The person who caused the accident had minimal or sub-standard insurance.

Often, people are involved in automobile accidents where the person responsible for the accident has the state-mandated minimum coverage available. The state-minimum coverage of $20,000.00 often then limits the guilty party’s liability to solely that amount. What this means is that no matter how catastrophic your injury may be, the maximum payout to you for compensation will be $20,000.00. Often times, the medical bills alone in a case eat up the entire $20,000.00. However, if you have purchased under-insured coverage from your carrier, you have a claim against your own insurance company thus protecting you from those under-insured drivers. Illinois law requires that all auto insurance liability carriers offer under-insured motorist coverage. The law does not, however, require that individuals purchase that coverage.

To hold your insurance company liable, you need to hire a Joliet lawyer experienced in under-insured coverage. The reason being is that the relationship between the injured person and his/her insurance company now becomes adversarial and often proceeds to a binding arbitration. In an under-insured motorist situation, the insurance company steps into the shoes of the responsible party, and generally, a claim must be prepared as if for trial in order to properly arbitrate the case. To properly protect your rights against your insurance carrier during this complex process, you should contact our Will County lawyers.