Motorcycles and Insurance Coverage

When you purchase a motorcycle, you aren’t forced to purchase insurance like you are when you buy a vehicle. Rather, you CAN opt to get your motorcycle endorsement instead. However, we strongly recommend against this, and will explain why:

Why motorcycle insurance is so important

If you’re ever involved in a motorcycle accident and you don’t have insurance coverage, you’ll be left to the mercy of the other driver’s insurance company and coverage. While this may sound fine, most drivers in Washington State have vastly insufficient insurance limits to pay a case when they strike a motorcycle rider. 

The physics of motorcycle accidents mean that the biker is likely to be thrown from the vehicle and suffer more severe injuries than if they were riding in a car. Add to this the lack of steel frame around the rider, and you have a recipe for big injuries, big damages, and a big case financially.

The State minimum for insurance coverage in Washington State is only $25,000 in coverage per injured person. This means that even though the other driver carried insurance, they will only pay up to that limit. .

Underinsured motorists bodily injury coverage

However, if you choose to add insurance to your motorcycle, you can avoid this catastrophe by adding Underinsured motorists bodily injury coverage, which will pay up to a second policy limit over and above the at-fault driver’s insurance.

In a hypothetical scenario, Driver A strikes Rider B, and knocks him off his bike, causing a broken leg. Driver A’s insurance coverage would pay $25,000, and then if Rider B was wise enough to select $250,000 in underinsured motorists coverage, he could also collect that with the assistance of a skilled personal injury attorney, bringing his recovery to $275,000.

Perhaps the best news with underinsured motorists bodily injury coverage is that it’s cheap to purchase. Traditionally, we see premium increases between $5-10 monthly, and when you need it, you’ll be glad you purchased it.

Do you need help after a motorcycle accident?

If this day comes for you, and you’re reading this following an accident of your own, give us a call so that we can overturn every layer of coverage, get your case paid at the highest level, and get you back on the road.

As always, our consultations and case evaluations are free of charge, and we only get paid when you do.