What Is Medical Payments Coverage?
Medical payments coverage (Med Pay) pays for any medical costs of anyone inside your vehicle after an accident, regardless of who caused it. That means it can be a bit of a security blanket, covering uninsured motorist accidents, accidents you caused, or passengers that may or may not have health insurance.
Med pay is commonly paired up with a driver's high-deductible health plan, using this auto insurance coverage to pay the medical deductible in the case of an accident.
Do I Need Medical Payments If I Have Health Insurance?
Probably. No one can ask you what your health insurance network is if you're knocked out from a car accident, and you're most likely going to the closest facility anyway... in a very expensive ambulance.
Health insurance would bill out-of-network and likely not cover any of the cost of the ambulance, but Med Pay would.
How Much Medical Payments Coverage Should I Get?
Medical Payments coverage is usually pretty small compared to the rest of the auto insurance coverages, and has a high payoff if ever needed. This is exactly the kind of situation you want to use insurance as opposed to risking paying out-of-pocket.
Definitely get enough to cover your deductible at least, but we do recommend $50,000-$100,000 in coverage. It'll be a welcome relief on what would undoubtedly be a horrendous day if you ever needed it.
