Accident...insurance advice?

[FlamingYellowInsanity]

Sooo...You know my ninja 250? yeah...well I was riding it to work the other day and some guy pulled out in front of me making a left (left-hand-Larry as they say?). Long story short...I'm fine-ish, but the bike is totalled. haha. I have Progressive, and the other guy has State Farm, who has admitted full liability for the accident.

I'm sore and stiff, but managed to escape anything more than muscle contusions as the doctor put it.

The bike had some front end damage, and being a ninja 250, they aren't exactly very expensive bikes, so... yeah.

Anyway, I am wondering for advice on this. I already know I am getting a new helmet out of this (don't remember it hitting, but it has deep scuffs that weren't on it before the accident). Also, I'm most likely not going to take the first offer that State Farm makes (unless it looks REALLY good ). What are some things I should know? What is a fair amount for "pain and suffering," etc?

Travis

[Alex]

Glad you're OK! Also glad that the other individual has insurance, and the circumstances of the accident were clear enough that you're likely to be fully compensated. I'd make sure that the bike is fairly valued, all of your medical bills (up til now and expected future), any time of work, any gear that needs to be replaced, etc, is included with the offer.

[tabogon]

Good to hear you are ok, Travis. Like Alex said, just make sure that everything you can think of that may need to be replaced is in the claim. I would even go as far as including all of your gear if there is any visible wear on them. I have noticed that most people know a helmet is only good for 1 crash, but most of them also believe the same for all of the other gear, i.e. jacket, pants, boots, luggage, etc.

State Farm is very good about motorcycles (I have them for my mc insurance), you shouldn't have an issue with them on your claim.

[Snake]

I am glad to hear that you are ok after the accident. Getting compensated for an accident is a very tricky matter. On the one hand you want to make sure that all your present and unforseen expenses are fairly paid for. On the other hand you do not want to get greedy and let your lawyer talk you into demanding an outrageous amount of which if you win, the lawyer winds up getting the majority of after years of legal battles.

[tjkamper]

Insurance companies look for any way they can swindle you out of money. Be sure that you do your own research and get written quotes to back up your claim of value. Don't trust the adjuster's values. Adjusters almost always low-ball.

[2WheelGuy]

Years ago I claimed a totaled motorcycle. The Insurance company, Farmers I think, offered Blue Book for the bike. I brought in photos of my bike showing how pristine it was along with ads for similar bikes from Motorcycle Trader. That is all they needed to bump my $1500 check to a $2400 check.

[noche_caliente]

I would definitely wait to see how you're healing before taking an offer from them, as what might just seem like contusions now, could get much worse in a few days. Also fight them on the low offer they're likely make on the bike and gear - if you have receipts, start digging them out. And welcome back! I haven't seen you post in what seems like forever!

[Dano]

You can prob get $1500 to 2k for pain and suffering if you are willing to wait it out might take awhile and alot of bs. Or get a moto friendly attorney and let them deal with it, usually if you arent asking for much pain and suffering the thought of dealing with the attorney will get you paid alot sooner.

[FlamingYellowInsanity]

Hey, thanks everyone, and yeah, it's good to be back! I've been pretty busy with school, work, and just life in general. I'll try to keep on at least sometimes though!

As for the insurance stuff, we're still dealing with claims, etc, now, but it's looking like it won't be too much of a struggle to get fair treatment. I'm saying 2k-ish (maybe a bit more) for the bike, a few hundred for registration and tax (I'm NOT paying that out of my pocket), a few hundred for pain and suffering, and enough to replace my helmet with (150-ish).

I've been thinking about trading up to something a bit bigger (physically bigger, and performance-wise also), so maybe I can use this opportunity to do that. I really like the GSX-Rs, any thoughts on them? (older/used of course). Anyone have any bikes for sale? man...I've been out my ninja for a week, riding my mom's Burgman 400 sometimes, but I'm totally ITCHING to get back on 2 wheels of my own!!! GRRR!!!!

Travis

[FlamingYellowInsanity]

I hate to double-post, and again, thanks for all the well wishes and advice. I am going to call and bug the insurance comany again on monday to see what's up and keep them on top of things, but I've been browsing for bikes, and I found one that would be sweet! Anyone know anything about a 1997 Honda CBR1100xx? Its an earlier honda hypersport bike similar to the busa, but not quite as insane (130hp). Found a decent deal at $2600 (needs tires). Any thought? Also, it's registered non-op, and my mom says that means I'd have to pay all the back registration (8 years since registered), but I really doubt that, as that's the whole point of non-op-ing a vehicle.

Any thoughts on this whole deal? I know it's a huge jump in power/size, but I've cranked open my CB750K also, so I know I can handle a good deal of power (still, this is a lot more, so I'd be SUPER careful until I got a really good feel for the bike. Heck, It took me a good year+ before I really started riding the 250 to it's max potential, and I'm pretty sure I was nearing the top of it's capabilities. Not that it's a very good judge, but my "chicken-strips" were less than a qtr inch on either side, and I regularly scraped pegs/stands). That do you guys and gals think?

Travis

[FlamingYellowInsanity]

Well...the bike is borderline on totaled, so they decided to fix it, but they'll total it if I want. They value my ninja 250 at "over $2,000" and the damage estimate is $1,666.xx. What do you guys think I should do? I was itching to upgrade to a bigger bike, as the 250 isn't ideal for a 50 miles each way commute on cali freeways. I won't *NEED* a bike for a while, so I have some time to think about it. The ins comp will give me 1,666.xx to repair the bike, so I could always do it myself and pocket the rest. Any thoughts?

Travis

[Snake]

Take the $2K and buy a new-gen.

[kkim]

I agree. Take the money and upgrade.

CBR 600 f2, f3 or f4/f4i would make a great upgrade and they are relatively cheap. Finding a clean, unabused one is the trick.

[Locksmiff]

Originally Posted by FlamingYellowInsanity

Well...the bike is borderline on totaled, so they decided to fix it, but they'll total it if I want. They value my ninja 250 at "over $2,000" and the damage estimate is $1,666.xx. What do you guys think I should do? I was itching to upgrade to a bigger bike, as the 250 isn't ideal for a 50 miles each way commute on cali freeways. I won't *NEED* a bike for a while, so I have some time to think about it. The ins comp will give me 1,666.xx to repair the bike, so I could always do it myself and pocket the rest. Any thoughts?

Travis

I would take the 1666 and put it aside and wreck the damage bike adding more $$ to your 1666. Thats if the bike isn't that damaged that you couldn't make a good quick buck from parting it out.

[Cab305]

On the positive side, now you can get a new gen!

[FlamingYellowInsanity]

well the shop I'm at offered to buy the bike as-is for the difference between the repair check and the value of the bike, kicking up my total to about $2200, but without salvaging out a decent bike. I found a 2003 suzuki SV1000 for $2300 (salvage title, but good condition) that looks really nice...

Travis