Chicago Uninsured Motorist Accident Lawyer

Chicago Uninsured Motorist Accident Attorneys Who Fight for You

You did everything right. You stopped, you called 911, and you still watched the other car speed away, or you found out at the scene that the driver who hit you had no insurance at all. Now you are staring down medical bills with no one obvious to pay them.

D&W Law Group has spent more than three decades pulling compensation out of exactly these situations for Chicago drivers, cyclists, and pedestrians, using the uninsured motorist coverage sitting inside their own policies.

We know the panic that sets in when a claims adjuster tells you there is “no one to sue.” That is rarely the end of the story, and it is the start of ours.

Recovering Money For Injuries From An Uninsured Motorist Or Hit-And-Run Driver

When you are injured by an uninsured motorist or a hit-and-run driver, recovering compensation can be challenging. Unlike accidents involving insured drivers, where you would typically file a claim against the at-fault driver’s insurance, your compensation will likely come from your own insurance through your uninsured motorist (UM) coverage.

All Illinois drivers are required by law to have UM coverage to protect them from situations where liable drivers do not have any coverage or where the other driver flees the scene of the accident. This way, you can still receive compensation for the injuries you sustained in your accident.

The Role Of Uninsured Motorist Coverage In Illinois

Uninsured motorist coverage is a critical component of your auto insurance policy. This legally-required coverage comes with minimum coverage values of:

• $25,000 per person for bodily injury
• $50,000 per accident for bodily injury if multiple people are injured

Illinois law spells this out directly: every auto liability policy issued in the state must include uninsured motorist coverage, and that coverage cannot be waived below the state’s minimum bodily injury limits.

While this amount of coverage may seem to be high, it can quickly vanish in the costs related to a severe accident, which is why it is important to consider getting higher limits for your coverage.

Medical bills, lost income and other expenses can deplete your UM coverage, and once those funds are gone, you may have to pay the remaining costs out of your own pocket.

Insurers must also offer underinsured motorist (UIM) coverage, which fills the gap when the at-fault driver has a policy but it is too small to cover your damages. Unless you rejected that added coverage in writing, it typically matches your own liability limits, not just the $25,000/$50,000 state floor.

A common trap: the UIM insurer is allowed to subtract whatever you already collected from the at-fault driver’s insurer, so the math behind your payout is rarely as simple as “policy limit minus what you got.” We walk clients through that offset line by line before they sign anything.

What Illinois Law Requires Of Every Hit-And-Run Driver

Illinois does not leave a driver’s decision to flee the scene as a private choice. Under the Illinois Vehicle Code, a driver involved in a crash that causes injury or death must stop, provide information, and render aid, and failing to stop after a crash carries real prison time, not just a ticket. The charge escalates fast depending on what happened at the scene:

A conviction under this section also triggers automatic driver’s license revocation by the Secretary of State.

That criminal exposure is separate from your civil claim, but it matters to you as a victim for a practical reason: a police report documenting a hit-and-run investigation, an arrest, or a plate number from a witness or traffic camera is often the thread that ties the fleeing driver back to your uninsured motorist claim.

Talk to us before you sign anything from an insurance adjuster. Contact us for a free consultation.

How The Amount Of Compensation Depends On Your Policy

The amount of compensation you can recover under your uninsured motorist coverage depends on the specific terms and limits of your policy. If you elected a smaller coverage plan, some or most of the cost of your recovery may fall onto you. Before you make any elections, make sure you review your policy and consider increasing your UM coverage limits.

Filing a claim under your UM coverage means that your insurance provider will review your injuries and other damages and determine what kind of compensation you will receive.

Our role as your legal representation in these matters is to ensure they consider all factors, including medical expenses, lost wages, pain and suffering, and any long-term impact on your quality of life, so you receive the fair and full compensation you deserve.

Damages Covered By Uninsured Motorist Coverage

Uninsured motorist coverage is designed to compensate you for many different expenses associated with an accident with an uninsured or hit-and-run driver. Some common expenses include:

Medical Expenses

UM coverage will compensate you for medical expenses related to the accident. This includes costs for emergency care, hospital stays, surgeries, medications, physical therapy, and even rehabilitation and therapy costs.

Lost Wages

If you cannot work because of your injuries, UM coverage can compensate you for lost wages. In addition to recovering the money you missed out on from not being able to work, you may also be able to receive compensation for the income your injuries keep you from earning because of your disability.

Pain And Suffering

UM coverage can compensate you for non-economic damages, such as pain and suffering, in addition to economic damages. We can help you secure compensation for the physical and emotional trauma you experienced from your accident.

Property Damage

While UM coverage primarily focuses on bodily injury, some policies may also include coverage for property damage. This can help cover the costs of repairing or replacing your vehicle if it was damaged in the accident. It is important to review your policy to understand the specific coverage provided.

Steps To Take After A Hit-And-Run In Chicago

What you do in the first hours and days after a hit-and-run shapes whether your UM claim gets paid in full or gets picked apart by an adjuster later. We tell every client to:

1. Call 911 and get an official crash report. Illinois treats a crash report as required when a crash causes injury, death, or more than $1,500 in property damage when all drivers are insured, and that report becomes the backbone of your UM claim.
2. Write down anything you saw about the other vehicle, even a partial plate, color, or direction of travel. Chicago Police and Illinois State Police sometimes identify fleeing drivers days later from exactly these details.
3. Get medical care immediately, even if you feel “fine.” Soft-tissue and head injuries often surface hours or days later, and a gap in treatment gives an insurer an excuse to argue your injuries came from something else.
4. Notify your own insurer promptly to open the uninsured motorist claim, but do not give a recorded statement or accept a settlement offer before talking with a lawyer.
5. Photograph the scene, your vehicle, and your injuries before repairs are made or bruises fade.
6. Keep every bill, receipt, and pay stub tied to the crash. Insurers routinely undervalue lost wages and out-of-pocket costs that were never logged.

Illinois Deadlines That Can Cut Off Your Claim

Illinois generally gives injury victims two years from the date of the crash to file a personal injury lawsuit. That deadline sounds generous until you remember that building a UM claim means gathering medical records, wage documentation, and often a full police investigation into a driver who is no longer at the scene.

Two situations shrink that window even further and catch Chicago accident victims off guard:

• Claims against a government body. If a hit-and-run or uninsured-vehicle crash involves a CTA bus, a Chicago Park District vehicle, or another local government entity, a much shorter one-year deadline applies, and some agencies require written notice within months of the crash, long before the lawsuit deadline arrives.
• Your own insurer’s contractual deadline. Many UM policies set their own notice and arbitration deadlines that are shorter than any court filing deadline. Missing a policy deadline can bar your claim even though you would still be within the general two-year window.

Because these deadlines can run independently of each other, we open every uninsured motorist file by identifying every clock that is running, not just the obvious one.

How We Build Your Uninsured Motorist Claim

D&W Law Group was founded by two trial lawyers who have each spent more than three decades in Illinois courtrooms. Co-founder Lance C. Dale has been licensed to practice law in Illinois since 1990 and focuses much of his practice on catastrophic injury and wrongful death claims, the same category many severe hit-and-run cases fall into.

Co-founder Scott B. Wolfman has been licensed in Illinois since 1993 and has spent that career on motor vehicle, construction, and medical malpractice matters.

When your own insurer disputes the value of a UM claim, the fight is really about the math behind future medical costs and lost earning capacity. Attorney Mark Curran III brings a finance degree paired with his law degree to that math, which matters when an adjuster tries to lowball a claim involving long-term care or permanent disability.

Because Chicago is home to drivers, cyclists, and pedestrians from every corner of the world, we also serve clients in English and Spanish, so a language barrier never becomes another reason a claim gets delayed. Our attorneys hold memberships in the American Association for Justice and the Illinois Trial, organizations built around keeping plaintiff-side trial skills sharp.

If your uninsured motorist claim can’t be resolved through negotiation or arbitration, it can end up in litigation in the Law Division of the Circuit Court of Cook County, housed in the Richard J. Daley Center at 50 West Washington Street in downtown Chicago.

We prepare every UM file as though it may end up in front of a judge there, because insurers negotiate differently with a firm that is ready to try the case.

Case Results From Our Motor Vehicle Practice

Numbers do not replace the seriousness of what happened to you, but they show how we have valued similar crashes for other Chicago clients.

Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need a lawyer if the other driver fled the scene?

You are not required to hire one, but you are now negotiating with your own insurance company instead of someone else’s, and your insurer’s financial interest is to pay you as little as possible. An attorney reviewing your policy language and the police report early can prevent an adjuster from undervaluing the claim before you even know what it’s worth.

What if the hit-and-run driver is never identified?

Your uninsured motorist coverage does not require the other driver to be caught. As long as the crash is reported and documented, typically through a police report and independent evidence like witness statements or vehicle damage consistent with a collision, your own UM coverage can still respond to the claim.

Will my insurance rate go up if I file a UM claim in Illinois?

In Illinois, most insurers do not surcharge you for a claim where you were not at fault, including one paid through your own uninsured motorist coverage, though state law does not flatly prohibit every rate change.

If your rate changes after a no-fault claim, that increase is worth questioning directly with the insurer or the Illinois Department of Insurance.

What is the difference between UM and UIM coverage?

Uninsured motorist coverage applies when the at-fault driver has no insurance at all or cannot be identified, as in most hit-and-run cases. Underinsured motorist coverage applies when the at-fault driver has insurance, but the policy limits are too small to cover your full damages.

Does Illinois require Personal Injury Protection (PIP)?

No. Unlike no-fault states, Illinois does not require or generally offer traditional PIP coverage. Instead, Illinois requires uninsured motorist coverage and allows optional Medical Payments (MedPay) coverage, which can pay initial medical bills regardless of fault while a UM claim is developed.

What if I was hit by a CTA bus or a Chicago city vehicle instead of a private driver?

Claims involving the CTA, a Chicago Park District vehicle, or another local government body are not handled like a standard uninsured motorist claim.

They typically carry a much shorter filing deadline and may require written notice to the government body within months of the crash, so these cases need attention immediately, not after months of medical treatment.

How common are hit-and-run crashes in Chicago?

Hit-and-run crashes are a significant part of Chicago’s traffic safety problem. The City of Chicago reports that 42% of pedestrian deaths in Chicago involved hit-and-run in 2024, based on Illinois Department of Transportation crash data, a rate far higher than many other major cities.

Should I increase my uninsured motorist coverage above the state minimum?

Given how frequently hit-and-run and uninsured-driver crashes occur in Chicago, carrying only the state’s $25,000/$50,000 minimum can leave a serious injury largely unpaid. Many drivers choose to raise their UM/UIM limits to match their liability coverage precisely because of this gap.

How long do I have to file a claim after a Chicago hit-and-run?

Illinois generally allows two years from the date of the crash to file a personal injury lawsuit, but your insurance policy may set its own shorter deadline for reporting a UM claim or demanding arbitration, and claims against a government-owned vehicle can carry a one-year deadline instead.

Because these clocks can run independently, it is safest to start the claim process as soon as you are able.

What does it cost to talk to D&W Law Group about my case?

We offer free consultations, and we do not get paid unless we recover money for you. There is no upfront cost to finding out whether you have a viable uninsured motorist claim.

Serious Lawyers For Serious Injury Cases

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How We Can Help You

Navigating the complexities of uninsured motorists and hit-and-run accident claims can be challenging, especially when negotiating with insurance companies that may try to minimize your compensation. Our personal injury lawyers focus on helping clients get paid what an uninsured motorist claim is actually worth, not what an adjuster first offers.

We provide our clients with custom-tailored representation to ensure their needs are addressed at every stage of their compensation claims. We take the time to explore all available options in every case we take before presenting them to our clients.

We gather evidence, negotiate with insurance companies, and prepare every uninsured motorist claim as though it may need to go to trial.

Talk To A Chicago Uninsured Accident Lawyer Today

If a driver with no insurance, or no willingness to stop, left you to deal with the damage alone, you still have a path to compensation through your own policy. We can review your coverage, handle the insurance company, and tell you honestly what your claim is worth. Contact us for a free consultation with a Chicago uninsured accident lawyer today.