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Hobo120.
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July 1, 2017 at 9:06 am #27297
I got hit by a fully insured driver back in March. My 18 month old frame got snapped & my new mavic rims are broken.
My solicitor has just told me that the drivers insurance company will not pay out the full price for the bike instead they will apply some depreciation to it. I haven’t been advised how much they are willing to offer.
Surely they can’t do this can they? I thought it should be replaced like for like or at least that I should not be left worse off because of their customers inability to drive safely.
Anybody else had any experience with this kind of situation?
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madcarew wrote:
madcarew wrote:“I should not be left worse off ” – This is supposed to be the central tenet of insurance. You were riding an 18 month old bike, and so there’s no reason you should be supplied with a new one. They should either supply you with a very similar 18 month old bike, or money to put yourself in that situation.
Normally cyclists come off quite well as the insurance company says “It’s only the frame and wheels that got damaged, so we’re only going to replace those, at market/ depreciated value”. Of course market value for a frame, and maket value for the wheels to be then rebuilt into a replacement bike often adds up to more than the cost of the same bike on the second hand market. This has happened to me 3 times now, and each time it was a cannondale evo himod frame only, RRP $6500. For the 3 incidents I’ve been paid out a total of $14,500. Each time I’ve been able to buy a complete replacement bike for only $3500 off (ebay), which leaves me with groupset parts to sell / swap. I’m probably $4k better off overall.
Thank you. So, I’ve been to my LBS & they did their assessment. I’ve attached a cropped version of it. What do you think, should I be adding up the total of these & then taking a third off to reflect what it would cost?
Cheers to all who replied.
Cheers to all who replied.I’ve just had a fairly positive response from the insurance company. They offered me an amount that will only leave me out of pocket by a small bit. Less than what I would’ve considered the bikes depreciation to have been.
I had provided them with a list of all the damaged properties, receipts & a total of how much they all cost. Within 48 hours they had given me the offer.
Thanks for all the interest & advice . Stay safe.
RichardSA
Hi
Hi
Always reject the first offer. Insurance staff will try and get away with a minimal payout – it is in their job description.
Put forward your reasons in writing and hopefully, you will see a better outcome.
Good luck.
Vehlin
This isn’t like dealing with
This isn’t like dealing with your own insurance company in a fault claim (where they will pay you whatever they can get away with). You, as the injured party, have a legal right to be returned to the position you were in pre-crash. This is the most important thing to remember.
Scour ebay and bike classifieds for bikes of the same age model and condition as yours, these figures are your starting point, then add on fair values for any upgrades you’ve made (less the value of the parts you’ve removed). This will give you a price that you can go to the other party and say “this is what a like for like replacement will cost me”.
Also, if you don’t have a car, make it clear that you’ve lost your means of transportation and so will be claiming for the costs of alternate arragements while the matter is being resolved.
madcarew
Hobo120 wrote:
Hobo120 wrote:
The only few things left intact on the bike is the seat post & the brake callipers. Everything else is either broken beyond repair or has some serious cosmetic damage so not much to re fit onto another frame. She really hit me hard! Personal injuries include fractured scapula (5 places including the joint surface), two ribs & a thumb. All clothing is damaged including lid, shoes, jacket, Jersey, shorts & leg warmers, all being claimed for. Also broken is my garmin 810. How do they work out depreciation for these kind of things in your experience?srchar wrote:Hobo120 wrote:Thank you. So, I’ve been to my LBS & they did their assessment. I’ve attached a cropped version of it. What do you think, should I be adding up the total of these & then taking a third off to reflect what it would cost?I would ask them to also quote for labour to fit everything to the new bike.
Was it just the bike that was damaged? When I was had off, I claimed for bib shorts, jacket, helmet, shoes, gloves, backpack etc – they all bore holes and scars of the incident. A few bits of full-price Rapha, a nice pair of shoes (full RRP) and that Giro Synthe you were wearing soon add up, even after depreciation…
Honestly, you don’t really need to worry about that. You just get the list of costs together of everything that was damaged in the accident (and any subsequent costs) and put it in as your claim. In my experience they don’t devalue shoes, helmets or clothing.
Bigtwin
Hobo120]
The standard method is as follows:srchar wrote: </strong></p> <p>[quote=Hobo120 wrote:[quote=srchar]How do they work out depreciation for these kind of things in your experience?Depreciation = Remaining Life of Asset/Useful Life of Asset
Item cost £1,000. Uuseful life 5 years.
After 2 years – destroyed.
Value = Original Value x Depreciation
Depreciation value = 3/5 = 60%
Actual cash value = 1000 x 60% = £600
srchar wrote:
srchar wrote:Hobo120 wrote:Thank you. So, I’ve been to my LBS & they did their assessment. I’ve attached a cropped version of it. What do you think, should I be adding up the total of these & then taking a third off to reflect what it would cost?I would ask them to also quote for labour to fit everything to the new bike.
Was it just the bike that was damaged? When I was had off, I claimed for bib shorts, jacket, helmet, shoes, gloves, backpack etc – they all bore holes and scars of the incident. A few bits of full-price Rapha, a nice pair of shoes (full RRP) and that Giro Synthe you were wearing soon add up, even after depreciation…
The only few things left intact on the bike is the seat post & the brake callipers. Everything else is either broken beyond repair or has some serious cosmetic damage so not much to re fit onto another frame. She really hit me hard! Personal injuries include fractured scapula (5 places including the joint surface), two ribs & a thumb.
All clothing is damaged including lid, shoes, jacket, Jersey, shorts & leg warmers, all being claimed for. Also broken is my garmin 810. How do they work out depreciation for these kind of things in your experience?
No, you don’t take the third
No, you don’t take the third off, you present it to the insurance company as the proposed cost of repair and negotiations start from there. You are allowed to refuse any offer they make, but if it is a reasonable offer you might be as well to take it. It is a negotiation.
You could ask the LBS to provide another quote which is for replacement of damaged parts (insurance company isn’t allowed to do second hand) and associated re-build which will come to more than the quote they’ve provided; and then make the offer to the insurance company that they just pay for a new bike as it would be cheaper. Personally I always get the insurace company to give me the money so I can spend it as I wish.
srchar
Hobo120 wrote:
Hobo120 wrote:Thank you. So, I’ve been to my LBS & they did their assessment. I’ve attached a cropped version of it. What do you think, should I be adding up the total of these & then taking a third off to reflect what it would cost?I would ask them to also quote for labour to fit everything to the new bike.
Was it just the bike that was damaged? When I was had off, I claimed for bib shorts, jacket, helmet, shoes, gloves, backpack etc – they all bore holes and scars of the incident. A few bits of full-price Rapha, a nice pair of shoes (full RRP) and that Giro Synthe you were wearing soon add up, even after depreciation…
The first thing to so is READ
The first thing to so is READ YOUR POLICIES VERY CAREFULLY to see what they say, so you know what you are covered for if anything. Many many people have legal expenses cover etc in their household policies for example, but never use it because they have no clue it’s there. Plus, is your bike covered itself by any insurance you have?
THEN you can do into bat with the insueres. You are basically wasting your time talking in cash terms – they have supply agreements for new bikes that are aften below trade. When presented with a decent and reasonable argument, it’s often entirely cost neutral to them to supply a new machine with no deduction for wear and tear. Failing that, find some used bikes/bits that match the spec and condition of yours, and submit those. As parts building is always more expensive than new bikes, they pay for new.
Finally, you can of course bring an action against the driver for and shortfall between what their insurers pay and what you get, though that is likely to be a long and tedious process. Again, check if you have any cover for legal costs of this.
and +1 to Srchr’s suggestion.
and +1 to Srchr’s suggestion. That’s how it works.
“I should not be left worse
“I should not be left worse off ” – This is supposed to be the central tenet of insurance. You were riding an 18 month old bike, and so there’s no reason you should be supplied with a new one. They should either supply you with a very similar 18 month old bike, or money to put yourself in that situation.
Normally cyclists come off quite well as the insurance company says “It’s only the frame and wheels that got damaged, so we’re only going to replace those, at market/ depreciated value”. Of course market value for a frame, and maket value for the wheels to be then rebuilt into a replacement bike often adds up to more than the cost of the same bike on the second hand market. This has happened to me 3 times now, and each time it was a cannondale evo himod frame only, RRP $6500. For the 3 incidents I’ve been paid out a total of $14,500. Each time I’ve been able to buy a complete replacement bike for only $3500 off (ebay), which leaves me with groupset parts to sell / swap. I’m probably $4k better off overall.
srchar
I’ve had this happen before –
I’ve had this happen before – you need to play them at their own game.
Go to your LBS, explain that you got knocked off and are being dicked around by the driver’s insurer. Ask them to produce a quote to build your bike, as new, from parts at full RRP (frame, groupset, wheels etc, all listed separately), with a labour charge reflecting the attention to detail you require in the build. You may want to buy them coffee/beer for their trouble, and/or pay for their time.
Supply this to the insurer and suggest they discount it by 1/3 to cover any depreciation – remember, you did keep your steed in pristine condition. Add on a hundred quid for your time. Tell them that you are happy for your solicitor to take things further if they don’t agree with the resulting figure.
You should get paid out enough to cover the cost of a new replacement.
Thanks for the responses. In
Thanks for the responses. In my naivety I thought they would have to replace the bike with the cost of the same model. It appears not. Swines. Anybody know how bike depreciation is calculated or considered?Because this crash happened in March I’ve had to purchase a new bike to get me to & from work so in terms of them sourcing the same model with the same vintage that’s not something I’d want to suggest to them. I need the money.
In the same crash my garmin 810 got broken so I’ve sent off receipts for it to my solicitor to pass on to the insurance. Would they also try to fob me off with less than what I paid/would cost to replace it?
mike the bike
The insurer will argue that their duty is to put the cyclist back in the position he held before the incident, ie the owner of an 18-month-old used bicycle. It’s hard to say they are wrong.
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