What to Do After a Hit-and-Run in Illinois

Dos

Here’s what to do if someone hits your car and flees the scene:

1. Get medical attention. Call 911 if you’re hurt.
2. Collect evidence. Collect as much information as you can about the vehicle that hit you as well as its driver. If you can recall, write down the following:
   • License plate number
   • Vehicle description
   • Direction vehicle was headed
   • Take photos of the accident scene and any damages to your car, and talk to people nearby who may have seen the hit-and-run. Write down their contact information and mention these witnesses when you file a police report for your insurance claim.
3. Call the police. In Illinois, you’re legally required to report any accident that results in injury, property damage or death worth over $1,500, or worth over $500 if your car is insured, within 10 days of the accident.¹ Regardless of whether it’s legally required, filing a police report will help you in the claims process.
4. Alert your insurance provider. If you want to file a claim, contact your insurance company within five years of the hit-and-run to file a property damage claim and within two years for a personal injury claim.

This process is the same whether someone hits your car while it’s in motion or hits your parked car, although you’ll have to rely more heavily on eyewitnesses if you weren’t present during the latter scenario.

Don’ts

Here’s what not to do after a car accident:

• Skip reporting the accident to the police. Not only is this required in some cases, but you’ll also want the police report for your insurance claim.
• Neglect to file a claim. If you don’t file a claim, you’ll have to pay for your injuries and property damages out of pocket.
• Chase the driver. Chasing the driver who hit you is dangerous, and you may also miss out on obtaining key witness testimony.
• Leave the scene. Stay at the crash site as you call the police. Leaving could cause you to lose help from witnesses, whom victims are more dependent on in hit-and-runs than any other type of car accident.

If you or the police are able to locate the driver who hit you, file a third-party claim with their insurance provider to cover your losses.

Another option, if you’re not made whole, is to file a personal injury lawsuit, which can award you damages as long as you’re less than 50 percent at fault, which should apply to most hit-and-runs. Most accident attorneys will give you a free consultation; then, if they take your case, you pay them only if you win.

However, if you can’t figure out who exactly was involved in the hit-and-run, you’ll have to file a first-party claim with your own insurance provider.

Does Car Insurance Cover Hit-and-Runs?

Car insurance covers hit-and-runs only if you have the following types of car insurance in Illinois:

• Uninsured motorist coverage: You can use uninsured motorist coverage to pay for your injuries and damages in the event of a hit-and-run.
• Collision coverage: Collision coverage pays for your car’s damages, regardless of who caused the accident.
• Medical payments (MedPay) coverage: MedPay pays for your and your passengers’ injuries.

When it comes to at-fault versus no-fault car accidents, typically, your insurance premium will increase more after an accident you caused versus an accident you didn’t cause; e.g., a hit-and-run in which you were the victim. However, your insurance could still increase after a hit-and-run if you file a first-party claim, rising an average of 51 percent. In contrast, if you file a third-party claim with a known driver as the responsible party, your insurance won’t increase at all.

Hit-and-runs are becoming more common in the Prairie State. In 2021, the last time the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) released national data, 10 percent of all fatal motor vehicle crashes in Illinois involved hit-and-runs, twice as much as a decade earlier.³

During this period, fatal crashes in Illinois involving hit-and-runs increased by 193 percent.

Taking a closer look at the 2021 data, we found that the majority of hit-and-run deaths involved pedestrians. However, many involved distracted drivers and impaired drivers.

Taking a look at the hit-and-run fatality rates by city shows that Chicago was home to nearly half of all such incidents in 2021. Why were there so many hit-and-run deaths in the Windy City? We’ll explain below.

Driver Characteristics

The drivers involved in fatal hit-and-runs tend to be male, accounting in 2021 for 79 percent of such incidents in Illinois where the sex of the driver was known.

When it comes to fatal hit-and-runs in Illinois in 2021 where the age of the drivers was known, the plurality were between the ages of 25 and 34. That accounts for 32 percent, or nearly a third, of hit-and-run accidents.

Why Hit-and-Runs Happen

There are many factors that go into hit-and-run car crashes, aside from the driver themselves and the number of pedestrians around. For example, many environmental factors — like lighting, roadway geometry, and population density — contribute to the likelihood of hit-and-runs.

In 2021, 73 percent of fatal hit-and-runs in Illinois occurred in the dark.

Roadway geometry can also play a role, as roads with short sight distances and small curve radiuses increase the chance and severity of car accidents.⁴ Additionally, the more people who live in a city, the more drivers there are on the roads and the more pedestrians there are on the sidewalks or streets. Chicago is not only the site of the most fatal hit-and-runs in Illinois, but it also has the highest population density, with 12,046 people per square mile.⁵⁶ These facts are likely connected, with Chicago’s high population density contributing to the frequency of hit-and-runs in the city.

If you caused an accident in Illinois and left the scene, hire an accident attorney, particularly if there was bodily injury or death.

Hitting a car and driving away without calling the police is illegal in Illinois and can lead to dire consequences both for the driver and the victims. If you’re involved in an accident that results in injuries or death, you’re required to stop as close to the scene of the crash as possible. From there, you must remain until you have performed your duty to “give information and render aid,” according to Illinois laws.

What does that mean, exactly? “Give information” means you exchange your name, vehicle identification number, driver’s license number, and mailing address with the victim. You must also assist anyone who is injured by helping them get medical care. Then, you must report the accident to the police.

But what if you’re injured in this at-fault accident? If you went to the hospital directly after the crash, you must report the accident to the police at either a police station or sheriff’s office within half an hour of your hospital discharge. You’ll have to give the police the following information.

• Date and time of the accident
• Name
• Address
• Vehicle identification number
• Names of all occupants in all vehicles

Penalties

What happens if you’re found guilty of a hit-and-run accident in Illinois? If you flee the scene of an accident in Illinois and don’t report it to law enforcement, you could face fines, imprisonment, and even a license suspension or revocation.⁷

Penalties for not reporting an accident to the police are actually harsher than the consequences of the hit-and-run itself. If you cause a death and don’t report it to the police, you could spend four to 15 years in jail for that crime alone. However, it’s not necessary to report accidents that cause property damage only.

To be on the safe side, never leave the scene of an accident in Illinois, and always report it to the police. To protect yourself as a potential victim of a hit-and-run, make sure you have full coverage car insurance. Unlike liability insurance, full coverage will pay for your injuries and damages and those of your passengers, even if you’re not sure who hit you. That said, keep in mind that your car insurance premium may increase even though the accident wasn’t your fault.