Insurance Settlement

[dumbass]

Some of you may remember my posting a few weeks ago saying I took a spill on my scooter (2008 Roketa 250 54B). I thought I took the worse of it by spraining my left wrist, breaking my right wrist and breaking my right knee and lets not forget a few good road rashes. I figured the bike was going to be maybe $100 to $200 worth of skin work and a partial paint job. Of course I figured I would take the insurance settlement and do the work myself.

Today I got a few surprises. State Farm called with a settlement offer. Now there's 2 interesting things to about this. 1) the fact that I opened the policy only 5 days before the wreck and haven't even paid the bill yet. And they agreed they will only charge me for 6 day (canceling the policy the day after the wreck). Why? Because the repair estimate came to $3150 so they totaled it. So they offered me $2,366 less my $250 deductible. I paid $2,300 for the scooter new on 8/08. Granted it only has 600 miles on it but still if not for my $250 deductible they would actually be paying me more then I paid for it 3 years ago. What a deal!! Plus they pay another $1,000 toward my medical bills which so far exceed $15,000 and I estimate will exceed $20,000 by the time it's done.

I am leaning 80% not to replace the scooter. At 64 I don't think I can afford anymore broken bones. And if not for my helmet and face mask I don't think I'd have a nose today. But we'll see what happens come spring time. But I may just convert the money into a new ebike. Any recomendations ??? Yeah, I know I can fall off them too and have. LOL

Bob

 

[TonyReynolds]

Bob,

Only one recommendation:

Don't agree to a settlement over the phone without consulting a lawyer, especially if another party was at fault.

I ride a motorcycle for my commute and have ridden bikes much of the last 50 years. Whether a bike is going to be better for you than a scooter is up to you. Scooters are inherently limited in power which can be both good and bad, as are bikes, even e-bikes. Might be a good move to go with the e-bike, but accidents and injuries can still occur.

Best wishes for a speedy recovery,

Tony

 

[dogman dan]

Sounds like a good deal on the scooter to me. Is it a good deal on the medical stuff? 1000 for the medical sounds kinda low.

One issue about a registered moped or motorcycle, is you have insurance. Might be much harder to get the coverage you need with a bike. Depends on how good your medical coverage is now.

Chances are, your scoot could be bought back from the wrecking yard, if it's just scuffed up.

 

[dumbass]

TonyReynolds, This was a simple case of a slippery road (new pavement) and I over compensated with had braking that locked the wheels. Better to put it into a slide then go through a rear windshield. So I was the only one involved.

dogman, The payoff was a lot more then I had hoped for on the scooter. As for the $1000 medical...of course it's not a lot but they never cover the driver for very much especially on motorcycle insurance. I think it will almost cover the ride to the hospital.

I've been ebiking for 4 maybe 5 years and never thought about insurance for me or the bike. But something to look into. But if they charge like they do for a scooter/cycle ($350 + per year) I don't see it happening.

The Illinois law says the owner can only buy back a car/cycle if it is at least 9 years old. And even then it would have a red taged tittle indicating is was a total wreck at sometime. I was told by 3 people the bike could only be sold to a salvage company and they can then resell it. Problem is you are not told the salvage company.

You are correct injuries can still happen on a bike. Like most I have had my share of on bikes. But your not riding at 60 to 80 mph. But you are riding higher up so maybe that counts too.

I have been after my wife to consider a tandem tric for us. 3 wheels with "POWER!!" Then instead of me towing my dog behind me she can sit in the basket on the rear tires.......... Bob

 

[wineboyrider]

You can only sell the scooter as a salvage vehicle, but you can probably get a few hundred bucks for it 8) ?
Scooter insurance for my Honda Elite 150 is only $92.00 a year here in sunny NM.
Get well soon.
8)

 

[Pure]

That's a pretty good deal on the scoot. Especially considering that you haven't even made one payment yet. LOL And that sounds about right on the medical coverage. Motorcycle insurance is cheap because it doesn't cover much, it's assumed that there won't be much damage to person or property from such a light vehicle. Hopefully your medical insurance will pick up the slack. I know mine did the last time I was in a serious car wreck.

At 64, an e-trike sounds like a really good idea. :lol:

 

[dogman dan]

Laws vary I guess. Here in NM I've heard of guys buying thier salvaged bike back for pennies. Perhaps they just knew which yard it had gone to. In some cases they just wanted it for parts, having bought another of the same bike.

I have a 2000 ford focus with a salvage title. It was a great deal buying it, but not that it's thrashed you almost can't give it away.

 

[dumbass]

OK, don't laugh at me now...but I've been looking at this tandem tric for my wife and I. I like it because it has a really low step through (important for my wife) and comes as shown. Not sure it's made of great quality but as long as the frame holds together that's all I really care about. I could order it with the optional hub drive or add my own drive. I'm guessing their drive kit comes with lead batteries so at $660 that's nuts. I have a ton of lifepo4 packs that can easily be fitted to this bike and just add a good geared front hub. Now that where I need help. I've never used a hub motor but I would be looking for power not speed. 15mph would be all we need on this bike. And I would likely run 48a 20ah packs. Any ideas on a motor??

Bob

 

[Jason27]

$660 is nuts? lol

If you go cheap you will regret it in the end.. Just giving you a heads up my friend.

 

[dumbass]

$660 is nuts? lol

If you go cheap you will regret it in the end.. Just giving you a heads up my friend.

I've been building ebike for several years and I admit that I've not used a hum motor in the past so I hence my interests in others comments. But yes I do think that $660 for a hub motor is nuts....so enlighted my as to what you thing a good hub motor shaould cost. Remember I've already got a tone of new lifepo4 cells so I'm not interested in getting saddled with any lead packs. Your thoughts please. Bob

PS..we are likely talkimg about a front hub. And the hub motor in question for $660 is totally unindentified which is my biggest complaint.

 

[Pure]

600 with SLA's is nuts. Heck, even an X5 with SLAs wouldn't cost that much. You can get a DD with a controller from cell man for 175. His 350W Mac (geared) hub motor is only 180. http://www.emissions-free.com/catalog/i5.html

 

[amberwolf]

Unless that hubmotor is for a freeway-speed scooter or something, that's an insanely high price for what I would expect is a bicycle-class motor and controller, based on what we know here on ES.

Sure, there are plenty of drive kits out there that cost way more than that, but they sure don't have to--and they aren't typically any better quality than the ones half their price. (some are, but not most).

 

[dumbass]

Yeah, that's exactly my point and considering the bike manufacture doesn't indicate the brand of the hub or controller it's likely a cheapy anyway. So why pay them for the unknown when you guys can point me in a much better direction for less. Lets not forget they are already supplying a wheel, spokes and tire so it's not like they are doing that extra. Bob

 

[Joseph C.]

350 watts is probably not enough power for two people. The 500 watt MAC torque version would be more ideal.

 

[amberwolf]

So which tandem trike is it you're looking at? Knowing more about it might help with good suggestions. I didn't see a new thread about it, either, but you might want to start a build thread for it (even if it's just an idea thread for now), and put a link here to it.

 

[dumbass]

Honestly, the only reason I haven't created a new posting is because this is only in the "thinking stage". While this would never replace my normal ebikes I'm not sure if this is something that my wife and I would enjoy. I have to admit I do worry a bit about her on a standard ebike alone. It seams like everytime we go riding she does something that gets her hurt. But then again I skidded my scooter down the highway at 60mph so maybe I should get it for my own safety...LOL

I have only been able to find 3 manufactures but I could only relocate 2 of them now. The 3rd is simular to the Workman but a little less expensive. Without question the Workman is likely the best built but not really the best bike for my use. The problem is the hight of the step through on the Workman is not as low as I would like it to be. And they only offer a single speed or an optional 3 speed. The ability to carry one on a car rack is also a problem. We ride forest preserves and need to cary the bikes to them. I have a very heavy duty 4 up rack on my car. I do not want to use a trailer for this so the bike would have to fit my car rack. Of course none of this has anything to do with the motor but explains my hesitation. Bob

http://www.jazzygearsports.com/Tri-Rider-Twin-Tandem-6-Speed-24-Adult-p/95246.htm

http://worksmancycles.com/shopsite_sc/store/html/sbst.html