01/03 my husband was on his way home from work on his bike.

Driver stated on scene he "never saw him 'til it was too late," and I'm glad to say my husband is alive and not a vegetable.

I have an attorney for the bodily injury claim, which is a fiasco in and of itself - Health insurance will not cover bills because it was a motor vehicle accident, thus vehicle insurance is to pay, and they won't pay until the claim is settled, and I'm officially paying for follow ups and meds out of pocket. The attorney told me he's not going to take on the property damage claim, I could do that myself because once he's paid from the proceeds of his time, there's a good chance we'd owe him money. I didn't really grasp that at first, now I understand.

I've spent the better portion of the morning browsing your forums here for answers I've yet to find - They're lovely, BTW - And as a last resort I'm posting this little plea for help.

My husband always wanted a bigger bike than his 96 HD 1200 XL, but we have 3 sons to feed, a wife that hijacks his paycheck and always has something better to do than buy another bike. He rides in the rain, in the freezing cold, it is his only transportation and he wouldn't have it any other way. It's a custom chopper, he had lots of "stuff" removed, added, and welded and, you get the point. We've had it properly titled, registered, inspected, insured, and paid taxes on it for the past 4 years. I'm holding a clear title, among other pieces.

Enter insurance adjuster from GEICO, the other driver's insurance company.

First phone call I got after faxing them the title and registration went like this, "Why did you have the bike towed?"

"....Seriously?! (A.) I'm a chick. I weigh 115 lbs. I drive a Nissan, not a HD. (B.) Husband who rides the bike was in the hospital with a head injury and hallucinating **prior to** the morphine. (C.) I picked up the seat out of the road because it was unattached, along with some chrome parts and the freakin' license plate."
(OK, so I didn't say "freakin'." But close enough.)

"Well that's a salvage title according to our reports on the VIN."

I called BS on that, ran a CarFax on the VIN, then re-faxed them the title and CarFax check. No record of a salvage title that I could find.

Next phone call, a few days later, after the adjuster went to the bike shop I had it towed to was something along these lines,

"We've looked every where on that motorcycle, and there's no VIN. We cannot establish (A.) It is the bike you're telling us it is, (B.) That you legally own the bike, (C.) Or establish a value. Prove to us that's the bike you claim it is."

"What about the BS about the salvage title?"

"I'm sorry, I don't know what you're talking about."

Enter accusations and cussing from me.

I'm not a biker chick, but I can tell you this: If I was going to attempt to snowball an insurance company with a fake VIN, bet your bottom dollar it would be for something more to my advantage than a 96 Sportster!

I was given some jive from the adjuster's boss about her having to get inspectors in from HD to properly establish the bike is the make and model we claim it is, they'll find a way to disprove or maybe prove the VIN, and they will not budge without solid evidence of what they're paying on.

The guys at the bike shop have worked on this bike and know it's my husband's. They did the yearly state inspection on it back in October 2010. And according to them, if you know anything about bikes, you know what it is as soon as you lay eyes on it.

BUT - Low and behold, there is no VIN on the frame. There was a sticker on the frame, but it's been scraped and nothing on the sticker is legible.

I understand there's a slim chance there's a partial VIN on the engine case, which leads me to my next set of headaches -

1.) Where am I looking at on the bike for this? Yes, please break this down Barney style for a beach loving, blond chick to understand - I know where the kickstand is at, where the gas goes, and bare basics, that's about it.

2.) My husband's engine is a 2 spark plug engine. I've been told by the biker guys at fav bar that on my husband's bike, the engine that is "supposed to come with the frame" is a 4 spark plug engine, and that VIN will probably not match the one on the title. While I'd love to hear otherwise, facts are facts, and that's really all I want. So I suppose looking for the VIN on the engine case is irrelevant if that's the case.

3.) I'm under the impression the engine can read hieroglyphics for a VIN - Here in NC, the VIN on the frame is the only one that matters. With that being said, I've been given the name and number of the DMV inspector for our area. I'm prepared to shell out the fee to him to have the bike inspected and re-assigned a VIN. Would a make a difference if the VIN is reassigned now mid-battle with a property claim?

4.) The bike can be repaired and pieced back together. I admit, at first, I didn't care if they totaled it or not, be it his or another bike he bought, he'll ride again. But they have been such jacka's that I'm in this simply for spite - Again, I'm a woman. We're like that. So, my final question is, in determining value for this bike, NADA book value is what it is - I wanna say roughly three grand. There's no odometer on the bike, so they're gonna assume a million miles are on it. But we have more loot tied up in aftermarket parts and modifications than what NADA reflects and pay taxes on a value of almost nine grand. Am I SOL on that? How does the insurance company determine value on a motorcycle like this?

Any hints or helpful insight on this would be very much appreciated. Thanks!

 

I know for a fact that there are at least several attorney's on the forum, and hopefully one of them will pitch some advice your way. As far as the vin...I would think the title would establish both ownership and what the VIN is.

As far as "after purchase modifications"...it depends on insurance. Some insurance companies will cover a minimal amount as a part of the policy package, however once you hit a limit...and I want to say generally it is around 3000 dollars worth of add-ons...then you are wise to have a rider on the insurance to cover the extra. Unfortunately throwing lots of chrome and changes to a bike don't usually translate well through insurance claims or trading in on new bike.

Hope your husband heals quickly.

 

the VIN should be both stamped on the frame and engine case. Check the right side of the bike, below the handle bars on the short frame tube between the front forks. For the engine, I believe it is on the left hand side (spark plug side). Look down where the two jugs meet, the bottom center of the "V".

This might help:
http://www.harley-performance.com/harley-vin.html

 

First, on a 96 XL the VIN should be STAMPED into the neck of the frame. It's not a sticker but a physical stamp in the metal that should be legible. If it's not there, the neck has been removed and replaced...possible if it is as customized as you say it is but not standard practice even in a chopper build. ususally the original neck is reused just for this reason. The image below is a newer example of where to find the VIN on the frame and your's probably won't be in white like this one.



It is possible that your husband has a 1996 XL1200S. That S is what is important. 1200S models had a dual plug head configuration and thus, four spark plugs. HOWEVER, while two plugs are in the traditional position the other two are "inside" the head underneath the backbone of the frame. Count the number of plug wires going to the engine and if you still only have two then have someone visually check to make sure the plugs are not there. If the bike is NOT a XL1200S it WILL NOT have four plugs unless someone changed the heads.

The photo below is of a 1200S. If you look in the very upper left hand corner of the photo you will see the coil where the spark plug wires start and run to the plugs. Note here you can see two wires in the picture. There are two more on the opposite side of the bike. This setup was only used on 1200S Sportsters. Other 1200s and 883s will have a very different coil in this same location. Also note the color of the heads and cylinders, black with silver edges. This was also a 1200S identifier but that has changed over the years. If these parts are completely silver though, it is not a 1200S. (you'll have to click on the link...the forum is doing something funky with the URL and not posting the picture when I save the post.)

http://rds.yahoo.com/_ylt=A2KJkIfHGD..._view.jpeg.jpg

The partial VIN on the engine should be on the left hand side of the engine case right about where the two cylindars come together in the middle of the top part of the case. Should be easily visible without having to remove anything.



In this picture you can see the flat silver area on the case just below the center of the V where the engine VIN should be stamped. It's right below that single bolt in the center of the engine case.

Below is another example off an older bike. The VIN number in this picture is the one with the letters XLCH in it. The other numbers you see ending in "-57" are part numbers.



I'm dealing with insurance as well on my accident and while I wasn't as banged up as your husband I feel your pain for having to go through this. It sucks.

 

I'm surprised that your auto insurance company isn't doing this for you, that's part of the reason you pay them.

 

What state do you live in and is it a fault or no fault insurance state? And motorcycles are not listed in CarFax. If you have collision coverage on your insurance, the claim is settled for the market value at the time of loss. Added on items (chrome) usually have a standard amount, maybe 3 grand, on the standard policy with increased amounts purchased as an option. It sounds like you live in a fault state. In a no fault state, medical costs are billed directly to the insurance company. You'll have to ask the Geico claims rep how the value of the bike will be determined. I'm sure it's different for every company.

 

If the frame has been painted the VIN on the neck may be covered.