Hit by an Uninsured Driver in Chicago Suburbs: Your Rights and Options

When you discover the other driver has no insurance, the police report becomes your most critical piece of evidence. Call 911 and wait for your local suburban police department or Illinois State Police to arrive. The officer will document the crash, collect statements, and — importantly — record the other driver's information, including the fact that they could not provide proof of insurance. Under Illinois's Safety and Financial Responsibility Law (625 ILCS 5/7-601), all drivers must carry liability insurance, and driving without it is a Class A misdemeanor. The officer may cite the other driver.

Get the report number before officers leave. You will need this report to file a UM claim with your own insurer. If the other driver fled the scene — which uninsured drivers do more frequently because they know they are violating the law — the police report documents the hit-and-run, which activates your UM coverage under most policies.

Under 625 ILCS 5/11-406, you must file a written crash report with the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) within 10 days if damage exceeds $1,500 or anyone is injured. Under 625 ILCS 5/11-407, if no police officer is present at the scene, you must notify the nearest police authority by the fastest available means.

Uninsured motorist (UM) coverage is a type of insurance you carry on your own auto policy that pays for your injuries when the at-fault driver has no insurance. Under 215 ILCS 5/143a, every auto liability insurance policy issued in Illinois must include UM coverage unless the policyholder rejects it in writing. If you never signed a written UM rejection form, your policy should include UM coverage — even if your agent did not discuss it with you.

UM coverage pays for your medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering, and other damages — the same categories a liability claim against the other driver would cover. Your UM limits may equal your liability limits, but you may have chosen lower limits. Check your declarations page to see your UM coverage amounts. The minimum UM coverage in Illinois matches the minimum liability requirements: $25,000 per person and $50,000 per accident for bodily injury.

Filing a UM claim is different from a standard third-party insurance claim. You are filing against your own insurance company, but they still have an incentive to minimize the payout. Your insurer may deny the claim, dispute the other driver's fault, or argue your injuries are less severe than claimed. You have the right to demand arbitration if you and your insurer cannot agree on a settlement. The arbitration process is typically binding and is governed by your policy terms.

If you rejected UM coverage when you purchased your policy, your options are more limited — but not zero. You can sue the uninsured driver directly in civil court. You have the same right to pursue a personal injury claim against them as you would against any at-fault driver. The challenge is collection. A driver who cannot afford insurance often cannot afford to pay a judgment. Even if you win a lawsuit, you may face years of garnishment proceedings with minimal results.

Check whether you have other coverage that may help. Your own auto policy may include medical payments coverage (MedPay), which pays your medical bills regardless of fault, up to your policy limits. Your health insurance will cover medical treatment, though you may owe copays and deductibles. If you were injured while working, workers' compensation may apply. If you were a passenger in someone else's vehicle, that driver's UM coverage may apply to you.

Illinois law does not have a state fund or program to compensate victims of uninsured drivers. Your recovery depends on your own coverage, other available insurance, and whether the uninsured driver has assets that can satisfy a judgment. This is why UM coverage is so important — it is your financial safety net when the other driver has nothing.

A related but separate situation is when the at-fault driver has insurance, but their policy limits are too low to cover your damages. Illinois requires minimum bodily injury liability coverage of only $25,000 per person. If you have serious injuries with medical bills, lost wages, and pain and suffering totaling $100,000, but the at-fault driver carries only $25,000 in coverage, there is a $75,000 gap.

Underinsured motorist (UIM) coverage fills that gap. Like UM coverage, UIM is offered on Illinois auto policies under 215 ILCS 5/143a-2. It pays the difference between the at-fault driver's policy limits and your actual damages, up to your UIM limits. For example, if you have $100,000 in UIM coverage and the at-fault driver's insurer pays $25,000, your UIM coverage can pay up to an additional $75,000.

Many people in the Chicago suburbs carry only the state minimum liability coverage. Given the high volume of traffic and the severity of expressway accidents, minimum coverage is often inadequate. If you are reading this before an accident, consider increasing your UM and UIM limits — it is relatively inexpensive coverage that protects you against the significant risk of being hit by an uninsured or underinsured driver.

Illinois's modified comparative negligence rule (735 ILCS 5/2-1116) applies to UM claims the same way it applies to any other personal injury claim. If you share some fault for the accident, your UM payout is reduced by your percentage of fault. If you are 50% or more at fault, you recover nothing.

Your own insurance company may try to argue you were partially at fault to reduce the UM payout. Common arguments include: you were speeding, you failed to keep a proper lookout, you did not take evasive action, or you violated a traffic signal. This is why documenting the accident scene thoroughly — photographs, witness statements, police report — is critical even when the other driver is clearly uninsured.

If the uninsured driver fled the scene (a hit-and-run), proving the other driver's fault is harder because they are not present to give a statement or receive a citation. However, Illinois UM policies cover hit-and-run accidents. You will need to demonstrate that the hit-and-run driver caused the collision through physical evidence (vehicle damage consistent with being struck by another vehicle), witness testimony, or surveillance footage.

Illinois's statute of limitations for personal injury claims is 2 years from the date of injury (735 ILCS 5/13-202). This deadline applies whether you are filing a UM claim with your own insurer or suing the uninsured driver directly. For property damage only, the deadline is 5 years. If a government vehicle was involved, you must file a tort claim notice within 1 year (745 ILCS 10/).

Your UM policy may have its own notice requirements. Most policies require you to notify your insurance company of the accident within a reasonable time — typically within days, not weeks. Failure to provide prompt notice can give your insurer a basis to deny the claim. Report the accident to your insurer as soon as you learn the other driver is uninsured.

Under 625 ILCS 5/11-406, you must file a written crash report with IDOT within 10 days if the crash involves injury, death, or property damage exceeding $1,500. Do not let this deadline pass — the IDOT crash report is part of the official record and supports both your UM claim and any lawsuit you may file.

Want to understand your options after being hit by an uninsured driver in the Chicago suburbs? Get your free Injury Claim Check. You will answer a few questions about your accident, injuries, and insurance coverage, and we will provide a personalized report explaining your UM claim options, potential recovery, and next steps — and connect you with a Chicago-area personal injury attorney experienced in uninsured motorist claims.

Being hit by an uninsured driver is frustrating because you did everything right — you carried insurance, you followed the rules — and the other driver did not. Illinois law provides protections through UM coverage, but navigating a claim against your own insurance company can be adversarial. Start with the Injury Claim Check. It is free, confidential, and takes less time than being on hold with your insurance adjuster.