"They're going to ask you the exact date you were hurt," because in Illinois that date controls whether your claim is alive or dead.

Yes, stalling can be a trap. The Illinois personal injury deadline is usually 2 years from the injury date under 735 ILCS 5/13-202. If it was a winter crash on the Eisenhower (I-290), Lake Shore Drive, or a Chicago side street, that clock usually starts the day of the wreck. If a city agency or other local government is involved, the old short notice rule is gone, but you still do not get extra time just because an adjuster keeps saying they're "reviewing" it.

And waiting even a week can hurt for another reason: evidence disappears fast in Chicago winter cases. Black ice melts. Snow gets plowed. Salt trucks move on. Camera footage gets erased. Witnesses stop answering.

What you need to prove the timeline and keep them from playing dumb:

• Crash date proof: Illinois crash report, 911 CAD log, tow receipt, ER intake, ambulance record.
• Injury date proof: records from Stroger Hospital or any urgent care, discharge papers, imaging dates, pharmacy receipts.
• Delay proof: every text, email, voicemail, claim number, and letter showing the insurer kept "investigating."
• Scene proof: photos/video of ice, snow buildup, blocked visibility, skid marks, damaged cars, and weather screenshots from that day.
• Chicago-specific proof: any IDOT, CDOT, or police report references if the crash involved an expressway, plow zone, or road condition issue.

If they keep asking for "just one more document" while the 2-year deadline gets closer, that is not harmless. That is how people lose claims without realizing it. The moment the filing deadline passes, the insurer's leverage goes through the roof, because they know you may have nothing left to force payment.