Sportbike Insurance...

[jamesart86]

Ok, first, TAKE THE CLASS! It's a fun weekend, you'll learn alot, and you get to skip taking a driving test (in most states). As for insurance, I also have state farm. I'm 36, married (married really drops your rates) Last ticket I had was when I was 17. I have an 07 Kawi ZX-6R ninja and my full coverage, $250 deductable, is $45 a month.
As for a bike, if you really want to save gas, have you looked at the new ninja 250? I know, it's a 250, but it's supposed to be a blast to ride, insurance should be CHEAP, mielage is incredible, the look like a 600, and a brand new one is $3500. NEW. Plus 250's really hold their value, so after a couple years if you want to sell you'll still do okay. Just a thought. Most of europe has a stepped license where you HAVE to start with something like a 125cc and then go up, and that's the smart way to learn. A 600 can get you killed without even trying, even if you try to take it easy. Mine will hit 85 in first gear, and the speed it can carry entering a corner has a definite pucker factor. Just think about it.

[1911]

Being old doesn't have a lot of advantages, but one is that the (liability only) insurance on my touring bike is about $50/year. And even with the extra weight it still gets 48-52 mpg.

[BLUE TONKA]

Okay got an update. Called Statefarm and got a real quote.

Tell me if these figures are good enough:
$50,000/$100,000/$50,000 property/occurrence/person
Comprehensive/Collision deductible: $1000
Uninsured Motorist: $25,000/$50,000

= $126.70/month.

Is that good enough coverage for me? The price is good and I will do it if the coverage is good. He quoted he $108.60 originally but I have 1 ticket under my name (I thought I got rid of it?) That ticket should be gone though since it was 3 years ago.

He also said something about "Motorcycle Rider Protection" which will cost more, but he wasn't sure how much... not even sure what it covers...

[taltyman]

I've got Allstate now and had another company before but can't remember the name, both had comparable rates. Standalone rate for liability only runs me about $75 per YEAR. This means if I wreck my bike then they only pay for the damage I cause to someone else. Nothing to fix my bike and nothing to fix me. So any medical bills would be picked up by my heath insurance. Of course I'm 60, live in the country in Texas and am on a Kawasaki 750 LTD, so your mileage may vary. BTW you won't see me doing a wheelie at 70 MPH on the freeway.

[Swingshiftworker]

BLUE TONKA previously said:

Okay got an update. Called Statefarm and got a real quote.

Tell me if these figures are good enough:
$50,000/$100,000/$50,000 property/occurrence/person
Comprehensive/Collision deductible: $1000
Uninsured Motorist: $25,000/$50,000

= $126.70/month.

Is that good enough coverage for me? The price is good and I will do it if the coverage is good. He quoted he $108.60 originally but I have 1 ticket under my name (I thought I got rid of it?) That ticket should be gone though since it was 3 years ago.

He also said something about "Motorcycle Rider Protection" which will cost more, but he wasn't sure how much... not even sure what it covers...

I'm with State Farm and I never heard of "Motorcycle Rider Protection" coverage. Ask for an explanation. As for the rest, you could probably do with less liabliity coverage, go with a $500 collision deductible and eliminate uninsured motorist coverage.

Liability coverage is for damage you to to other vehicles/people. Min required in CA is $15K/$30K/$5k. Ask what it will cost for the min coverage and compare the cost with $100k/$300k/$100k. Something in the the middle (maybe $25k/$50k/$25k) would make more sense, given the likelihood that more damage will be done to you and your motorcycle than any other vehicle/person if you're involved in a motorcycle accident.

Any savings in liability coverage could offset the increased cost for a $500 collision deductible, it always seems possible to come up w/$500 but it always just seems harder to come up with $1k when you need to. Lastly, uninsured motorist coverage only covers your medical expenses (up to the coverage limits) if you are injured by an uninsured motorist. So, if you have adequate medical coverage already, you don't need it.

Good luck!

[toyotaoffroadFJ]

when i had my cbr600rr insured i payed 45 a month,im 23. for liability state farm is the best..but i think you must have your car with them also..i.but riding these bikes on the street is retarded. half the people on them are immature and don't even know the full potential of them... now basically i just do trackdays..more fun

[BLUE TONKA]

Swingshiftworker previously said:

I'm with State Farm and I never heard of "Motorcycle Rider Protection" coverage. Ask for an explanation. As for the rest, you could probably do with less liabliity coverage, go with a $500 collision deductible and eliminate uninsured motorist coverage.

Liability coverage is for damage you to to other vehicles/people. Min required in CA is $15K/$30K/$5k. Ask what it will cost for the min coverage and compare the cost with $100k/$300k/$100k. Something in the the middle (maybe $25k/$50k/$25k) would make more sense, given the likelihood that more damage will be done to you and your motorcycle than any other vehicle/person if you're involved in a motorcycle accident.

Any savings in liability coverage could offset the increased cost for a $500 collision deductible, it always seems possible to come up w/$500 but it always just seems harder to come up with $1k when you need to. Lastly, uninsured motorist coverage only covers your medical expenses (up to the coverage limits) if you are injured by an uninsured motorist. So, if you have adequate medical coverage already, you don't need it.

Good luck!

Okay I will go for the 25/50/25. Now uninsured motorists...means if I get in an accident with someone who is uninsured then I am still covered. So if I get hurt in an accident insurance will still fix me up (medical bills and the like). You are saying take away the uninsured and use my insurance coverage from work to fix me? What if it's a serious injury...hospital bills, etc...?

[BLUE TONKA]

toyotaoffroadFJ previously said:

when i had my cbr600rr insured i payed 45 a month,im 23. for liability state farm is the best..but i think you must have your car with them also..i.but riding these bikes on the street is retarded. half the people on them are immature and don't even know the full potential of them... now basically i just do trackdays..more fun

Wow, that is just SICK. I won't be doing anything crazy on the bike. I just want a nice looking bike with potential. No 70mph wheelies. I appreciate life and all it has to offer.

[Swingshiftworker]

BLUE TONKA previously said:

Okay I will go for the 25/50/25. Now uninsured motorists...means if I get in an accident with someone who is uninsured then I am still covered. So if I get hurt in an accident insurance will still fix me up (medical bills and the like). You are saying take away the uninsured and use my insurance coverage from work to fix me? What if it's a serious injury...hospital bills, etc...?

Well, don't just go with what I say. Get quotes for various coverages and limits and decide what's best for you.

25/50/25 for liability is probably enough for a motorcycle, but it is a hypothetical level of coverage and you have to decide whether it is enough for you or not. If extra liability coverage doesn't cost that much more, no reason not to get it, but the savings for lower liability limits may pay for a lower collision deductible, and you could use the savings on liability coverage for that.

As for uninsured motorist coverage, it only covers your medical bills (up to the coverage limit) if you are injured physically in an accident with an uninsured motorist. Verify this with your agent. The theory being that if the other party is uninsured and doesn't have liability coverage, s/he won't be able to pay you (or your insurer) for your medical bills. Therefore, if you have sufficient medical coverage through your employer (or otherwise) there's really no reason to pay for the additional medical coverage on your auto policy.

I have Kaiser, which covers me for everything (regardless of who's fault it was) and has fixed me up each time I've been injured motorcycling. So, I don't have to worry about any uninsured medical expenses and don't have any uninsured motorist coverage on any of my cars. But, again, you need to decide for yourself whether this is what YOU want to do or not, because there may be reasons why it would make sense for you to have this coverage that I am not aware of.

I'm just trying to point out some ways you can save money on coverage you may not need, but ultimately you'll have to decide what's best for you.

[BLUE TONKA]

Swingshiftworker previously said:

Well, don't just go with what I say. Get quotes for various coverages and limits and decide what's best for you.

25/50/25 for liability is probably enough for a motorcycle, but it is a hypothetical level of coverage and you have to decide whether it is enough for you or not. If extra liability coverage doesn't cost that much more, no reason not to get it, but the savings for lower liability limits may pay for a lower collision deductible, and you could use the savings on liability coverage for that.

As for uninsured motorist coverage, it only covers your medical bills (up to the coverage limit) if you are injured physically in an accident with an uninsured motorist. Verify this with your agent. The theory being that if the other party is uninsured and doesn't have liability coverage, s/he won't be able to pay you (or your insurer) for your medical bills. Therefore, if you have sufficient medical coverage through your employer (or otherwise) there's really no reason to pay for the additional medical coverage on your auto policy.

I have Kaiser, which covers me for everything (regardless of who's fault it was) and has fixed me up each time I've been injured motorcycling. So, I don't have to worry about any uninsured medical expenses and don't have any uninsured motorist coverage on any of my cars. But, again, you need to decide for yourself whether this is what YOU want to do or not, because there may be reasons why it would make sense for you to have this coverage that I am not aware of.

I'm just trying to point out some ways you can save money on coverage you may not need, but ultimately you'll have to decide what's best for you.

Thanks Marty for the input! It makes sense now. I too have Kaiser and if I can go into them and be covered for medical in the case of an accident, then there is really no point for uninsured. I will keep all of this in mind when I make my decision.