Does PIP cover my passengers?

The general order matters here.

A passenger who owns a vehicle with PIP generally looks to their own policy first, regardless of whose car they were riding in.

A passenger who doesn't own a vehicle may be covered by a resident relative's policy.

A passenger with neither may look to the PIP on the vehicle they were occupying.

That sequence produces results people find surprising — your passenger's own insurer usually pays, not yours.

Why the distinction matters. If you're the driver, your passengers aren't necessarily drawing down your $10,000. And if you're the passenger, opening a claim with your own insurer is usually the first step even though you weren't driving.

Beyond PIP, a passenger can pursue claims against any at-fault driver — including the one they were riding with — and those claims are separate from the PIP question.

Sorting out which policy applies is worth doing early, because treatment gets billed while it's unresolved.