Uninsured Motorist Coverage — Illinois
Uninsured motorist coverage pays your medical bills and vehicle damage when the at-fault driver has no insurance or flees the scene.
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What Is Uninsured Motorist Coverage Insurance?
Uninsured motorist coverage steps in when the driver who hit you has no liability insurance or can't be identified after a hit-and-run. It pays your medical expenses, lost wages, and in some states your vehicle damage, up to your policy limits. Your own carrier writes the check, but only after you prove the other driver was at fault and either uninsured or untraceable. This is not a substitute for your own collision or medical payments coverage — it's a backup that applies only when the at-fault party lacks insurance.
Who Needs Uninsured Motorist Coverage Insurance?
Retirees with savings, home equity, or other assets that could be targeted in a lawsuit after an accident with an uninsured driver should carry UM limits at least equal to their liability limits. Medicare does not cover all accident-related costs immediately, and supplemental health plans often apply deductibles — UM bodily injury coverage pays those gaps without a health insurance claim.
If you dropped collision to save money, add UM property damage so a hit-and-run doesn't leave you replacing your car out of pocket. If your health insurance leaves you with high deductibles or coinsurance on accident care, UM bodily injury fills that gap and pays faster than health insurers process claims.
How Much Does Uninsured Motorist Coverage Insurance Cost?
- Your ZIP code's uninsured driver rate — Cook County and Metro East near St. Louis show higher uninsured rates than collar counties, which raises UM premiums.
- Your carrier's claims experience with UM payouts in Illinois — insurers that process more hit-and-run claims in urban corridors charge more for this coverage statewide.
- Whether you stack UM limits across multiple vehicles on one policy, which Illinois allows and which roughly doubles the cost but also doubles the available limit after a serious accident.
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