Will the Collateral Source Rule Impact My Florida Personal Injury Claim?

Personal injury suits are rarely as linear as an injured plaintiff being awarded financial compensation from the responsible defendant. Disputes that end in legal action often have multiple parties involved on both sides of the argument, like insurance agents and the parties who were actually involved in the accident.

Sadly, this can and usually does hinder the progress of victims swiftly collecting their settlement, especially in terms of health care expenses. To help ensure that a plaintiff doesn’t unnecessarily suffer or go without treatment as a result, Florida courts have enacted a law known as the collateral source rule.

Keep reading to learn some general information about the collateral source rule and how it could affect your personal injury claim.

What Is the Collateral Source Rule?

The collateral source rule was created to hold responsible parties liable for their negligent or wrongful behavior. In fundamental terms, this personal injury regulation does not allow the defendant to pay out a lesser amount of damages just because the plaintiff has already been compensated by a third party. This statute is typically applied anytime a victim uses their personal insurance and/or benefits to receive the medical care they need after their accident.  

This rule also says that a respondent is answerable for the full amount of assessed damages, whether or not the victim’s insurance company covered any of them. This law is not designed to punish plaintiffs for using their own resources to aid in their recovery. In order to ensure this, civil courts will not accept any documentation of the use of these resources if the aim is to lessen the plaintiff’s financial compensation.

What Are Collateral Sources?

At its core, a collateral source is a third party that makes payments to the injured victim. In most personal injury lawsuits, “collateral source” is a reference to the victim’s insurance company. A few of the more obvious collateral sources include:

• Private health insurance
• Auto insurance that provides health coverage or income disability
• Employee wage supplement plans
• Social Security

If the victim is reimbursed by their own insurance company or any of the additional sources just listed, that amount will not be deducted from the offender’s financial responsibility.

Tampa Personal Injury Lawyers

As with every kind of personal injury case, the endless number of variables makes your claim unique. Someone with a case that sounds very similar to yours could end up with a very different outcome than what you should expect. This is just one of the many reasons why hiring a skilled attorney is beneficial to your Florida personal injury claim. 

Your attorney will know the most thorough and efficient way of collecting vital evidence that proves you were not at fault for the accident. Establishing this fact is essential to the success of your Tampa personal injury case.

If you have sustained injuries during any kind of accident that was caused by another person’s negligence or carelessness, there is evidence out there that will substantiate your claim. A reputable personal injury attorney from Fulgencio Law will be able to help you. Call us at (813) 463-0123 to schedule your free Tampa personal injury consultation today.