My lawyer said it is against the law to sue insurance companies in Illinois, how can I know if this is true?
I am not happy with the settlement the insurance company is offering my family in the wrongful death case of my young sister. She was killed by a drunk boater and the responsible party’s insurance company is offering an unsatisfactory amount of monetary compensation. Our family’s lawyer said we are only able to sue the responsible party and not their insurance company as it is against the law in Illinois to sue insurance companies. How can I research that and find out if there are any loop holes, or if this information is even true? Thank you for you help!
Your case is against the responsible party, notthe insurance company. The insurance company represents the responsible party in court, and is liable to pay the full amount of any award, up to the ceiling of the policy.
the insurance company has the right to offer you any or no funds that it feels is appropriate. they have not committed any actionable offense by offering you less than you feel is warranted. Merely reject the offer, and sue the responsible party.
Filed under: Wrongful Death Lawyer
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Well I never met a lawyer that I could trust. Better do some research.
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Find a really good Attorney in Illinois and ask them.
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Your lawyer is correct. If you read the fine print on your insurance documents you’ll notice that all disputes must be settled by binding mediation. And guess who chooses the mediator… the HMO.
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If your own attorney is making that statement then I’d say it’s a pretty sure thing. Otherwise, he’d welcome the opportunity for the additional business representing your family in the case.
But even if it was allowed in Illinois, it’s not the insurance company’s fault, it’s the drunk boater and that’s the one you need to be suing. Geez… I just agreed with an attorney.
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In these circumstances, the insured party only had so much coverage in case of an accidental death. Whatever his insurance doesn’t cover, you go after him for.
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You may have misunderstood your lawyer; neverthless, the Insurance company isn’t liable for the accident, the individuals are and all you need do is not accept the "settlement offer" and let the case proceed as normal or until the Insurance Company offers you a settlement you can accept.
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Simply consult a second attorney.
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This is the case everywhere in the US, not just in Illinois.
You have no relationship with the defendants insurer, only with the defendant himself. If you don’t like the settlement offer, then you turn it down, and sue the boater. It is his insurers responsibility to then defend him at trial and, if he loses, reimburse him for whatever he is ordered to pay.
Even though you ‘appear’ to be dealing with the insurer, you really aren’t - they are merely *representing* the boater, who is the one you have a case against.
Richard
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Contact the Illinois Department of Insurance
http://insurance.illinois.gov/
I started at http://www.usa.gov and got here in 4 clicks.
And if the lawyer is lying, then report him to the Illinois Supreme Court’s Attorney Registration & Disciplinary Commission
https://www.iardc.org/index.html
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Your case is against the responsible party, notthe insurance company. The insurance company represents the responsible party in court, and is liable to pay the full amount of any award, up to the ceiling of the policy.
the insurance company has the right to offer you any or no funds that it feels is appropriate. they have not committed any actionable offense by offering you less than you feel is warranted. Merely reject the offer, and sue the responsible party.
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LS: Ask your lawyer or research yourself through verdict databases in your area for verdicts involving same or similar cases and facts. That might help guide your decision on whether or not the offer is reasonable. Remember, there is never enough money to compensate for this kind of loss. The person at fault is the person who caused the death; the insurance company is just responsible to cover him up to the limits of the policy involved. In other words, if all the coverage available was $300K than that is all the insurance company would be obligated to pay in most circumstances if their insured (the at-fault party) was found liable in court up to that extent. This means, if you took the case to trial, got a $1M verdict from a jury; the insurance pays $300K and you have $600K to try and collect from the at-fault party. Bankruptcy would likely follow by this person and collecting nothing is probable. These are never easy cases, life isn’t perfect, but just remember, most other countries in this world don’t have insurance to even cover these losses. Sorry for the loss and good luck.
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