Enough to cover what a judgment can reach: your home equity, your savings outside retirement, and a few years of income. For most Illinois homeowners that is $1 million to $3 million, at roughly $150 to $300 a year for the first million.
Checks your underlying limits
About 90 seconds
No email to see your number
What a claim could reach
Retirement accounts are generally protected from a judgment, so leave 401(k) and IRA balances out.
What you carry today
Both numbers sit on your declarations page. An umbrella attaches on top of them, so they decide whether you can buy one at all.
Anything below apply?
Fill in what you own above to see the limit you should be carrying
This is a planning estimate. Recommended limits are based on assets exposed to a judgment plus a future-earnings allowance, and cost ranges reflect published personal umbrella pricing. Your limit and your price come from a licensed producer.
A licensed Illinois producer at Lakeshore Risk Advisors prices your umbrella across carriers. Free, no obligation, no spam.
What does a personal umbrella policy actually do?
An umbrella policy pays liability claims after the limit on your auto or home policy runs out. If you are found at fault for an accident with $900,000 in injuries and your auto policy carries a $250,000 bodily injury limit, the umbrella covers the difference up to its own limit. Without one, the remaining $650,000 is collected from you.
Illinois requires only 25/50/20 in auto liability, which is $25,000 per injured person and $50,000 per accident. A single hospital stay can exceed that. The gap between the state minimum and a real claim is the reason umbrella coverage exists, and it is why the calculator above asks what your current limits are before it recommends anything.
Umbrella policies also reach exposures that home and auto policies exclude outright: libel, slander, false arrest, and invasion of privacy. For anyone who posts publicly, serves on a condo or nonprofit board, coaches, or rents property to a tenant, that broadening is often worth more than the extra limit.
How is the recommended limit calculated?
The calculator adds up what a judgment can actually reach, then loads it for the exposures that produce large claims. Assets counted are home equity, savings and investments held outside retirement accounts, and any additional property. Qualified retirement accounts are generally protected from creditors and are excluded.
A future-earnings allowance of five years of household income is added on top, because a judgment that exceeds your available assets does not disappear. It follows income. The total is then increased for each risk factor you select and rounded up to a limit carriers actually sell, which is $1 million, $2 million, $3 million, $5 million, or $10 million.
The last step is the one most tools skip. Before any carrier will sell an umbrella, they require minimum limits on the policies underneath it, typically 250/500 on auto and $300,000 of home or renters liability. The calculator tells you whether you clear that bar, because being under it is the most common reason an umbrella cannot be written at all.
Common questions
How much umbrella insurance do I need?
Enough to cover the assets a judgment can reach plus a few years of income. That means home equity, savings and investments outside retirement accounts, and any second or rental property, plus an allowance for future earnings because a judgment above your policy limit can be collected from what you earn later. Most Illinois households who own a home land between $1 million and $3 million. Qualified retirement accounts such as a 401(k) or IRA are generally protected from creditors and are usually left out of the calculation.
How much does a $1 million umbrella policy cost?
Roughly $150 to $300 per year for the first $1 million, and roughly $75 to $150 per year for each additional million. Umbrella coverage is unusually cheap per dollar of protection because it only pays after your auto or home liability limit is exhausted, which is rare. A $2 million policy commonly runs $225 to $450 per year.
What limits do I need before I can buy an umbrella policy?
Most carriers require underlying auto bodily injury limits of 250/500 and home or renters liability of at least $300,000 before they will sell you an umbrella. Illinois only requires 25/50/20 on auto, so a driver carrying the state minimum usually has to raise the auto policy first. Raising underlying limits typically costs far less than people expect, and it is the single most common reason an umbrella application is declined.
Does umbrella insurance cover things my home and auto policies do not?
Yes. Most personal umbrella policies cover libel, slander, false arrest, and invasion of privacy, which standard home and auto policies exclude. They also extend liability to rental property you own, to volunteer board service, and often worldwide. The umbrella is the only personal policy most households carry that responds to a reputation claim.
Do I need umbrella insurance if I rent?
Sometimes. Renters with meaningful savings, a strong income, a dog, or a teen driver can face a liability judgment that exceeds a renters policy limit. Renters liability is commonly $100,000, which is low relative to a serious auto or dog bite claim. The calculation is the same as for a homeowner, minus home equity.
Is umbrella insurance worth it in Illinois?
For most Illinois households that own a home, yes. Illinois auto minimums are 25/50/20, among the lower minimum limits in the country, which means a serious at-fault accident can exceed the underlying limit quickly. An umbrella that costs a few hundred dollars a year sits above that and protects home equity and future wages.
Recommended limits and cost ranges are planning estimates based on published personal umbrella pricing and typical carrier underlying-limit requirements. They are not a quote and not legal or financial advice. Asset protection rules vary and change; talk to an attorney about your own situation. Actual limits available to you, underlying requirements, and price depend on the carrier, your history, and underwriting. RateShield is an insurance technology company and is not an insurance agency or broker. Quotes come from a licensed producer at Lakeshore Risk Advisors LLC, an independent Illinois brokerage, and coverage is written by the carriers.