Diminished value claims in Illinois

Who can claim diminished value in Illinois

• Third-party claim (another driver was at fault): lost market value after repair is part of the property-damage claim against that driver's liability insurer.
• First-party claim (your own collision coverage): in Sims v. Allstate Insurance Co., 365 Ill. App. 3d 997 (2006), the Illinois Appellate Court found no ambiguity in a standard "repair or replace with like kind and quality" policy and held it does not allow recovery for diminished value. Expect the same answer under similar policy language.
• Illinois is an at-fault state, so property damage, including diminished value, is claimed against the driver who caused the collision.

Illinois deadline: 5 years (735 ILCS 5/13-205)

Five years to sue for damages for an injury done to personal property. Injury claims from the same crash have a separate two-year limit under 735 ILCS 5/13-202, so if anyone was hurt, do not assume the longer property deadline covers everything.

Fault: 735 ILCS 5/2-1116

Modified comparative fault: you are barred if your contributory fault is more than 50% of the proximate cause of the damage; at 50% or less, your recovery is reduced by your share.

How Illinois law treats diminished value

The measure comes from Trailmobile Division of Pullman, Inc. v. Higgs, 12 Ill. App. 3d 323 (1973). The court said the measure for repairable damage to personal property is ordinarily the cost of repair plus loss of use, and that if the property is worth less after it is repaired than before the injury, the owner also recovers the difference in market value before the injury and in its repaired condition.

That rule puts the burden of proof on you. An Illinois adjuster will want a number tied to your car: its pre-crash value, the repair record, and evidence of how Chicagoland, Peoria, Rockford or Springfield buyers price the same model with a reported accident.

The Sims decision closes the door on most first-party diminished-value claims under standard Illinois policies, which makes the third-party claim the one that matters. If the other driver's insurer accepted liability for the repairs, the diminished-value demand belongs on the same claim number.

How insurers value a totaled car in Illinois

Illinois regulates total-loss settlements in 50 Ill. Adm. Code 919.80(c). When a first-party total loss is settled on actual cash value or replacement, the insurer must give you the information in Exhibit A of Part 919 within 7 days of the total-loss decision. It may offer a comparable replacement car from a licensed dealer, or pay cash based on a regularly published value guide or a computerized source that uses data from the area where the car was principally garaged.

If, after a cash settlement, you cannot buy a comparable vehicle for the insurer's market value, the rule requires the insurer to reopen the claim. It can find you a comparable car at its figure, pay the difference on a comparable car you located, or conclude the loss through the policy's appraisal clause. Sales tax and title and transfer fees on a replacement are reimbursed if you document the purchase within 33 days, and "get ready to go" or dealer prep deductions are prohibited.

Complaints about claim handling go to the Illinois Department of Insurance.

The appraisal clause in Illinois

Most Illinois auto policies contain an appraisal clause for disputes over the amount of a covered physical-damage loss. You and the insurer each pick an appraiser, the appraisers choose an umpire if they disagree, and the written decision sets the amount. It decides value, not coverage.

Section 919.80 itself names the appraisal clause as one way to resolve a disputed first-party total loss and says the appraisal binds both sides without waiving other contract or common-law rights. It is your policy's tool, so it does not apply to a diminished-value claim against the other driver's insurer.

What else matters in Illinois

• Illinois has timing rules that help a third-party claimant. Under 50 Ill. Adm. Code 919.80(b)(3), if an automobile property damage liability claim is unresolved more than 60 calendar days after it is reported, the insurer must send you a reasonable written explanation for the delay along with a notice that the Department of Insurance is available.
• Illinois small claims cover civil cases for $10,000 or less, and the Illinois courts publish standardized small claims complaint forms for filing without a lawyer.
• Winter road salt in northern Illinois affects older cars. Expect an adjuster to point to rust or prior damage when arguing a lower pre-crash value, and have service and inspection records ready.