Nearly 4 weeks ago I was hit by an oncoming car who turned in front of me, presumably not seeing me. Anyway it was totally his fault and I only today managed to get his insurance company details. I’m now wondering how the claims process goes and what they typically pay out.
The bike was a Cervelo SLC-SL bought in May last year. THe front wheel is cactus, the front fork is cactus, the one piece Deda bars are cactus. Scratched one lens of my glasses, MP3 player (in back jersey, not listening to at the time) now has a permanent black smudge across the LCD. Saddle scuffed up. Jersey/knicks scuffed up. The frame is currently awaiting an inspection from a carbon specialist but in the meantime I wrote to Cervelo and they said with a crash like that the warranty is gone and the don’t recommend repairing it / riding it.
I’m wondering what they might say if I told them the frame was considered a ‘write-off’ even though it looks fine. Do they pay out a reduced amount based on depreciation? Do they give you exactly what you paid on your receipt? Do you have to have your receipts or can they go on RRP at the time? What about all the little tid bits that got damaged?
I deal with insurance all the time. They are not going to pay you what you paid for the bike. They are going to want to discount the price becasue it is not new and not worth the new price. Same would go for your stuff that was scratched up. Make sure they know that the frame is carbon fiber and the manafacture has recomended not riding it and the warrenty has been voided. If they will not pay for the replacement of the frame make sure to tell them that you will not settle on the claim. Tell them you will take the money for the front wheel and any others known damaged parts but want to leave the claim open just in case the frame fails so you can recover the replacement cost of the frame and your medical bills if it fails while riding it. If you do this correctly they will most likely offer you replacement cost of the frame if you will sign a settlement release. Be ready for them to ask for the damaged parts to be shipped to them. If you would like to keep the parts they might want to reduce your settlement becasue they might consider that some of the bike has some “salvage value”.
Hi,
get photos of everything that was damaged, but I agree with Francois, omit the MP3 player. Provide receipts if you have them. Otherwise approximate date of purchase and retail cost + sales tax. The email from Cervelo should be good enough, although if the carbon specialist finds anything specific that should be included as evidence that Cervelo is right.
I’ve varying experiences with insurance companies as far as how much I got back. My settlement after my IMC accident in 2007 was for full replacement cost for everything regardless of age (although nothing was very old), but a more recent claim for a vehicle break-in and theft had some items value reduced by depreciation. Items purchased less than a year ago were reimbursed at full purchase price (or retail if I had no receipts); items older than that were paid at some depreciated value.
It might depend on the insurance company/agent. They should pay for everything including the little tidbits. I think the normal process would be taking it to LBS or Cervelo and confirming the bike is unsafe to ride. Then you’ll have to find or get a printout of your receipts when you bought the bike. And if you had any upgrades as separate receipts then you’ll have to get those. Then have the LBS create an invoice for what the price would be now to get the same bike you had. Depending on the insurance company they might pay that amount. I’ve seen it go that way. Right away they are not going to want to pay that money
The other way I’ve seen it go is the insurance wanted to give the depreciation value. A guy got hit by a car. Custom bike. But, what is depreciation value on a custom frame?? Whoever is dealing with the claim might want to talk with your LBS or even Cervelo to figure out what the depreciation value is. And whoever they talk to…however they explain it to them could determine what you get. But you just have to hold your own.
And yea, I wouldn’t mention the mp3 player. If you did already then don’t talk about it anymore and they might forget. Or come up with a reason why you had it other than sometimes you listen to it while you are riding.
But, the insurance person handling the claim should tell you what the next steps are.
Take the bike to a good bike shop and have them write up an estimate- Cervelo dealer is best. If a carbon frame has been hit by a car, it is totaled. If the front end of the bike, fork, wheel and bars, are totaled, you know there is some frame damage- even if you cannot see it. Every carbon bike maker has opinions on their website that discuss this. A carbon bike can be compromised with no visible damage and catastrophic failure can happen later. Do not let the insurance company tell you a carbon frame is OK after a wreck. My buddy just was hit by a car, trashing the fork, wheels pedals and such. The bike shop correctly had reservations about the carbon stays- looked fine but hit from the side by a car. They called the frame totaled. They gave a price for a replacement bike, and costs for replacing all the damaged parts and labor. Buying a whole new bike was cheaper. They also supplied him with 4 articles/advisories on riding damaged frames, invisible damage, catastrophic failure and such, from manufacturers.
Remember, if they hit your car, you would demand all new replacements for every single damaged piece or repairs that looked new. You would not accept a dinged fender because it didn’t look too bad. Any scratched part needs to be listed. All labor costs that a bike shop would charge. Be proactive and assume the insurance company is going to try and low ball you. They will.
I’m sort of worried about the carbon specialist saying it’s fine. Cervelo said in that case see if he will offer his own guarantee. Though I really likee SLC-SL frame. Just want piece of mind it isn’t going to fail on me. Not sure how good the ‘x-raying’ of the bike is (told it’s some sort of coating applied to the frame and viewed under UV? light).
BTW not sure how it changes things but I don’t have my own insurance for the bike, I was going to claim off the guys motor vehicle insurance.
It shouldn’t matter if you have insurance on the bike. If the accident was his fault then his insurance will pay for it. I’d think if you had insurance for the bike then your insurance would give you the money…then go after his insurance for the money. Unfortunately you have to go after the money.
All good advice here by other posters. If that person inspecting the frame says it is ok and you are hesitant then take it to someone that will say it is totaled.
Get all your receipts in order. Go to a cervelo dealer. Did anyone from the insurance company call you yet?? Because if they haven’t and you can get all your shit together then it will speed up the process. And they might be less likely to low ball you.
As a retailer I’ve seen the majority of insurance companies be rather prompt and equitable on claims. UPS shipping claims are another story, so don’t get me started on that…
Most of the insurance claims I’ve seen required some documentation, and a few actually sent claims adjusters to our store. We gave them a detailed explanation and demonstration of the damages to the bike emphasizing that the equipment is lightweight, racing equipment and could fail easily after being damaged (in the case of a fork steer tube specifically).
Many of the claims adjusters come through the door as casual/recreational cyclists themselves so smell a rat when they get a $4000+ claim for damages on a bicycle. They will say things to us like, “I have a neighbor who is a cycler, he wears those tight shorts and his bike was over $400! It only weighs four pounds!”
When we give the claims adjuster the briefing they usually have a paradigm shift.
I imagine some of the insurnce companies look at these pay-outs as inexpensive relative to the potential of a law suit.
The key thing is to take the high road and be honest- but thorough. Provide written documentation and enlist the aid of a local bike shop to write up written damage estimates and replacement costs. Emphasize the need for safety and that this is racing equipment.
Are you sure that you are alright? Are you sure that you are ok ? Are you sure that you should not get checked out by you PCP or the orthopedic that you deal with? I ask these questions as a plaintiffs attorney who recently had to deal with my own auto accident.
If Cervelo is saying do not ride the bike, try and get them to put that in writing. Use that to argue with the adjuster about how they have to pay the replacement cost for the bike. Base that replacement cost on the retail price and hopefully you’ll get enough to cover the cost at Cervelo’s crash replacement price (slim to no chacne you’ll get full retail).
As was said earlier I would NOT mention a thing about the Ipod. Even having it with you potentially knocks some money off the “value” of any settlement.
I’d also me looking for some money for “pain and suffering” ususally that 's around 2-3 what you have in medical bills. See above suggestions/questions.
If anyone wonders why our insurance premiums are so high just see the CGroundy and Azby posts.
I didn’t see anything regarding an injury in the original post. I may have missed it but I believe he was asking about his bike.
As a liability adjuster, I would say Tom D’s advice is very solid. Most reputable insurance adjusters (and there is a lot more of them than personal injury attorney’s I can assure you) want to settle a claim as quickly and as fairly as possible. As most adjusters will have little experience dealing with a bike with this much value, they will simply educate themselves by research, original invoices, local bike shop pricing, etc. Depreciation may be a factor but if the bike is only a year old most adjusters wouldn’t take too much off of a specialty item like a tri bike. I would recommend doing your own homework as the adjuster will likely call to make you an offer based on a settlement range they have come up with to be a “fair market value.” Keep in mind the original offer will likely not be the top settlement offer they are willing to pay. Having ammo through your own research will help you get to the higher side of that range as long as you are willing to do a little negotiating and homework.
And yes, I hope you are okay after the accident and by no means is getting checked out a bad idea after an accident with a car. But I think everyone knows that is not what are helpful attorney was getting at
I had a head on in 2003 that was totally the car’s fault (blind corner, rainy, and for some reason the car was facing the wrong way and stopped in my lane!). I went into the front end at about 25, and totalled my bike, cracked their windshield with my head, and was in and out of consciousness for about 90 minutes. The amazing this was was I didn’t break anything, some buising and needed 12 stitches on my chin. My bike was completely totaled, the front wheel had been pushed back about 6 inches and could no longer clear the downtube. the tire exploded, but amazingly the wheel was not out of true (Campy wheels are absolutely the best!). So I was ambulanced away to local hospital and a friend was called to come get me. Obviously my bike was a loss. The other guy’s insurance agent called me the very next day and we met. I made a detailed list of things that this accident cost me (lost work time, lost prize money from a race that weekend, clothing, everything). The insurance company then called Elite Bicycles to get the value of my bike, which they gave as what they sold it to me for. The really interesting thing though, is that after I signed off on the paperwork, they came and took my totalled bike. Something about liability if I were to use any of the other parts. I was pretty upset, as I had hoped to part out a lot of it that wasn’t damaged (I had only had the bike 4 months). SO I took the few things off the bike I could, that would make the bike look like a bike, and they took it, including my damaged helmet.
I was pretty happy with the whole situation all things considered. Got a new, better bike, for free. All my medical covered, and a decent settlement check (Which oddly was the only way I was able to afford to go to Worlds in New Zealand that year). My situation was a little different in that my bike was obviously totalled, and I was knocked out, which I think is the reason they were so inclined to settle quickly. I feel I was justly compensated, and didn’t need to sue them.
So my advice is just be very thorough, and get the best bike documents you can. Also strip as much as you can off that bike before they take it away!
Ooohh. A lawyer slight how original. My point WAS to remind the original poster to make sure that he was ok. Property damage in motor vehicle accidents is pretty simple to deal with, its physical injury that is more of a gray area and should always be addressed. Not saying he should walk into a hospital and demand an MRI, but a ivisit with the doc after getting stuck by a car is simply prudent.
And not all adjusters are fairy godmothers looking out for the injured party just like not all attorneys are actually looking out for their client’s best interests.
It is always interesting when we get insurance industry folks in our office after they get their own personal claims denied though, you can actually see their eyes opening up.
I called my insurance company when I had a run in with my garage and they were great. I filed a claim right away they told me to bring it to my local shop and have them fax a replacement cost estimate and within a week I had a check. In my case the check was written to me and the shop so that the insurance company was protected against any fraud. Ultimately it depends completely on your insurance company.
I absolutely agree, good and bad on both sides. Wasn’t a slight at all lawyers, just the ones that ask “Are you sure you are okay? No, really, are you SURE you are okay?”
The original poster noted it had been 4 weeks not 4 hours. I’m guessing he knew whether or not he was injured after 4 weeks.
If they refuse to pay replacement cost of new parts, get a specific cycling legal person to argue to the case for you. It’s possible that they’ll try to use some other depreciation method like that of a motorbike.
Take photos of bruises etc. If you can’t get money for the full bike replacement, use person injury money to top it up to the full replacement value!
I know that their lawyers will say that it’s useless, but get the opinion (in writing) of the bike shop that you’d get a new bike from. Tell them that you’ll buy the bike there when they pay you money.
My experience was good, but you have to be proactive.
I called my insurance agent and asked him what process I should follow.
Luckily the person who hit me had a good insurance company.
I took pictures of all the bike damage. I called their company on Monday(Saturday accident) to find out who the claims agent was. The person who hit me had not reported it yet. I acquired a copy of the police report and faxed it to their insurance company. I got the bike up to my LBS asking for an estimate of the damage. I called and gave the claims agent the name and number of my LBS. I faxed the claims agent copies of the bike damage pictures. I faxed them copies of similar bike clothes to those that were damaged/bloodied. They mailed me a check for the entire LBS estimate along with the total value of replacement clothing. They were just glad to not have any injuries to pay for.
Total elapsed time < 14 days for approximately $3K.
I led their insurance company through the process so they had no excuses for delays.
I did get checked out the morning of the accident by a GP colleague of my dad’s (a surgeon). GP’s verdict was that nothing appeared broken and I just had some deep bruising and cuts/grazes. He wrote two scripts for xrays for my wrist and tail bone and said wait a few days and then see if I still think I need them.
As I mentioned four weeks have now passed (this Thurs). Still have ‘bone’ bruising (if that’s possible?) at the base of the left palm (which was on the STI hood that whacked the car - still a bit sore when braking and also swimming), left knee (again, the side that whacked the car) and right tail bone (which was where I flipped onto at the end - a bit sore when running). Contemplating whether to take the scripts to my sister (radiologist) and rule it out - not really sure how long such ‘bruising’ takes to heal. How does one really put a value on that?
Some really great, in depth responses from all. Thanks a lot ppl.
