so last night someone rings my doorbell and informs me that somone just hit my bike. he got the license plate number and make/ model of the car. problem is i haven't registered the bike yet, and i don't have any insurance. it's just been pretty much sitting there until i have the time to get insurance. the grip and brake lever on the left side are messed up, i was wondering how much it would be to replace these? also i took it on a ride down the steet to my friends place right after it happened, when i left his place i noticed some fuel on the road under my bike. it was parked all night at my place and this morning there wasn't any fuel to be found? was this just leakage from being on its side?? oh yeah, the lights for the left side also don't work anymore? how much do you guys think it would be to fix all of this?
File a police report for property damage. If a guy takes out your mailbox, do you just suck it up if you have a plate number? Although your bike is not insured or registered, it is property. Anyways, if the police do decide to help you out, you can either go through the guy's insurance, or through small claims court. But what do I know... no law/police/insurance experience!
As for the gas, when your bike tipped over is from the overflow drain line thing coming from your carbs. When the bike is in the upright position, no more leaks! Just might be a little rough starting for a bit until the bowls fill back up.
I am not a laywer, nor do I play one on TV, so don't take this as legal advise.
The fact that your bike is not registered or insured should not matter, since you were not riding it at that time.
That is a case of hit-and-run at fault with property damage. If you file a report with the the police and have a witness, you can be certain that his/her insurance will pay you.
However, a better course of action would to contact that driver first, notify that you have a witness, and scare the hell out of her/him. In most States there are fairly severe penalities for that. In NC, that's 4 insurance points (90% increase in insurance) + 4 DMV points. Very likely that person will be very eager to cover your damage to your full satisfaction to avoid a report and a claim.
In doubt, consult a real attoney.
Good luck.
Same thing happened to me about a month ago. I filed a police report and am still waiting for the police to contact me! They said to call them if they don't call me within a month, so it's about time I contact them. They told me to fix it and save the reciepts. All I've fixed is what needs to be fixed in order to still be ridable. I'm not sure if the fact that your bike is not registered will have any effect on anything. I don't think it should though. If you can contact the person who hit it before the police, that is what I would do. In my case I couldn't find out who the person was so I went to the police.
i hope you got the witnesses phone number and name. Someone saw my car get vandalized and got the plate number but i was busy when he told me and didn't get his info. the police filed the report but couldn't do anything since i didn't see it and had no witness since i had no clue who he was.
Just go to the police and ask then to look up the plate and ask what insurance company is on record. Contact the insurance company yourself and let them know that their insured hit your bike, you have a witness and you need to make an appointment with their adjuster.
And as was said file a report with the police. insured or not its your property.
registered or not, its private property and was damaged. it could have been a brick wall for all intents and purposes. the person hit, caused damage, and ran without notifying the owner. as there is a whitness to this, its even better for your case. have you pix before damage? this way you can show the extent?
You could have just bought the bike, rolled it off the trailer and left it siting there while you made room to put it on back porch.
you were not on it, right?, the get ahold of them, tell them you have a witness, and unless they make good on it, you'll file hit and run charges, and they will hear from your attorney. (usually works) :thumb:
All I have to say is that I agree wholeheartedly with everybody. Don't just suck this up. He will most likely settle with you out of insurance, as it will save him money in the long run, but suck every penny you can out of it. Anywhere you see a scratch, replace it at his cost. :nana: If he forces you to go through the insurance co, you may get a little screwed on what they replace :guns: . You could always throw the bike down a few more times when no one is looking, but that would be, (cough) insurance fraud... :nono:
Was it parked on the street when it was hit (on public property)? Our on private property where you live, like a communal parking area?
I've gotten a ticket on my car for parking on the street with expired tabs. Basically, if a car isn't registered, it can't be on the street. If it works the same for bikes, then you may not want to file a report. I would call or visit the person, if you can track-down their plate number, and make a fuss. They'll probably pay for minor stuff.
Others have said that it's just property. Obviously, if you're moving a sofa to your truck and set it down on the street, then it doesn't need registration tabs :) . It's just private property sitting on the road. But police think of motorcycles differently: as motor vehicles which require registration to drive (or sit) on the road. You could claim that you ride the bike off-road; off-road motorcycles are not licensed. You could say that you had pushed it out onto the street then went to get your trailer, or a fried's truck, or something, to load it up.
But if it's on private property, like an apartment building parking lot, then you're clear, and can go file the report immediately.
even parked on street, shouldnt matter, Track Cars can be parked on street for a temp time, no more then 24 hours. unless its registered with leagel tag and insurence. its still private property. in a hit and run case the hitter is in the wrong. even if you had be driving it, you might get a ticket for not regitered/ no insurence ect but it was someone elses fault the bike/car was hit, they were in the wrong leagely.
even parked on street, shouldnt matter, Track Cars can be parked on street for a temp time, no more then 24 hours. unless its registered with leagel tag and insurence. its still private property. in a hit and run case the hitter is in the wrong. even if you had be driving it, you might get a ticket for not regitered/ no insurence ect but it was someone elses fault the bike/car was hit, they were in the wrong leagely.