RV, Motorhome, and Camper Accidents in Michigan: Who Pays?

You might treat your motorhome, recreational vehicle (RV) or camper like a home on wheels, but when it gets into an accident, you’ll come across the same obstacles as any other car accident, and possibly more.

Which campers count as motor vehicles under Michigan law?

Motorhomes and towable campers are generally considered motor vehicles under Michigan’s No-Fault Act. They fit the definition of a vehicle designed or operated for highway use, powered by something other than muscle, with more than two wheels.

Under MCL 500.3101, a trailer does not need its own engine to meet that definition.

That means legally defining the vehicle is more complicated than just referring to it as a camper. A motorhome or camper van has its own engine. A camper may also sit on a pickup, while a travel trailer or fifth wheel is pulled behind another vehicle.

A two-wheel trailer does not meet that definition by itself. But under MCL 500.3105, an injury caused by a towing vehicle can still qualify for personal injury protection (PIP) benefits.

The insurance required depends on whether the vehicle needs to be registered in Michigan and is being driven or moved on a highway.

Whose PIP insurance applies after an RV crash?

For ordinary personal RV use, your normal personal or household PIP coverage comes first. Each injured person’s coverage needs to be checked under Michigan’s PIP priority rules. Michigan law MCL 500.3114 covers the person named in the policy, that person’s spouse and relatives living in the same household.

Passengers might have different coverage depending on the case and aren’t necessarily covered by the RV owner.

Special rules can change the result for vehicles owned or registered by an employer or operated in the business of transporting passengers.

For more on identifying the insurer responsible for medical bills, see Michigan PIP medical bills and priority.

Under Michigan law, PIP benefits can pay qualifying expenses for necessary injury care, work loss and help with ordinary tasks the injured person would otherwise perform. Each benefit has conditions and limits under MCL 500.3107. The applicable PIP medical coverage selection matters. Unlimited medical coverage is not universal.

Under MCL 500.3105, fault does not decide entitlement to otherwise available PIP benefits. You do not have to establish that another driver caused the crash to make that claim, although eligibility and coverage requirements still apply.

What if you have no applicable PIP coverage?

If no policy covers you, you might be eligible for PIP benefits through the Michigan Assigned Claims Plan under MCL 500.3172. Applying for this plan requires proof of loss and has statutory exclusions and medical limits. A PIP medical opt-out or exclusion is not the same as having no policy.

Two facts play a role in this coverage:

• PIP can be barred if an involved vehicle you own or have registered in your name lacks the required insurance. That is different from being an injured passenger who does not own a car.
• Michigan generally excludes nonresidents from PIP unless they own a motor vehicle registered and insured in Michigan. Renting an RV here does not, by itself, establish that exception.

These are PIP eligibility rules under MCL 500.3113, not a conclusion that every other claim is unavailable. If the RV was rented, keep the rental agreement and any insurance or protection documents with your own policies.

Camper repairs are a separate coverage question. RV collision coverage, if purchased for the motorhome or trailer, can help pay for covered crash damage subject to the policy and deductible.

Who can be responsible for injuries after an RV crash?

A driver whose negligence causes a crash may be responsible for the injuries. But getting damages from them would normally involve a third-party bodily injury claim. The available liability coverage is separate from PIP benefits.

Michigan law limits what that claim can recover. Under MCL 500.3135, pain-and-suffering claims only apply to cases involving death, serious impairment of body function or permanent serious disfigurement.

A serious impairment must be observable by someone other than the injured person, affect an important body function and affect the person’s general ability to lead their normal life. It does not have to be permanent.

Your share of fault can reduce pain-and-suffering damages and being more than 50% at fault prevents that recovery. A separate bar applies when someone was driving their own vehicle without the required insurance.

Third-party claims can also be used to recover excess economic damages not covered by PIP such as medical expenses and lost wages. Those losses have different requirements than pain and suffering claims. For nonresidents, Michigan imposes an injury threshold on economic loss claims too.

The driver may not be the owner. Michigan’s owner-liability law, MCL 257.401, can make an owner responsible for injury caused by someone driving negligently with the owner’s knowledge.

If a camper broke loose, the hitch and safety connections may help explain why. For a trailer towed on a highway, MCL 257.721 requires suitable safety chains or devices on each side of the coupling, with sufficient strength to haul the loaded trailer.

Photograph the connections if it is safe and tell your attorney where the trailer is being kept. A separation or damaged part is a reason to investigate, not a complete finding of responsibility.

What if the camper was parked or being used as a place to stay?

Whether or not PIP applies to a parked camper depends on how it was being used and the exact cause of the injury. Under MCL 500.3106, Michigan generally excludes parked vehicle injuries unless a statutory exception applies, such as qualifying injuries while entering or leaving the vehicle. The injury must also have the necessary connection to use of a motor vehicle.

Entering a vehicle to travel, or unloading belongings on arrival at a destination, can be connected to transportation. The applicable parked-vehicle exception and the cause of the injury still need to be established. In Kemp v Farm Bureau, the court allowed further proceedings on an unloading injury; it did not hold that every unloading injury qualifies.

PIP coverage for injuries caused by another vehicle striking the camper is determined by the vehicle’s role in the crash under MCL 500.3105. Being asleep inside the camper does not erase an injury’s connection to another vehicle’s operation.

PIP generally does not cover an injury arising solely from using a parked camper as sleeping accommodations.

For an injury arising from use of the RV as a place to stay, optional liability coverage may be relevant. Whether it applies depends on the applicable policy, covered use and exclusions. It is not automatic medical coverage for the RV owner.

What should you do after a motorhome or towing crash?

Get to safety, call emergency services and get medical care as needed. Then preserve any records you legally have access to including:

• policy declarations pages showing your coverage, vehicle identification numbers and any rental agreement or purchased protection paperwork
• photographs of the vehicles and towing connections, witness contact information and any video you already have
• medical bills, information about missed work and letters or messages from insurers

Tell your attorney as soon as possible if the motorhome or trailer is about to be repaired, sold or discarded. That gives them an opportunity to seek preservation of the vehicle and damaged parts, and to request outside video or records before they disappear.

What are the deadlines for an RV accident claim?

Under MCL 500.3145, a lawsuit for PIP benefits has to be filed within one year after the accident unless the insurer received written notice of the injury within that year or previously paid PIP benefits for that injury.

Recovery ordinarily excludes losses incurred more than one year before suit. These periods can pause from a specific claim for payment until the insurer formally denies it, provided you pursue the claim with reasonable diligence.

Under MCL 500.3174, a person claiming through the Assigned Claims Plan must notify the Michigan Automobile Insurance Placement Facility within one year after the accident. That notice requirement is distinct from the lawsuit and recovery rules.

A negligence lawsuit against the responsible driver generally must be filed within three years after the injury under MCL 600.5805(2). Different rules or exceptions can apply, so this deadline should be checked separately from the PIP deadlines.

How can Michigan Legal Center help?

Michigan Legal Center can help protect your claim from missed deadlines and lost evidence by reviewing the applicable policies, identifying filing requirements and taking steps to preserve the RV and damaged parts. Contact Michigan Legal Center with the crash date and the documents you have, including any denial or proposed release.