Hit a dog and need some help.

[matt250]

Ok to make a long story short..dog came out of nowhere. Big german shepord dove right under my front tire. Saw him to late no time to brake me and bike fliped at 35 mph. Now there is massive damage to my bike. I do not have full coverage because I cant afford it. I cant afford to pay for my bike repairs. My insurance company said their home owners insurance would cover it; but they do not own their home or a car. We have a leash law here so this is clearly their fault. Easy win in court or anything. I do not have money to pay a lawyer to help me win this in small claims. There were 2 owners of the dog that saw the whole thing and about 4 other witneses. Has this or anything like this happened to anyone else and how can I get paid My bike fliped and both sides are all jacked up and alot of stuff is bent. Thanks for youre help. Matt

[alex.s]

sucks. sorry to hear it. good luck man. post up some photos of the damage when you can

[loz944]

Do you not have a No win no fee legal service in the US we do In the UK

[matt250]

I can when I get home. Handles bars and forks are bent for sure, along with all the missing parts. There are alot of "no win no pay" but most of them are for injuries which I did not sustain this time due to wearing my gear. I am trying to find one still and have yet to succed in my state.

[nickjpass]

Sorry...how was the dog though?

[Mountain Dew]

Try getting in touch with one of those motorcycle lawyers.

Also, insurance is just like gear, if you can't afford it, you can't afford the bike.

[akima]

What about you buddy? Are you physically ok? That's the really important thing.

Originally Posted by loz944

Do you not have a No win no fee legal service in the US we do In the UK

+1

... and loz944. Didn't know you were in the UK. Join the UK group.

[matt250]

Well I am fine. Hurt to move for a few days. Just kind of layed around. I had coverage in the past but with the crap economy when you get laid off and can only find a part time job the insurance goes down to liability. Either way I shouldnt be the one to pay for this and thats what Im looking for here. Oh and the dog is alive. Not sure how bad I hurt it but Ill tell oyu at the time I wish it had died. Kind of messed up but ah well. Hard feelings for the dog :/

[nickjpass]

I know what you mean...I hope you get better!! Good luck.

[kyrider]

You do not need a lawyer.

http://www.azcourts.gov/PublicServic...allClaims.aspx

http://www.nolo.com/legal-encycloped...urt-32073.html

Seems like a fairly open & shut case.

Good luck!

[FrugalNinja250]

Your damages likely exceed the maximum claimable in small claims court in your state. At this point you're faced with a difficult choice, either come up with a means to hire a lawyer to pursue a claim against them, or walk away empty handed and try to figure out if you can fix your bike or just let it go. It's harsh, but that's the reality.

I recommend that you contact lawyers that are part of the AIM network, start here: http://www.cycle-law.com/associations.html

Typically an attorney charges little to nothing to consult with you and spell out your options, and what you think is possible and what really is possible are likely two very, very different things at this point. Until you actually learn some real facts you're making decisions based on ass*u*mptions. Don't be that guy...

However, if you decide to not get off your butt and look into it then it's best you don't bother complaining about how things went, because by not taking action things will go against you, and nobody wants to hear about someone who wouldn't take at least the first step toward resolution.

Sounds mean, but it's meant to get you off your gluts and put some effort into protecting yourself.

[Mr.E]

Originally Posted by matt250

Oh and the dog is alive. Not sure how bad I hurt it but Ill tell oyu at the time I wish it had died. Kind of messed up but ah well. Hard feelings for the dog :/

^ That made me lol. I can picture a biker giving a death glare to a dog on the otherside of a courtroom lol.

But in all seirousness, sorry to hear you crashed. Glad that you're ok though.

[matt250]

Thanks for the advice I will definatly be looking into all these and contacting them. I just had no idea where to start. I have never been to court or anything like this and my research turned up nothing so I figured I would ask someplace where someone might have some insight. As for the small claims yes the damages might be over 2500 but If I could get that I know I can find all the parts and have it put back together for that. The stealership would probably quote it over. I can find cheap parts and slowly put it back together myself if I can get that but I just cant afford it myself. Hoping to be able to find a way to drag it down to the stealership this week or next to get the damages summed up. I know if it went through an insurance company it would be marked as totaled.

[Malicious Logic]

That sucks man. I'm assuming you've already spoken to the owners of the animal? Did they refuse to pay for your damages? Also, have you maybe considered doing some research and representing yourself? If you've got witnesses and what not, I'd assume it wouldn't be that hard of a case.

[Trailerboy531]

If your forks are bent, and when bikes flip that's not uncommon, then you will likely have damages exceeding 2500. Even if you find your own cheap parts. I would inspect the frame too; these frames are soft and they bend more easily than others.

[matt250]

Ya I spoke to them. They are young about 23-24 and dont own a car. Not even sure if they work. They dont have any money and my insurance company said that their home owners might cover it but they dont own a home. I contacted a consultant to see if maybe we could file it with their landlord or what but I havnt recieved anything back yet. I will make sure to tell the stealership guy to check out everything. I got to go back and talk to the witnesses again because Im not sure exactly what they saw. They might have just heard the crash and looked after it happened but I passed by there house they were out by the street and when I was limping my bike back home they stoped me and asked if I was ok and said they saw it so Im not sure. From reading on the small claims looks like I dont need to tell them Im taking them to court they just get served with the paperwork after I file it. Ill hopefully get some answers in the next couple days.

[CynicalC]

I read and understand your situation, but this is the precise reason that full coverage insurance exists. Tough break but you might end up eating a whole lot of it. Hopefully you get it sorted out and sue the dog owners. They have some kind of money if they're paying rent and own a dog.

[GreenNinja]

Originally Posted by matt250

Well I am fine. Hurt to move for a few days. Just kind of layed around. I had coverage in the past but with the crap economy when you get laid off and can only find a part time job the insurance goes down to liability. Either way I shouldnt be the one to pay for this and thats what Im looking for here. Oh and the dog is alive. Not sure how bad I hurt it but Ill tell oyu at the time I wish it had died. Kind of messed up but ah well. Hard feelings for the dog :/

Matt, my full coverage only costs me 18 a month, how much cheaper can liability be? My insurance has a 500 deductable for the bike if it is stolen and covers up to 50k in personal injury if other person does not have insurance. If your insurance is much much more expensive than that, then maybe you should start shopping around.

[Kstorm21]

Go to Judge Judy or The Peoples Court or something. They usually pay you to be there if you win or lose.

[loz944]

Originally Posted by akima

What about you buddy? Are you physically ok? That's the really important thing.



+1

... and loz944. Didn't know you were in the UK. Join the UK group.

No I am Living in Thailand but i am British and have used the no win no fee guys before

[Wicked808]

Sorry to hear about your accident! Hope all is well!

[Wicked808]

Originally Posted by GreenNinja

Matt, my full coverage only costs me 18 a month, how much cheaper can liability be? My insurance has a 500 deductable for the bike if it is stolen and covers up to 50k in personal injury if other person does not have insurance. If your insurance is much much more expensive than that, then maybe you should start shopping around.

Damn, what insurance company do you have?

[matt250]

Wow..18 dollars a month full coverage. Ya Please inform us lol. Liability for me is 20 a month and as I made my have no money situation clear it is literally all I can afford. Full coverage they want about $120. And thats the cheapest I could find. Im guessing you been with your insurance company for years and years and have no accidents or tickets. I dont have any of those either but Im only 25 and I switched to a new insurance company because they were the cheapest for my motorcycle. Oh and after only 4 hours of sleep all the lawyers decided to call me one after another this morning and all told me I am out of luck because I did not get injured they will not help me. One did say he will give me free advice and asked me questions and told me the same thing my insurance company did. Homeowners or renters insurance is the only thing that will cover it and because they dont have it I am screwed. He then told me if I seek medical attention for this to give him a call. Now I plan to seek medical attention because my knee is really hurting but that is a pre existing condition that I know I had and has never been treated because it got like that from the military prior to me having my insurance. Since this accident I can now go in and get my insurance to pay for my knee and say I have never had problems until now. That wont hold up with those lawyers because my insurance will cover it and when they see I have all this wrong with my knee it will be obvious it was not caused by the accident. Last time I checked severe arthritis..ITBS and PPSD isnt spontaneous lol.

[massacremasses]

yeah I pay 30 a month for just barely over liability... Higher limits and stuff.. do tell where the 18 a month for full coverage is from..

[ryanG19]

I'm 22 and its $384 a year for collision with a $100 deductible for 250k/500k/100k. Go talk to State Farm.

To the OP, man that's a tough pill to swallow. Did you check to see if the LANDLORD had home insurance on it?

[reaubideux]

Everyone has already given you a bunch of good info so I won't bother retreading what they've stated. I was just curious if there was any sort of police report from the incident that would have captured statements from you, the dog owners, and the witnesses. I didn't see it mentioned anywhere. Should this end up going to court I'd wager that a police report would help a lot to win your case. I've never been to court either but I wonder that if there's no police report with the sworn statements of the witnesses, then it could require those witnesses to actually come in to testify (should you want/need them to) which would require them to take time off of work and make them less likely to want to help you out since it's an inconvenience to them.

Also, talking to the landlord of the home they're renting probably won't do you any good. The landlord probably carries insurance on the property to cover it in case of damage and/or loss. If the landlord is smart, he would've had them sign a lease which I'm sure would have provisions protecting him/her from any legal action or financial obligations due to the actions of his tenants. I actually just called my wife - she's sells insurance - and she said that if the dog owners have renter's insurance it MAY be covered under their renter's insurance under liability.

[mrlmd]

A lawyer for that kind of suit shouldn't cost you anything. They get paid on contingency - if they win the case, they get paid. You could include their 30%+ fee in the amount of the suit to replace the bike. If you were not at fault, they should pay the whole amount if you win. Collecting from them may be another matter.

[Darling Ninja]

That sucks, sorry to hear about the dog. I'm always worried that I too will hit one. I hope you're able to resolve this, but something tells me it will probably be a while.

Before I crashed I had full coverage, but then I had to register my bike as salvaged and my insurance made me change my cover to liability only.

[Kstorm21]

Originally Posted by reaubideux

I've never been to court either but I wonder that if there's no police report with the sworn statements of the witnesses, then it could require those witnesses to actually come in to testify (should you want/need them to) which would require them to take time off of work and make them less likely to want to help you out since it's an inconvenience to them.

I think a sworn affidavit would be fine if need be.