Illinois

Any employer that fails to acquire insurance can be fined up to $500 for every single day of lack of coverage (minimum of $10,000). Any corporate officers can also be held personally liable if the company then fails to pay this penalty. Collected fines are then deposited into the Injured Workers' Benefit Fund.  Furthermore, those who have failed to acquire insurance are guilty of a Class A misdemeanor and if it is confirmed that they knowingly refused to purchase insurance it is considered a Class 4 felony. An employee who has a work-related injury during the time the employer is uninsured also maintains the right to sue the employer in civil court and these benefits can be unlimited. The burden in a trial is on the employer to prove the situation was not negligent.  The Commission has the right to issue a work-stop order on any employer that has been proved to have knowingly failed to obtain insurance, and prohibit all business operations until they can supply proof of insurance.

They do not require coverage but there are occasional exceptions. Sole proprietors and business partners can elect to come under the Act or choose not to. However, those who engage in extra hazardous professions do require coverage, but even in these cases sole proprietors, corporate officers, business partners or members of la LLC may opt out. If they do opt out they still must notify their carrier in writing of this intention. In almost all instances, a company that is in a construction business, trucking enterprise that operates at a construction site or extra hazardous professions is required by law to obtain insurance. Also, truckers considered independent contractors with written lease agreements, still require workers compensation insurance.

Any out-of-state company that operates with employees in Illinois (even if the workers themselves live in the same state as the company) must provide workers compensation insurance including Illinois coverage. Illinois law covers workers whose employment results in work-related injury within Illinois, whose labor is primarily localized within Illinois or with an original contract of hire established in Illinois.