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What does car insurance cover after a crash?

On Behalf of | Mar 3, 2022 | Motor Vehicle Accidents |

In Illinois, auto insurance is there to protect you against financial losses in the case of an accident. By law, all vehicle owners have to have at least minimum liability insurance on their vehicles. For financed vehicles, it may be required to have collision coverage, sometimes called full coverage.

Depending on the kinds of insurance held during a car accident, your insurance or the other party’s insurance may cover different aspects of your care and recovery. Keep in mind that Illinois is an at-fault state, which means that the driver who is at-fault may be held financially responsible for the collision and any damages or injuries that resulted from it.

Liability coverage is actually two categories of coverage

With liability coverage, you have two types of coverage. The first is bodily injury coverage, and the second is property damage coverage. By law, bodily injury coverage has to pay for costs related to the injury or death of a person in another vehicle or if a pedestrian. BI limits state that drivers must have at least $25,000 of coverage per person and $50,000 minimum per accident.

Property damage coverage makes sure you can get coverage for damage done to a vehicle or other kinds of property. The state requires at least $20,000 in coverage per accident.

Illinois also asks drivers to obtain uninsured motorist bodily injury coverage and underinsured motorist bodily injury insurance. If the other driver who hit you does not have insurance or doesn’t have enough, these kinds of coverage help you get compensated by your own insurance provider.

After a car crash, insurance coverage should kick in

After you’re involved in an auto collision, either your own insurance or another driver’s insurance will cover your losses depending on if you are the one who caused the crash or if the other driver is at fault. If you have other kinds of coverage, like medical payment coverage or collision coverage, then those kinds of coverage may also kick in for you and help you cover some of your financial losses as you begin your recovery.

If you’re not sure what to expect, it may be worth discussing your policy with someone familiar with state law. If the other driver is at fault, you’ll want to put together a strong personal injury claim to get the money you need.