Have you had an off recently and need to fix your bike?
Talk to A1Motorcycles – we are specialists in fixing your broken motorbike quickly, cheaply and properly.
It might be an insurance job, but that doesn’t mean we overcharge, like some garages might. If you have fallen off your bike, scratched a few panels, bent your frame or seriously damaged your engine, call us for a free quote – We are sure you will be pleasantly surprised!
Getting your motorcycle repaired:
If you have a comprehensive motorbike insurance policy – Ask your insurance company for advice. They may recommend a particular garage or repairer. This could avoid the need for you to arrange an estimate for the work required but you will always need to get this approved by your insurer before the repair work can commence. As well as speeding up your repair considerably, this could allow your insurer to take advantage of any discounts secured in advance with certain specialist repairers which will ultimately help to reduce the cost of your future insurance policy as insurers will either increase or decrease their rates depending on the amount they have paid out in claims.
Many insurers’ recommended repairers will also be able to provide you with a courtesy vehicle (this could be a car or a motorcycle) whilst your motorcycle is being repaired (if this isn’t provided for separately as a policy benefit).
If you take your motorbike to another repairer, send the repairer’s estimate to your insurer. They will check it and, if agreed, they will authorise repairs subject to your completing a satisfactory claim form.
When you collect your motorcycle after the repair you may have to pay the first part of the claim if you have an excess on your policy. You pay this money direct to the repairer, whether or not you were to blame for the accident.
The cost of repairs is your responsibility until your insurance company has agreed to pay. For your peace of mind, you may want to obtain confirmation from your insurer that they accept liability and will pay the cost of repair to your motorcycle.
If you have Third Party or Third Party Fire and Theft cover – your motor bike insurance policy will not cover accidental damage to your motorcycle. You therefore have to pay the repair bill yourself or claim from the other party if he or she was legally liable for the damage.
Contact the other party – preferably in writing – saying that you intend to claim from him/her. Say that you hold him/her responsible and ask him/her to tell their insurers.
Write directly to their insurers, if you have details, quoting the other party’s policy or certificate number.
Send a repairer’s estimate as soon as possible – their insurers may well ask you for additional estimates.
Tell your own insurers that you are claiming against the third party.
The other party should tell you who their insurer is. If not, you should be able to obtain details from the Motor Insurers’ Information Centre.
On receipt of your letter the third party may settle your claim themselves or they may pass the matter to their insurers. If the insurer considers their policyholder entirely to blame they will pay your claim provided they have full information. If they consider that you were entirely or partly to blame they may refuse your claim or suggest a compromise.
The third party may refuse to co-operate at all in which case you should seek advice from your insurer, insurance adviser, motoring organisation or a specialist motorcycle solicitor. You may, at the end of the day, have to take legal action against the other party or their insurer. You may have legal expenses cover which will usually cover the costs of doing so – so it is worth checking your bike insurance policy for this.
If you sustain an injury
If the incident is legally deemed to be the fault of third party and you have sustained injuries that have resulted in your having to be away from work, or you have had to visit a doctor, hospital or specialist then you may well be able to obtain an amount of money to cover your financial losses and to compensate you for your injuries.
You may wish to take advice on doing this from a law firm that specialize in motorcycle injuries as they are usually best dealt with by a professional that knows what type of injuries motorcyclists sustain in accidents.
You will usually be able to recover any and all expenses you have incurred and the amount of money you could receive from the insurance company involved could be a large sum, particularly as injuries sustained in motorcycle accidents tend to cause pain, particularly arthritic, in later years.