10/19/2026
Myth: when an insurance adjuster says "our review puts you at thirty percent," the percentage is settled.
It is not. Before a lawsuit is filed, there is no judge, no jury, and no referee. A fault percentage from an adjuster is a position based on their own file review. It can be disputed, answered with evidence, or rejected.
The only fault percentage with legal force in Illinois is the one a jury writes on a verdict form at trial. The jury answers two questions: the total damages, and the plaintiff's share of fault. The judge does the subtraction.
Adjusters know most claims never reach a courtroom. So a number floated in week one often becomes the ceiling for every conversation after it. That is worth understanding before the first call about fault happens, not after.
Kass & Moses in Northbrook explains how that number is actually decided, and who decides it, in the post linked below.
https://kassandmoses.com/blog/partly-at-fault-in-an-illinois-crash-what-the-law-says/?utm_source=social&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=cmv8as25j002306kzfqg1xxez
Attorney Advertising. Kass & Moses, P.C., Northbrook, IL.