Car Insurance Liability Increases with New Year

On January 1, the minimum mandatory car insurance liability will increase in Illinois for the first time in 25 years. The minimum liability for one person will be raised to $25,000, meant to cover the injury or death of a passenger sustained in a car accident. When legislators first proposed the increase, it was originally proposed to be double this, but there was concern that this increase would be too high for lower-income consumers, forcing many to drive without car insurance. Thus the amendment to the Illinois Vehicle Code was increased only $5,000 from the previous level.

The worry that Illinois drivers would drive without car insurance is a serious one. Statistics from the Insurance Information Institute reveal that 15 percent of Illinois drivers currently drive illegally, without insurance. According to representative Laura Fine, a Democrat in the state legislature from Glenview, the $25,000 figure was a product of tough negotiation, yet critics of the bill say that $5,000 is not enough an increase to account for the inflation of medical costs. In 1989, the insurance liability minimum was increased to $20,000, which is equivalent to $37,000 today. The $5,000 increase hardly matches this cost of inflation. Not to mention that a patients’ out-of-pocket medical costs (not reimbursed by insurance in the event of a car accident) have grown nearly 22 percent in the past year.

According to statistics from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, motor vehicle crashes in the U.S. cost the nation nearly $1 trillion in loss of productivity and loss of life in 2010 alone. The average claim losses for bodily harm or injury sustained in a car accident increased 4 percent between 2007 and 2012.

If you have been injured in an accident and have questions about insurance claims and how to begin the process, the most important step is to seek the counsel of a dedicated legal professional. Do not go through it alone. Contact an experienced Chicago accident attorney today.