I had a record breaking weekend. I had never had a serious accident in 41 years of riding, hadn't been in the hospital overnight since I was born 57 years ago, never had a broken bone, and had not dropped my Harley since I got it 3 years ago. I think you know where this is going.

Last Friday evening my wife & I went for a little ride to watch the sunset, catch dinner & enjoy the nice rural evening. About 8 miles from home around 11:30 that evening a car approaching from the opposite direction made a left turn directly in front of us, apparently thinking we were a car some distance away. Very long story short, I have a broken rib, punctured lung, knee cuts, bumps & bruises, while my wife has a concussion, scrapes, bumps & bruises. We both had our helmets on, leather jackets, boots and I was wearing gloves. We are VERY lucky to even be alive. There ARE Guardian Angels.

We personally know who was driving the car, and she did stop and try to help. The first thing she did was call 911 and her son who happened to live only a few miles away & he came right away with towels & blankets to help. We are both expected to make full recoveries.

The local insurance agent who handles our motorcycle insurance is also the agent for the lady driving the car. She has Progressive liability insurance. Progressive called us today and wanted our version of what happened, the person we talked to said it "appears 'Martha' was mostly at fault" (sheesh - I was thinking more like 100% at fault) & they're coming to look at my bike next week. It's more than likely to be totaled, but I want to keep the bike, since I have a lot of custom stuff on that I want to put on the next bike. The damage is mostly limited to the forks, tank, faring & lights, front fender & right side.

How is Progressive on issues like this? What's the procedure as I've never been through anything like this before. Any help or advice appreciated.

Misterclassic

 

Assuming it is totaled then just ask them what it will cost to keep the bike. Last accident I was in (12 years or so ago) I was rearended in an S10 Blazer which was totaled. If I recall right it was only a few hundred to keep it. One thing you definately want to watch out for though is having them lowball you on the value. Be prepared to provide them with actual prices (dealership, etc.) of other bikes set up the same as yours. (Or as close as possible) The insurance company originally offered me something stupid like $800 which I told them was less than I paid for it 2 months prior. They then wanted to know what I did pay for it which I refused to provide for them (It was $1400). After 2 months of fighting with them I spotted a similar one in a dealership for $2500 and gave them the info. which is what they did pay. (minus the 300 so they sent a check for $2200) No injuries were claimed so that could make it a little sticky. Be sure to keep the two separate when negotiating and signing.

 

IMHO insurance companies no matter what you buy the coverage for be it a motorcycle, boat, car, house etc. ALWAYS want you to make your payments on time. BUT when it comes time for them to live up to their end of the contract they will drag their A$$ when it comes time for them to pay up.