Medical Treatment and Rehab Costs After a Polish Road Accident: What You Can Recover

A road accident usually means treatment — doctors' appointments, diagnostic tests, physiotherapy, sometimes permanent care. All of that costs money. The question is: does the at-fault driver have to cover all of it? Usually yes, but with conditions.

Disclaimer: This guide is general legal information, not legal advice. How the rules apply depends on the nature of your treatment and the evidence you can produce. Where advice is needed, the matter should be assessed by a qualified Polish lawyer. Twoja Sprawa helps you organise the documents for that assessment.

What Article 444 §1 KC covers — the checklist ✅

Article 444 §1 of the Polish Civil Code (Kodeks cywilny, "KC") provides, in substance, that a person liable for damage must restore the injured party to the position they would have been in had the harmful event not occurred.

In practice this means: the at-fault party must pay for all costs that arose directly because of the accident.

The full list of recoverable costs:

Private treatment vs the NFZ (public healthcare) — does the insurer have to pay for going private?

This is the key question.

The general rule:

The at-fault driver's OC insurer must cover necessary treatment costs — regardless of whether you were treated through the NFZ (the National Health Fund — Poland's public healthcare payer) or privately. But the word "necessary" is doing a lot of work here.

Scenario 1: NFZ treatment is available, but the waiting list is 6 months

You: "I paid for a private MRI (1,000 PLN) because the NFZ waiting list was 6 months."

The insurer may argue: "Wait for the NFZ appointment — we don't cover private treatment."

A court may find: "Waiting 6 months for a diagnosis was not medically justified — the private scan was necessary, and the at-fault party must pay."

⚠️ Hard to predict — it depends heavily on the specific facts.

Scenario 2: NFZ treatment is unavailable or insufficient

You: "The NFZ physiotherapists only work with me twice a week, but my doctor said I need three sessions. I went private (100 PLN/session × 50 sessions = 5,000 PLN)."

Court: "The private treatment was necessary, so the at-fault party pays."

✅ A strong position. Document everything — medical certificates, and confirmation that the NFZ could not provide that frequency of treatment.

Scenario 3: The private treatment is clearly unnecessary

You: "I went to a private VIP clinic that charges five times more than a standard one, but the treatment outcome is identical."

Insurer / court: "The at-fault party pays for reasonable treatment costs — not for luxury."

❌ A weak position. You are likely to be left paying the difference.

The rule of thumb:

Private treatment can be recovered from the at-fault driver's OC insurer if: 1. NFZ treatment was not available within a reasonable timeframe, 2. It was medically indicated, 3. The cost was reasonable (not a luxury choice).

What to document: - A doctor's certificate stating the private treatment was necessary, - Confirmation of the NFZ waiting time (e.g. a letter from the NFZ confirming the appointment date), - Invoices from the private clinic (with full billing details), - A price comparison showing the choice was reasonable.

Documentation — what you need to keep

For hospital stays and nursing care:

1. Hospital discharge summary (wypis ze szpitala) — diagnosis, length of stay, procedures performed,
2. Bills / invoices — for any private treatment,
3. A medical certificate confirming the admission and the treatment given.

For medication:

1. Prescriptions from your doctor,
2. Pharmacy invoices — showing the item, dose and date,
3. A medical certificate confirming the medication was required for your recovery.

⚠️ Important: not every purchase will be accepted. If you bought vitamins that weren't prescribed by a doctor, the insurer is unlikely to cover them. But medication that was actually prescribed should be reimbursed.

For physiotherapy:

1. A certificate from the physiotherapist — which treatments, how many sessions, and the goal of the therapy,
2. A doctor's referral confirming rehabilitation is indicated,
3. Invoices if you paid privately; a certificate if treated on the NFZ.

For travel costs:

1. Receipts / tickets — from taxis or public transport,
2. Fuel receipts — if you drove yourself (based on mileage/fuel used),
3. Parking receipts — from parking near the hospital or clinic.

⚠️ Travel costs are harder to prove — the insurer or court will check whether the trips were necessary, how many were made and over what distance. Expect partial reimbursement rather than full recovery.

For nursing/personal care:

1. A care agreement — start date, pay rate, hours worked,
2. A medical certificate confirming the need for care,
3. Invoices / receipts — payment records for the carer (if formally engaged).

The claims process — step by step

Step 1: Gather all invoices and certificates

1. Hospital discharge summary,
2. All medical, clinic and pharmacy invoices,
3. Physiotherapist certificates,
4. Transport receipts (if any),
5. Medical certificates confirming the treatment was necessary.

Step 2: Total everything up

Add up all the expenses, for example: - Hospital: 5,000 PLN, - Physiotherapy: 3,000 PLN, - Medication: 2,000 PLN, - Travel: 500 PLN, - TOTAL: 10,500 PLN.

Step 3: Notify the insurer

Send a letter setting out: - A description of the accident, - The amount claimed (10,500 PLN), - Enclosures: all invoices and certificates, - Your reasoning: "As the accident made this treatment necessary, I am claiming reimbursement of these costs."

Step 4: Wait for a response

Under Polish law, the insurer generally has 30 days to respond (or 90 days for more complex cases).

The insurer may: - Accept the claim in full, - Accept it partially — e.g. "We accept the hospital and physiotherapy costs, but not the travel costs", - Reject it — "The costs are excessive or unjustified".

Step 5: Negotiate or go to court

• If the claim is accepted — a settlement is reached,
• If a lower offer is made — negotiate, backing your position with documents,
• If the claim is rejected — court proceedings are the next step.

Special situations

1. Future costs — long-term care

If the accident caused permanent incapacity and you need lifelong care, you can claim not only costs already incurred, but also estimated future costs.

Example: Spinal paralysis requiring round-the-clock care (10,000 PLN/month). You are 40 years old, with an average life expectancy to 80 — that is 40 years × 10,000 PLN × 12 months = 4.8 million PLN.

A court will assess whether that calculation is realistic or overstated.

2. Benefit for a family carer

If a family member gives up work to look after you, they may claim a carer's benefit — this is treated as a separate claim (also under Article 444 KC).

Example: Your spouse gives up a job paying 6,000 PLN/month to care for you. They can claim compensation for the lost income.

3. Alternative treatment — proceed with caution

Acupuncture, homeopathy and similar therapies — if they are not recommended by conventional doctors, the insurer is unlikely to pay, and a court may also refuse to award compensation for treatment it considers unnecessary.

⚠️ You are on much safer ground sticking with conventional treatment (registered hospitals, doctors and pharmacies).

FAQ

Can I claim back treatment costs I've already paid myself? Yes. If you spent 5,000 PLN on private treatment and can produce the invoices, you can claim reimbursement from the insurer. But you must show the treatment was necessary and reasonable.

Does the OC insurer have to cover seeing a psychologist? If the accident caused PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) and a doctor recommended psychological therapy, then yes — but you need a certificate from a psychiatrist or psychologist confirming the therapy is medically indicated.

What if I think the clinic over-tested me (ordered unnecessary tests)? This is difficult to prove without a second medical opinion. If you believe tests were unnecessary, you can ask another doctor for an opinion — but that will cost you extra.

Will travel to doctors' appointments always be covered? Not always. If specialists were available at a hospital but you live 100 km away, the insurer may argue you could have found a closer provider. Document your trips — keep taxi, parking and fuel receipts — but be prepared for only partial reimbursement.

Can I claim reimbursement for treatment I paid for before making a claim against the insurer? Yes, but you need to prove it with evidence. If you spent 10,000 PLN on treatment two years ago and are only now pursuing reimbursement, you will need the invoices to back that up.

Can the NFZ claim its own costs back from the insurer? In principle, yes — the NFZ can pursue its own recovery claim against the insurer. This does not affect you directly; you are claiming reimbursement of your own out-of-pocket costs.

Links and resources

• NFZ (National Health Fund): https://www.nfz.gov.pl — registered doctors and procedures (in Polish),
• Rzecznik Finansowy (Polish Financial Ombudsman): https://rf.gov.pl — procedures for dealing with insurers (in Polish),
• Polish Civil Code (Kodeks cywilny): https://isap.sejm.gov.pl — Article 444 KC (in Polish),
• UOKiK (Office of Competition and Consumer Protection): https://uokik.gov.pl — complaints about unfair insurer practices (in Polish).

Summary

Medical treatment and rehabilitation costs are generally fully recoverable from the at-fault driver's OC insurer, provided that: 1. They were medically necessary (backed by a doctor's certificate), 2. They were reasonable (not a luxury choice), 3. They are properly documented (invoices, receipts, certificates).

Documentation is everything. Every invoice and every medical certificate is evidence for the insurer — or the court — that the expense was necessary.

If the insurer refuses to pay: don't give up. Court proceedings can recover almost the whole amount claimed — provided your paperwork is solid.

Final disclaimer: This material is for general information only. If your treatment costs are substantial (over 10,000 PLN) or span several years, consider consulting a Polish lawyer — sometimes a more advanced recovery strategy is needed.

Last reviewed: 27 June 2026.