Motorcycle Mania! Do you have Spring Fever?

Usually by March cyclists are starting to get the cooped up feeling and just looking for a nice enough day to break out their bike and go for a ride.  Riding the open road is always fun and exciting.  You never know what might be waiting along the way.  So make sure your prepared for whatever the road has in store for you with a Motorcycle Insurance Policy.

What Does A Motorcycle Policy Cover?

Although it will vary by company, typically you will see coverage for the following on a motorcycle policy:

• Bodily injury to someone else or property damage that you accidentally caused while riding your motorcycle.
• Damage to your motorcycle caused by an accident.
• Bodily injury to yourself because of an accident with an uninsured motorist or underinsured motorist.
• Theft, Fire, Vandalism, and other losses even while your motorcycle is in storage for the winter.
• Customization work, such as paint or upgraded components.
• Attached side cars.

PIP & Motorcycles, Are They Covered by the No-Fault Law?

What is PIP?  PIP is (Personal Injury Protection) and it is a mandatory coverage in the state of Michigan under the No-Fault Law.  PIP covers things like “Medical Expenses”. It  provides unlimited lifetime medical expenses for any claim which would be covered by No-Fault.  It covers “Work Loss”.  Lost wages are payable for 3 years from the date of the accident.  “Survivor Benefits”.  Survivor benefits come into play should the victim die as a result of the accident.  “Funeral Expenses” It includes funeral benefits which are no less than $1,750 and no more than $5,000.

Well the law says Motor vehicle, and it also says that a Motor Vehicle includes anything designed for use on the road, not powered by muscle, and has more than two wheels.  So that answers that question. Motorcycles are not covered by No-Fault.   So PIP doesn’t apply to your Motorcycle.  Therefore a separate Motorcycle Insurance Policy is needed.

Typically a Motorcycle is defined as a vehicle:

• having a saddle or seat for the use of the rider;
• designed to travel on not more than three wheels; and
• with a motor that exceeds 50 cubic centimeters (CC’s) piston displacement

Motorcycle does not include a moped as defined by  Michigan law.

What’s In A Motorcycle Insurance Policy?

A Motorcycle policy is pretty similar to an automobile policy.  You will have coverage for Liability, Comprehensive, Collision, UnInsured and UnderInsured Coverage, and Medical Pay coverage.  Some companies offer additional coverages like Roadside assistance or Custom Parts Coverage too.   Typically the higher the CC’s are on the bike the more expensive the insurance is going to be.  The faster it goes, the higher the risk something might happen.  It’s best to check around for Motorcycle Insurance.  Some companies require you to insure your auto with them in order to insure your motorcycle and others don’t.   So it’s a good thing to shop around so you can find a perfect fit for what your looking for.

Liability Coverage

Liability coverage pays for the damage if you are legally responsible for accidentally injuring someone, or for damaging another vehicle or other property in an accident.

Liability coverage falls into two categories:

1. Bodily Injury Liability (BI) – which covers medical expenses, pain and suffering, lost wages, and other special damages.
2. Property Damage Liability (PD) — which covers damaged property, and may include loss of use.

Liability coverage also pays legal defense and court costs.

State laws usually dictate the minimum amounts of insurance required, but higher amounts are available.  In Michigan, the state minimum amounts are 20/40/10.  You will typically see insurance listed this way with the slashes.  It means, $20,000 Bodily Injury per person/$40,000 Bodily Injury per Accident or Occurrence/$10,000 Property Damage.

Medical Payments

This insurance coverage is available in most states. It pays reasonable and necessary medical and funeral expenses for covered persons when those expenses are related to a motorcycle accident.  This is not required on a motorcycle policy, but I highly recommend that you get it.  When you do, make sure you choose a high enough amount, because if you don’t have your own medical insurance this could be all that you have to protect you.

Collision

This coverage helps pay for damage to a covered cycle caused by:

• Collision with another vehicle/cycle
• Collision with an object

A deductible is usually required.

Comprehensive Insurance

This insurance coverage helps pay for loss of or damage to an insured cycle, not caused by a collision loss.

Examples of this type of damage or loss include:

• Fire
• Wind
• Hail
• Vandalism
• Theft
• Hitting an animal

A deductible may apply.

Uninsured Motorist

This coverage pays for damages when a covered person is injured in a cycle accident caused by a driver who does not have Liability Insurance.

In some states this insurance coverage may also pay for property damage.

Underinsured Motorist

This insurance coverage pays for damages when a covered person is injured in a cycle accident caused by another driver who has insufficient Liability Insurance.

Motorcycles and Life Insurance

I personally think that if your going to be riding on a motorcycle then you should have some type of Life Insurance Policy in place.  If something does happen when your riding your bike, usually it’s not just a little fender bender.  So you should always be prepared.  If you think Life Insurance is too expensive, look at picking up a small 5 year term policy.  Even if it’s only 25,000 or 50,000 it’s better than nothing at all.  Chances are, if you have your auto or home insurance already with the Insurance company you choose, your probably going to get a discount.  I know that it was a 5-10% discount on your Auto Policy, depending on the amount of Life Insurance that you purchased.  So definitely something to consider.  The last thing you want to do is leave your family with a burden of not only loosing you, but not having a way to pay for funeral expenses if needed.  So Drive Safe, and make sure your protecting yourself.