Uninsured Motorist Claim and insurance Blog

In Illinois, when YOU have insurance, you are protecting yourself against the possibility that you'll be hit and hurt by someone without insurance.   That part of YOUR policy is called the Uninsured Motorist (or Family Protection) Coverage and it allows you to collect compensation from your own insurance company, for the injuries and damages caused by the person without insurance.  After your c...

No Changes in Illinois minimum coverage for 2021!  That's the headline and the bad news.  Auto insurance is required for every vehicle in Illinois, and the state requires minimum coverage of $25000 per person/ $50,000 per vehicle for any injury crash.  It isn't enough!    So what can you do about that, comply with Illinois State law and protect yourself and your family.   The answer is to make ...

If you are hurt in a crash, it is crucial that you seek medical attention as soon as possible.  First of all, assessing your injuries and condition and getting the treatment you need is what's best for you.  This is obvious.  Don't make the mistake of "giving yourself some time" to heal if you've been hurt.

And second, if you have a legal claim to make for your injuries, the longer you wait, the...

The Covid Pandemic has ravaged society, with effects on every level of everyday life.   And it has also affected court cases and uninsured motorist cases, though in different ways.  For the most part, courts are shut down for in person hearings, and jury trials have ground to a halt.  None.  And who knows when it will be safe to resume in person jury trials

But the surprising good news is that u...

The quick answer is sure you can.    Your insurance policy has provisions that deal with the possibility that you or a family member driving your car will be hit by a driver with no insurance, or not enough insurance.  Your insurance company, complying with Illinois state law covers you, as if you are making a claim against the other driver.   It is then the right of your insurance company to t...

Medical insurance isn't so streamlined in America.  The latest statistics reveal that, even after the creation of the Affordable Care Act, there are millions and millions of people without health insurance.  So what will you do for medical care if you've been in a car crash or otherwise hurt where it's someone else's fault?

If you're hurt, regardless of having health insurance or not, you'll be ...

How much insurance do you really need?   Well, the short answer is "the more the better" but it gets expensive, right?   That said,  my strong advice is that you need AT LEAST coverage of 100/300 to be "minimally adequately insured."  So what does 100/300 mean?  It means that maximum payment to you or anyone in your car injured in a car crash is capped at $100,000.   And if someone is badly hur...

I recently settled a claim for a client who had been badly hurt when she was struck by a car while riding her bike.  She was thrown to the sidewalk, landing on her shoulder and head, then spent three days in a suburban hospital. Concussion, memory loss, foggy thinking, closed head injury and a shoulder injury.The driver who hit her was on his cell phone and he didn't have any insurance.  What m...

A requirement under most Illinois insurance policies is that the possible subrogation rights of the UIM carrier must be protected, or waived by that carrier, before making a settlement on the underlying case. It is incumbent on you, as the lawyer, that you notify the third party carrier of an offer to settle the third party case and get explicit permission from your client's UIM carrier to sign...