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Kern County Smashes My LT

4K views 34 replies 21 participants last post by  nelson61 
#1 · (Edited)
Went on a Rotary ride out of Bakersfield this weekend.

Saturday afternoon one of the bikes detoured off the road into a gully.
No major injuries but I called 911 and rider was taken for observation.

CHP arrived before ambulance and and local Kern County Fire Rescue truck arrived next, parks behind my LT. Driver jumps out, truck takes off, driver jumps back in and now puts it in park but it had already smashed into my LT and punted it down the road. Major rearend and left side damage. He is really sorry and has not had an accident in 34 years. WHY ME??? Later tells me it will probably be a year to collect (maybe) as County is self insured and standard procedure is to deny all claims. WTF? Guess I now get to see how good Progressive Insurance is and they can fight with Kern County.

Everything on the left side will need to be replaced, windshield, mirror, lower faring. tipover wing, saddle bag, foot peg, taillight and entire trunk plus what ever else I have not noticed. Bike was knocked 5 ft completly onto its side with wheels off the ground. Sad sight.

Was able to ride it home and at 80 mph you can'nt hardly tell its been trashed.

Do not know if it can be fixed before Cambria ride (was leaving Friday)?
Will try to get it to A & S Tuesday am and hope they have parts.
Probably 4-5 hours job to replace everthing if they have them ??????????

Oh well, what can you do when you are parked and somebody decides to use your bike for a parking bumper block?
 
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#2 ·
One good thing about your tale Doug.......

At least you were not on the LT at the time...

Sorry to hear about the bike though.
 
#3 ·
That sucks.

The silver lining is that no one was injured in this part of the day's events and the bike could be ridden home safely.

Do you have UM/UIM? If your claim against the county is summarily denied, you might be able to file it this way and let Progressive subrogate to get their money back. Take lots of pictures of the bike, and try to get an adjuster to look at it BEFORE you have any work done if you can. I know this may interfere with your Cambria ride, but it may make the difference between collecting or not.

JMTCW.
 
#4 ·
dougholck said:
Went on a Rotary ride out of Bakersfield this weekend.

Saturday afternoon one of the bikes detoured off the road into a gully.
No major injuries but I called 911 and rider was taken for observation.

CHP arrived before ambulance and and local Kern County Fire Rescue truck arrived next, parks behind my LT. Driver jumps out, truck takes off, driver jumps back in and now puts it in park but it had already smashed into my LT and punted it down the road. Major rearend and left side damage. He is really sorry and has not had an accident in 34 years. WHY ME??? Later tells me it will probably be a year to collect (maybe) as County is self insured and standard procedure is to deny all claims. WTF? Guess I now get to see how good Progressive Insurance is and they can fight with Kern County.

Everything on the left side will need to be replaced, windshield, mirror, lower faring. tipover wing, saddle bag, foot peg, taillight and entire trunk plus what ever else I have not noticed. Bike was knocked 5 ft completly onto its side with wheels off the ground. Sad sight.

Was able to ride it home and at 80 mph you can'nt hardly tell its been trashed.

Do not know if it can be fixed before Cambria ride (was leaving Friday)?
Will try to get it to A & S Tuesday am and hope they have parts.
Probably 4-5 hours job to replace everthing if they have them ??????????

Oh well, what can you do when you are parked and somebody decides to use your bike for a parking bumper bolck?

Bummer Dude:( Glad you're OK though. You can drop off the bike tomorrow if you like. Parts and sales are open until 6pm. I would plan on riding the GS to Cambria though. I doubt we'll have a lot of the parts in stock to fix that, especially the painted panels...
 
#6 ·
Doug,
well that sure sucks! But very glad you weren't hurt. If you need a ride home from A & S let me know....

Did you call me Saturday? I saw where I missed a call from a Bakersfield area code, I called it back but no answer.
 
#7 ·
So sorry about the LT. But, as it was said earlier, you were safe, and that IS THE MOST IMPORTANT PART. Everything else can be replaced or fixed. But you, you are one of a kind.

Hope you make it to Cambria.
 
#8 ·
ademarzi said:
But you, you are one of a kind.
That's an understatement. Glad you're ok Doug!!!
 
#9 ·
Glad you were not on her. I would bet there will be no structural damage, But be prepared for it being totaled. The parts are pretty expensive and then throw labor on top of it. Once the price reaches 60-80% percent of value they total it. The good news is she can be put back together and be as good as she was before. Good luck with the insurance.
 
#10 ·
Sorry to hear that, Doug, but I'm real happy you weren't on the bike when fire truck hit it. Can you ride the GS to Cambria? Or be the only real man to show up and ride the 998 down there. :)
 
#11 ·
DavidTaylor said:
Sorry to hear that, Doug, but I'm real happy you weren't on the bike when fire truck hit it. Can you ride the GS to Cambria? Or be the only real man to show up and ride the 998 down there. :)
He could show up on the Duc, but Janet would probably kill him for even sugesting that LOL
 
#13 ·
Doug, sorry to hear about the LT.

My 99 was badly rear-ended and our parking garage and it took Honda of Hollywood no less that 3 and half months to get it entirely fixed. The longest delay was for parts from Germany. The second longest delay was the dealer putting a list of parts to order together... They are not the sharpest tack in the box!!! The damage was in excess of $6,000!!! I had to keep coming back to get little things fixed...
Thankfully you have a much better dealer to handle your repairs!:bmw:
 
#14 ·
Photo op

Here she is:

 
#17 ·
mikerd400 said:
Damn, that sucks. Glad you were not on the bike.

Did the CHP take a collision report? I doubt Kern County would deny the claim if there was a report taken.

Some insurers and Self-Insured clients direct the examiner to deny all claims if plausible, but it is unlawful under the Unfair Settlement Claims Act if they don't have a valid reason for the denial. In your case, liability is against (advers to) Kern County! If they issue a denial, you immediately respond and inform them of the facts and indicate that you will pursue litigation if necessary. The key words are the Settlement Act and the adverse clause, which indicates that there is no question to liability. You have all the evidence to support your claim. Although, they're self-insured and considered a public entity, the liability laws still apply. They are obligated to pay for the damages or the Actual Cash Value plus registration and tax if found to be at fault. Negligence is clearly involved, and will be noted by the examiner accordingly. Their is case law, which protects them under public immunity defense that could apply because it was an emergency response vehicle. I doubt that they would use the case law as a defense. They must also inform you why they are denying your claim.
 
#20 ·
Glad you're okay Doug!

Boy, there ain't nothing uglier than a flopped over LT
:eek: I'll die a happy man if I never see that again.

.
 
#22 ·
BillyOmaha said:
Glad you're okay Doug!

Boy, there ain't nothing uglier than a flopped over LT
:eek: I'll die a happy man if I never see that again.

.
Better not ride with Doug then LOL It ain't the first time. There was that incident with the ice....
 
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