The Law Offices of James M. Freeman, P.C.

Car-free cyclists run the risk of being victimized by uninsured or under insured motorists. As I have stated many times in the past, most people in Illinois don't care about under-insured or uninsured drivers because most people in the state of Illinois drive cars. Since most people are drivers, they probably have their own uninsured motorist coverage under their auto policy. Most auto policies offer $100,000 to $250,000 in uninsured or under-insured motorist coverage. Driver's don't care about uninsured motorists, because they have their own insurance coverage that will be activated by a collision with an under-insured or uninsured motorist.

This is not the case with car-free cyclists.

I estimate that over half of all drivers in the City of Chicago only have the mandatory minimum insurance limits of $20,000 or are totally uninsured. You can't even spend one night in the hospital for $20,000. If someone with 20k in coverage seriously injures you, you're probably going to be stuck with the bill unless you have your own coverage.

What's the significance? Lets take the example of a driver and a car-free cyclist who are the victims of an uninsured driver's negligence.

Example Driver:
Victim Driver is struck by Uninsured Driver. The collision is Uninsured Driver's fault. Victim Driver suffers severe injuries and is hospitalized. After his treatment is concluded he has $50,000 in medical bills. Uninsured Driver has no assets and no insurance. What does Victim Driver do? He makes a claim against his own uninsured motorist coverage. His uninsured motorist insurance carrier steps into the shoes of Uninsured Driver and covers Victim Driver's medical bills and other losses related to his injuries.

Example Car Free Cyclist:
Car-Free Cyclist is struck by Uninsured Driver. The collision is Uninsured Driver's fault. Car-Free Cyclist is hospitalized and suffers severe injuries. After his treatment is concluded he has $50,000 in medical bills. Uninsured Driver has no assets and no insurance. What does Car-Free do? He pays his bills or goes bankrupt because there is no insurance coverage to cover the loss caused by Uninsured Driver.

What can I do as a car-free cyclist?

You can purchase an operator's insurance policy. This is a special automobile insurance policy that specifically covered people who do not own cars. There are only a couple companies I know of who will write operator's policies, and those companies require the policy to be issued by a broker. Most insurance brokers may not understand why you're looking for an operator's policy as a cyclist - a smart one will.I use Dan at D&D Insurance on Chicago (D & D Insurance, 2115 W Chicago Ave, Chicago, IL 60622; 773- 489-0080). I don't advocate him or his company, but if you call him he'll know what you're looking for and why.

Uninsured motorist coverage is also activated by a hit and run collision, even when the driver gets away. I estimate that in about 20% of accidents involving cyclists in Chicago the driver flees the scene of the accident. Most of the time they are not identified. If the driver flees the scene and gets away your uninsured motorist coverage steps in to cover your loss.

This coverage is especially important for car-free cyclists who have a family or dependents. If people are counting on you to support them you have to be prepared for the worst-case scenario (if I had dependents I'd have an umbrella policy on top of the 250K underlying policy).

An operator's policy is also a cheaper alternative for health insurance (maybe $30.00 a month for 100K and about $50.00 a month for 250k in coverage), but it has certain limitations. If you can't afford health insurance, maybe you can afford an operator's policy. That way you assume the risk of your own negligence, but if you are injured because of an uninsured, under-insured or hit-and-run driver's negligence you are covered.