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How to claim on your motorbike insurance

Had a prang?  Did someone help themselves to your beloved bike?  Whatever your reason for needing to make a claim on your insurance, it’s not something that we have to do very often – well, hopefully not anyway.

More often than not, we go about our daily lives as safe and sensible road users, with luck on our side.  But if you are unfortunate enough to be involved in an accident, or your bike is damaged or stolen, if you want to make a claim, you will need to tell your insurance company all about it.

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Had An Accident? Here’s What To Tell Your Insurance Company

If you are involved in an accident, you will need to advise your insurance company as soon as you can. You may be shaken up, or worried about what you should say to them, but all they really need to know are the details of what happened.

You will need to advise them of some key facts as soon as possible:

Details of what happened – obviously, your insurer wasn’t there when the accident took place, so they will rely almost entirely on your account of the incident. They will need to know where and when it happened, how it happened and who else was involved.  Stick to the facts as much as possible.

Take photographs If it is safe to do so, take as many pictures as you can at the scene of the crash.  Pictures speak louder than words, and your insurer will want to make a clear judgement based purely on the facts.

Take photographs of any damage to third party vehicles – this can help to avoid exaggerated claims for damage or injury.  Unfortunately, there are still some people who are not entirely honest when it comes to claiming compensation.  Lightly scuffing a door, for example, is not cause for a whiplash claim – but sure as eggs are eggs, there are some people who will try it on.

Once you have advised them of what happened, they are now in a position to progress your claim.   They will establish liability and will usually liaise directly with the insurers of other parties involved in the accident.

How To Claim If Your Bike Has Been Damaged Or Stolen

If you discover your bike has been damaged or stolen, the first thing you would usually do is call the police.  With bike theft on the rise throughout the UK, there is very little they can do to help, unfortunately, but they will provide you with an incident number which your insurance company will need when you make your claim.

Your insurance company will need to be contacted as soon as possible.  You will ideally need to have the following documents and details to hand:

  • Your policy number
  • The date of the theft
  • The incident number from the police
  • Evidence of your ownership of the bike
  • Photographs of the bike
  • Any damaged items or locks left behind

Most of us will never need to make a claim on our insurance, or may only need to do so occasionally.  If the worst does happen, remember that you have spent years paying for your insurance policies to protect you from the cost of repairs or replacements.  Supply your insurance company with as much detail as possible can help them to progress a claim on your behalf.

If you’re looking to get a new motorcycle check out our motorcycle insurance estimator tool or click to get a full quote from a motorcycle insurance comparison website.

Questions or Comments?

If you’ve got a question about this article and you need a bit more guidance, drop a comment below and we’ll get back to you.

Likewise, if you’ve got something to add to this article or an experience you’d like to share, let’s hear it!

We love reading your comments and helping our readers.

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