Michigan Car Accident Lawyer
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A Michigan car accident can disrupt your life in seconds. Even when your injuries seem minor at first, symptoms may develop or worsen in the hours and days that follow. Getting medical attention promptly can protect your health while also creating documentation of the injuries caused by the crash.
The financial effects can build just as quickly. Medical bills, vehicle repairs, missed work, and lost income can put significant pressure on you and your family, especially when others depend on your paycheck. What initially appears to be a relatively minor accident can lead to weeks or months of treatment, recovery, and changes to your everyday routine.
At Matz Injury Law, we understand how much a serious crash can affect your health, finances, and ability to move forward. Our Michigan personal injury team listens to your story, investigates what happened, gathers evidence, and works to protect your legal rights. With decades of experience helping injured people throughout Michigan, our team is prepared to guide you through the claims process and advocate for the compensation available in your case. Call 866-226-6833 or reach us through our contact page to discuss what happened and learn about your options.
Why Choose Matz Injury Law as Your Michigan Car Accident Lawyer
A car accident case in Michigan may involve immediate PIP benefits and a separate claim against the at-fault driver. Our published results total more than $300 million for Michigan clients, and our decades of Michigan no-fault work help us identify what each part of a claim requires.
Real Results for Michigan Car Accident Victims
Our published results include several outcomes for people injured in vehicle crashes:
- $1.5 million settlement for the family of a retired man killed in an auto collision near Saginaw
- $1.3 million settlement for a mother and daughter injured in a car and truck collision in Monroe County
- $475,000 settlement for a father and daughter whose car was struck by a commercial vehicle
- $400,000 settlement for a passenger killed when another driver ran a red light
Past results do not predict the outcome of a future case. Each claim depends on its own facts, injuries, insurance coverage, and available evidence.
Attorneys Who Handle Your Case Personally, for 22% Not 33
Our two-attorney team personally handles each case. You work directly with Steven J. Matz or Jared Matz instead of losing contact with the lawyer responsible for your claim.
Our contingency fee is 22%, not 33 1/3%, which leaves more of a recovery with you. We help clients throughout Michigan, including Grand Rapids, Ann Arbor, Saginaw, Kalamazoo, Marquette, and communities across the Upper Peninsula.
Client Testimonials
“After a vehicle accident you should seek legal representation whether or not you are at fault.
I contacted Matz Law Firm by leaving a message and received a return call promptly from attorney Jared Matz. We agreed that I would send accident specifics via email. Upon receipt, he contacted me immediately, offering his opinion and advice. He was very thorough and explained the financial and legal considerations for each decision. I trusted Jared Matz and all issues were reasonably and effectively resolved. Jared Matz has great communication and negotiation skills, a good understanding of the law, and broad legal experience. Attorney Jared Matz and his staff were consistently courteous, considerate and empathetic. My interactions with Jared Matz and the Matz Injury Law Firm resulted in a good outcome. Because of my positive experience with Jared Matz as my legal representative, I recommend attorney Jared Matz and Matz Injury Law Firm.” — Annette L.
“If you need an injury attorney then Steve Matz is the attorney you want. He went above and beyond his responsibilities with my case. My case had several different parts (uninsured driver, medical, employer, and insurance company) and Steve was able to assist with most and the ones he couldn’t he was able to give us another attorney name. He is a great listener and he gets right to the point with any questions. I would recommend Steve to anyone – thank you so much Steve for all your help” — Chris N.
“Mr Matz was great helping me after my auto accident. I had no idea what was going on or where to turn but he led me the correct direction and to the right kind of doctors I needed to treat my injuries. He was there to answer any questions and still is, even if its not to do with the case he represented me on. His son is very helpful and caring also!” — Judy W.
Meet Our Michigan Car Accident Attorneys
How Michigan’s No-Fault System Works After a Car Accident
Michigan no-fault coverage can pay certain benefits without requiring you to prove who caused the crash. These benefits are known as personal injury protection (PIP), and they address medical care, income loss, and certain household needs.
What Do PIP Benefits Cover?
The coverage available depends on the policy and the loss involved. PIP benefits can include:
- Medical care and rehabilitation up to the PIP medical limit selected on the policy, including lifetime allowable expenses under an unlimited policy
- Up to 85% of lost income for as long as three years, subject to a monthly statutory limit
- Up to $20 per day for replacement services during the first three years when an injury prevents you from handling ordinary household tasks
- Reasonable transportation expenses for crash-related medical care
- Survivor’s loss benefits and certain funeral and burial expenses after a fatal crash
Michigan drivers can select PIP medical coverage of unlimited, $500,000, or $250,000. The $50,000 option and an election to carry no PIP medical coverage have eligibility requirements, so not every driver can select them.
What Compensation Can You Recover After a Michigan Car Accident?
Compensation after a Michigan car accident generally comes through two claim tracks. PIP covers defined economic losses without regard to fault. A third-party claim may address losses caused by the at-fault driver.
The available categories can include:
- PIP economic benefits: Medical expenses within the selected limit, part of your lost income, replacement services, and medical transportation
- Third-party economic damages: Medical costs above the PIP limit, income loss beyond the PIP period or monthly cap, and other documented financial losses
- Third-party non-economic damages: Pain, suffering, disfigurement, and loss of normal life when the injury meets Michigan’s threshold
These categories can overlap in timing but not in purpose. We separate each loss and submit it through the correct claim so the same expense does not get overlooked or counted twice.
No reliable average settlement can show what your case is worth. The value depends on the injuries, treatment, impact to your life, available insurance, financial losses, and evidence of fault.
When Can You Sue for Pain and Suffering in Michigan?
You may pursue pain-and-suffering damages when a motor vehicle crash causes death, permanent serious disfigurement, or serious impairment of body function. Michigan applies this threshold to non-economic damages, not to every claim for economic loss above PIP benefits.
Partial fault does not automatically end the claim. A person who is 50% or less at fault may recover non-economic damages reduced by that percentage. However, a person who is more than 50% at fault cannot recover them.
Economic damages follow a different rule. MCL 600.2959 reduces those damages by the injured person’s share of fault without applying the same greater-than-50% bar.
What Counts as a Serious Impairment of Body Function?
A serious impairment has three parts. The impairment must be objectively manifested, involve a body function that matters to the injured person, and affect that person’s general ability to lead their normal life.
An objectively manifested impairment must be observable or perceivable from actual symptoms or conditions by someone other than the injured person. The analysis compares life before and after the crash, and it does not require the impairment to be permanent.
Work restrictions, changes in household tasks, limits on driving, and reduced participation in family or recreational activities may all inform the analysis. A pre-existing condition does not automatically defeat the claim, but medical records must connect the crash to a new impairment or a measurable aggravation.
What Should You Do After a Car Accident in Michigan?
The first steps after a crash can protect your health and preserve records for both claims. Take what you can manage, and ask someone you trust for help if your injuries limit what you can do.
- Try to seek medical care promptly and describe every symptom to your providers.
- You can report the crash to the police and request a copy of the report when it becomes available.
- If you can safely take them, photographs of the vehicles, road, traffic controls, visible injuries, and other relevant conditions can preserve useful details.
- You can notify the proper auto insurer to begin the PIP application process.
- Try to avoid giving a recorded statement before you understand which claim the adjuster is discussing and what information the insurer seeks.
- Consider having a lawyer review any settlement offer before you sign a release.
We can request the police report, identify available camera footage, file the PIP application with the proper insurer, handle adjuster communications, and gather the medical records needed to document the claim.
How Long Do You Have to File a Michigan Car Accident Claim?
Michigan uses different deadlines for PIP benefits and third-party lawsuits. To preserve a PIP claim, you generally must provide written notice of the injury within one year of the crash unless the insurer has already paid benefits.
The one-year-back rule also limits how much in overdue PIP benefits you can recover. Tolling may extend that recovery period in some situations, but missing an applicable deadline can still prevent you from collecting some or all unpaid benefits.
You generally have three years from the crash to file a lawsuit against the at-fault driver. A personal representative pursuing a wrongful death claim after a fatal collision usually has the same underlying three-year period, although exceptions may change the deadline.
What Can a Michigan Auto Accident Lawyer Do for You?
A Michigan car accident lawyer can coordinate your PIP claim with your third-party case, giving you one point of contact for the forms, deadlines, and insurance questions that can pile up during treatment. This work may include:
- Identifying the insurer responsible for PIP benefits
- Gathering crash reports, photographs, witness statements, and other evidence
- Documenting medical care, income loss, and the injury’s effect on your life
- Assessing present and future losses
- Negotiating with the at-fault driver’s insurer
- Filing a lawsuit when settlement negotiations do not resolve the case
We can also preserve evidence that may disappear over time, including vehicle data, camera footage, witness information, and records from a commercial driver or vehicle owner. If an insurer disputes fault or the cause of your injuries, those records can support the claim with evidence instead of memory alone.
What Should You Look for in a Michigan Car Accident Attorney?
A car accident lawyer in Michigan should be able to explain the state’s no-fault system and the separate right to pursue the at-fault driver. Useful selection criteria include:
- Substantial work with Michigan PIP and third-party injury claims
- Trial preparation when settlement negotiations do not resolve the case
- Direct contact with the attorney responsible for the matter
- Clear contingency-fee terms in writing
- Published results involving similar injury claims
- The ability to help you where you live in Michigan
You can ask how the lawyer will handle each side of the claim, who will answer your questions, and how the fee will apply to your final recovery. Specific answers can help you compare the representation offered before signing an agreement.
Talk to Matz Injury Law Before You Accept a Settlement
Insurance companies have attorneys and adjusters working to protect their financial interests, and an early settlement offer may not account for everything the crash will ultimately cost you. Once you sign a settlement release, your claim is generally closed, even if you later need additional treatment, miss more time from work, or discover that your injuries are more serious than you initially realized.
At Matz Injury Law, we can review the offer, explain what the proposed settlement covers, and evaluate whether it reflects the medical expenses, lost income, pain and suffering, and other losses connected to your accident. Our attorneys have handled Michigan car accident claims for decades and have secured substantial results for injured clients, including multi-million-dollar recoveries in serious accident cases.
We also believe more of your recovery should stay with you. While many Michigan personal injury attorneys charge a contingency fee of up to 33⅓%, Matz Injury Law charges 22%, whether your case settles or goes to trial. You do not owe an attorney fee unless we recover compensation for you.
Before signing away your right to pursue additional compensation, find out what your claim may actually be worth. To discuss your settlement offer during a free consultation, call Matz Injury Law at 866-226-6833 or use our contact form.
Written By Steven Matz
Steven J. Matz is the founder of Matz Injury Law, specializing in personal injury litigation with a focus on car accident victims. With over 40 years of legal experience, Mr. Matz has achieved numerous million-dollar settlements. He holds an AV Preeminent rating from Martindale-Hubbell and has been recognized among Michigan’s Top Attorneys. Steven J. Matz is a frequent lecturer on legal ethics and personal injury law, and serves on the Michigan Attorney Discipline Board.
