Illinois Car Accident Settlement Process and Timeline (2024)

After being involved in a motor vehicle collision that is not your fault, you can recover compensation for your damages. Many injured people wonder how long the Illinois car accident settlement process and timeline takes to resolve.

Unfortunately, there is no certain way to know how long a settlement will take to secure. Injured individuals can learn more about the factors that influence timelines and the steps typically involved in a settlement to better understand how long their case could take.

What Impacts the Timeline of Resolving a Car Accident Claim

Every settlement timeline after a car accident will be unique in Illinois. Different factors present in your case can increase or decrease the time it takes to reach a settlement. These include:

• Injury Severity: When a car accident results in catastrophic injuries, a settlement generally must be higher to recover those costs. Serious injuries have high medical costs, long-term medical, rehabilitative care, and long-term wage losses. It takes time to properly calculate these costs, and negotiating these higher costs can take much longer.
• Maximum Medical Improvement: You reach your maximum medical improvement when the injuries from a car accident have healed as much as they are expected to. There are fewer unknown, immediate medical costs, and medical professionals can better predict the long-term consequences of the injuries. If it takes a while for you to reach this stage, your claim may take longer.
• Liability Disputes: Whether liability is obvious or disputed by the other party can significantly affect how quickly a claim is resolved.
• Insurance Coverage: If the other party can cover your damages with their insurance coverage, this may allow a claim to be resolved more quickly.
• Evidence: The amount of evidence present can impact claim resolution. If there is not enough evidence, this will increase disputes over liability and other areas of the claim.
• Litigation: If a claim is filed in court, it will likely take much longer to resolve. The case must wait on the availability of the court and may take several court dates to resolve.

A professional car accident attorney can provide you with an individualized estimate of the timeline of your case.

Typical Steps in a Car Accident Settlement in Illinois

The process of settling a car accident claim typically includes the following:

1. File an Insurance Claim: You first file a car insurance claim with the provider of the driver you believe to be at fault for the accident. You request the paperwork from the insurance provider, which they must provide you. You can then use these forms to file your claim. It’s helpful to work with an attorney if you are unsure how to file these forms or you are not sure who was at fault for the accident.
2. Investigation Period: The insurance provider will begin an investigation of the car accident. You and your attorney can also begin investigations, which are important to ensure the facts presented by the insurance provider are correct. Part of the insurance provider’s investigation may include asking you questions, which you must approach carefully and with legal support.
3. Calculating and Proving Damages: You should compile a list of your damages to determine what a fair settlement is and gather evidence of those damages. This may include hospital bills, receipts of repairs, and other damages.
4. Send a Demand Letter: After investigation and damage calculation, you can create a demand letter for fair compensation. This letter should also include evidence of your request.
5. Response From the Insurer: An insurance provider may accept and pay the amount offered in the demand letter, and this would resolve the process more quickly. Insurers may also give a counter-offer, deny the claim, or fail to respond. Your attorney can help you address each of these scenarios.

If the claim is not resolved by insurer acceptance, then the claim may continue to negotiations for a fair settlement. If a fair settlement does not seem possible through negotiation, you may instead file the claim in court to get the compensation you are owed.

FAQs

Q: How Long Do Most Car Accident Settlements Take?

A: How long most car accident settlements take relies on many factors, and some are resolved much more quickly than others. A settlement’s resolution timeline will be affected by factors like:

• Whether the fault is clear or contested
• Whether the parties are each partially liable for the accident
• The number of parties involved in the collision
• How severe the damages and injuries are for each party
• The amount of supporting evidence available
• The other party’s willingness in negotiations
• If the case goes to trial

Q: How Much Can Someone Sue for in a Car Accident in Illinois?

A: How much someone can sue for in a car accident is directly related to the damages they have sustained. A claim can recover the damages an injured party has sustained but may also be limited by the amount of insurance coverage the at-fault party has.

The damages you can recover are also affected by your own percentage liability, which could limit the compensation by reducing it by your percentage fault. The other party acting with egregious negligence can result in additional damages in court.

Q: How Long Does an Insurance Company Have to Investigate a Claim in Illinois?

A: An insurance company must provide forms for submitting a claim within 21 days of a request and must provide a written explanation if there is a delay longer than 60 days to resolve a property damage claim or 30 days for personal injury.

However, the amount of time the insurance provider has outside of these requirements can vary. A more complex case can increase the time of investigation and allow a reasonable delay. Your attorney can let you know what to expect from your investigation timeline.

Q: Who Pays for Car Damage?

A: Who pays for car damage depends on the types of insurance coverage each party has and who was at fault for the accident. Illinois is an at-fault state, meaning that claims are typically filed with the insurance company of the driver who was at fault for the accident. Property damage to a vehicle is one of the things that can be covered in a car insurance claim, as well as medical bills for injuries and lost income.

Find a Car Accident Attorney to Ease the Settlement Process

Joshua R. Evans, Attorney at Law, can guide you in the settlement process, aiming for the ideal outcome. Contact our team if you or a loved one was injured because of another negligent driver.