Insurance Claims

Like car insurance it is illegal to ride your motorcycle without the proper insurance. Almost 10% of all road casualties in the UK in 2010 involved a motorcyclist.

If you are unfortunate enough to have an accident or your bike is stolen, you will need to claim on your insurance.

At the scene

If you are involved in a accident then you need to get the registration number, make, model and colour of the vehicle as well as the name, address and telephone number of all motorists involved. Whilst you are still at the scene you should also make a note of the road names, speed limits and directions of which you were travelling. You need to collect as much evidence as you can, take photos of any damage.

If you are injured you need to make sure that you go for a check up as you will need proof of this for any personal injury claim that you might wish to make in the future. Try to be courteous, if you are aggressive or rude then it is more likely that the other party will lie in their claim. Make sure that you do not admit liability – even if you are in the wrong.

Making a claim

Having the right details to hand can make claiming on your insurance quicker and easier. When calling your insurance company make sure you have all third party details, contact details for any eye witnesses, if you reported it to the police then you need the incident number and details of exactly what happened.

Incidents of criminality or injury will need be reported to the police. If your bike is stolen or vandalised your insurance provider will request the police crime number which is issued to you when you report the incident to the police. Insurers need this number to make sure you are not making a fraudulent claim. Therefore you must report damage or theft to the police first before contacting your insurer.

It’s important to keep records of your dealings with your insurance provider, this means taking down names and times of who you speak to as well as notes on the conversations you have. This will give you something to refer back to should the insurance company contradict itself and give you an idea of where you are with your claim.

Most insurers will usually use specific garages within your area to handle claims for repairs so it’s advisable to wait for the go ahead from your insurer rather than sorting it yourself and hoping they’ll reimburse you later as doing this may cause problems.