Hit a Deer in Michigan? Who Pays for You and Your Car

Fall in Michigan means color tours, football, and a deer standing in your headlights with nowhere to go.

Michigan sees tens of thousands of deer-vehicle crashes every year, and October and November are the worst of it. When it happens, there's no other driver to exchange information with and no one to blame. That leaves people asking the same two questions: who pays for my injuries, and who pays for my car? The answers are different, and the difference catches a lot of people off guard. If you've been hurt in a deer crash, our personal injury practice can help you sort it out.

Your injuries: no-fault still applies

The good news first. Michigan's no-fault law doesn't care whether a person, a pothole or a deer caused the crash. Under MCL 500.3105, your no-fault insurer pays personal injury protection (PIP) benefits for accidental bodily injury arising out of the use of a motor vehicle, without regard to fault.

So if you were driving your car and hit a deer, PIP benefits generally come from your own auto policy. Under MCL 500.3107, those benefits can include:

• Allowable expenses for reasonable and necessary medical care, recovery and rehabilitation
• Work loss if your injuries keep you off the job, for up to three years
• Replacement services for household tasks you can no longer do yourself

How much PIP medical coverage you have depends on the level you chose when you bought or renewed your policy. Since the 2019 reform, drivers can select different PIP limits under MCL 500.3107c, and some people with qualifying health coverage opted out entirely. Pull your declarations page now, before the bills start arriving.

We walk through the medical side in more detail in Who Pays Your Medical Bills After a Michigan Car Accident? and the paycheck side in Lost Wages After a Michigan Car Accident.

Passengers are covered too

If you were a passenger in someone else's car when it hit a deer, you usually look first to the no-fault policy in your own household, under the priority rules in MCL 500.3114. If no one in your household has auto insurance, the policy covering the vehicle you were riding in may be next in line.

Priority disputes between insurers are common. They're the insurers' problem to fight out, but they can delay your benefits if nobody pushes.

Your car: no-fault does not fix it

Here's the part that surprises people. Michigan no-fault covers damage your car does to other people's property. It does not pay to repair your own vehicle. That coverage comes only from optional coverages you may or may not have bought.

Comprehensive coverage. On many policies, actually striking a deer is treated as a comprehensive claim, alongside things like theft, hail and falling trees. If you carry comprehensive, the repair is typically covered minus your deductible.

Collision coverage. If you swerved to miss the deer and hit a tree, a guardrail, a ditch or another car instead, the claim is often treated as collision. Collision deductibles are frequently higher than comprehensive deductibles, and if you dropped collision coverage on an older car, you may be paying for the damage yourself.

That's the logic behind the safety advice you hear every fall: don't veer for deer. Swerving can turn a covered comprehensive claim into an uncovered collision, and worse, it can put you into oncoming traffic or a tree. Brake firmly, hold your lane and let the car take the hit if it comes to that. Every situation is different, but that's the general guidance from Michigan safety advocates for good reason.

Mini-tort won't help here. Michigan's mini-tort lets you recover some vehicle damage from an at-fault driver under MCL 500.3135. A deer isn't a driver and doesn't carry insurance. We explain how mini-tort works when another car is at fault in Michigan Mini-Tort: Get Your Car Repair Money Back.

Motorcycle riders: the dangerous gap

This is the most important section in this post for anyone who rides.

Michigan treats motorcyclists differently. Under MCL 500.3114(5), a motorcyclist's no-fault PIP benefits are tied to an accident that involves a motor vehicle. A crash between a motorcycle and a deer, with no car or truck involved, generally does not trigger no-fault PIP benefits at all.

That means a rider who hits a deer may be relying on whatever medical payments coverage is on the motorcycle policy, plus their own health insurance. Those limits can be far lower than the injuries a deer strike can cause on a bike.

There are exceptions worth checking. If a car or truck was part of what happened, for example a vehicle that forced you to swerve or that struck you after you went down, the analysis can change. Witness information matters a lot in those cases. We cover the bigger picture in Michigan Motorcycle Accidents: Why the Claim Is Different. If you ride, review your motorcycle policy's medical coverage before the fall season, not after.

When someone else is involved

Most deer crashes are single-vehicle crashes. Some aren't. If you braked for a deer and the driver behind you rear-ended you, or another driver swerved into your lane avoiding a deer, a second driver's conduct may be part of the story.

In that situation, your injuries are still handled first through no-fault PIP. But a claim against another driver for pain and suffering may also be possible if your injuries meet Michigan's threshold. We explain that threshold in Michigan's Serious Impairment Threshold. And if the insurer argues that you share some of the blame, read Partially at Fault for a Car Accident in Michigan?

What to do right after a deer crash

• Get to safety. Turn on your hazards and move off the road if you can do so safely. Don't approach an injured deer. A wounded animal can kick and cause serious injury.
• Call the police. A crash report documents what happened, especially that an animal caused it. Insurers often ask for one.
• Take photos. Your car, the road, any skid marks, the deer if it's safe, and the surrounding area. If another vehicle was involved, get that driver's information and any witness names.
• Get checked out. Adrenaline hides neck, back and head injuries. A gap between the crash and your first medical visit gives insurers an argument later. See Should You See a Doctor After a Crash If You Feel Fine?
• Notify your insurer promptly, but be careful about giving a recorded statement before you understand your coverage. Our post on recorded statements explains why.
• Find your declarations page. It tells you your PIP level and whether you have comprehensive and collision.

Mind the deadlines

No-fault claims have strict time limits. Under MCL 500.3145, you generally must give written notice of your injury to the insurer within one year of the accident, and there are additional limits on how far back you can recover once a lawsuit is filed. A claim that sits while you hope it resolves itself can quietly shrink. We break down the timelines in How Long Do You Have to File an Injury Claim in Michigan?

When to call ELN

Call us if you were hurt in a deer crash and the insurer is denying, delaying or underpaying your PIP benefits, if you're a motorcyclist trying to figure out what coverage applies, if another driver was involved, or if two insurers are pointing at each other while your bills pile up. We'll look at your policy, the crash facts and the statute, and tell you where you stand. Every case is different, and no lawyer can promise a particular result, but you deserve a straight answer.

Hurt in a deer crash this season? Schedule a consultation or visit our personal injury practice.

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