Injured in a Car Accident in Chicago?

The compensation you receive in a car accident lawsuit – whether through a verdict or settlement – should make you “whole.” In other words, it should come as close as possible to returning you to the position you were in before being injured by another person’s negligent driving. This amount will differ from case to case. To determine the amount of damages that should be recovered in your case, your lawyer will examine many factors, including: Past and future medical expenses Lost income and diminished future earnings Pain and suffering You may also be eligible to recover punitive damages. Unlike the above damages, these damages are not aimed at making you whole but rather at punishing the party who harmed you in an auto accident and deterring future misconduct. These damages typically are awarded where the at-fault party engaged in reckless or intentional misconduct such as drunk driving or road rage. If you have lost a loved one in a crash, you would seek wrongful death damages, which consists of “just and fair compensation” for your own losses, including the loss of money, goods and services provided by your loved one. It is important to note that any recovery would be limited to the amount of available insurance coverage, including the at-fault party’s liability coverage and your own insurance such as uninsured / underinsured motorist (UM / UIM) coverage.

At Salvi, Schostok & Pritchard P.C., our attorney fees are paid from the settlement or court award we obtain for you. We only receive this payment at the end of the case, and only if we are successful. Simply put: We don’t get paid until you do. The payment does not come out of your own pocket. Instead, it is deducted from the check the insurance company writes if and when we obtain a recovery for you. If we do not obtain a recovery for you, you pay us nothing for our services. The American Bar Association describes this as a “contingency” or “contingent” fee. The legal fee is contingent, or depends, on the result the law firm obtains for you and the amount of the recovery. When we agree to pursue a claim for you, and you agree to have us represent you, we will enter into a contract that states that we will receive a percentage of any settlement or court award from the case plus repayment for costs. You should note that Salvi, Schostok & Pritchard P.C. has a record of obtaining results for our clients in a wide range of personal injury and wrongful death cases, including 350 cases resulting in awards of $1 million or more. We begin each case with a free and confidential consultation. This consultation allows us to answer questions you may have about your legal rights and options. It also allows us to review the facts of your case and help you to decide whether pursing a car accident claim is in your best interests.

If you share responsibility for the accident, you could still recover partial compensation. Do not assume you are not eligible for compensation, or you could lose out on damages the law would provide if you took legal action. Illinois uses a modified comparative fault rule. This means you may take legal action and obtain compensation as long as the other motorist was at least 51 percent responsible for the motorcycle accident. If the other driver failed to yield, sped, drove while intoxicated, cut you off or engaged in many of the other behaviors that commonly lead to motorcycle accidents, you can pursue a claim. You will need to show that the motorist’s behavior was the primary cause of the accident. Under modified comparative fault rules, the compensation you receive is reduced by the percent of fault attributed to your actions. If you had $100,000 in damages, and the other driver was 60 percent responsible for the motorcycle accident, you can recover $60,000 in compensation (60 percent of $100,000). See How Much Is My Case Worth? to learn more about compensation that may be available to you.

What your insurance company might pay you starts with what your policy entails. If you have the minimum amount of auto insurance required by Illinois law, then you have coverage that is supposed to pay you for a car accident caused by uninsured motorists. Most of the auto insurance drivers are required to buy in Illinois is liability insurance. This coverage makes payments for injuries the policyholder causes others. So, typically, if you are in an accident caused by someone else, you seek a settlement through that driver’s liability insurance. However, as the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety estimates, more than 12 percent of drivers lack required insurance. Even if they have the requisite coverage, it may be at the minimum levels and fail to cover the full amount of your losses. In fact, this tends to happen in severe accidents. If the driver lacks insurance or has inadequate insurance, you can turn to your uninsured / underinsured (UM/UIM) coverage. At a minimum, your uninsured (UM) policy should pay $20,000 per person and $40,000 per accident for bodily injury caused by an uninsured motorist. Of course, you may have purchased more than the minimum. Your coverage would depend on the amount you purchased. If you have higher underinsured limits than the at-fault driver, you may be able to collect the difference between the policies. So, yes – if you have coverage that applies, you can probably collect some money from your insurance company after a crash caused by another driver. The question is: How much will you recover? You would like to get the maximum amount that your coverage provides. However, your insurer would like to pay you less – perhaps much less. Even when you have what looks like a simple, straightforward claim, you can usually benefit from having help from Salvi, Schostok & Pritchard P.C.