Motorists must purchase insurance coverage in Illinois in order to protect themselves financially from a vehicle wreck. When you are injured by someone who lacks coverage, your own coverage may come into play. Our Chicago lawyers can assist with uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage after a motorcycle accident to protect you in the event of an incident. Ask our local motorcyclist injury attorneys for more information.
Although car insurance is mandatory in Illinois, the reality is not everyone purchases that insurance. If you are involved in a motorcycle accident and received injuries from someone who does not have auto insurance, your uninsured motorist coverage will step in and provide the compensation. If you fail to obtain uninsured motorist coverage, and are subsequently injured by an uninsured motorist, you likely will not receive any compensation. Typically, uninsured motorist limits are the same as same as their liability limits.
The amount of UM and UIM coverage is typically the same as the liability limits. In Chicago, the mandatory insurance limits are $25,000. While this is the minimum, it is always advisable to have higher policy limits. $100,000 should be considered the lowest amount of coverage one should purchase, and purchasing limits higher than that is also advisable.
This office has represented too many people who have sustained very serious injuries up to and including deaths where the parties had the state minimum of insurance. Even if the other driver has no insurance, their uninsured motorist coverage will cover them up to their policy limits. It is important to have adequate UM and UIM coverage as a motorcycle rider since so many people in Chicago do not carry coverage on their cars.
While UM and UIM coverage are similar, there are important distinctions. UM coverage means uninsured motorist coverage. If someone causes an accident and they have no insurance, their claim will be covered under UM insurance. If someone receives serious injuries, the person who caused the accident may not have sufficient insurance to fully compensate them for their injuries. Unlike uninsured motorist coverage, underinsured motorist coverage only applies after the at-fault driver’s insurance is exhausted. Both UM and UIM are important to include in any auto insurance policy which a motorcyclist may obtain.
The mandatory minimum insurance is $25,000 but insurance companies will write premiums up to $500,000 worth of coverage. Anything beyond this amount is considered an excess for umbrella coverage. Umbrella policy does not apply until after the underlying policy limits have been exhausted, and it rarely comes into play unless there are very serious injuries. An umbrella policy is not very expensive and is certainly something to consider purchasing for the additional peace of mind it will provide.
Insurance is mandatory in the state of Illinois, including for motorcycles. However, not everyone obeys the law and purchases liability insurance. If you are in a motorcycle accident, and the other driver has no insurance, you have an uninsured motorist claim. Most insurance policies will provide coverage for uninsured motorist accidents. If you are injured in a motorcycle accident with an uninsured driver, but have your own policy on the motorcycle, it is likely you will be entitled to a settlement for the motorcycle crash.
Call McCready law and speak to a personal injury lawyer right away if you were hurt while riding your motorcycle and must use UM or UIM coverage.
