Insurance claim

[Guest Shep]

For those of you that have been through having your bike repaired through an insurance claim:

 

1. How does it work?

2. Will they "low ball" or fix it back to "good as new"?

3. Will they replace the "after market" stuff?

4. Will I have any "say so" in anything? Like, "Hey that part needs to be replaced!"

5. Will I have an option of keeping any of the old parts?

 

I am with State Farm and have full coverage.

 

Thanks for any help. The bike is in the shop and I am awaiting an "estimate".

 

Shep

[BuddyRich]

I had mine done at the local yamaha shop. They totalled it at first even though the geico adjuster didn't think it was that bad. I went to the dealer and said what's up with this. Well, they were replacing every piece that had the slightest scratch on it even if it was a rock chip that had nothing to do with the accident. Went over it with the dealer and told them what I wanted done. It worked out the way Iwanted to in the end. Yes they did replace the light bar,passing lamp and some other after market stuff.

[BoomerCPO]

When I crashed in July-08 Geico was on the spot about having the scoot taken care of. The Adjuster had the Dealer strip the whole scoot down to the frame,inspect every part,and set all damaged parts aside. The Adjuster collected ALL damaged parts (even my helmet) and authorized the Dealer to order and install new OEM parts only. Nothing on the bike was allowed to be re-painted.

 

I didn't have any after-market parts damaged but it's my understanding that Geico would not have covered that unless my Policy specifically covered such parts.

 

You have the right to be there with the Adjuster when he inspects your scoot. My Adjuster was willing for me to be there but I was home hurting and the scoot was out of State to boot.

 

My bike came home in Showroom condition and all it costs me was the Deductible which I selected when I bought the Policy.

 

Wish I could tell you something good about Allstate but I have heard nothing good about them from anyone who rides a scoot.

 

Good luck with your bike!

[Venturous Randy]

When my bike was hit by the truck and totaled by State Farm, I was real pleased with the way they handled it. I have Allstate as my carrier on liability and uninsured motorist and they helped get the paperwork in motion with State Farm.

I think the thing that helped me the most was when I met the adjuster and he walked up to my bike and stated "That sure is a nice looking bike" I guess when you are an insurance adjuster and you are getting ready to look at a 25 year old Yamaha, you don't have very high expectations to start with.

RandyA

[V7Goose]

For those of you that have been through having your bike repaired through an insurance claim:

 

1. How does it work?

2. Will they "low ball" or fix it back to "good as new"?

3. Will they replace the "after market" stuff?

4. Will I have any "say so" in anything? Like, "Hey that part needs to be replaced!"

5. Will I have an option of keeping any of the old parts?

 

I am with State Farm and have full coverage.

 

Thanks for any help. The bike is in the shop and I am awaiting an "estimate".

 

Shep

It mostly depends on the details in your specific policy, followed by the decency and attitude of the specific insurance company. After that, specific state laws come into play.

 

Your own insurance company will only do exactly what is required by your policy - if aftermarket stuff is covered, they they will repair or replace it. If the "other guy" is liable, then his policy has to repair or replace EVERYTHING that is damaged in any way, up to the dollar limit of HIS policy. By law he will still be liable for the rest of the damages above that limit, but you will have to have a good lawyer and turnip squeezer to get it out of him!

 

No matter what insurance company is handling the repair, you can always disagree and fight for something different. For example, if they want to paint vs. replace, you might want to fight that. But the final decision will be theirs unless you can prove that what they want to do is sub-standard. In that case, you most likely option will be to file a complaint with your state insurance agency.

 

And you never have to let them fix it. You can just take the check and pay someone else or do it yourself. In that case, you will still negotiate with them over how much they will pay you - e.g, are they including $200 to paint the saddlebag top or $1,000 to replace the whole bag?

 

If you have a good company and a good adjuster, the whole process will be a breeze! But if either or both of them are less than top-notch ... well, I wish you luck in that case; it might be a long fight.

 

My last comment is on the shop estimate - they will always put everything they can find on there, usually for full replacement costs. This is for two reasons - first, more profit for them. Second, you have a right to insist the bike is fixed to the exact same condition it was in prior to the claim (and most everybody will say it was factory-fresh showroom condition!). Even the slightest mark or smudge will need to be fixed in that case. The problem here is that all that stuff will quite often cause the insurance company to just total the bike. That usually happens when the total cost of repairs exceeds 75% of the current fair-market value of the machine. It is cheaper and easier for the insurance company to just give you the full price of the machine than start the repairs and maybe get surprised with more things added on or a whinny customer who wants everything back to "showroom" condition!

 

So if that happens and you don't want it totaled, you will need to negotiate with the adjuster for whatever you do want. Here is where agreeing to a paint job instead of insisting on parts replacement might make sense. And beware of getting stuck with a "salvage" title if you want to keep the bike and they insist on totaling it!

 

The old parts should almost always be yours unless the bike is totaled - in that case the insurance company owns it and they will rarely let you take anything off after they agree to the settlement. Good luck

Goose

[Guest Shep]

 

Wish I could tell you something good about Allstate but I have heard nothing good about them from anyone who rides a scoot.

 

Good luck with your bike!

 

That's good because I have State Farm

[Midrsv]

I believe the policies generally have a limit for aftermarket accessories. When my '04 was totaled they allowed $1000 for accessories and if I had more than that on it I was allowed to take off anything I wanted to get it down to the limit.

 

DT

[Chinto]

In my claim, my insurance (Progressive) paid for the repairs up front because the liable insurance (State Farm) only pays at settlement which included bodily injury. Anyway, my insurance felt it was totaled based on 50% of FMV by the adjuster. Fortunately, I had the local dealer estimate the repair and concluded he could repair it within the FMV repair limit. Long story short is around a $3300 repair brought the bike back to new with several upgrades. eg. stainless steel control cables and brake lines etc. The dealer was very helpful in the process. State Farm reimbursed my insurance Progressive because the accident was not my fault. Illinois is a fault State. Therefore my insurance rate was not affected. The only good thing about the incident was the accident happened just before winter so by Spring I was back in the saddle.

[midnightventure]

I have State Farm. Even though my accident was caused by somebody else they said they would pay to fix it back like a new one. Over 8000 dollars. When they collected from the other insurance co. they sent me a check for the deductible which I had paid when I picked up the bike.

I was afraid my rates would go up but the next year when the bill came it was less than the year before.

Edited January 13, 2009 by midnightventure
more info

[waterbug]

Im not sure how the motorcylce end of it is but doing bodywork on cars for the last 20yrs and dealing with ins co daily you need to know what your policy is and what you are getting, sometimes you get what you pay for. There are some ins co out there that want stuff repaired that can be safty inssues for the cars and the shops sometimes dont have a choice and are told that if they inform the customer what is going on they will be black balled so to speak from those companies. I sure hope they dont do that on the bikes!!! Good luck!!

[petekadish]

I lost a bike almost two years ago in an accident. It was a 1996 Royal Star (Standard). Even though it was ten years old at the time, I had it fixed-up nicer than new, and when it came time to settle my claim, I was able to collect pretty close to it's current replacement value. I think that I got around $12,350.

 

About three years ago, someone on one of the Delphi forums mentioned that Geico Ins. would only cover up to $1,000 in aftermarket accessories on any motorcycle accident. Well, that didn't sound like it was right, so I called Geico to double-check. Yep! That was a fact. There were also some other restrictions and limitations I found out about that I wasn't aware of. So I checked around and found out that, that type of limited liability policy was fairly common among most motorcycle insurance companies. I then decided that it was time to find a new insurance carrier.

 

I knew that my bike had over $1,000 in accessories and work invested in it. But, it was hardly a collector's bike. And, it wasn't an antique either. However, it did have pretty low miles on it (about 24,000), and it was in exceptional condition. See attached pic.

 

So, I began to wonder ... What if I owned a sixty-year old Vincent Black Shadow - which was in pristine, showroom condition, and one day while transporting this beautiful piece of history it to a show, I was in an accident and the bike was destroyed? Would my current insurance company answer my claim with a reply like "we're sorry for your loss, but your motorcycle was so old that it doesn't even show-up on our current blue book". So, what do you do if your awesomely-sweet ride is clearly more valuable than what your insurance company thinks that it is? Well, I switched to a company which would provide me enough coverage to replace my bike in the event of a total loss.

 

I began by contacting my homeowner's insurance agent who is with Farmer's. He also works with other insurance companies and sells their coverage. He told me that Foremost Insurance Co. would cover my bike for it's officially documented value, but first I would have to provide the following:

 

1. Current pictures, clearing showing the condition of the bike.

2. Documentation detailing all of the accessories and the work done on the bike along with receipts from retailers.

3. A signed statement from a Yamaha dealer attesting to the extra work done on the bike and what it would cost to replace the bike now, with one of equal quality and value.

 

Well, I was probably short on a few receipts, but I was able to collect everything else, and my dealer agreed that my ten year old Royal Star, was in equal value to a brand new Tour Deluxe. Fortunately, my agent didn't need to see and verify every single sales receipt and signed me up for nearly full replacement value. And, the insurance premiums were pretty reasonable too. Nothing excessive.

 

Now, all of this preparation might seem like a lot of effort. However, had I not had this kind of insurance at the time of my accident, I would have probably received a settlement offer for the book-value of my ten year old bike and perhaps a few accessories.

Little could I predict, but that about six months after securing my new insurance coverage, that my bike being transported inside a closed trailer would be in an accident. The short version of the story, is that the trailer came off the hitch while in-tow. Fortunately, I managed to pull the trailer to the side of the road (right side-up) with just one safety-chain attached to my Yukon and the trailer. It was indeed a small miracle. Well, the bike (inside of the trailer), broke loose from it's tie-downs and it was flung back and forth several times inside of my fish-tailing trailer before I managed to get it under control.

 

When the insurance adjuster (Foremost) checked out the bike after the accident, they pretty quickly decided to write it off as a total loss. They then offered me some sort of minimal settlement. I countered with the comment that if they weren't willing to fix it, that they better be prepared to write me a check for it's replacement value. The adjuster seemed a little surprised at my expectation, until I produced all of my coverage documentation. He was essentially check-matted. The insurance company had to fully honor my claim because it was air-tight.

 

About six weeks later, I was riding a new Venture and I again have made sure that all of my accessories and improvements are thoroughly documented and properly insured. See attached pic.

 

I share this experience in hopes that anyone who is under-insured, might take action to get the necessary coverage in place before it's too late. If I hadn't double-checked my initial coverage through Geico, I probably would not have been able to afford another bike as nice for a long time.

 

So, don't assume that because you know how nice your bike is, that your insurance company has the same appreciation of it. An insurance company won't pay you a dime more than they have too in the event of a claim. Take good pictures. Get your documentation in place. Keep your receipts. And, make sure that you understand what your coverage limitations are. Most of all ...

 

Be Safe!

Pete.

[davecb]

Geico will insure accessories over $1000.00 , but you have to request it. When I did mine, I asked the woman if she needed a list of items. She said no, BUT, take lots of pics of your bike with those accessoris on it. I ajve $2200.00 in accessoris in my bike, and thats what they are insured for....

[ediddy]

Well said Petekadish. I preach this every day when I insure a motorcycle. But you know what people look for. Cheap insurance. I quit responding to threads here where people brag about the low rate and cheap insurance they got. The harley riders will spend $20,000 to $30,000 on a bike and then shop for hours to save $20.00 per year on their insurance. I had an actual case where this happened with a new harley rider. The company with the lower rate left off uninsured motorist. But he saved $20.00 per year. As for GEICO every one I know that has insured their accessories for more than $1,000 has been required to submit the receipts. But "the woman at GEICO said I didn't need pictures". Have a claim and tell the claims adjuster "the woman at GEICO said I didn't need pictures."

[V7Goose]

Every insurance company will insure accessories - you just have to pay for the rider added to the policy. The amount they include with a base policy will vary. Nationwide has an automatic coverage of $3,000 for accessories, but you can easily pay for more.

 

If you haven't actually sat down and read your policy you could be in for a nasty surprise when you need it.

Goose

[BoomerCPO]

If you haven't actually sat down and read your policy you could be in for a nasty surprise when you need it.

 

That should be done as you are in the process of signing on for Insurance IMHO. I drove my Agent nuts for 3 hours with QUESTIONS and laying out WHAT I WANTED for coverage. And I made damn sure he explained to me every part of my Policy which is cloaked in the "legal terminology" the Insurance Industry uses.

 

Yes I probably pay more than most but I ride with a peace of mind that no cheap Insurance Policy could ever provide.

 

I'm can't fathom the mindset of someone who will spend thousands of $$$ to personalize/customize their bike yet go with the minimal/cheapest Insurance that is out there.

[petekadish]

Just to make sure ... that I was providing accurate information, I just phoned Geico and spoke for one of their agents. I asked what the maximum amount is, which they would insure a motorcycle's accessories , and she said that it was $2,000. So, I stand corrected. And, no, Geico will not permit you to increase your accessory coverage. That's what they top-out at, period -company policy.

 

Perhaps some other companies will let you increase your standard coverage, but make sure that you get it in writing. And, don't rely on anyone's word over the phone regarding policy or obligations. If it's not written down, it doesn't matter when it comes time to write your check. Don't assume that because your agent is a good guy, that you can take his word for everything. This is strictly a business agreement and we all need to all make sure that what we believe is in fact, in writing. And, no matter what anyone says ... take multiple pictures from all around your bike that clearly shows what great condition it's in. Pictures are just another form or aspect of your insurance. And, it can never hurt you to save your receipts - just in case.

 

I doubt that there are that many new riders here on this forum, but I remember when I first had a pretty big bike which was knocked-over. I couldn't believe how much damage could occure from a bike simply falling over. It's amazing how much stuff can get easialy scuffed, bent and broken when a big bike goes on it's side.

 

I hope none of you ever need to take advantage of this info.

 

Pete.

[Guest Shep]

Well Ride Now just told me that it is going to cost $9,611.00 to fix my 07 RSTD - WOW! I would never have guessed that. So I am betting that State Farm is going to want to total it.

 

So I guess I await the call from the insurance company to see what they are wanting to do...

 

Shep

Edited January 17, 2009 by Shep

[Carbon_One]

I've had Progressive insurance from day 1. Prior to me triking the bike I had 3k worth covered in accessories. They'll give you the 1st k, the rest is up to you. Last winter after converting the bike into a trike I upped that to 10k. I think it costs me about $50 more per year for the extra 7k. Otherwise if in an accident they'd only give you 1k in accessories and whatever the going rate for value of the bike is. I also had to provide the company with photos showing the finished bike as well.

We all hate to pay more then neccassary but when you lay out the kind of money these bikes cost why not protect your investment ? And don't forget the medical end of the equation too.

Ok that's my nickles worth,

Larry

[midnightventure]

My bike was 3 years old and had 30000 miles on it when it got wrecked. The damage was around 9000 dollars. I can't remember exactly. State Farm didn't total it then. I'm not sure but I think the resale value on them is down since then. That was 4 years ago.

[Squidley]

Well Ride Now just told me that it is going to cost $9,611.00 to fix my 07 RSTD - WOW! I would never have guessed that. So I am betting that State Farm is going to want to total it.

 

So I guess I await the call from the insurance company to see what they are wanting to do...

 

Shep

 

 

Dont bank on that, look at the market value of it, if it's over $10K I'll bet they will try to fix it. I wont get into the insurance aspect of this thread, but I will say that in a hard crash you will have future problems with the bike if it is fixed. Electronics that take a hard jarring loose a lot of their life expectancy, if it's that close to being totalled, I would let them have it.

[Guest Shep]

OK - insurance company finally called with a figure:

 

First let me say that I payed $13,000.00 out-the-door for my 2007 RSTD about 4 months ago - and it was brand new - never sold in 07.

 

The insurance company has agreed to fix the bike! $9,611.00 worth of repairs.

or

They will give me $9,361.97 (that is minus my deductible) and let me take the bike home and either do the repairs myself or have someone else do them.

 

I would like to get some opinions from you folks. Starting tomorrow - Ride Now will start charging me rental fees if I don't chose one or the other!

 

OK folks - let 'er rip!

 

Shep

[BuddyRich]

Is it with in your mechanical ability to do the work ? Will any special tools be needed ? If so (ability) then you may be able to pocket the labor costs. If not then let the dealer do it.

[YamaDuck]

One thing here in Ga. you can get your insurance company to repair the bike and they will get the money from the other party that was at fault. HOWEVER the claim goes against YOU. Your insurance may not go up but it still goes on your record as a claim and if you have another one guess what. My recommendation never have your insurance pay to have repairs made. Another thing is motorcycle parts are totally out of sight so it doesn't take a lot of damage on an older motorcycle to total it. I assume you are talking about your 07 so it will take a little more damage to total it. Basically it the repairs cost more than the Kelly Blue Book, NADA or whatever book the insurance company uses the bike is totaled. The insurance company would rather total a bike that is heavily damaged than repair it because there could be hidden damage that no one could find that may appear going down the road at 70 miles per hour. With that said if an insurance company does total your bike just tell them you would like to buy it back and they will tell you what the hight salvage bid is and what bid you would have to bid to win the bike back. Now if you do buy the bike back you have three options.

1) Turn around and try to sell it as is for more than you paid.

2) Part it out and you should make well over what you paid for the bike but a lot of work.

3) Rebuild it yourself and get a salvage title.

 

With a salvage title if you were to sell it you would not get as much money for it but if you have no plans of selling it and you want to ride it for a long time it may be worth it to you. The inspection process is quite involved also if you plan on rebuilding it yourself.

 

The bike I totaled was a 99 V-Star 650 and it was all cosmetic but since it was a 99 it was easily totaled.

 

 

Harry

[YamaDuck]

TAKE THE MONEY! Do what you can. Decide what damage you can live with if any. Get some friends with motorcycle repair experience to help you do the things that you don't feel comfortable fixing yourself and let Yamaha fix the rest. You may even save your deductible and make a little money.

 

 

[tazmocycle]

when i wrecked my 01 venture in 05, i had state farm(been with them since 1970). when the hospital went to file the bills to state farm they said i didn't have medical coverage( told my agent i wanted full coverage when i applied for it and thought i had it). in the state of Al they don't offer medical coverage on motorcycles!! cost me a few thousands of $s to learn this lesson!! i now have formost ins thru aarp. may 08, girl backed over my 01 royal star std, 2 estimates-$2345.00- friends shop and $4700.00 from yam dealer, she refused to give me her ins info to file so i called formost and told them what happened and they paid me the 4700. minus the 250 deductable. just wrote up a report of what happened and names of several witnesses to accident, since i owened the bike out-right i got check in less than a week to do what i wanted to do with the bike. they offer differant amounts of medical and covers $3500 of accessories, but i think you can add more to it? formost is a lot cheaper than state farm too. like most has said, you need to make sure of the coverage you want and get. don't take the word of anybody, only whats in writing because thats what the lawers and court will go by.