Michigan No-Fault Law, section by section › MCL 500.3148
Attorney's fee; restrictions.
In plain terms
If a court finds that an insurer unreasonably refused to pay or unreasonably delayed proper payment, the claimant's attorney is entitled to a reasonable fee charged against the insurer on top of the benefits. Insurers can recover fees against fraudulent or baseless claims and against attorneys who solicited clients unlawfully. The 2019 amendments limit fees on future attendant-care awards to three years after judgment and bar fees where the attorney has a financial interest in the treating provider.
How this section works in practice
Section 3148 is the enforcement mechanism behind the 30-day payment rule. If a claimant has to sue for overdue benefits and the court finds that the insurer unreasonably refused to pay or unreasonably delayed proper payment, the insurer must pay the claimant's reasonable attorney fee on top of the benefits and penalty interest. An insurer that denied a claim on a legitimate factual or legal dispute usually avoids the fee; one that denied without a reasonable basis does not.
The section cuts both ways. A court may award an insurer its fees against a claimant whose claim was fraudulent or so excessive as to have no reasonable foundation, and against a lawyer who solicited the client unlawfully, with those fees offset against future benefits. The 2019 amendments added three limits: no attorney fee may be awarded on future attendant-care payments ordered more than three years after judgment (with a fresh three years if the insurer later cuts off care); no fee is awarded where the attorney or a related person has a financial interest in the provider whose bills are at issue; and no attorney lien may be filed until a payment is both authorized and overdue.
Text of MCL 500.3148
Sec. 3148.
(1) Subject to subsections (4) and (5), an attorney is entitled to a reasonable fee for advising and representing a claimant in an action for personal or property protection insurance benefits that are overdue. The attorney's fee is a charge against the insurer in addition to the benefits recovered, if the court finds that the insurer unreasonably refused to pay the claim or unreasonably delayed in making proper payment. An attorney advising or representing an injured person concerning a claim for payment of personal protection insurance benefits from an insurer shall not claim, file, or serve a lien for payment of a fee or fees until both of the following apply:
(a) A payment for the claim is authorized under this chapter.
(b) A payment for the claim is overdue under this chapter.
(2) A court may award an insurer a reasonable amount against a claimant as an attorney fee for the insurer's attorney in defending against a claim that was in some respect fraudulent or so excessive as to have no reasonable foundation. A court may award an insurer a reasonable amount against a claimant's attorney as an attorney fee for defending against a claim for which the client was solicited by the attorney in violation of the laws of this state or the Michigan rules of professional conduct.
(3) To the extent that personal or property protection insurance benefits are then due or thereafter come due to the claimant because of loss resulting from the injury on which the claim is based, an attorney fee awarded in favor of the insurer may be taken as an offset against the benefits. Judgment may also be entered against the claimant for any amount of an attorney fee awarded that is not offset against benefits or otherwise paid.
(4) For a dispute over payment for allowable expenses under section 3107(1)(a) for attendant care or nursing services, attorney fees must not be awarded in relation to future payments ordered more than 3 years after the trial court judgment or order is entered. If attendant care or nursing services are subsequently suspended or terminated, attorney fees on future payments may be again awarded for not more than 3 years after a new trial court judgment or order is entered.
(5) A court shall not award a fee to an attorney for advising or representing an injured person in an action for personal or property protection insurance benefits for a treatment, product, service, rehabilitative occupational training, or accommodation provided to the injured person if the attorney or a related person of the attorney has, or had at the time the treatment, product, service, rehabilitative occupational training, or accommodation was provided, a direct or indirect financial interest in the person that provided the treatment, product, service, rehabilitative occupational training, or accommodation. For purposes of this subsection, circumstances in which an attorney has a direct or indirect financial interest include, but are not limited to, the person that provided the treatment, product, service, rehabilitative occupational training, or accommodation making a direct or indirect payment or granting a financial incentive to the attorney or a related person of the attorney relating to the treatment, product, service, rehabilitative occupational training, or accommodation within 24 months before or after the treatment, product, service, rehabilitative occupational training, or accommodation is provided.
History: Add. 1972, Act 294, Eff. Mar. 30, 1973 ;-- Am. 2019, Act 21, Imd. Eff. June 11, 2019
Source: MCL 500.3148 at legislature.mi.gov (official text). Text as published in the 2025 Michigan Compiled Laws; reviewed by Koussan Law on September 15, 2026.
Sections this one refers to
- MCL 500.3107: What PIP Pays: Medical, Wage Loss, Services
Practice pages
Important: This is not legal advice
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