Illinois Business Interruption Insurance Attorneys

When you’re a business owner, you have a responsibility to ensure you can pay your expenses to keep your business running. If there’s a disaster that halts operations, such as a tornado or mold damage, you’ll have to file a claim with your insurance company, so you receive payments to keep your business afloat.

Unfortunately, some insurance adjusters will wrongfully deny your request or delay coverage for various reasons. That’s exactly what’s happening to business owners across Illinois who were counting on their business interruption insurance benefits to survive their losses stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic.

If you need to file a business interruption insurance claim, it’s crucial that you have an experienced Danville business interruption insurance attorney to help you pursue the money you’re owed. At Spiros Law, P.C., we understand your rights and how to handle insurance disputes for business owners in Danville.

You deserve coverage outlined in your policy and shouldn’t have to fight with your insurance carrier to get it. When you hire us, we’ll fight for your rights and make sure you can pay for your losses, so you don’t have to close your business permanently.

To find out how our Danville business interruption insurance attorneys can help you, call us at (217) 443-4343 for a free consultation.

What Is Business Interruption Insurance?

Unlike general liability, it’s not a requirement under Illinois law to carry business interruption insurance. However, experts highly recommend purchasing one. When you pay for a business interruption policy, you’re entitled to payments for additional expenses and lost income during a covered peril. Covered perils include things like fire, theft, wind, and lightning.

When you apply for business interruption coverage, there’s typically a coverage limit. The limit is the maximum amount of money your insurance company will pay you for a claim. If any of your expenses exceed that coverage, you’ll have to pay for them out of your own pocket. You must review the policy information and determine potential losses so you can choose the right amount of coverage before signing up for a policy.

Restoration Period

Pay attention to the restoration period listed on the policy. A restoration period is the duration your insurance company will pay for your losses while you’re repairing the damage to your business. Many policies have a short waiting period, around 48 to 72 hours before the restoration period begins. Restoration periods typically last up to twelve months, and you’ll receive reimbursement, even if your policy expires before the end of the period.

Coverages

Depending on your specific policy, you could get reimbursed for the following:

• Employee wages for payroll while your business is inoperable.
• Income your company would earn if it were still open.
• Rent or lease expenses.
• Relocation costs for moving your business to a new location temporarily, such as moving expenses and rent.
• Loan payments
• Losses from damage preventing you from accessing your commercial property.
• Business tax, insurance, mortgage, and other fixed costs you still have to pay despite your business closing.

Exclusions

There are some limitations for business interruption policies. A list of exclusions will indicate what isn’t covered by your policy. For example, if there’s an exclusion for a tree falling on your property and it causes you to shut down for a period, you won’t recover any payments unless there’s a tree damage endorsement.

The most common exclusions found in business interruption insurance policies include:

• Utilities: Most businesses won’t use their utilities when they’re not operating, so that’s typically not covered by the policy.
• Undocumented income: If you don’t have documentation of income and your business suffers as the result of a disaster, you won’t be able to prove a loss of income and provide the amount of reimbursement you require.
• Partial closure: If there’s limited access to your property, but you’re still able to operate your business, you won’t receive payments.
• Damages not covered: Some policies will list damage from specific events that you can’t obtain coverage for, such as an earthquake.
• Downed power lines: If a storm or accident causes downed power lines that force you to halt operations, you probably won’t receive any coverage. That’s because power outages usually don’t last that long, so you’ll likely remain closed for only a few hours or days.

How Spiros Law, P.C. Can Help Me

You might be considering filing your business interruption claim without legal representation. That could be a huge mistake. Most business owners don’t understand how to review their policies to figure out what coverages they have. If you go into a claim completely blind, the insurance company could take advantage of that and unfairly deny your claim or provide a low reimbursement amount that doesn’t cover all the losses listed on your policy.

When you hire one of the experienced Danville business interruption insurance attorneys from Spiros Law, P.C., we will provide you with the following services:

• Review your policy to determine what’s covered and what isn’t.
• Create a strategy to file a valid claim.
• Comply with all state laws and required deadlines.
• Evaluate your commercial property, building, equipment, and other losses to determine a fair reimbursement amount.
• Submit an itemized list of all lost income and expenses and supporting documentation to the insurance adjuster.
• Communicate with the adjuster through the claims process to ensure timely processing and the submission of any incomplete records.
• Negotiate the maximum settlement you deserve with the insurance company.

It’s stressful enough dealing with an event that leads to your business shutting down. If you have to deal with a confusing insurance policy and intimidating insurance company on top of that, it can seem like an overwhelming feat. Allow us to take the reigns and handle every step of the claims process for you so you can focus on a plan to rebuild your business.

What If I Can’t Afford an Attorney?

We know you’re struggling financially since ceasing business operations. You need an experienced Danville business interruption insurance attorney to help you, but you worry about adding more expenses to your plate. At Spiros Law, P.C., we want to make sure this is a stress-free process, which is why we take cases on contingency.

We won’t require upfront payment for legal fees or costs. We’ll work on your case without billing you for any of our services. If we’re able to recover the money you’re entitled to from your business interruption policy, we’ll take a portion of that for our legal fees. If we don’t win your case, you won’t have to pay us anything.

Schedule Your Free Consultation Today

Did COVID-19 or another type of disaster force you to close the doors to your business? Do you need help recovering reimbursement from your business interruption insurance company? If so, contact Spiros Law, P.C. today, and one of our Danville business interruption insurance attorneys will meet with you for a free consultation.

There’s no risk in discussing your situation and receiving legal advice. We’ll review the details of your case, evaluate your claim, and determine the options you have to pursue the settlement you deserve.

Call us at (217) 443-4343 or fill out our contact form for more information about how we can help you recover your losses and get your business back up and running.