Money, now
Who pays the bills while the claim is open?
The short answer
- Your own auto policy first. Personal injury protection in Texas and Washington, medical payments coverage in California where you bought it, paid regardless of fault.
- Your health insurance next. It pays as it always does, and it will expect to be paid back from any recovery.
- The other driver’s insurer last, in one payment at the end, for everything together. It does not pay bills as they arrive.
- Your own uninsured or underinsured coverage steps in when the other driver had none or too little.
- Keep every bill and every explanation of benefits. What was paid, by whom, and what is owed back is the arithmetic of the settlement.
The order of payment
1. Your own no fault coverage. In Texas, personal injury protection is part of every auto policy unless rejected in writing; the statute requires at least $2,500 per person, and many policies carry more. In Washington, insurers must offer PIP, it can be declined only in writing, and the minimum is $10,000 for medical care plus limited amounts for lost income, household help and funeral costs. California requires none of this, but medical payments coverage is sold as an option and many policies have it. All of it pays without anyone deciding who was at fault, which is why it comes first.
2. Health insurance. Your health plan pays the hospital and the doctors as it would for any illness. Most plans then have a right to be repaid from a settlement for what they paid because of the crash. That right is real, it is negotiable within limits, and dealing with it is a normal part of closing a case. Medicare and Medicaid have their own rules and must be paid back.
3. The other driver’s liability insurer. It pays once, at the end, for medical bills, lost income, and pain and suffering together, in exchange for a release. It does not pay bills as they come in, and an early offer is almost always made before anyone knows what the treatment will cost. The limits are low: $30,000 per person in California and Texas, $25,000 in Washington, for a driver who bought the minimum.
4. Your own uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage. When the other driver had no policy or a small one, your coverage pays what theirs cannot, up to your limit. In all three states it is in your policy unless rejected in writing. The uninsured driver page covers the conditions.
If you have no health insurance
Tell the hospital. Many hospitals have financial assistance programs, and a bill can often be put on hold while a claim is pending. Some providers treat on a lien, agreeing to be paid from the settlement. A lawyer can often arrange this and can usually negotiate the final bills down, because the alternative for the provider is waiting.
Lost wages and the car
Lost income is part of the injury claim and is paid at the end, except where personal injury protection in Texas or Washington covers some of it now. The car is a separate claim and usually moves faster: the other driver’s property damage coverage, or your own collision coverage, pays for the repair or the total loss, and settling the car does not settle the injury as long as the release you sign says only the car. Read it before you sign.
The deadlines for all of this are on the deadlines page.
The rules, with their sources
These are the rules of law this page relies on. Each one is a general statement with exceptions that are not shown, and each links to the statute, regulation or court decision it comes from.
| Topic | California | Texas | Washington |
|---|---|---|---|
| Coverage for your own medical bills | California does not require drivers to carry coverage for their own medical bills. Medical payments coverage is optional. Where a policy has it, it can pay for immediate medical care no matter who was at fault. [1] | Personal injury protection (PIP) is part of every auto policy unless it was rejected in writing. The statute does not require an insurer to provide more than $2,500 per person, and PIP pays no matter who was at fault. [2] | Insurers must offer personal injury protection (PIP) with every auto policy, and it can only be declined in writing. The minimum benefits are $10,000 for medical and hospital care, plus limited amounts for lost income, household services and funeral costs. [3] |
| Minimum liability insurance drivers must carry | $30,000 for the injury or death of one person, $60,000 for two or more people, and $15,000 for property damage, for policies issued or renewed since January 1, 2025. The older figures of $15,000, $30,000 and $5,000 no longer apply. [4] | $30,000 for the injury or death of one person, $60,000 for two or more people, and $25,000 for property damage, in one collision. [5] | $25,000 for the injury or death of one person, $50,000 for two or more people, and $10,000 for property damage, in one accident. [6] |
| Uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage | Every auto liability policy includes uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage unless the insurer and a named insured removed or reduced it in a signed written agreement. [7] | An auto policy in Texas must include uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage unless a named insured rejected it in writing. If you never signed a rejection, you may have this coverage without knowing it. [8] | A new auto policy must include underinsured motorist coverage, which in Washington also covers uninsured, hit and run and phantom vehicles, unless the named insured or spouse rejected it in writing. [9] |
| If you had no insurance yourself | If you owned or drove a vehicle in the crash that was not insured as the law requires, you can still recover your medical bills and lost income from the driver at fault, but not damages for pain and suffering. There is an exception for an uninsured owner who was hit by a driver later convicted of driving under the influence. [10] | This state has no separate rule on this point that the site has verified. | This state has no separate rule on this point that the site has verified. |
Sources
- California Department of Insurance, Automobile Insurance Information Guide
- Tex. Ins. Code §§ 1952.152, 1952.153, 1952.155
- RCW 48.22.085; RCW 48.22.095
- Cal. Veh. Code § 16056(a)(2)
- Tex. Transp. Code § 601.072(a-1)
- RCW 46.29.090
- Cal. Ins. Code § 11580.2(a)
- Tex. Ins. Code § 1952.101
- RCW 48.22.030
- Cal. Civ. Code § 3333.4
The rules on this page were last checked against these sources on October 3, 2026. Laws change, so follow the link before you rely on a rule.
Attorney review in progress. Responsible attorney: Emery Brett Ledger. Page last updated October 26, 2026.