Home Owners Insurance Michigan Laws

Michigan Lawmakers Seek to Clarify State Medical Pot Law

The Michigan State Police reported at least one incident in which an out-of-state resident acquired a Michigan medical marijuana license and then set-up a “grow house” that provided marijuana for the phony pot patient to peddle outside of Michigan while avoiding being busted for cultivation in his home state. However, one documented occurrence of such abuse is hardly an epidemic.

Some such claims have already been filed – and some auto insurance companies have even covered pot patient expenses – prompting state lawmakers to act. Health insurance coverage is already prohibited in the Michigan Marihuana Program, but there was nothing specific written about auto insurance – the authors of the original law apparently didn’t anticipate the need to address it.

Michigan insurance companies charging 'excessive' rates, new ...

As changes to No-Fault “reform” laws progress, auto insurance companies are charging “excessive rates,” according to the Michigan OFIS

There is proposed legislation ( HB 4936 ) that aims to take away our most valuable No-Fault auto insurance protections - lifetime medical benefits. I’m sad to report that a Michigan House of Representatives committee has approved major changes to our No-Fault system today. The bill will now to go the full House for a vote.

The proposed “PIP Choice” legislation would give automobile owners the choice to purchase either $500,000, $1 million or $5 million worth of coverage. These coverage amounts are not enough to cover people with catastrophic injuries, and those who have already been seriously injured in car accidents.

This is a shame, especially given there’s absolutely no proof that these changes to our No-Fault law would save policy holders money - like the insurance lobby and conservative lawmakers tout.

My blog below addresses the “excessive” costs we’re being charged for auto insurance, despite the strong possibility of having our invaluable protections taken from us:

I’ve been an insurance lawyer for nearly 20 years, and I’ve seen first-hand how many insurance companies treat injured accident victims in this state.  I write a blog sharing some of the things I see, and the stories of what happens to my own clients at the hands of insurance companies . Some readers are inclined to dismiss what I write because I’m a lawyer and I basically sue insurance companies for a living, when they aren’t paying No-Fault benefits that they are legally required to pay, or after a serious auto accident, when I bring a claim against the insurance company of the at-fault driver. These readers say I must be biased or things can’t be as bad as I describe.

This makes the auto insurance study from the Michigan Office of Financial and Insurance Services, which uses words like “excessive” and “potentially excessive” when describing the auto insurance rates that plague Michigan drivers, even more interesting and important.

Home, A Memoir of My Early Years

Laws

At Home, A Short History of Private Life

Michigan, a history of the Wolverine State

Insurance for Dummies