The Illinois House voted 115-0 on Sunday, May 31, to concur with Senate amendments to House Bill 4160, sending right-to-appraisal legislation to Gov. JB Pritzker's desk in a significantly narrower form than the version introduced last October.
The bill, sponsored by Tracy Katz Muhl (D-Northbrook) in the House and Julie Morrison (D-Lake Forest) in the Senate, would require every auto insurance policy issued, renewed, or delivered in Illinois on or after July 1, 2027, that includes first-party coverage for physical damage to contain a provision granting both the insured and the insurer the right to invoke appraisal in a dispute over the amount of a loss. The insured can invoke the right without the insurer's consent or agreement.
The Senate passed the bill 56-2 on May 28 after adopting an amendment that rewrote most of the bill. The House concurred Sunday, with no member voting against.
How shops and insureds can invoke appraisal
If a dispute arises over the amount of a loss, either party could submit a written demand for appraisal. Within seven calendar days, each side would select a competent and disinterested appraiser and notify the other party in writing.
If the appraisers cannot agree on the amount of the loss within five calendar days of their appointment, they would jointly select an umpire. If they cannot agree on an umpire within 15 calendar days, either party could petition a court to appoint one. The Illinois Department of Insurance would maintain a list of competent and disinterested umpires.
A final award must be determined within five business days after an umpire is selected. An agreement between the two appraisers, or between one appraiser and the umpire, would be binding on all parties.
Each side would pay for its own appraiser. Umpire fees would be split equally between the parties.
What got cut from the original bill
The version that cleared both chambers omits several provisions that were in the bill as introduced and that Autobody News reported on in March.
The introduced bill applied to disputes over actual cash value, repairable losses, and total loss amounts, and extended appraisal rights to third-party claimants. The final version applies only to first-party disputes over the amount of a loss.
The introduced bill also created an Automotive Appraisal Standards Advisory Board, with representatives from the automotive repair industry, the insurance industry, consumer protection organizations, and public members, to advise the Department of Insurance on rulemaking. That board is not in the final version.
A cost-shifting provision that would have required insurers to pay all appraisal and umpire fees if the final award was at least 10% more favorable to the policyholder than the insurer's last written offer was removed by a House floor amendment in April and is not in the final bill.
Specific civil penalties of up to $5,000 per violation that appeared in the introduced bill were also removed. Under the final language, insurers that fail to comply with the appraisal provisions would be subject to administrative penalties imposed by the Department of Insurance.
The introduced bill would have taken effect 90 days after becoming law. The final version takes effect July 1, 2027.
Strong repairer support, insurer opposition
Witness slips filed with the Illinois General Assembly show 142 proponents and 6 opponents registered on the bill as originally introduced. Proponents included the Alliance of Automotive Service Providers of Illinois, the Alliance for Automotive Innovation, and a number of independent collision repair shops. The American Property Casualty Insurance Association was among the opponents.
HB 4160 now goes to Pritzker for signature. If signed, Illinois would join Texas and Washington, both of which enacted right-to-appraisal laws in 2025. Similar measures have been introduced in Ohio and Minnesota.
