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Can't fathom being rear ended 4x in 12 months...that's crazy.
RE: "adjuster...said he had to pay me something for his viewing, and gave me a very unnecessary payout of a couple of hundred dollars, without an inspection from a mechanic. He said he had to payout based on his estimations and that the mechanic would be able to change that if needed."
"had to pay you something for his viewing" ?!?!? That seems strange to me. Any insurance folks here care to comment?
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I wouldn't trust that adjuster with a pile of dog poo. Time to dig in and lawyer up.
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When a guy in a gas station parking lot backed into my bike and knocked me/it over, I went and got repair estimates independently to ensure I wasn't getting shortchanged by the adjuster.
If that payment he gave you was a check, I would not cash or deposit it.
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Geez.
New York City?
If so, guess I will defer any rides there for awhile.
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I have never heard an adjuster "paying out" for a viewing. Something just messed up reading that.
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Is it possible that the lock mechanism or the loops (where the seat hooks) that are part of the frame were bent out of shape?
Glad you're ok. I dread the day someone might hit me from the rear as sometimes there's just nowhere to go to avoid it. The other directions you can usually practice for :/
also to just add on the hyper lites - another option is to add a brake light relay so that your rear brake will flash a few times before it stays still. I bought one but haven't installed it yet. I do flash my brakes by pumping my rear pedal when I see someone approaching.
From my own experience sometimes my break light switch near the lever does come off due to some of my more windy..spirited.. riding.. I'd double check that before every ride while you're warming up the bike.
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To clarify, the adjuster stopped by, didn't touch the bike outside of asking me to remove the saddle. He looked at it and told me to take it to the mechanic to get it fully checked out. He calls me the same day to tell me he was going to issue a payment because he had to. I specifically told him it would be a waste of time as he didn't even include labor costs in the estimate, he agreed that it was an unnecessary step but he had to do it, as that was their protocol. He also said that even if the estimate from the mechanic is higher, they would pay out as they are taking full responsibility for the claim. The insurance company is allstate.
At no point has the other party denied liability. Quite the opposite, they were very helping of the situation. I'm still waiting for the official estimate from the dealer which will come in tomorrow. I'll have their estimate tomorrow, but I will for absolute certainty go to another shop for a second opinion
And also, all 4 times that I got rear ended, was in broad day light. Tail lights wouldn't of made a difference. Honestly I believe I've been hit because I try to ride it like a car, but it seems as if, at least in the city, you need to ride like an idiot to survive.
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In my country, Malaysia, we lane split and squeeze in between cars to survive. Else a lots of motorcycle will end up being sandwiched between car. But I believe in the state only a handful of places where lane splitting are legal, right?
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There are some states in the USA where it's legal and, by now, most states of Australia allow it.
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Sorry to year about your accident, but speaking as a former claims adjuster, very good on you for taking pictures of the wreck with the car still lunched into the back of your bike, before they were separated. That is good documentation on your part!
Not sure if you mentioned whether or not the adjuster came from your insurance or the insurance for the guy who hit you. But, if it was for the other guy's insurance, unless the somewhat shifty practices of some insurance companies have changed (notice I said "former" claims adjuster? There's a reason), it is not uncommon at all for an adjuster to try to visit you shortly after the accident and to try to cash you out as soon as possible.
You didn't mention injuries, but if you're typing this, assuming you're somewhat upright and moving. One of the reasons an insurance company will try to pay you as soon as they can is to make you feel happy and satisfied enough to sign a release of liability, so that you can't come back and file a personal injury claim, or a suit against them if you feel that the case is dragging on too long, or if you start to feel soft tissue injuries that may develop days after the accident.
The adjuster can take a look at your bike and make a list of the parts that appear to be damaged and need to be replaced. There's no way that he can make a call on something like frame damage, so the initial estimate will either be padded to cover the cost of additional labor and parts that may not be visible, or, it will just cover the basics, and the insurance company will negotiate on the final repair costs with the shop directly. In either case, they get you off of their books.
If the repair cost nears the cash value of the bike, despite its rarity, it makes more financial sense for the insurance company to total it, which opens another chapter which may not be pleasant. At that point, you are negotiating on the value of the bike with the insurance company, and they may not offer to pay you as much as you'd like. I've seen that go both ways - high or low, based on who is making the decision and what they know about the rarity of a particular vehicle.
As far as lawyers, I have my personal opinions there, based on years of dealing with them, and knowing how much they make, and what the claimant receives when the dust settles, and I'll hold my comments to myself.
Good luck, and hope you get her back on the road soon!
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I received an industry news letter for bus people for a spell (was looking at getting an old bus to turn into an RV) and they had an article on bus accidents.
The most common bus accident: Clear day, straight road - bus gets rear ended. A bus. How in the world do you miss seeing a bus?! A motorcycle doesn't stand a chance.
I got taken out by a left hand turner. Lawyer earned enough so I got my last year of college paid for.
