A Car hit me!

I had a little accident and was hit by a car at slow speed. I'm bruised
and scraped but will heal. (My thumb and forefinger are still numb
after 3 days - yes, I am receiving medical attention.) My bike is in
bad shape but possibly could be repaired -- need a bike shop to help
assess that.

The driver's insurance company told me they only pay for the
depreciated value of the bike. I paid $1900.00 for it in 1990. They
depreciate it 10% per year. I also put a high end Look carbon fork on
it and had it repainted.

My question to this group: should I expect to be paid replacement costs
or the depreciated costs?

Thanks!

I don't think bikes depreciate that rapidly.
The same thing happened to me a few years ago. The driver's insurance
company was so worried that I would have an injury claim that they were
very happy to pay for my bike in exchange for a release aginst any
claim for injuries.
I'd bet they'll do the sme for you. Their finacial risk is on the
injury side not the bike.

Never Enough Money wrote:
I had a little accident and was hit by a car at slow speed. I'm bruised
and scraped but will heal. (My thumb and forefinger are still numb
after 3 days - yes, I am receiving medical attention.) My bike is in
bad shape but possibly could be repaired -- need a bike shop to help
assess that.

The driver's insurance company told me they only pay for the
depreciated value of the bike. I paid $1900.00 for it in 1990. They
depreciate it 10% per year. I also put a high end Look carbon fork on
it and had it repainted.

My question to this group: should I expect to be paid replacement costs
or the depreciated costs?

Thanks!


I'm assuming since they're offering you anything, it's the car driver's
fault. You have been to a doctor then, correct? Start saying things
like "possible nerve damage" and "pain and suffering", you'll be amazed
how quickly their offer will increase to get you to sign a release. But
be sure you do know the extent of any longterm trouble before
eliminating the possibility of future compensation; persistent numbness
could well be serious.

Dan

Yep. I mentioned possible nerve damage and I wasn't kidding. My right
hand is just plain numb.

The police charge the driver with running a stop sign. It's unlikely
they can make that into my fault.

Thanks!

Never Enough Money wrote:
Yep. I mentioned possible nerve damage and I wasn't kidding. My right
hand is just plain numb.

The police charge the driver with running a stop sign. It's unlikely
they can make that into my fault.

Thanks!

If the driver was cited, you have nothing to worry about. Be sure & get
a thorough medical evaluation, including any needed tests & consultation
from a neurologist etc. before you even consider settling for just being
compensated for your bike. You may well need physical therapy for a
while, etc. By all means, cover your ass!

Dan

Never Enough Money wrote:
I had a little accident and was hit by a car at slow speed. I'm bruised
and scraped but will heal. (My thumb and forefinger are still numb
after 3 days - yes, I am receiving medical attention.) My bike is in
bad shape but possibly could be repaired -- need a bike shop to help
assess that.

The driver's insurance company told me they only pay for the
depreciated value of the bike. I paid $1900.00 for it in 1990. They
depreciate it 10% per year. I also put a high end Look carbon fork on
it and had it repainted.

My question to this group: should I expect to be paid replacement costs
or the depreciated costs?

Thanks!

They
depreciate it 10% per year.......

Tell the insurance company to get screwed. Their insured is the one
that hit you..........their problem to resolve. You did not asked to be
hit. Get your LBS to back you in the way of repair estimate or
replacement value. If all else fails, litigate

Never Enough Money wrote:

I had a little accident and was hit by a car at slow speed. I'm bruised
and scraped but will heal. (My thumb and forefinger are still numb
after 3 days - yes, I am receiving medical attention.) My bike is in
bad shape but possibly could be repaired -- need a bike shop to help
assess that.

The driver's insurance company told me they only pay for the
depreciated value of the bike. I paid $1900.00 for it in 1990. They
depreciate it 10% per year. I also put a high end Look carbon fork on
it and had it repainted.

My question to this group: should I expect to be paid replacement costs
or the depreciated costs?

Thanks!

Two years ago, my spouse was broadsided by a car that ran a 4-way stop
sign. He was three days in ICU with his injuries. We contracted an
attorney to have our interests covered. It took about 1.5 years for us
and the insurance company to final settle. The least worry of the
insurance company was replacing his bike and equipment.

Stick by your guns and insist you get fully recompensed for your bike's
replacement value. The insured should have minimum liability at the
least, and that's still not an insignificant sum, unless great bodily
harm has been done. I'm sure the insurance company can afford to pay
that value.

You could always say something to the tune of "hm.., perhaps I should
hire a lawyer to protect my interests" to the insurance company's
adjuster VBEG.

Skyhooks
h m a r d i s "aahtt" u i u c "ddoott" e d u

P.S. If you paid $1900 in 1990, then I wonder what the same or similar
bike would cost today! That's what you should demand from the insurance
company.

STOP!!!

Get a lawyer right away. The insurer is trying to bail on you. You are
entitled to a bike, pain and suffering, lost wages, medical expenses etc. I
was hit a couple of years ago and ended up in the hospital.

Your situation may not be as bad. However, get checked out and get a lawyer
to represent you. You can be fair minded or you can decide to sign the
release for a few thousand dollars.



--
"Say nothing of my religion. It is known to God and myself alone.
Its evidence before the world is to be sought in my life:
if it has been honest and dutiful to society the religion
which has regulated it cannot be a bad one."

Thomas Jefferson
"Never Enough Money" wrote in message
oups.com...
Yep. I mentioned possible nerve damage and I wasn't kidding. My right
hand is just plain numb.

The police charge the driver with running a stop sign. It's unlikely
they can make that into my fault.

Thanks!

You are entitled to be made whole. It's easy enough for an insurance
company to tell you how they have a policy under which you are not entitled
to very much money. They don't make the law, and their statements about how
little they will pay are just part of the game they play to minimize their
cost.

A friend of mine was rear ended by a driver who also ran from the scene,
leaving his license plate imbedded in my friend's car. He would have
settled for car repair, but the insurance company started playing this same
game, which made my friend mad. He went to a lawyer, and ended up
collecting over $50,000.

"Never Enough Money" writes:

The driver's insurance company told me they only pay for the
depreciated value of the bike. I paid $1900.00 for it in 1990. They
depreciate it 10% per year. I also put a high end Look carbon fork on
it and had it repainted.

That may be what they offer, but that's not necessarily what they need
to pay you. Get a lawyer, now, to take a look at it. Given the
possible nerve injury, and the loss of a top-quality bicycle ($1,900 in
1990 would be worth quite a bit more now), and that it was the driver's
fault (as mentioned downthread), you are almost certainly due more than
some artificially-depreciated value.

You may need to get a bike shop to assess the pre-crash value of your
bike.

Regardless, get a lawyer: the cost is almost certain to be worth it.

And let us know how it turns out; there's a good chance that we'll all
be in your shoes someday.

--
Robert Uhl http://public.xdi.org/=ruhl
An article just this morning talks about how IT work sucks the soul
right out of a person. At the end of a day digging ditches, you feel
good. Tired, yes, but you have the whole endorphin rush thing from
the exercise, as well as a real feeling of accomplishment. The ditch
is dug. You can see it is dug. Nobody is going to come along later
and ask can you also make it an email sending ditch with instant
messaging. It's a ditch. You know where you stand.
--Some Guy Named Chris