Total Loss...

Engineer called on behalf of NIG just now.

The Bandit has been written off due to about a sugarlump-sized corner
piece of the cylinder head cover being ground off in the spill.

He said the high mileage (7700 as opposed to 2000) means it's book
value is £3300. Whether that takes into account the £250 alarm I do
not know.

It's on hire purchase, so they'll get the payout, and I'll get
whatever's left. So I should in theory get a bit back. Though that's
offset by my £350 excess.

Arse.

So that's cost me about £1000 since I bought it, with nothing to show
except 7700 miles of fun riding.

I'd better get the base of my Garmin's RAM mount back. The driver who
collected the bike said he'd put it to one side when he got back to
P&H. Here's hoping he did...

What on earth should I get next? I'm tempted by an MZ Black Panther
Baghira, or WC's XT660X. At least they'll crash better than a Bindit.

 

I bought a bike brand new a few years ago, had it one year and four
days, and it was nicked, total loss. Had intended to spread the new bike
depreciation across three years or so, but had to take it all in just
one year. Sucks, don't it.

DR-Z400SM, on 0% until the end of March?

 

Sean Hamerton says...

Cylinder head covers cost **** all to replace. If it was the cylinder
head then I could accept it, but it seems they write bikes off for the
slightest fucking reason nowadays. All that does is put my insurance up
when I renew.

 

Sorry about increasing your premium, mate. Didn't do it on purpose...

The gouge did go slightly into the cyl head. But the chap said the ins
co would insist on it being as new condition after a repair. That's
just so they can hike the cost and don't have to bother fixing it.
Bastards. I'd be happy to just paint over the scrape with some black
engine paint...

At least I get to go bike shopping again. I won't be buying new
though. And won't be going fully comp. And I'll be more careful too.

 

Sean Hamerton says...

You do realise that you can refuse to accept a payout and insist your
bike is repaired and not written off, don't you.

What you have to remember is that the bike is your property, not the
insurance company's. You're the one who decides what happens to it, not
them. If you're willing to put up with a little scratch on the cylinder
head, which I'd see as acceptable on a bike with 7k miles as long as it
wasn't huge, then tell them so. Ignore P+H, they sound like cunts to me
- go over their heads and deal direct with the insco.

From the look of the pictures there was very little expensive damage,
I'm surprised the insurance company haven't told P+H not to be such
cunts.

 

Deffo sounds like one to chase Sean. You need the bike back basically.
If it really neads a head go to a breakers, there are plenty here to
help change it.

 

*ding*

What's really wrong with it? Scratched exhaust? New cylinder head,
perhaps bent bars?

See if the frame looks bent, replace the ignition fuse and see if it
starts. It's a perfectly good B6.5. If the ins co *insist* on
writing it off then ask them how much the scrap is worth and shove a
new cylinder head on it and fix the bars and whatever scratches it has
and then insure it TPO on a Q-plate if you must.

Well, that's what I'd do and I know **** all about fixing things
whereas you're an engineer...

 

BGN says...

It didn't seem like enough to write the bike off, there's no fucking
plastic on it. If worst comes to worst, I'd repair myself and not bother
with the insurance company at all. Live with a few scratches, put it
down to experience and save an insurance hike and loss of NCB. That has
got to be the cheapest option.

I don't think it should come to that. I think P+H are just trying to get
out of a shitty lousy paying rebuild job. They won't get paid normal
labour rates for repair work, the hourly rate will be dictated by the
insuance company. I'd have the bike out of there and into somewhere else
that give good customer service, somewhere like Alford Bros in
Folkestone.

No I'm not, I'm just a slightly more clued up version of any other
motorcyclist.

 

Sorry, should have said "Sean is an engineer." I replied to the wrong
post for some reason.

 

Thanks for the advice, all. I did ask the engineer chap who called me
if I could say I didn't mind the scrape on the head. He said that
generally ins cos will only repair things to original condition. I
will talk to my ins co on friday, when he said they should have had
his report.

If they are being cunts about it, at least I can still get a bit
excited about looking for a new bike.

 

Sean Hamerton says...

Suzuki are only offering free insurance on Bandits and 0% finance only
on V-Stroms as far as I can see.

 

I'm not going to be buying new, or on finance. Only complicates
things. As I said, I'm interested in an XT or maybe a Baghira. Who
knows. Seemingly my insurance is still fairly reasonable, looking at
confused.com, for TPFT policies at least. Comp seemed pricey, but I'm
not looking to get something that'll crash badly.

 

From what Sean has said, it belongs to the HP company, not him.

 

Why not see how much the insurance co would be prepared to sell the
salvage back to you for, then buy and fir a new cylinder head cover,
which isn't going to be hugely expensive in reality.

might be the cheapest way out.

 

If you don't go fully comp, you'll fucking well *have* to, but it's not
always some other **** who's to blame even when you're being REALLY careful.

"Clumsy cuntishness" isn't something you can just switch off. After your two
disasters, the very first thing I'd be doing is making sure I had double
fully comp cover.


--
Beav

VN 750
Zed 1000
OMF# 19

 

After the HP company have been paid off by the Ins Co, I don't think
I'll be getting any substantial monies. I'm not really bothered with
buying it back out of my own pocket and having the hassle of putting
it back together. I'd rather spend a bit more on a working bike. That
crashes better.

 

I have/had fully comp. It's helped me nearly break even at best. That
is all. I'm going to buy something older anyway. And cheaper, that's
already depreciated.

 

With a Lawsonii paint job?

 

Seriously mate what crashes better than an unfaired Bindat with some
good crash bungs, solid pegs and folding levers? It's a mistake to
think a big traillie is cheap to sling up the tarmac, far from it. Those
long forks bend like pipe cleaners, the yokes break, the tanks dent etc.
Breakers are full of B6/12's, XT's and MZ's will be rocking horse shit.

 

Hog says...

When I threw my faired Bandit up the road at 50 all that was broken as a
result of the crash was the front brake lever and plastic handguard. The
engine bars saved the cases and for some unknown reason the fairing was
absolutely undamaged, didn't even scratch the indicator. I had to repair
the mirror mounting but you'll be hard pushed to tell the mirror was
affected. There are some minor scratches here and there, but this bike
has been horizontal so many times it was difficult to tell which ones
were new.

Bandits are the ultimate crashing weapon.