The rule nobody tells you at the crash scene
You exchange information. You call your insurance company. You drive home shaken but grateful it was not worse. Nobody standing on the shoulder of State Road 46 mentions that a clock just started.
Florida is a no-fault state. Every driver carries Personal Injury Protection, and PIP pays 80% of your reasonable medical bills up to $10,000, no matter who caused the crash. But the statute has one hard condition: you must receive initial services and care within 14 days after the accident. Not when the pain gets bad. Not when the adjuster calls back. Fourteen days from the crash itself.
Day fifteen, the benefit is gone. The insurance company does not owe it, and no lawyer can get it back.
Who counts as a qualifying provider
The first visit has to be with a qualifying provider: a medical doctor, an osteopathic physician, a dentist, a chiropractor, or a hospital or facility that provides emergency care. A licensed chiropractic physician qualifies, which is why so many accident patients in Central Florida start in an office like ours instead of a five-hour emergency room wait.
One honest nuance: Florida caps non-emergency conditions at $2,500 of PIP unless a medical doctor, osteopath, PA, or nurse practitioner determines you have an emergency medical condition. A chiropractor cannot make that determination. When an exam suggests your injury is more than minor, we coordinate that evaluation so your full benefit stays available. That coordination is part of the job.
Why you should get checked even if you feel fine
Adrenaline is a painkiller. Whiplash, disc injuries, and joint sprains commonly surface 24 to 72 hours after a crash, sometimes longer. Waiting to see how you feel is the most natural response in the world, and it is exactly how people lose both their health window and their benefits window at the same time.
Getting examined inside the 14 days does two things at once. It documents your condition while the evidence is fresh, and it preserves the coverage you have been paying for on every insurance bill since you started driving.
What it costs
At Spine Way Chiropractic in Sanford, the accident consultation is free and most accident patients pay nothing out of pocket. PIP covers care at 80%, and when an attorney is involved, treatment can proceed under a Letter of Protection so nothing comes out of your pocket while your case is open. You do not need an attorney to be seen, and we will never pressure you to hire one.
Dr. Frank Comparetti, D.C. has treated Central Florida patients since 2009. This guide is general information, not medical or legal advice about your situation. For that, get examined.