Road Traffic Accident how much can you be charged for NHS costs after an accident?

Question

Somebody I know claimed their bill through the insurance company came to @ £750000! Can this be true?

Answer 1

Insurance companies pay this without you even knowing.. if there isn't any other claim against you like another car being repaired then you wont even lose you no claims discount.. it's just an agreement between the insurers and the NHS .. you are NEVER told how much anyone is being charged for this so I think your friend is telling porkies

Answer 2

If it was your fault then you pay for the ambulance but that is all.My brother had an accident which was his fault,all he had to pay was about £350

Answer 3

Part 3 of the Health and Social Care (Community Health and Standards) Act 2003 makes provision for the establishment of a scheme to recover the costs of providing treatment to an injured person where that person has made a successful personal injury compensation claim against a third party. The injury costs recovery scheme builds on the existing scheme introduced by the Road Traffic (NHS Charges) Act 1999—the RTA scheme—which allows costs to be recovered in road traffic accident cases only. The new injury costs recovery scheme will come into force on 29 January 2007.

The injury costs recovery scheme will be administered by the Department for Work and Pension’s Compensation Recovery Unit—CRU—on behalf of the Secretary of State for Health. The CRU has operated the current RTA scheme since 1999, and has extensive links with, for example, solicitors and insurers. The person found liable to any extent in respect of the injury will also be liable to pay the relevant NHS charges in respect of NHS hospital treatment and ambulance services, in so far as provided. Compensators will have a legal obligation to inform the CRU of any claim for personal injury compensation.

Under the existing RTA scheme the amounts to be recovered are set using a simple tariff system. The tariff consists of a single one-off payment where hospital treatment is provided without admission, currently £505, or a daily rate, currently £620, for each day or part day of admission to hospital, excluding the day of discharge. There is also a statutory ceiling on how much can be recovered in relation to treatment of injuries resulting from any one incident—currently £37,100, or roughly 60 days’ in-patient treatment. These amounts have been migrated to the injury costs recovery scheme, with the addition of a new element to cover the cost of any ambulance journeys that may be required. This has been set at £159. Regulation 2 of these regulations sets out the amounts of NHS charges payable.

The tariff system means, of course, that frequently the amounts recovered do not match exactly the costs of providing treatment in any specific case. The tariffs represent average treatment costs; all these amounts have been established by calculating the average cost of treatment for injuries typically suffered in accidents and, for ambulance journeys, the average costs of providing ambulance services. These amounts are not intended to provide exact reimbursement.

Under the RTA scheme the tariffs are uprated annually on 1 April in line with NHS inflation. The increase is calculated using an average amount based on the three most recent years for which figures are known. The intention is to retain the annual uprating exercise but the tariff will not be uprated on 1 April 2007, given that the scheme will only recently have been introduced.

These regulations also set out how the ICR scheme is to deal with a range of circumstances where the amounts to be recovered may need to be adjusted. For example, the regulations make provision for where more than one person is liable to pay the NHS charges in respect of the same injury. Regulation 5 provides for the liability to pay the charges to be apportioned by the Secretary of State between two or more compensators. Naturally, there has to be adjustment for cross-border cases. Regulation 6 covers the adjustment of a certificate of NHS charges where the Secretary of State and Scottish Ministers both issue certificates. This could apply, for example, when an injured person has received treatment in both a hospital in England and a hospital in Scotland.

If the amount specified in the certificates when aggregated exceeds the maximum amount—currently £37,100—the Secretary of State may adjust any amount specified in the certificate issued by her. Regulations 7 to 10 make provision for the repayment of overpayments of charges and the recovery of underpayment of charges, including provision requiring the Secretary of State to send out statements showing the amount of overpayment or underpayment and the action required. If, as a result of a redetermination, adjustment, review or repeal, it appears that the amount of NHS charges paid by any person is more than the amount that ought to have been paid, the Secretary of State will either pay the difference to the person who paid the NHS charges, or instruct the trust or body to pay the difference to the person who paid the NHS charges.

Where the Secretary of State pays the difference, she will instruct the relevant NHS body to pay the difference to her or deduct it from future payments to that NHS body. If it appears that the amount of NHS charges paid by any person is less than the amount that ought to have been paid, the person who paid the relevant NHS charges will pay the difference to the

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Secretary of State, who will then pay that difference to the relevant NHS body. Where an underpayment or overpayment occurs, the Secretary of State will send a statement to the person paying NHS charges and the relevant NHS body, setting out the details, including details of the revised amount of NHS charges.

In summary, these regulations extend the scheme that allows the NHS to recoup the cost of treating the victims of road traffic accidents to include all cases where an injured person has made a successful claim for personal injury compensation. I beg to move.

Answer 4

YOU PAY FOR ALL EMERGENCY SERVICES AT THE SCENE PLUS EACH NURSE AND DOCTOR YOU SEEN PLUS MEDICATION AND XRAYS PLUS YOUR BED....
THATS WHY WE HAVE INSURANCE

Answer 5

You don't pay anything if you live in the UK! Well, we do pay taxes but you get my point.