Protecting you on the road
Pays others when you are at fault for injuries.
Illinois requires bodily injury liability, but the state minimum is often too thin for a serious crash on I-90 or I-294. Higher limits help protect your savings if someone is hurt in a wreck you cause. On this scene, that is the pulled-over pair on the shoulder — coverage that pays for injuries when you are at fault.
Tap a point on the scene to learn more
The base personal auto policy is the printed form. An endorsement is a taped-on change — adding coverage, taking it away, or renaming who is insured. Optional coverages ride along with the policy. Separate policies sit beside it.
Form names and availability vary by carrier. This is a map of add-ons we commonly shop in Illinois — not a promise that every company offers every item.
Base policy
Personal auto policy
Hover an add-on to read it, then click to pin it here — a review list for your next conversation with an advisor.
Send this list to an advisor →We’ll open the contact form for this coverage so an advisor can help you decide which add-ons belong on the policy.
Interactive diagrams and coverage guidance for Illinois drivers.
Your vehicle can be a fairly costly investment—one that is exposed to many potential losses that are out of your control. Illinois requires liability coverage at a minimum; we also compare collision coverage, comprehensive coverage, deductibles, and uninsured motorist limits so you are not buying only the legal minimum.
A car or truck is often your biggest asset aside from your home. Auto insurance protects against potentially crippling financial losses and the sheer inconvenience of being without transportation.
Remember, not all car insurance is created equal. Some auto insurance policies simply meet legal requirements. In most states, this means your auto insurance will cover the damage you cause to other cars through liability and property damage liability. However, auto insurance in some no-fault states will also cover your own car or truck. Additionally, the law usually states that auto insurance policies must cover some medical bills that result from a car crash.
Other auto insurance policies go further and protect your car or truck if it is stolen, damaged or destroyed by fire, or damaged in a car accident that does not involve any other vehicles—that is comprehensive coverage. Collision coverage pays when you hit another vehicle or object. You can also get uninsured motorist protection if you are hurt by a driver with no insurance.
We compare carriers so you can choose coverage that fits your vehicle and budget. Otherwise, you are putting yourself, your family, and others at risk.
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The same personal auto policy add-ons from the explorer above, listed out. Form names and availability vary by carrier.
Endorsement
Keeps the first at-fault accident from surcharging the premium.
Accident forgiveness is a company-specific endorsement, not an ISO universal. After a clean record, the first at-fault crash may not re-rate the policy the same way. It does not erase the claim from the CLUE report other carriers see. Still worth asking about if you have years of clean driving.
Endorsement
Adds a person or entity to the liability section when a contract asks.
Personal auto additional-insured requests show up with leased vehicles, employer cars, and some family arrangements. The certificate is not the coverage — the endorsement is. We match the wording to the request instead of assuming the declarations page already names them.
Endorsement
Raises limits for aftermarket stereo, wheels, or wraps.
Base auto physical damage often caps custom parts. Wheels, paint protection, and electronics can exceed that sublimit. A customizing equipment endorsement schedules or raises the limit. Photos and receipts help. This is not the same as agreed value on a collector car.
Optional coverage
Pays the leftover loan or lease after a total loss settlement.
Gap coverage is for when you owe more than the car is worth. Dealership gap and insurer gap are not identical. Long loans, low down payments, and new cars are the usual triggers. It does not repair the vehicle and it is not collision coverage.
Endorsement
Waives or reduces the comprehensive deductible for windshields.
Chicagoland highways throw a lot of gravel. A glass endorsement can make windshield replacement a $0 or reduced-deductible comprehensive claim. Some carriers treat glass as its own option; others bundle it. Recalibrated ADAS windshields make the dollar difference larger than it used to be.
Endorsement
Removes a listed person from the auto policy — a sharp tool.
A named-driver exclusion can make a household insurable when one driver is uninsurable. It also means that person has no coverage on your cars. Illinois households use this carefully, usually around a suspended license or a young driver who will not be on the policy. It is an endorsement that takes coverage away.
Endorsement
Pays to replace a qualifying total loss with a new vehicle.
In the first years of ownership, actual cash value can leave a gap after a total loss. New car replacement — where offered — can pay for a new vehicle of the same make and model instead of depreciated value. Eligibility windows and mileage caps vary by carrier.
Endorsement
Steers repairs toward manufacturer parts after a collision.
Some forms allow aftermarket parts on late-model vehicles. An OEM endorsement can require original-equipment parts when they are available. Lenders and lease companies sometimes care; so do owners of newer cars who want the repair to match the factory spec.
Separate policy
Extra liability over auto (and home) after a serious crash.
Umbrella sits above auto liability, not on the auto form. Adding a teen driver or commuting into the city is a common time to raise the stack. Illinois minimum auto limits are a floor, not a plan, once hospital bills enter the picture.
Learn more →Optional coverage
A substitute car while yours is in the shop after a covered loss.
Rental reimbursement (transportation expense) is usually optional, not part of Illinois liability. After a crash on I-390 or a hail claim, body shops can keep a car for weeks. Without this, the rental is out of pocket even when collision or comprehensive pays the repair.
Endorsement
Covers the gap between personal auto and the app’s policy.
Personal auto usually excludes carrying passengers for a fee. Uber and Lyft provide some coverage while on a trip, but Period 1 (the app is on, no match yet) is the classic hole. A rideshare endorsement, where available, is built for that. Food-delivery apps are a separate underwriting question.
Optional coverage
Tow, jump, and lockout limits written on the auto form.
Towing and labor is a small optional coverage with a per-disablement cap. It is not AAA and it is not a substitute for comprehensive if the car is stolen. Useful for commuters who would rather not negotiate a tow from the shoulder of I-90.
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