Glossary
What is subrogation?
An insurer's right to be repaid from your settlement for what it already paid on your behalf.
General information, not legal advice. Talk to a licensed attorney in your state.
Quick answer
Subrogation is an insurer's right to step into your shoes and recover what it paid for you. If your own insurer or health plan pays for a loss someone else caused, it can seek that money back from the at-fault driver's insurer, or be repaid from your settlement.
In a car accident claim#
Subrogation shows up in two common ways. The first is your car. If you use your own collision coverage, your insurer pays for the repair and then goes after the at-fault driver's insurer. The Texas Department of Insurance says your insurer will try to recover the money, including your deductible, and return the deductible to you. In Washington, your insurer must include your deductible in its demand to the at-fault driver's side.
The second is medical bills. A health plan, Medicare or a workers' comp carrier that paid for crash treatment usually has a right to be repaid when you settle with the at-fault driver. In Texas, for example, an injured worker can claim workers' comp benefits and also seek damages from a third party, and the carrier can be repaid from that recovery for the benefits it paid. These claims are often handled as a Lien. A legal claim on part of your settlement by someone who paid for your care, such as a hospital, health plan or Medicare. Glossary on the settlement, and rules such as the Made-whole doctrine. A rule used in many states that an insurer or health plan should not be repaid from your recovery until you have been fully compensated. Policy or plan wording can sometimes override it. Glossary can limit them in some states.
The guides to medical liens and subrogation, property damage and settlement negotiation explain how these repayments are worked out.
Example#
Related terms#
Questions people ask
Is subrogation the same as a lien?
They are related. Subrogation is the insurer's right to recover what it paid. A lien is a legal claim on the settlement money itself. Health plan repayment claims are often described both ways.
Can you negotiate a subrogation claim?
Often, yes. Payers sometimes reduce their claim, for example to share the cost of the lawyer's fee that produced the recovery. How much room there is depends on the type of payer, the plan or policy terms and state law.
Sources
- Cornell Law School, Legal Information Institute, Subrogation — meaning and the insurance example
- Texas Department of Insurance, What to do after a wreck — your insurer recovers from the other driver's insurer, including your deductible
- Washington State Office of the Insurance Commissioner, Filing an auto insurance claim — as of October 2026
- Texas Legislature, Labor Code § 417.001 — as of October 2026
Last reviewed October 29, 2026 by the Accident Claim Facts editorial team. Found an error? Tell us.
Keep reading
- GlossaryGlossaryShort, plain-English definitions of the legal and insurance terms that come up after a crash, each with an example, related terms and the sources behind it.
- Money and compensationLiens and subrogationHospitals, health plans, Medicare and Medicaid can claim part of an injury settlement to get back what they spent on your care. Here is how each claim works…
- Money and compensationProperty damageHow to get your car repaired or replaced after a crash, what happens when it is totaled, when a rental car or diminished value is paid, and how long you have…
- The claim processSettlement negotiationHow offers and counteroffers work after a demand letter, what signing a release ends, and what has to happen with liens, Medicare and children's claims before…
- GlossaryComplaintThe document that starts a civil lawsuit. It names the parties, describes what happened and says what the person suing asks the court to award.
- GlossaryDemand letterA letter that lays out the facts, injuries and losses in a claim and asks the insurer to pay a stated amount.