A ride out of Spring Grove on Route 12 on a Saturday in the summer will have you sharing two lanes with boat trailers pointed at the Chain. A car crosses the center lane and you swerve into the gravel and go down. The car didn’t touch you. And it didn’t stop. Fortunately, Illinois has a rule that decides what your motorcycle insurance can do in situations like this.
What Your IL Motorcycle Insurance Already Covers
Motor vehicle policies in Illinois are required to carry uninsured motorist coverage for injuries. That includes your bike. If you have motorcycle insurance in Illinois, you already have it.
It automatically steps up in a situation where the driver takes off and doesn’t get identified. But it also steps in when the driver causing a wreck has no insurance. You file the claim with your own company, not theirs.
Illinois Wants to See the Proof
The state is very strict when it comes to hit-and-run claims. They don’t consider it a hit-and-run if the other vehicle doesn’t touch you or your bike. Courts have stood by that line since the 1970s.
This was taken up by an Illinois appeals court in 2015. A rider had swerved away from a semi when it crossed into his lane. He claimed the wind from the truck put him in a ditch. The semi driver was never identified and the court ruled that wind isn’t contact.
Contact Doesn’t Have to Mean Bumper to Bumper
There’s a little bit of wiggle room in the rule. If the offending car that took off hits another vehicle and that one hits you, Illinois counts it. When a part comes loose and hits you, that also counts.
Damage to your bike is separate coverage you ask for. The uninsured motorist version only works if the other driver is identified. At Spring Grove Insurance, we make sure we go over that one early.
Sort This Out Before Riding Season in IL
Your motorcycle insurance policy doesn’t spell all of this out. You’d have to have some knowledge of how Illinois courts have ruled in these scenarios to see how it would work in your situation.
Get in touch with Spring Grove Insurance today and we’ll go over your motorcycle insurance policy with you before you set out for that summer ride.
