Car and Auto Accident Attorneys
Tell Us What Happened, We’ll Tell You If You Have A Case
We help you understand your options and protect yourself early. Let’s Map Your Next Steps After the Crash. Simple steps. Clear options. No pressure
What to Say (and not say) to Insurance
Clear Roadmap for the Next 30 Days
Servicing Cook, Lake, & Dupage County
Trusted by Families & Business Professionals Across Chicagoland
Three Questions That Decide the Next 30 Days
Clear answers, a simple plan, and the next step
After a crash, the hardest part isn’t “legal.” It’s knowing what to do first and what can wait. If you’re feeling pressure from insurance, dealing with symptoms that aren’t consistent yet, or just trying to keep the situation from getting messy, this is for you. Below are the three questions we walk through on the first call so you leave with a clear plan for the next few weeks.
Most people don’t ruin a claim with one big mistake, they do it with a few small ones in the first week. The “right” first move depends on what’s already happened: whether a report was made, what you told insurance so far, whether you’ve seen a doctor yet, and whether your symptoms are changing.
On the first call, we get the timeline clear, identify any risk points, and tell you exactly what to do next so you don’t get boxed into a story you didn’t mean to create.
Think of the next few days as “stabilizing the situation.” You’re creating a clean record while you still remember details and before outside pressure ramps up. We’ll talk through what you’ve already done, what you should document, and how to handle the early conversations with insurance so you don’t feel rushed into statements or decisions before you know the full picture. If you’re treating, we’ll also explain how to keep your care and paperwork organized so the next month doesn’t become chaos.
The first call is simple: you tell us what happened, we ask a few focused questions, and we map the next steps. You’ll leave knowing what matters right now, what can wait, and what your next 7–30 days should look like.
If it’s a straightforward auto accident case we can handle, we’ll explain how that works and what you can expect. If it needs a different level of resources or it’s better served by a partner firm we’ll tell you that clearly and help route it the right way.
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Our Auto-Accident Legal Process:
A clear path from first call to next steps
After a crash, most people are juggling too many moving pieces at once. Insurance calls, medical questions, paperwork, car repairs, and work. The point of our process is to take that pile and put it into an order. You will know what happens first, what matters most, and what you can safely ignore for now.
- Accident Report and Timeline Review
- Focus on Treatment: We Help Set Up the Medical Record
- Insurance Handling and Claim Building
- Demand, Negotiation, and Decisions
- Resolution, Disbursement, and Wrap Up
We start by getting the story straight in a way that is easy to repeat consistently. We walk through what happened, where it happened, who was involved, and what was said at the scene. We confirm what documentation exists so far, like a police report number, photos, witness names, and insurance information. We also talk through your symptoms and whether you have already seen a doctor, urgent care, or the ER.
By the end of this step, you should know the immediate priorities. You should also know what you should not do yet, like guessing in a recorded statement, signing releases you do not understand, or rushing into a quick settlement before your condition is clear.
This step is about protecting your recovery. We focus on your treatment and making sure the medical side is documented in a clean, consistent way. If you are treating, we help you understand what insurers typically look for in treatment timelines and records so nothing gets misread later. If you are not treating but still feel symptoms, we talk through what to watch for and how to document changes in a practical way.
While you focus on getting better, we help keep the paperwork from becoming chaos. We will show you exactly what to save and how to organize it so you are not scrambling later. That includes bills, visit summaries, prescriptions, time missed from work, and out of pocket expenses. If property damage and rental car issues are part of the picture, we clarify what is handled where so the injury claim stays separate from the repair process.
Once treatment is underway and the basics are organized, we take over communication with the insurance companies so you can stay focused on recovery. We notify the carriers that you are represented when appropriate, route calls and requests through our office, and keep the claim moving without you having to manage constant follow ups. We guide what information is reasonable to provide and what should be handled carefully, especially early in the claim.Once the foundation is set, we handle the communication flow and keep the claim on track. We notify the insurance carriers that you are represented when appropriate and we route calls and requests through our office. We guide you on what information is reasonable to provide and what should be handled carefully.
As your treatment progresses, we keep the claim organized around facts insurers actually use. That includes the timeline, medical records, billing, wage loss documentation if applicable, and how the injury affected your day to day life. The point is not to inflate anything. The point is to make sure the claim reflects reality in a clear, defensible way.
When it makes sense based on your medical progress, we package the claim and make a demand. We explain the timing here because it matters. Moving too early can leave money on the table if treatment is incomplete. Waiting too long can create unnecessary delays. We will talk you through what stage you are in and why.
During negotiation, we keep you informed and we translate what is happening into plain English. You will know what is being offered, what is missing, what the insurer is arguing, and what options you actually have. If the case requires a level of litigation resources that is beyond what makes sense for your matter, we will discuss that clearly and coordinate a referral if needed.
If your case resolves through settlement or another outcome, we walk through the settlement terms before you sign. We explain what releases mean, what happens after you sign, and what the timeline typically looks like to finalize everything.
Then we handle the closing steps. That includes receiving the settlement funds, addressing any liens or medical balances that must be handled, and disbursing the final amount with a clear accounting so there are no surprises. We also make sure your file is wrapped up cleanly and that you know what to keep for your records going forward.
When You Can’t Afford To Be Wrong, Get Clear Answers
Auto Accident Lawyer Questions, Answered
The Illinois specific details that usually decide what happens next.
In most cases, the other driver’s insurer won’t issue a final settlement until you sign a release. A release usually means you are accepting a final amount and giving up the right to ask for more money later for whatever the release covers.
The important question is scope: some releases are meant to settle only property damage, while others settle everything, including bodily injury, sometimes even covering “known and unknown” injuries. If the vehicle amount is agreed but the injury side is still evolving, Illinois consumer guidance notes the insurer generally should not refuse to pay the agreed property damage just because the injury claim is not settled. A practical approach is to ask for property damage to be paid now under a property-damage-only release and keep the injury claim open until you are truly ready to resolve it.
Illinois consumer guidance summarizes the common deadlines as follows: bodily injury claims generally must be finalized by settlement or filed in court within two years of the date of the crash, and property damage claims generally have a five-year window. Two important caveats are worth stating clearly.
If the injured person was a minor, Illinois guidance commonly summarizes the timing as allowing up to two years after the person turns eighteen for injury claims. Also, claims involving government entities can follow different and sometimes shorter requirements depending on the entity involved. Waiting too long can erase leverage or eliminate your ability to recover at all, even if liability is clear.
Illinois minimum liability limits are commonly described as $25,000 per person, $50,000 per accident, and $20,000 for property damage, and those minimums can be exhausted quickly in real crashes. Illinois also requires uninsured motorist bodily injury coverage, which can apply if the at-fault driver is uninsured or in some hit-and-run situations.
Underinsured motorist coverage can apply when the at-fault driver has insurance but not enough; Illinois consumer guidance explains that underinsured coverage is required when you purchase uninsured motorist limits above the minimum.
One useful clarification is that UM and UIM here primarily address bodily injury damages rather than automatically paying for vehicle repairs, which are usually handled through the at-fault driver’s property damage coverage, your collision coverage, or optional UM property damage if you purchased it.
Many people use health insurance first and then deal with reimbursement issues later, depending on the plan and the type of coverage involved. Illinois also allows optional auto insurance medical payments coverage, often called MedPay, which can pay medical and funeral expenses for you or passengers and can pay even if you caused the accident.
Separately, Illinois has a framework for health care provider liens and other reimbursement claims that can attach to a settlement in certain situations, which is one reason paperwork and timing matter.
The practical approach is to keep a simple record of providers, dates, and bills, and to assume you may need to resolve liens or reimbursement claims before you know what your net settlement truly is.
In a third-party claim, you do not have a contract with the other driver’s insurer, and their primary obligation is to their own policyholder. Illinois consumer guidance also notes there is no single law that lists exactly what you must provide, even though the insurer will still try to gather enough information to decide fault, confirm damages, and evaluate whether your injuries relate to the crash.
The practical move is to be organized and intentional about what you provide. It is generally reasonable to share the basic facts of the crash, photos, repair documentation, and a clear outline of your medical treatment related to the incident.
It is also reasonable to slow down on broad requests you do not understand, especially blanket medical authorizations, early recorded statements, or requests that sweep in unrelated history. If you provide anything, keep copies, ask what it is for, and narrow it to providers and dates that are actually relevant.
Illinois uses modified comparative negligence. In practical terms, you can generally recover damages if you are 50 percent or less at fault, but your recovery can be reduced by your percentage of fault. If you are found to be more than 50 percent at fault, you can be barred from recovery entirely.
Often, yes. Illinois consumer guidance explains that you may be ready to resolve property damage before you are ready to resolve the bodily injury claim, and the insurer generally should not hold the property damage payment hostage just because the injury part is still open.
If you need a rental or loss-of-use reimbursement, Illinois regulations describe reimbursement by the at-fault driver’s insurer when liability is reasonably clear, generally in proportion to liability, and limited to a reasonable repair period or until a settlement offer is made for the vehicle’s damage. In practice, documentation matters, so keep records showing the repair timeline, invoices, and any rental charges or loss-of-use calculations.
Start by confirming which agency investigated the crash. Illinois State Police guidance says to check the “Investigated By” box on the motorist report and then request the report from that agency, whether that is Illinois State Police or the local department that handled it. Illinois State Police also provides a crash report information page and portal for certain report requests, and in some situations an unredacted copy may require additional legal steps, depending on what you are requesting.
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