The days and weeks after a car accident are often chaotic and confusing, especially if you are dealing with painful injuries, medical procedures, and the recovery process. Car accident victims often wonder why they’ve been paying insurance premiums for auto insurance liability coverage if their policy doesn’t cover their losses after an accident.
This is a common misconception, based on the fact that our medical insurance covers our own costs, and our homeowners’ insurance does as well. However, auto liability insurance doesn’t cover your damages. Instead, it covers the other motorist’s losses after an accident if you were responsible for the accident.
Reach out to our auto accident attorney in Chicago for assistance if you are having issues with liability in an accident.
Illinois has a 25/50/20 minimum insurance requirement, providing up to:
This liability insurance does not cover the policyholder. Instead, it’s meant to protect you from direct liability for an accident that you’re responsible for. If you’ve caused an accident, the injury victim can recover compensation for their losses from your insurance rather than requiring you to pay their injury-related expenses from your personal funds or property.
Illinois also requires every driver to carry uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage that equals the above 25/50/20 requirement.
If you were not responsible for the accident and the other driver caused it, you can file a claim for your property damage and personal injury expenses against the at-fault party’s liability insurance because they are liable for your damages, like medical expenses, lost wages, and compensation for pain and suffering.
If the other driver does not have insurance and they caused the accident, you can file a claim to recover your losses from your uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage. This policy also covers you if your medical expenses and lost earnings exceed the limits of an at-fault driver’s insurance.
Illinois 735 ILCS 5/2–1116 states the following:
“The plaintiff shall not be barred from recovering damages if the trier of fact finds that the contributory fault on the part of the plaintiff is not more than 50% of the proximate cause of the injury or damage for which recovery is sought, but any damages allowed shall be diminished in the proportion to the amount of fault attributable to the plaintiff.”
In other words, even if you were partly responsible for an accident, you can recover a portion of your damages from the other party’s insurance as long as you are less than 50% at fault. The insurance company subtracts your percentage of fault from the payout on your claim.
Insurance claims can quickly become complex after an accident, especially when there is any question about which driver was most at fault. In these cases, insurance adjusters may point fingers and attempt to assign undue fault to an injury victim who has expensive damages.
Instead of leaving your claim in the hands of an insurance company that is not on your side, call Smith LaCien LLP to schedule a free consultation and skilled, assertive legal representation throughout the process.
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