Full Coverage Car Insurance in Illinois

Being in a serious accident is unnerving and inconvenient as it may mean you’ll be without your car for some time. The greater the damage, the longer the repairs will take. One way to reduce the risk of feeling stranded from the ability to get to work, school, the grocery, or other locations is to add rental reimbursement coverage to your policy.

Rental coverage is available if you’re in an accident and your car also carries comprehensive insurance and collision coverage. At American Auto Insurance, rental reimbursement will provide an amount, usually about $25 or $30 per day, to defray the rental cost. The payments cover only the cost of the rental, not extra items such as gas.

Illinois law requires drivers to purchase a minimum amount of liability insurance. The consequences are severe if the police stop you and find you’re driving without valid insurance in place. A first offense of driving without valid insurance can result in your license being suspended for three months, along with a maximum $1,000 fine.

Depending on the circumstances, the state may also deem you a "problem driver" and require you to purchase a Certificate of Financial Responsibility, also known as an SR-22 car insurance policy. For instance, anyone with three or more convictions for insurance violations is automatically required to purchase SR-22 insurance.

Usually pays for the Medical payment coverage, or personal injury protection (PIP), is another type of voluntary insurance that can provide compensation to cover the medical expenses of people injured in car accidents. You don’t require this coverage in Illinois, but it’s helpful to have it as it provides compensation for injuries that your health insurance may not cover or when you need financial coverage before an insurance settlement. PIP helps defray the costs of deductibles and co-pays, ambulance fees, emergency room visits, and other types of expenses. expenses of anyone in your car who is injured.

The law in Illinois requires drivers to cover their vehicles with specific minimum amounts of liability insurance to protect others on the road from the risk of financial catastrophe. It recognizes that every time you get behind the wheel, you have the chance of harming other people or damaging their vehicles or other property.

Illinois law requires the following two forms of liability insurance:

• Bodily injury, which pays damages in accidents that involve physical injuries to others, including passengers in your vehicle. You must have a minimum of $25,000 of coverage for the injury or death of one person and $50,000 for the injury or death of multiple people. This insurance does not cover your own injuries.
• Property damage, which pays damages for harm caused to another's property, such as the other driver's car or other items they own or carry. The minimum required in Illinois is $20,000.

American Auto Insurance can provide you with both these types of insurance. In today's society, you may need more than these minimum amounts to cover the types of judgments that can occur following accidents. Our agents can help assess the level of risk you face on the road and make recommendations, based on data, for the proper amounts to carry above just the minimum level.

Collision coverage is an optional form of insurance that comes into play should you ever have the unfortunate experience of hitting an object externally. This could be a guardrail, a tree, a mailbox, or some other stationary object, as well as another car. According to the Insurance Information Institute, collision insurance also pays for damages from hitting potholes or in single-vehicle accidents.

Collision insurance is not required in Illinois or any other state; however, lenders often require it as a condition of your loans. Our agents at American Auto Insurance can help explain the nature of collision insurance and whether it makes sense for you.

According to the Illinois Secretary of State, liability coverage in Illinois automatically includes coverages in instances that involve either a hit-and-run driver or an at-fault driver with no liability insurance. The minimums for this coverage are typically $25,000 per person or $50,000 per accident. You can buy higher limits to add to your policy. Check with our agents at American Auto Insurance for counsel on what’s best for you. Underinsured motorist coverage comes into play to fill gaps between uninsured motorist limits and liability limits.

If you have more questions about vehicle insurance coverage, contact our team of agents at American Auto Insurance. We'll answer your questions and provide a free quote. With offices across Illinois, we're sure to have a location close to you. Contact one of our agents today to discuss your options. Call us now at 773-286-3500 to get your personalized car insurance quote.