Financial Channel

state of illinois. my insuranced lapsed & my drivers licensed was expired when i slid in the rain into another car who slid into the car in front of him. the front car and myself had no damage, only the middle car. no police, no tickets, exchanged information. he called the insurance company, found i'm not covered & wants me to pay the $4000 to fix the vehicle, which i would love to do if i were employed & able to. he's called back several times trying to make a deal & threatening to call police & lawyer if i don't pay. it's just not there. there's nothing to pay him with.

is it possible for me to go to jail on this? what can be done here?

You should get your license reinstated, and get insurance on your car.

The longer he waits, the less likely it will be that the police will pursue the matter if and when he reports it. If they take a report they will probably contact you for your side of the story; if it were me I would simply not speak with the police, even to confirm that I was driving, and let them fill out the report without my input. If you admit to the police that you were driving an uninsured car, or driving without a license, they could easily pursue criminal charges.

thank you. yes, insurance is back up & on my way to do the license now.

and then how long do they have to file a lawsuit for the damages?

For damage to personal property, under 735 ILCS 5/13‑205, the Illinois statute of limitations is five years.