The general order
For most people injured in a car, MCL 500.3114 sets the order:
- Your own auto policy
- Your spouse’s policy
- A policy of a relative who lives in your household
If none of those exists, the claim generally goes to the Michigan Assigned Claims Plan. The insurer of the vehicle you were in comes first only in the special cases below.
Special cases
- Employees in employer vehicles: the employer’s insurer is generally first.
- Bus, taxi and commercial passengers: different rules can put the vehicle’s insurer first.
- Motorcyclists: the auto insurers of the vehicle involved in the crash usually come before the motorcyclist’s own coverage. See motorcycle crashes.
- Pedestrians and cyclists: your household’s auto policies come first. See pedestrian and bicycle crashes.
The Michigan Assigned Claims Plan
The MACP assigns an insurer to handle claims for people with no other source of no-fault coverage. For crashes after July 1, 2020, MACP medical benefits are limited to $250,000. People who were required to insure their own vehicle and did not are generally not eligible. Applications go to the Michigan Automobile Insurance Placement Facility, and the one-year notice deadline still applies.
Questions people ask us
I do not own a car. Who pays my no-fault benefits?
Look at the policies in your household first: a spouse’s policy, then a policy of a relative you live with. If there are none, the claim usually goes through the Michigan Assigned Claims Plan.
I was hurt in a company vehicle. Whose insurance pays?
If you were an employee occupying a vehicle owned or registered by your employer, the employer’s insurer is generally first in line.
Two insurers say the other one should pay. What now?
You can sue both. The court decides priority, and the insurers sort out reimbursement between themselves. A priority fight should not leave you without care.
