The first step in filing an insurance claim is to report it to your insurance carrier. Filing a lawsuit may sound simple enough, but having the proper knowledge and advice is crucial at the same time. Here is how to claim insurance for a motorcycle accident:
- Check the severity of injuries and damages.
- Have all evidence ready.
- Get legal advice.
- Get an independent appraisal from a motorcycle accident appraiser.
- Submit your claim
- And Finally, get your settlement.
A motorcycle crash results in a lot of damage and injury. It is not only the pain and suffering that you have to deal with but also the medical costs, loss of wages, and other costs. As a result, the situation will be challenging for you if the insurance companies try to deny your claim.
DON’T WORRY; Keep reading to grasp the proper steps to take after an accident and quickly get a fair settlement.
Take a cup of tea and keep on reading!
Is The Motorcycle Insurance Claim Process different? (How to Claim Insurance For Motorcycle Accident)
Insurance companies usually have a set process for filing claims. You might have to file your claim at the same place you purchased insurance or with the company that issued it, and they are all called “claims handlers.” You can also send an accident attorney on your behalf if you are at the hospital.
So, there is no significant difference in claiming insurance for motorcycle accidents. But yes, there are some notable differences in the situations you might face. For example, getting a fair settlement can be lower because “motorcycles” tend to be riskier than cars.
But don’t worry, as we are here to explain how to maximize your fair compensation chances.
Below are the two fundamental stages in the motorcycle insurance claim process:
Insurance claim request ( The first stage of the motorcycle insurance process)
Make sure you have all of your supporting evidence ready to submit with your claim. Evidence includes medical bills, police reports, photos, etc. Get professional help if necessary (notary or mediator).
Once accepted by any insurance company, send it to the claims handling department within three days via mail with original receipts (do not fax) detailing damages costs and payment due date.
Steps 1 and 2 can take weeks or even months, and you cannot file another claim at the same company. In addition, you must get professional assistance while filing an insurance claim.
Taking Professional help while filing a motorcycle insurance claim can be good. After all of your effort, not everyone will agree with your injury and request a money payout.
Insurance claims handling stage
If you have a claim, you can work with the claims department to get an inspection. The inspection department will visit you to assess how much your bike has been damaged and provide you with an estimate for repair.
You can use this information to start negotiating with the insurance company. After that, an insurance representative will let you know how much money they can compensate you. The process and other formalities can take up to six weeks resulting in an approved or denied settlement offer. Remember, you have to complete your papers and other formalities before the court date in the first instance.
If you were in a crash and the other driver was at fault, your insurance company would pay for your medical bills and car repair. But if you were in a motorcycle accident and the other driver pretends to be a gentleman, you would have to pay for your medical bills and car repair. You don’t want it! In this case, you have to get an accident lawyer right away.
Know More: Does Motorcycle Insurance Cover Medical Bills?
They can help you get your medical bills paid and your motorcycle fixed. They can also help you get money from the other driver’s insurance company. If you don’t call a lawyer right away, you could have to wait months, or It is always essential that the damage claimed has medical cost reimbursement coverage on your insurance policy.
How to Claim Insurance For Motorcycle Accidents?
Now, let’s start with a step-by-step guide to ensure your fair settlement efficiently.
Take a Report of Injuries and Damages
You will have to write down the extent of your injuries and damages. It will help the insurance company to know how much to pay you. The insurance company will try to make you believe that you are not injured or that your injuries are not that bad.
On the other hand, you must professionally prove that you are wounded. Get a document written by a doctor or other documents related to your medical treatments. It is the first step to proceeding with your claim.
Write down all of your injuries from the accident on your motorcycle. Did you get surgery or a cast? Did you break a bone? How long will it take to heal? Did you lose wages because you can’t work? If so, how much? Include all of that information in your motorcycle accident claim.
Also, don’t forget to write down how much money it will take to fix your motorcycle. In this way, you act professionally and smartly in dealing with the other party. It will help you send a red signal to the insurer that you’re serious about your claim.
Have all Evidence Ready
Once you become injured and damaged, gather all the proof about what happened to you. It will help you collect evidence for your claim.
Remember that an expert witness might be on hand in a courtroom when an injury claim is on assertion, but it often doesn’t happen frequently. Instead, it’s more common for there to be no witnesses than not enough. That’s why it’s important to have primary sources of evidence that support your side of the story!
If you’re ever involved in such type of collision, you must understand some basic steps to follow after the accident. In this way, you will make your case stronger.
Firstly, take note of your injuries and damages.
Secondly, gather the evidence for your case by taking pictures or making any other notes about the damage created by accident.
And thirdly, You’ll want to seek professionals who can explain what happened at the scene during the accident. It will help convince your judge during trial later on.
You may think of speaking with seasoned lawyers who can walk you through this process, as sometimes getting justice thrown out purely.
Sometimes, the justice system fails to provide adequate protection and compensation for victims. But in this case, also, you will need enough evidence for the lawyer to represent you. That’s why the vitality of proofs is always at the top of everything else.
Get Legal Advice (Is it Necessary?)
Legal advice is necessary to have a complete picture of what you want from the process and how things will happen. It will help you have comprehensive knowledge regarding the entire process.
Moreover, laws vary across different states and on a societal level. So, it is a great idea to meet with a Personal Injury Lawyer who has provided legal guidance to people in these situations before! A lawyer can help you to expedite your motorcycle insurance claim Process.
Most importantly, an accident lawyer can take steps according to necessity. For example, older motorcycles are cheaper to insure, but they can take the right action if the company demands more money.
Look for the closest law office that represents drivers on your behalf. You might think it will be hard to find an attorney who has experience. In this case, don’t worry, as you can submit a request at their website easily!
Remember, Legal counsel is vital in understanding the laws of your city, state, and country regarding insurance claims. As a result, you can research and aid with your decision on which step is suitable through a professional advisor.
It is not obligatory to hire an attorney. Step forward if you think you can manage things yourself after the motorcycle insurance claim advice you get. Otherwise, rely on a lawyer to do the following items.
Get an Independent Appraisal From a Motorcycle Accident Appraiser
For all the efforts you put into a lawsuit, one thing that the insurer needs to pay up is an independent appraisal. It involves getting a written estimate of your damages from a contractor who may not have any connection with either party or your insurance company.
An assessment of your motorcycle value for insurance and injury value is crucial in a professional form to convince both the court and insurance carrier. Knowing how worth your motorcycle value can be will help you understand if the settlement you are getting is not fair.
Therefore, before going through “How to Claim Insurance For Motorcycle Accident,” you can read the article linked above.
It is mandatory to prove that personal feelings and opinions do not determine things. But instead, from a more objective point of view.
You need to make sure your motorcycle insurance company will pay out what the appraiser indicates on their scale. The appraiser states the value or decides whether it has any potential value whatsoever or not – this is called the “totality of the value” and informs about how valuable or uninteresting your case is.
Additionally, You may require such an appraisal for the following situations:
- Appealing a claim.
- Send the report to the other party.
- When a lawyer represents you.
So, get an appraisal from an expert motorcycle accident appraiser to outperform your claim. You can hire an appraiser easily online or by visiting a law office. Nowadays, you can even make online motorcycle insurance without any physical appearances.
Submit Your Claim
You have to submit your petition for compensation to the insurance company at this stage. Please don’t do it until your motorcycle or property gets repaired.
Otherwise, the insurance carrier may pay you based on assumption. Your evidence of the costs of repairing will help you get a faster and more fair settlement from the insurance company.
For that, keep the documents regarding detail about what happened so that this claim produces results immediately. We have already explained the procedure for preparing your documents in the previous sections.
You should also include pictures of the accident scene, documentation of any damages incurred by the crash, etc. The more proof you have, the higher chances of a fair settlement you have.
Remember, some people don’t keep written evidence, so they become labeled ‘unprofessional.’ Make sure your documents are up-to-date and everything on hand is ready. Then, the aftermath is mostly about how the insurance carrier deals.
When to Hire a Lawyer? (Is it Necessary To Claiming Insurance?)
Even though lawyers will try to convince you that you need a lawyer to handle your case, you can also do all the legal work and fill out all the forms.
Ensure that your insurance policy does pay for your type of claim because you might not get any money for medical bills or property damage if it isn’t. Nowadays. You can even check your insurance policy online.
If an automobile insurer decides to deny your claim, it will turn your case to an appeals committee. Then, things get complex, and you may face further troubles.
In such cases, you can hire someone to help you. When you gather evidence and talk to witnesses, you’ll decide on a settlement offer.
If your request isn’t enough, they send it back up again. What I mean is, you basically won’t be needing a lawyer from the very primary level! It increases your costs and efforts. But if you don’t Want to do anything on your own or are not confident enough, get an attorney!
Get Your Settlement
If you follow this guide on “How to Claim Insurance For Motorcycle Accident” with perfection, you can expect to have a fair result in the end. A lot of readers have already said that this method works.
However, you can get money for your medical bills, lost wages, and property damage through insurance claims. In easy words, you will be able to claim all accident-related costs by showing reports.
However, the money you get depends on a lot of things. Some companies will give you money right away and only need you to sign paperwork that says you accept their offer. One important thing is the more high-value motorcycle insurance you hold; the less will you have to wait.
Other companies will provide you with an offer and then wait several days or weeks before doing anything. Unfortunately, some companies will keep you in the queue for a month.
That’s when you take legal actions to deal with the situation. The timeframe will rely on the intention of the insurance carrier. You can look at some fine motorcycle crash settlement examples if you have time.
However, Insurance companies don’t always pay for car crashes. Sometimes they try to pay less than you deserve. The insurer may trick you into signing papers that will give them money but not you. It is what the American Association for Justice says.
They are an organization that helps people who have been in car crashes. They say that 50% of people who have been in a car crash and are trying to get money from their insurance company get no money or very little settlement. Such things happen because the insurance company makes up rules that are not fair.
What Are The Chances of Getting a Fair Settlement? (How to Claim Insurance For Motorcycle Accident)
To check if getting a fair settlement is possible, you need to do a few things. First, look at the situation and understand both parties’ levels of fault and innocence. If you were at no blame for the crash, the problem would be different than if you were at fault. In most cases, insurance companies will make efforts to deny your claim and label you as a ‘reckless’ driver.
But things won’t go on their side as long as you have concrete evidence of the other party’s fault. Some insurance companies are willing to pay you in no time. But the complex part is when you have a decent level of guilt concerning the crash.
So, it stands out that if you were at no fault, there are 95% chances of getting a fair settlement. If you hold multiple motorcycle insurance at once, it may be easier to get fair compensation. It is because you will be considered experienced and professional. But it’s not a direct factor that influences the timeframe at all.
Moreover, remember to know how to claim insurance for a motorcycle accident and deal with situations, as this article explains. The more you are intelligent, the more you ensure that everything’s going perfect.
If both parties hold an equal level of fault or have different levels, the compensation will base on the level of responsibilities. It is a common type of scenario where both parties have some drawbacks. According to a study, 65% of insurance claims are similar to ” different levels of fault for both parties” crashes.
And if both parties are at fault, it will be hard to get a fair settlement. Only 5-10% of cases receive one. If the car crash is between two people who both know each other and are good friends, there would be an increased chance of getting a fair settlement due to the insurance rule. But such scenarios aren’t expected.
FAQ (How to Claim Insurance For Motorcycle Accident)
What are the steps of an insurance claim?
- Get in touch with your insurer via phone and tell them what happened.
- Go to their office and present the evidence and information.
- The investigation process begins.
- Officials review your policy.
- Your injury and damage value is concluded.
- Finally, you will get the settlement.
How do insurance companies determine motorcycle value?
Insurance companies examine both minor and major types of damage. They also consider the cost of servicing your motorcycle and accessory-related costs. In some cases, they calculate the fair market value by taking an average between replacement cost and salvage purposes (if necessary). For example, it is generally $270 -$2k less than stock motorcycle values.
How does an insurance company process a claim request?
It starts with ensuring the accident occurred and that you have seen your deductible payment (e.g., hospitalization, vehicle repair). A check on your records will show if there were any injuries or damages to other people involved in the crash as well. If so, they will add it to their report. And finally, after inspection and review, they will payout to the requesting party.
What are the four types of claims?
The four commonly made crash claims are: definitional, factual, policy, and value. All these types of claims depend on the policy and situation. You can't just make a claim you prefer.