Their company should pay for the tow charge and the two helmets too. I would bet they will try to keep you happy. I crashed on Saturday. Adjuster was there Monday afternoon. Totaled bike, paid for bike and sales tax. Bike was picked by salvage company on Thursday.
The adjuster also asked me if I had any tow charges. I had a friend bring a trailer out to where I wrecked my bike, so no tow charges.

 

I disagree. I think the problem already exists. If the guy was a big enough scum bag to H&R, he's going to be a big enough scum bag to try and get out of paying.

And it became personal when he hit the bike and just took off.

And the insurance company is not going to just roll over and give you any more money than they have to. Trying to get accessories/modifications covered, if you don't have a separate rider, or an agreed value clause w/ your insurance company, is going to be a headache.

I went through almost the same thing w/ a car, many years ago. I had my MGB parked out in front of my friend's house on a typical residential side street. Came out, and my car was gone. Well, not gone, but ~50' from where I had parked it. Seems some guy was coming up the street and rear-ended it, and pushed it ~50'. He then proceeded to take off. Fortunately, he was nice enough to leave his front license plate at the scene. Cops found his car around the corner at the local bar. Claims he never left. Problem was, there was paint all over his front bumper that matched my car, and the front plate was missing.

The car was definitely totaled. I went round and round w/ the insurance adjuster. Had receipts for the new top that was put on 3 weeks before hand, as well as receipts for the 4 new tires, etc. That didn't matter, they were only going to give me book value for the car. On top of that, it took them weeks to settle. It was 2 weeks before an adjuster even came out. During that time, someone stole the wood steering wheel off it. Adjuster deducted for a missing steering wheel.

So f*ck insurance companies right in the ear.

The OP never answered the question about the scum bag getting a Leaving the Scene ticket or not.

Hopefully everything works out, and you get your bike fixed properly and you get reimbursed for the other expenses (helmets, tow, etc.).

Unfortunately, these days a lot of people are ******** because they think that they can do what they want and nothing is going to happen to them. You'd be surprised how a good ***-whipping will change that attitude.

 

man... thats unbelievable !!

 

This is just my opinion. I believe insurance companies are getting a lot of competition and are looking at accidents as a chance to win over new customers or keep good ones. Maybe they have been sued enough they have figured out it is cheaper to settle smaller claims than leave them hanging out there.
I had two wrecks this summer. My bike wreck and a hit and run in my car. Neither were my fault.
The hit and run was on the highway at 65 miles an hour. Some kid was texting and wandered into my lane. I saw him coming and took the shoulder and he still side swiped my car and took off my rear view mirror and part of my rear panel. I pulled a U turn an caught him about 12 miles later.
He told the officer he was texting and kept going because he was scared. His agency was Farm Bureau. They called me two days later to see if I was ok. The adjuster said that since their client was responsible I could take my car into whomever I wanted and get an estimate.
They told me to go ahead and get it repaired. They also rented a car for me for a week. They also followed up with a satisfaction survey after we settled. The questions were related to the adjuster and their service. They paid 100% of all my expenses.
I'm in my 50's, so I have had to bump heads with adjusters several times over the years, mostly on my home and storm type damage. It seems they have changed. All I ever asked is that they be fair.
I hope you find the adjuster is as accommodating as mine were.

 

Bill is right on. My motorcycle insurance settlement only figured replacing stock parts, not anything I added, like my pipes and other chrome. Since your wreck wasn't your fault your situation is different than mine.
I laid my bike down going 45 mph when I hit a gravel patch on a blind curve. A farmer had just graveled his driveway and the excess gravel was about 3' out on the curve. I was the only one involved.
When I bought another bike (used Harley Ultra Classic) I wasn't rated for my wreck. My agent said that might change when the company reviews my policies in six months.
I hope not.

 

ridiculous action of a total moron!!!! good luck with resolving the matter. make your ins co earn their money, again good luck!!

 

While it is satisfying to even think of kicking the crap outta some a-hole who would just run over one of our bikes and keep right on going to avoid responsibility, I have only one recurring thought as I read the various revenge beating scenarios: What if the the guy is a 6'5" 260 lb, built like an NFL lineman a-hole?

And trust me - even county lock up (and the resulting criminal record), the loss of your good name and your freedom is a steep price to pay for making some jerk hurt for a week. He'll be out bar-b-q-ing, tucking his kids in at night, and feeling the wind through his windows, while you cool your heels eating cheese sandwiches for 6 months minimum.

But hey - if you have already spent time in county or one of our fine state long term hotels, and make your money from lets just say less than above board enterprise, all that is probably moot. Of course if that was who you really are I doubt you'd be posting about it on a message board to get it off your chest (which by the way is exactly what I would be doing in your situation - so no offense intended).

I mean don't get me wrong, I am not the biggest guy in the world, but I'm not the smallest either, and I can hold my own, but even if the OP is the 6'5" Lineman, there is ALWAYS someone bigger or meaner than you. None of us has a big red "S" on our chests. Not saying peopel should just be allowed to get away without consequences, but let the insurance companies sort this out. If you can't get satisfaction from them, sue his a$$ in small claims court.

Here's hoping for a better outcome than you expect!

USMAMule

 

you've gotten a lot of good advice here.

i think grendel is right on. you pay insurance for situations like this. let the professionals handle it.

if you don't feel satisfied with the outcome they get for you, consult with a lawyer as to your legal avenues. small claims, etc.

anyway, just wanted to say good luck and give you props for being as (seemingly) cool and level headed about the whole thing as you are.

personally, i'd have to be leashed and locked in my house so as to not go after this guy and rip his lungs out of his chest.

then again, i'd never see a dime from him, and end up in jail.

 

You sir, are an honest man and therefore see the world through an honest pair of eyes. But you know as well as I do that much of the world is not honest or trustworthy. And so do Insurance Companies. First hand. That's why they have rules that are sometimes stringent and are usually unbending.

When you mentioned your problems dealing with the 'Ins Co' you failed to mention whether it was your Ins Co or the other guy's Ins Co. If it was yours, I'd write a letter to the Ins Co's Home Office about the adjuster. A little late now, but you could have gone to arbitration had you pushed it. Also, you were paying the premium for a regular, unimproved, unrestored, moderately maintained MGB. But on a car like what you actually had, it is highly recommended that you get a Stated Value policy. Those require an appraisal. Not an opinion. An appraisal. Just like an appraisal for a $20,000 diamond ring. And then an agreed-to amount of Insurance and the required premium payments. That way, you and the Company have agreed to what the car is worth BEFORE anything happens. Not argue about it afterwards.

Now, if it was the other guy's Ins Co? That was bad business on the adjuster's part. Had you wanted to, you could have had that adjuster jumping through so many hoops he wouldn't know whether to **** or make a sandwich. I'd almost bet it was an Independent Adjuster. They can be quite unprofessional at times.

I had a situation years ago where something (a ring?) flew off a garbage truck's wheel, came bounding across several lanes of road and smacked into the OLs car. Did a couple thousand worth of damage. Their independent adjuster decided he wanted play tuff guy so after a few days I informed him that I was dealing with him out of courtesy and that my courteousness was just about used up. I told him he had 48 hours to make this situation right or I was going to file suit DIRECTLY aganst his client, and then he could explain to his policyholder why a Sheriff's Deputy was serving papers to him.

It wasn't a threat. I told him I don't make threats. It was just a statement of fact. I knew the Policyholder would have gone totally ballistic had a Sheriff's Deputy showed up with Court Papers. Even if it was small claims. I knew, and the adjuster knew, that the Policyholder would have complained all the way up to the CEO of the Company. I also knew, and the adjuster also knew, that if that happened, that job would almost certainly have been his last for that company.

Got my check hand-delivered to me the next day.

To me, buying Insurance over the phone is about like having sex over the phone. Not very useful. If you have an actual Agent and not some brainless, uninterested dodo sitting in some boiler-room somewhere in BFE, it can sometimes be worth the extra five bucks a Month you might have to pay in premiums.

When the Claims Department takes over, Agents are generally left out of the 'loop' and are seriously discouraged from getting involved in the claim. But you can get some useful information from them on how to proceed sometimes. And they usually know the phone number to the Claims Manager by heart.

 

Grendel,
It was the other guy's insurance company. The value of the car was at a point where it was not really cost effective for me to carry collision and comprehensive on it. Not to mention that I was young, and trying to save as much money as I could. I've had other, similar dealings w/ insurance companies over the years. As did my ex's family.

Quick story. My ex m-i-l was parked on the side of the road in her 2-month old car. Some kid who happened to be the son of a local town official (small town) creamed the thing in the back to the point that it was totaled. Kid gets no ticket, my ex f-i-l has to fight w/ insurance company for the better part of 6 months, and my ex m-i-l had to go to physical therapy for over a year. When asked why the kid didn't get a ticket, the response was that if she hadn't been parked there, he wouldn't have hit her. Even though she was parked legally.

So you see why I have little respect for insurance companies and adjusters.

And you're right, I tend to expect people to behave like I would. That's why I said that if this guy was a big enough scum bag to run from the accident, he's a big enough scum bag to try and get out of paying.

'Mule,
I suspect that if the scum bag had been this 6'5" 250# lineman type, he probably wouldn't have run away like the ***** that he is.