(625 ILCS 5/7‑601) (from Ch. 95 1/2, par. 7‑601)
Sec. 7‑601. Required liability insurance policy.
(a) No person shall operate, register or maintain registration of, and no owner shall permit another person to operate, register or maintain registration of, a motor vehicle designed to be used on a public highway unless the motor vehicle is covered by a liability insurance policy.
The insurance policy shall be issued in amounts no less than the minimum amounts set for bodily injury or death and for destruction of property under Section 7‑203 of this Code, and shall be issued in accordance with the requirements of Sections 143a and 143a‑2 of the Illinois Insurance Code, as amended. No insurer other than an insurer authorized to do business in this State shall issue a policy pursuant to this Section for any vehicle subject to registration under this Code. Nothing herein shall deprive an insurer of any policy defense available at common law.
(b) The following vehicles are exempt from the requirements of this Section:
(1) vehicles subject to the provisions of Chapters 8 |
| or 18a, Article III or Section 7‑609 of Chapter 7, or Sections 12‑606 or 12‑707.01 of Chapter 12 of this Code; | |
(2) vehicles required to file proof of liability |
| insurance with the Illinois Commerce Commission; | |
(3) vehicles covered by a certificate of |
| self‑insurance under Section 7‑502 of this Code; | |
(4) vehicles owned by the United States, the State |
| of Illinois, or any political subdivision, municipality or local mass transit district; | |
(5) implements of husbandry;
(6) other vehicles complying with laws which require |
| them to be insured in amounts meeting or exceeding the minimum amounts required under this Section; and | |
(7) inoperable or stored vehicles that are not |
| operated, as defined by rules and regulations of the Secretary. | |
(c) Every employee of a State agency, as that term is defined in the Illinois State Auditing Act, who is assigned a specific vehicle owned or leased by the State on an ongoing basis shall provide the certification described in this Section annually to the director or chief executive officer of his or her agency.
The certification shall affirm that the employee is duly licensed to drive the assigned vehicle and that (i) the employee has liability insurance coverage extending to the employee when the assigned vehicle is used for other than official State business, or (ii) the employee has filed a bond with the Secretary of State as proof of financial responsibility, in an amount equal to, or in excess of the requirements stated within this Section. Upon request of the agency director or chief executive officer, the employee shall present evidence to support the certification.
The certification shall be provided during the period July 1 through July 31 of each calendar year, or within 30 days of any new assignment of a vehicle on an ongoing basis, whichever is later.
The employee's authorization to use the assigned vehicle shall automatically be rescinded upon:
(1) the revocation or suspension of the license |
| required to drive the assigned vehicle; | |
(2) the cancellation or termination for any reason |
| of the automobile liability insurance coverage as required in item (c) (i); or | |
(3) the termination of the bond filed with the |
| |
All State employees providing the required certification shall immediately notify the agency director or chief executive officer in the event any of these actions occur.
All peace officers employed by a State agency who are primarily responsible for prevention and detection of crime and the enforcement of the criminal, traffic, or highway laws of this State, and prohibited by agency rule or policy to use an assigned vehicle owned or leased by the State for regular personal or off‑duty use, are exempt from the requirements of this Section.
(Source: P.A. 91‑661, eff. 12‑22‑99.) |
(625 ILCS 5/7‑602) (from Ch. 95 1/2, par. 7‑602)
Sec. 7‑602. Insurance card. Every operator of a motor vehicle subject to Section 7‑601 of this Code shall carry within the vehicle evidence of insurance. The evidence shall be legible and sufficient to demonstrate that the motor vehicle currently is covered by a liability insurance policy as required under Section 7‑601 of this Code and may include, but is not limited to, the following:
(a) an insurance card provided by the insurer under |
| |
(b) the combination of proof of purchase of the |
| motor vehicle within the previous 60 days and a current insurance card issued for the motor vehicle replaced by such purchase; | |
(c) the current declarations page of a liability |
| |
(d) a liability insurance binder, certificate of |
| liability insurance or receipt for payment to an insurer or its authorized representative for a liability insurance premium, provided such document contains all information the Secretary of State by rule and regulation may require; | |
(e) a current rental agreement;
(f) registration plates, registration sticker or |
| other evidence of registration issued by the Secretary only upon submission of proof of liability insurance pursuant to this Code; | |
(g) a certificate, decal, or other document or |
| device issued by a governmental agency for a motor vehicle indicating the vehicle is insured for liability pursuant to law. | |
An insurance card shall be provided for each motor vehicle insured by the insurer issuing the liability insurance policy.
The form, contents and manner of issuance of the insurance card shall be prescribed by rules and regulations of the Secretary of State. The Secretary shall adopt rules requiring that reasonable measures be taken to prevent the fraudulent production of insurance cards. The insurance card shall display an effective date and an expiration date covering a period of time not to exceed 12 months. The insurance card shall contain the following disclaimer: "Examine policy exclusions carefully. This form does not constitute any part of your insurance policy." If the insurance policy represented by the insurance card does not cover any driver operating the motor vehicle with the owner's permission, or the owner when operating a motor vehicle other than the vehicle for which the policy is issued, the insurance card shall contain a warning of such limitations in the coverage provided by the policy.
No insurer shall issue a card, similar in appearance, form and content to the insurance card required under this Section, in connection with an insurance policy that does not provide the liability insurance coverage required under Section 7‑601 of this Code.
The evidence of insurance shall be displayed upon request made by any law enforcement officer wearing a uniform or displaying a badge or other sign of authority. Any person who fails or refuses to comply with such request is in violation of Section 3‑707 of this Code. Any person who displays evidence of insurance, knowing there is no valid liability insurance in effect on the motor vehicle as required under Section 7‑601 of this Code or knowing the evidence of insurance is illegally altered, counterfeit or otherwise invalid, is in violation of Section 3‑710 of this Code.
"Display" means the manual surrender of the evidence of insurance into the hands of the law enforcement officer, court, or officer of the court making the request for the officer's, court's, or officer of the court's inspection thereof.
(Source: P.A. 93‑719, eff. 1‑1‑05.) |
(625 ILCS 5/7‑604) (from Ch. 95 1/2, par. 7‑604)
Sec. 7‑604. Verification of liability insurance policy.
(a) The Secretary of State may select random samples of registrations of motor vehicles subject to Section 7‑601 of this Code, or owners thereof, for the purpose of verifying whether or not the motor vehicles are insured.
In addition to such general random samples of motor vehicle registrations, the Secretary may select for verification other random samples, including, but not limited to registrations of motor vehicles owned by persons:
(1) whose motor vehicle registrations during the |
| preceding 4 years have been suspended pursuant to Section 7‑606 or 7‑607 of this Code; | |
(2) who during the preceding 4 years have been |
| convicted of violating Section 3‑707, 3‑708 or 3‑710 of this Code while operating vehicles owned by other persons; | |
(3) whose driving privileges have been suspended |
| during the preceding 4 years; | |
(4) who during the preceding 4 years acquired |
| ownership of motor vehicles while the registrations of such vehicles under the previous owners were suspended pursuant to Section 7‑606 or 7‑607 of this Code; or | |
(5) who during the preceding 4 years have received a |
| disposition of supervision under subsection (c) of Section 5‑6‑1 of the Unified Code of Corrections for a violation of Section 3‑707, 3‑708, or 3‑710 of this Code. | |
(b) Upon receiving certification from the Department of Transportation under Section 7‑201.2 of this Code of the name of an owner or operator of any motor vehicle involved in an accident, the Secretary may verify whether or not at the time of the accident such motor vehicle was covered by a liability insurance policy in accordance with Section 7‑601 of this Code.
(c) In preparation for selection of random samples and their verification, the Secretary may send to owners of randomly selected motor vehicles, or to randomly selected motor vehicle owners, requests for information about their motor vehicles and liability insurance coverage. The request shall require the owner to state whether or not the motor vehicle was insured on the verification date stated in the Secretary's request and the request may require, but is not limited to, a statement by the owner of the names and addresses of insurers, policy numbers, and expiration dates of insurance coverage.
(d) Within 30 days after the Secretary mails a request, the owner to whom it is sent shall furnish the requested information to the Secretary above the owner's signed affirmation that such information is true and correct. Proof of insurance in effect on the verification date, as prescribed by the Secretary, may be considered by the Secretary to be a satisfactory response to the request for information.
Any owner whose response indicates that his or her vehicle was not covered by a liability insurance policy in accordance with Section 7‑601 of this Code shall be deemed to have registered or maintained registration of a motor vehicle in violation of that Section. Any owner who fails to respond to such a request shall be deemed to have registered or maintained registration of a motor vehicle in violation of Section 7‑601 of this Code.
(e) If the owner responds to the request for information by asserting that his or her vehicle was covered by a liability insurance policy on the verification date stated in the Secretary's request, the Secretary may conduct a verification of the response by furnishing necessary information to the insurer named in the response. The insurer shall within 45 days inform the Secretary whether or not on the verification date stated the motor vehicle was insured by the insurer in accordance with Section 7‑601 of this Code. The Secretary may by rule and regulation prescribe the procedures for verification.
(f) No random sample selected under this Section shall be categorized on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, ancestry, age, marital status, physical or mental disability, economic status or geography.
(Source: P.A. 92‑458, eff. 8‑22‑01.) |
(625 ILCS 5/7‑609) (from Ch. 95 1/2, par. 7‑609)
Sec. 7‑609. Exemption for certain religious organizations. (a) Pursuant to the following minimum criteria, the Secretary may exempt from the provisions of Section 7‑601 of this Code motor vehicles owned by a religious organization or its members:
(1) The religious organization and its members hold a bona fide conviction that the acquisition of insurance is contrary to their religious beliefs.
(2) The religious organization and its members submit to the Secretary evidence that historically, over a period of time not less than two years, they have paid or, by agreement with the other party or parties involved, are paying in a timely manner for all damages for which they were or are liable.
(3) The religious organization has filed with the Secretary a current, irrevocable letter of credit, valid for a period of 12 months and issued in accordance with this Section and Article 5 of the Uniform Commercial Code, approved July 31, 1961, as amended, by a financial institution chartered by an agency of State or federal government. The Secretary of State by rule and regulation shall establish the minimum amount of credit required.
(4) The religious organization and its members meet other requirement which the Secretary by rule and regulation may prescribe.
(b) Upon accepting a letter of credit from a religious organization, the Secretary shall issue a certificate of exemption for each motor vehicle covered. The certificate of exemption shall serve as evidence of insurance in accordance with Section 7‑602 of this Code.
Not less than 30 days before a current letter of credit expires, or by agreement between the issuer and customer is revoked, the religious organization shall file with the Secretary a new letter of credit. If a new letter of credit is not on file with the Secretary at the time the current letter of credit expires or is revoked, the exemption of the religious organization and its members shall expire and their certificates of exemption shall become invalid.
(c) If credit is used to the extent that the remaining amount of credit does not meet the minimum requirements of this Section, and the issuer declines to reinstate the used portion of the credit or issue a new letter of credit, the issuer immediately shall send written notice to the customer and the Secretary that the current letter of credit on file with the Secretary no longer meets the minimum requirements of the law.
If, within 30 days of receiving the notice, the Secretary has not received and accepted a new letter of credit from the customer, the exemption of that religious organization and its members shall expire and their certificates of exemption shall become invalid.
(d) Upon the request of the plaintiff, if a person, known by the court to be covered by a current letter of credit issued pursuant to this Section fails to pay a judgment for damages within 30 days after the judgment has become final, the clerk of the court within 10 days shall forward to the Secretary a report of the person's failure to pay. The report shall indicate that the person is covered by a letter of credit and, if known by the court, the names of the issuer and the customer.
Upon receiving the report from the court, the Secretary shall notify the religious organization that, unless the payment is made, 30 days after the date of the mailing of the notice the exemption of the religious organization and its members shall be terminated and their certificates of exemption shall become invalid. If within the 30 days the religious organization does not submit evidence that the payment has been made, or furnish valid reasons why the payment has been delayed or not made, the Secretary shall terminate the exemptions.
(e) The Secretary is authorized to promulgate rules and regulations necessary for the administration of the provisions of this Section.
(Source: P.A. 86‑149.) |