First Bike Crash - Advice Required | GTAMotorcycle.com

First Bike Crash - Advice Required

D

dolphin browser

Active member
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Hi folks,

I just had my first crash on October 1st, and now I am in need of advice. I was getting on the ramp to 401 west and midway through the ramp which has a slight bent I looked up to scan the traffic on the highway and when I looked down instead of turning I had gotten too close to the curb. My bike (84' Honda CM250) hit the curb on the ramp and I flew off the bike landing in the grass nearby. I got up a little discombobulated and utter shock. I was mostly ok but my shoulder hurt really bad.

I picked up the bike which was half on grass and half on the ramp and noticed that the gear lever was bent and the headlight had a slight crack in it. No other cars were involved at all. I called a family member and some tow trucks before calling 911 because the pain in my shoulder was increasing and I had no idea how serious my shoulder was. I wasn't able to find any tow trucks in the area. The ambulance arrived and the opp were also on the scene. I was taken to the hospital and they found out that I had a minor fracture in my Scapula (shoulder blade) because I landed on my shoulder.

I was given the arm sling and now I am feeling a bit better, and I think my shoulder has already started healing slowly. Now the tow truck company which is Quinn's Towing is charging me $575 for towing the bike.

As a student I cannot pay this out of my pocket, so my question is should I inform Statefarm Insurance of this and get them involved? I have other options too, which is to basically leave the bike at the yard because the value of the bike itself was about $500. Next season I can just get a new bike. I am confused about the right course of action and don't know exactly what I should do.

Any advice would be appreciated.

Thank-you.
 
my recommendation is to talk to the tow yard and find out the penalties for not paying, ask them if they will keep your bike or go through collections

if they will keep the bike, then I would say let them keep it because like you said, the value of the bike is lower than the tow bill

do you have collision coverage or just liability?

I would not recommend contact statefarm as they will note this as an at-fault accident and you will be left with higher premiums for the next 6 years
 
First off, I'm glad you're ok for the most part. The bill is that high, because the tow trucks company wants to charge as high as possible because they figure the insurance will pay for it any ways. You should call the tow truck company and tell them that you are not going through insurance and their options are to either keep the bike and do what they want or deal with you accordingly (bargain to let it out for $50-100). I really don't know if they can do anything further to claim the $575 from you; as in take you to court or threaten you with bill collectors, but I hope and assume not.

Good luck with the healing and keep your stick on the ice.
 
It sucks that you crashed and you learned your lesson to pay attention to the roads.

leave the bike
let the clock expire then go to the tow company and sign any paperwork they require
go cancel the plates

dude- you spent a lot of time on this forum BEFORE you bought the bike. You even asked about which bike to buy given your limited funds. How the hell did you not know what to do after a minor crash.

1. get CAA
2. you were not bleeding and you felt okay
3. ride the bike off the highway and park it in the nearest lot
4. call CAA report dead bike (either wait for them as they require you to) or post on here or get a friend to come and wait with your bike for CAA
5. go to the hospital

others may disagree with this
but you better hope the Police does not charge you and it hits your insurance

some would say man up and pay the tow yard, why should they suffer from your negligence
 
xfactor said:
First off, I'm glad you're ok for the most part. The bill is that high, because the tow trucks company wants to charge as high as possible because they figure the insurance will pay for it any ways. You should call the tow truck company and tell them that you are not going through insurance and their options are to either keep the bike and do what they want or deal with you accordingly (bargain to let it out for $50-100). I really don't know if they can do anything further to claim the $575 from you; as in take you to court or threaten you with bill collectors, but I hope and assume not.

Good luck with the healing and keep your stick on the ice.
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Yeah they are not going any less than $500. I am going to find out if I don't retrieve the bike would they take me to court or go to collections.
 
-D- said:
It sucks that you crashed and you learned your lesson to pay attention to the roads.

leave the bike
let the clock expire then go to the tow company and sign any paperwork they require
go cancel the plates

dude- you spent a lot of time on this forum BEFORE you bought the bike. You even asked about which bike to buy given your limited funds. How the hell did you not know what to do after a minor crash.

1. get CAA
2. you were not bleeding and you felt okay
3. ride the bike off the highway and park it in the nearest lot
4. call CAA report dead bike (either wait for them as they require you to) or post on here or get a friend to come and wait with your bike for CAA
5. go to the hospital

others may disagree with this
but you better hope the Police does not charge you and it hits your insurance

some would say man up and pay the tow yard, why should they suffer from your negligence
Click to expand...

Yeah, but I wasn't feeling like I would be able to get back on the bike as I was extremely disoriented and dizzy and there were cars coming from behind on the ramp. At one point I felt like I was going to fall unconscious which is when I fully decided to call the ambulance
 
dolphin browser said:
Yeah, but I wasn't feeling like I would be able to get back on the bike as I was extremely disoriented and dizzy and there were cars coming from behind on the ramp. At one point I felt like I was going to fall unconscious which is when I fully decided to call the ambulance
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and no cars stopped to help you?
 
Did you not ask how much a tow was when you called?

Playing for the bike upfront doesn't mean anything. You declined 3rd party insurance probably due to the fact you can't afford this hobby.
 
starboy869 said:
Did you not ask how much a tow was when you called?

Playing for the bike upfront doesn't mean anything. You declined 3rd party insurance probably due to the fact you can't afford this hobby.
Click to expand...

I didn't decline 3rd party insurance. My bike and I are both insured by statefarm. All the tows I called weren't in the area, so OPP called the tow by themselves. I had no say in who picks it up.
 
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Only look back when you're going straight.

Call the Tow company and ask to speak to the owner. Tell him you're a student and can't afford the bill and you need your bike to get to school. I'd be shocked if he didn't cut the bill in half. Tow truck companies do prey on the weak and vulnerable, but it's worth feeling out if the owner has a conscience or not. Tell him his name is on GTAMotorcylce.com for thousands to see the outcome of your situation.
 
MLadin said:
Only look back when you're going straight.

Call the Tow company and ask to speak to the owner. Tell him you're a student and can't afford the bill and you need your bike to get to school. I'd be shocked if he didn't cut the bill in half. Tow truck companies do prey on the weak and vulnerable, but it's worth feeling out if the owner has a conscience or not. Tell him his name is on GTAMotorcylce.com for thousands to see the outcome of your situation.
Click to expand...

The guy will say take the TTC to save money.
He will tell you not my problem.

What you can do is tell him at best he will get $200 from an auction for a 1983 bike so instead of him spending more time and effort than the bike is worth, how about you give him that $200.
 
-D- said:
The guy will say take the TTC to save money.
He will tell you not my problem.

What you can do is tell him at best he will get $200 from an auction for a 1983 bike so instead of him spending more time and effort than the bike is worth, how about you give him that $200.
Click to expand...

I just spoke with him, his name is Joe. He sounded look a nice person. He said he's going to speak with the driver who towed and he'll call me back and see what he can do. I don't want to sound threatening by telling him his name is on the line on gtam.

Thank-you guys for your replies so far, really makes me feel cozy.
 
-D- said:
The guy will say take the TTC to save money.
He will tell you not my problem.

What you can do is tell him at best he will get $200 from an auction for a 1983 bike so instead of him spending more time and effort than the bike is worth, how about you give him that $200.
Click to expand...

Chances are pretty good that the owner will be a rider and will take pity on the kid and help him out.
 
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MLadin said:
Chances are pretty good that the owner will be a rider and will take pity on the kid and help him out.
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I think he is. I'm waiting for him to call me back. The bike does mean a lot to me, and I've learned a lot in these past couple days - including how to type with one hand:p.
 
maxgohan said:
I would not recommend contact statefarm as they will note this as an at-fault accident and you will be left with higher premiums for the next 6 years
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Just want to repeat this, because this is for sure the most costly thing you can do. Make sure the two guys know you're not going through insurance.
 
Mongrel said:
Just want to repeat this, because this is for sure the most costly thing you can do. Make sure the two guys know you're not going through insurance.
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UPDATE: Okay I just spoke with Nicco from Quinn's Towing. Essentially, he said either I sign the ownership of the bike over to him or he can put me on a payment plan for $375. He'd require $200 in cash and then $25 every week until I've paid it off. I told him that the most I can pay him is $200 by not buying my psychology textbook this semester. Finally, he said for me to come in person and we will talk this out tomorrow afternoon. I'm not sure, but maybe out of the goodness of his heart he will just take $200 in cash and spare my bike.
 
Don't forget it's not as if you agreed to pay $575 beforehand. What if the towing company said you owed $10,000 would they have a right to collect - well same thing for $575?

You might gently ask him how on earth you were expected to know that they were going to charge $575.
 
dolphin browser said:
UPDATE: Okay I just spoke with Nicco from Quinn's Towing. Essentially, he said either I sign the ownership of the bike over to him or he can put me on a payment plan for $375. He'd require $200 in cash and then $25 every week until I've paid it off. I told him that the most I can pay him is $200 by not buying my psychology textbook this semester. Finally, he said for me to come in person and we will talk this out tomorrow afternoon. I'm not sure, but maybe out of the goodness of his heart he will just take $200 in cash and spare my bike.
Click to expand...

Guy sounds like a complete ****ing *******.
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