Auto Insurance Claims: No fault insurance, social security disability, security approval

Question
QUESTION: I was in a car accident in 2006 in NY. I was seriously injured and was put on disability. I submitted all the forms for no fault and submitted all disability forms to my employer. After about 6 months no fault sent me a letter saying i had to apply for social security disability which i did. A few months later i was approved for social security I notified the insurance company I faxed over all the forms with the amount of benefit etc. The insurance company has now contacted me almost a year later to say they overpaid me because they failed to deduct the amount they were supposed to because of my social security isn't that their mistake and am I legally responsible to pay for their mistake? They were made aware of my social security approval and how much I was receiving I didn't know they were supposed to deduct anything or how much I don't feel that this was my error.


ANSWER: Hi Marilyn,

Unfortunately, as you indicated this was a mistake. You do not get to keep the money just because someone made a mistake. You will be required to pay back the money. Think of it like this, if your bank entered a wrong digit while depositing someone elses money and accidently made a deposit of $50,000.00 into your account and say it took 6 weeks for them to discover the error, does that mean that you get to keep the money? Of course not. However, you may want to contact an attorney who specialized in 'No-Fault" coverage so they can review all of the letters and be sure the amount they are requesting is accurate.

I hope this helps
Richard Hixenbaugh

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Thank you for your answer I am wondering if my attorney should have picked up on this error as the checks were going through their office and then they would forward the checks to me.

Answer
Hi Marilyn,

It should have been picked up on but again, it seems to have been an oversight. You should contact your attorney and ask him to review all of the claim accounting to see when and where the error occured. He may find that you do not owe the money or he may be able to negotiate a smaller settlement.

I hope this helps
Richard Hixenbaugh