What PIP medical pays for
Personal injury protection (PIP) is the no-fault part of your Michigan auto policy. After a crash it pays your own medical care, a portion of lost wages, replacement services around the house, and — at the higher levels — long-term attendant care, regardless of who was at fault. It is separate from bodily injury liability, which pays for injuries you cause to other people.
The six levels the state lets you choose
Michigan’s Department of Insurance and Financial Services (DIFS) lists six PIP medical options. Eligibility for the lower ones depends on what other health coverage you have.
- Unlimited — no cap per person, per accident. This is the default if you don’t choose.
- Up to $500,000 per person, per accident.
- Up to $250,000 per person, per accident.
- Up to $250,000 with PIP medical exclusions — available when the named insured has qualified health coverage that is not Medicare, and household members either have their own auto coverage or are covered too.
- Up to $50,000 — only if the named insured is enrolled in Medicaid, and everyone else in the household has other auto or health coverage that pays for accident injuries.
- Opt out of PIP medical entirely — only if the named insured has Medicare Parts A and B, and household members have other coverage for auto injuries.
How to think about it
The lower levels cut the PIP portion of the premium, and the state publishes minimum average reductions for each. But the trade is real: a catastrophic injury can exhaust $250,000 quickly, and health insurance that “covers auto accidents” often has deductibles, networks and limits that PIP does not. Before choosing a lower level, read your health plan’s language on auto injuries, check whether it is Medicare, Medicaid, an employer plan or a marketplace plan, and think about everyone in the household — a teen driver, a parent who visits, a spouse on a different plan.
Carly can walk through the DIFS selection form with you line by line. The form has to be signed; nobody can pick a lower level for you.
What else sits next to PIP on a Michigan policy
Bodily injury liability (the state default is $250,000 per person / $500,000 per accident, and you can choose lower limits down to the legal minimum by signing a form), property protection insurance (PPI) for damage you cause to property in Michigan, and mini-tort, which recovers a limited amount of vehicle damage from an at-fault driver. Collision and comprehensive are optional and pay for your own car. Each of those deserves its own conversation; PIP is the one to start with.
Sources: Michigan DIFS — Choosing PIP medical coverage
This guide is general information about insurance in Michigan, not advice about a specific policy. Coverage depends on the policy’s terms, limits, exclusions and eligibility, and a request does not bind or change insurance.