Is nowhere safe?

[thewiz]

Today, after finally getting my SF streetable again, after six months of rebuilding after I wrecked it in February, I rode to the DMV to get it's permanent tag. An officer needed to verify the numbers.

As I waited in the DMV parking in the 'Verification Lane' on the bike, motor off, a red Tahoe, parked a few feet away and directly 90degrees to my right, began to back up. I yelled LOUD obsenities but instead of stopping; the SUV lit up the f*&^kin' tires !! That's right, a burnout, baby !! As he began to run over me, I figured it was time to bail so I dove off the bike and rolled clear. He continued to smoke the tires, my bike now jammed up underneath his back end, pushing it fifteen or twenty feet out into the parking lot ... till finally he stopped. Mercy. Turns out that he was driving with both feet, panicked when he realized what he was doing, and jammed on the brakes and gas sumultaneously .... geeeez.

The driver turned out to be about 80, a tall man and he was very shaken. I felt bad for him. He had just taken a drive test and his examiner was the first one there. I was not bleeding that I could tell ... but the examiner said, " I just passed him ... now he's gonna' attend Driver Saftey School instead" Sad, eh?

Lotsa' cosmetic damage to the bike BUT ... a gentleman helped me stand it back up ... engine guards and heavy crash bars around the saddle bags did their job well .... no fluids on the ground .... fired it right up and rode it home again. Unbelievable !! This poor bike his been through some crap but still ran great!!

Sooooo ... here is my question: ... How might I best maximize the insurance claim? .... has anyone else had any experience getting hit this way? Anyone have any words of advice? Most of know that many of the parts of this bike are virtually irreplacable .... forget about the time I've spent fixing it .... I know the insurance companies do not have my best interest at heart as a claimant against them. What do you all say?

[soccer4m]

Ouch,,,,,,

Hi Wiz,,,,man that suxxxs, maybe the guy has good insurance or would be willing to pay cash to you to fix up the bike and keep it off the insurance records. Also, there is a complete 79 xs on the san diego craigslist, cheap and disassembled. I am guessing he would take 100 bucks or so, sounds like he is strapped and you could use a lot of the parts. He also has a rebuilt motor, extra. I would suggest to pump the old dude for the cash for his stupidity, and or his insurance company. All of us bleed a little when an xs goes down, especially a good guy that you are. Keep us informed and remember I owe you a brew and dinner.....Mike in San Diego

[Crazcnuk]

Too bad you weren't 'slightly' and I say SLIGHTLY injured, as you would get far more for that than you can ever get for the bike.

You may want to go for the emotional 'stress' thing, of nearly being killed while parked at the DMV. Think if you hadn't seen it coming.

Other than that, take it to a good motorcycle repair shop and have them do up an estimate, worry about the irreplacability later, they can still get prices. You will get cash, and can worry about locating those parts yourself.

Make sure the shop does the estimate under the premise they will fix everything, not you. Even if you end up doing it, no reason you should get a lot less than they would want.

Make sure the DMV is kept in the loop as far as just having passed this guy, and then he tries to kill someone, may be good for a cash settlement from them too.

If you know a good lawyer, it pays to go for the free consult.

[GARTHXS]

unbelievable

Man that sucks , I know you have been working on that bike for a while and to have that happen WTF?!!?!? Call me if you need anything

[prometheus578]

"If I recall correctly, you have a coupla bikes..."

Now, I know you're an honorable man...
Luckily, I am not.
I would strip all the old, scratched up parts from my other bikes... and put them on the bike in question.
Torn hand grips, bent handle bars, scratched and broken turn signals, bent fenders, dented tanks...
What are the moral ramifications here?
I don't know...
If it happened to me... I believe that I'd leave my ethics lying on the parking lot pavement for a while until I've had time to cool off a bit.

[Crazcnuk]

NEVER worry about ethics where an insurance company is involved.

NEVER, EVER, do anything nice for them, they will never do anything nice for you.

Remember, it's not the old guy your doing it to, his insurance will go up no matter what. It's the insurance company you are up against, and they have no moral compass.

[mason79]

only you will decide and live with your carte blanche,write your own ticket

i had the same bullcrap happen to me twice once on a 69 mach1 back in '85 at a 7-11 they creamed the door


and another time on a '85 380 sl, they creamed the door on that one as well, they just didn't see me, now i try not to park perpendicular to cars that may back on up into my sh*t.

your bike went thru alot....so sad.

[xs11lover]

Oh man that sucks, I think I would have sat and cried, then killed the old man's truck, then started on him. How can you put a price on a restored xs...I'd bet they will try to give you $500. I've thought about that alot as I drive my old prize.
You have my deepest sympathy.
GW

[mro]

Bummer

Suggested Retail Value $1215
The Kelley Blue Book Suggested Retail Value is representative of dealers' asking prices and is the starting point for negotiation between a consumer and a dealer. This Suggested Retail Value assumes that the unit has been fully reconditioned and is in excellent condition.

This is where the insurance company will look first to gage there liability since there are no reported injuries.

I'd call the guys insurance company and nicely ask them when they would like to pick up the bike for a repair estimate and also ask for an time estimate for when the bike would be returned.
DO NOT offer to drop off bike.
Also ask them to provide a rental bike until it is returned ride-able.
When you get em on the phone, ask the person to spell their name so you can write it down as well as their title at the company.

Write info down as well as date and time. Don't be shy about asking them to repeat something so you can write it down and no problem with letting them know your writing it down.

Cost of towing alone could exceed $300.00,
and the repair estimate might cost 2 hours labor at a Yamaha dealer.

I would ask, instead of repairing the bike give me what I would be comfortable with money wise.
Have pictures of how your bike looked? If pretty nice like one of my stock SF's would ask for $2,500.00, the Mirrium would ask $6,500.00 and let them know that you would be loosing money at that price but that is what you could have sold it for.

If they don't want to deal ask who at there company your lawyer should contact even if you don't have one.

While you might be lucky to get blue book for it, it can't hurt to ask for more.

mro

[planedick]

Plus

If you get cash to keep it off his insurance, notify his insurance and the DMV anyway. At his age it's likely he shouldn't be driving anyway especially in light of recent developements. Of course if there was a police report, likely this all will happen anyway. Do your best to keep this guy off the road. None of us wants to meet this guy on the road anywhere. LOL

[Ivan]

A friend of mine when I was teen was a civil lawyer that dealt with these sort of things. He said the biggest money phrase you can use is "I can't get an erection any more" then have your SWMBO burst into tears. How you can relate that to the accidet, I don't know.

All kidding aside, I am sorry for your end of the stick getting progressively shorter. I would bet we have all shared the same sort of grief at one time or another. I am glad you are ok, and the bike is repairable. I would bet that the blood, sweat and tears in restoration are worth more than any bike. Nothing can pay for that.

Good luck.

[thewiz]

These are some great responses ... both ..

humorous and serious!! I was fairly certain that I could get some good information here served up with a generous dollup of sympathy. Thanks. You all have helped me to formulate a better plan than I might have on my own .... now to execute. Will keep you informed.

An afterthought .... before moving to the 'Verification Lane' I had been to the window inside the DMV leaving my helmet and jacket on the bike. When I returned to move the bike to the verification lane, I looked at my helmet and jacket sitting there on the bike and thought, "Should I just stuff the gear into the saddlebag or wear it?" I wore it .... to move the bike less than 50 feet .... and look what happened ......

[fredintoon]

Insurance companies are scum - - -

Hi Wiz,
- - - and will claim your perfectly restored antique is worth perhaps $500. And after they cut you the cheque they will try and keep the thing, too. Make a claim for a million dollars for your mental anguish & trauma instead.

[Toolmaker Tim]

B.T.D.T.

Hey Wiz,
Just got thru going thru something simular. You are fortunate to have witnesses and the moron who did it. I got none of these. I'm still trying to get my bike back together. Granted, some of that is my own fault, but still. I understand what you are putting up with. Besides yours and my incident someone here on channel 11 had a thread called " run over at work" or something like that. It makes me wonder how many others here have had it happen to them?

[thewiz]

Yup, Tim ...

that's a bummer. Andreas mentioned he is sending you a set of standard bars for your bike. I see it is an SF like the one I was on yesterday. I had just two days ago took off the factory buckhorns and put on some Std bars that I had lyin' around. What a HUGE improvement in handling .... if you're puttin' those bars on your SF, I bet you're gonna' love 'em.