It is not a conflict that stops your claim, and it does not mean the insurer will be fair to you because you are also their customer. When both drivers are insured by the same company, the carrier writes the cheque either way. That single fact changes its incentives: it has far less reason to fight hard over who was at fault, and far more reason to keep the total payout small and settle quickly.
Handled properly it can actually be faster than a two-carrier claim. Handled passively it is where people accept a convenient fifty-fifty split that the evidence never supported.
How the carrier is supposed to handle it
The company owes duties to both policyholders and cannot simply prefer one. In practice that means:
- Two separate claim files, usually with two different adjusters, sometimes in different units
- Separate liability investigation for each side
- A duty of good faith to each insured individually
- The Illinois claim-handling rules in 50 Ill. Adm. Code 919 apply to both files, including 15 working days to acknowledge communications and a written explanation if there is no determination within 45 days
If you are told one adjuster is handling “the accident,” ask in writing for the name and claim number of the adjuster assigned to your claim specifically. That request alone changes the tone of the file, and if the same person is genuinely handling both sides of a disputed-liability claim, that itself is worth flagging as a departure from how the process should work.
Where it actually goes wrong
| The pattern | What is really happening | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| “We are calling it 50/50” | A split apportionment is administratively easy and costs the carrier the same either way, so there is little internal pressure to investigate properly. | Ask what evidence supports the split. Under 735 ILCS 5/2-1116 every percentage point comes off your recovery. |
| One adjuster calls about “both sides” | You may be giving a statement that lands in the other driver’s file. | Confirm which file you are speaking to. Do not give a recorded statement without advice. |
| A fast, round-number offer | Closing both files quickly is the cheapest outcome for the carrier. | Do not settle before you know the medical picture. It cannot be reopened later. |
| Liability “still under review” for months | Nothing is forcing a decision when the company is on both sides. | Cite Part 919 and request the written delay explanation the rule requires. |
| A capped, below-market repair estimate on both cars | The same arbitrary paint, materials, or labor cap can quietly apply to both vehicles when one carrier is writing both estimates. | Get independent shop estimates for your own vehicle and compare them line by line. |
The comparative fault point matters more here than usual
Illinois applies modified comparative fault under 735 ILCS 5/2-1116. Your damages are reduced by your share of the blame, and if you are found more than 50 per cent responsible you recover nothing at all.
When two different carriers argue, each one pushes fault onto the other driver and the truth tends to surface in the middle. When one carrier holds both files, nobody is pushing. An unexamined 50/50 costs you half your claim and moves you one percentage point away from recovering nothing. See how comparative fault works.
Property Damage Deserves the Same Scrutiny as the Injury Claim
The same administrative-convenience dynamic that produces a lazy 50/50 liability split can show up in the property-damage estimate too. Under 215 ILCS 5/154.6, an insurer setting an arbitrary cap on paint, materials, or labor that does not reflect actual local repair costs is engaging in an improper claims practice, not just driving a hard bargain, and this applies whether the estimate is for your vehicle, the other driver’s, or both. If a single carrier is writing both repair estimates using the same internal pricing assumptions, get two or three independent local shop quotes for your own vehicle before accepting the number you are given. Most Illinois auto policies also include an appraisal clause, a formal process where each side selects its own appraiser and the two appraisers select a neutral umpire, which exists specifically to resolve a property-damage valuation dispute without litigation. It is underused because most policyholders do not know it exists, but it is available in exactly this kind of same-carrier scenario.
A Realistic Example
Hypothetical, for illustration only: Two drivers insured by the same national carrier collide at a Chicago intersection with a partially obstructed stop sign. The assigned adjuster, without requesting the traffic camera footage from a nearby business or interviewing either driver in detail, proposes a standard 50/50 split to both policyholders within a week. One driver’s attorney pushes back, requesting the specific evidence behind the split and independently obtaining the intersection footage before it is overwritten. The footage shows the other driver rolling through the stop sign without slowing, supporting a materially different fault allocation, closer to 80/20 against the other driver. Because the claimant pushed for the underlying evidence rather than accepting the administratively convenient split, the eventual recovery is substantially larger than the original 50/50 offer would have produced.
What to do
- Get your own claim number and adjuster in writing.
- Report the crash to your own policy as your policy requires, but keep your duty to cooperate with your insurer separate from any statement to the liability side.
- Preserve the evidence yourself. With one carrier on both sides, nobody else is racing to secure the video. In Chicago, business and CTA footage is typically overwritten within one to four weeks.
- Do not accept an apportionment you were simply told. Ask what it is based on.
- Check your own coverages. Med-pay and, if the other driver’s limits are inadequate, underinsured motorist coverage may both be in play, see UM and UIM claims.
Illinois also defines improper claims practices at 215 ILCS 5/154.6, and 215 ILCS 5/155 provides a remedy where an insurer’s conduct is vexatious and unreasonable. Those are rarely the first move, but they are worth knowing exist. See how insurers handle Chicago crash claims.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it a conflict of interest if both drivers have the same insurer?
Not in a way that prevents the claim. The company owes duties to each policyholder and normally assigns separate adjusters and separate files. What changes is the incentive: because it pays either way, there is less internal pressure to establish fault accurately.
Will they be fairer because I am also their customer?
No. Being the customer does not put you on the inside of a liability claim. Assume the liability adjuster is evaluating your claim the same way they would if you were insured elsewhere.
Should I give a recorded statement?
Not without advice, and not before you are clear which claim file it is going into. Your policy may require cooperation with your own insurer; that is different from giving a statement that will be used to evaluate liability against you.
They said it is 50/50. Do I have to accept that?
No. Ask what evidence supports it. Under 735 ILCS 5/2-1116 the percentage directly reduces your recovery, and above 50 per cent you recover nothing, so an unexamined split is expensive.
Can I still use my own collision coverage?
Yes, and it is often the fastest way to get the car repaired while liability is unresolved. See our guide on collision coverage versus a third-party claim.
Can I ask for the claim to be reassigned to a different office or region?
You can ask, and a reasonable request explaining why (concern about the same adjuster effectively handling both sides of a disputed claim) is worth putting in writing. There is no guarantee the carrier will grant it, but the request itself creates a documented record of your concern, which matters if you later need to point to how the claim was actually handled.
Does the same-insurer scenario ever work in my favor?
Sometimes, yes. Because the carrier pays the claim regardless of which driver is found at fault, it can have less incentive to drag out a genuinely clear-liability case in prolonged litigation than a carrier defending only its own insured against a hostile outside claimant would. The key is not assuming the incentive cuts one direction only; a same-carrier claim moves faster in some ways and gets less scrutiny in others, and knowing which dynamic is in play for your specific facts is what an attorney evaluates.
What is the appraisal clause and when should I use it?
It is a formal, policy-based process for resolving a property-damage valuation dispute: each side picks an appraiser, the two appraisers pick a neutral umpire, and the resulting valuation is binding. It is worth invoking when you have genuinely tried to resolve a lowball repair or total-loss estimate informally, with your own independent quotes in hand, and the adjuster will not move.
Related guides on dealing with the insurance company
- Start here: Dealing with Insurance Companies After a Chicago Car Accident: Tactics to Watch
- Dealing With Esurance Claims After a Chicago Car Crash
- Should I Use My Own Collision Coverage or File Against the Other Driver?
- Illinois Car Insurance Pricing: What Factors Are Legal, What Is Limited, and How It Can Affect Your Claim (Chicago)
- Letting a Friend Drive My Car in Illinois: Insurance, Permission, and Claim Steps (Chicago)
- Passenger Rights After a Chicago Car Accident: Insurance + Claim Options
Talk to a Chicago car accident lawyer. Phillips Law Offices offers a free case review, and there is no fee unless we recover for you. Call (312) 346-4262 or request a free case review.
This article is general information about Illinois law, not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Illinois law changes; confirm anything you intend to rely on with a licensed Illinois attorney.