insurance company that has liablity for the same loss. YOU don't do it.
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