Motorcycle Insurance Articles
Accident Rates For Motorcycles And Why They Matter
2011-06-21
It's a truism that motorcycle insurance coverage always costs more than its counterpart - vehicle insurance coverage. Motorcycle riders often wonder why this is the case, and make the argument that they are safe when they are on the roads, much more so than many of the drivers of vehicles that are around them. Riders are typically very diligent about wearing proper safety equipment in order to ensure that if they do have an accident there is minimal injury to them, but there is only so much that they can do in order to protect their bikes. While many states are seeing lowing values, accident rates involving motorcycles are still quite a bit higher than those involving other vehicles.
These rates, which vary from state to state, make a large difference in the cost of motorcycle insurance coverage. Insurance providers are in the business to make a profit, and if they charge motorcycle riders the same as their vehicle driving counterparts for insurance, they will not be able to make a consistent profit, and will have to pay out far more than they take in if a rash of accidents occurs. Part of the reason for this higher number of motorcycle accidents is because vehicle drivers are often less careful around motorbikes or do not notice that a rider is in front of them until it is too late.
Damages to motorbikes also tend to be more expensive to fix than damages to cars and trucks. This is in part because it takes far less force to completely destroy a motorbike than it does to severely damage a truck or a car. A light tap from behind or a hit from a car changing lanes can send a motorbike spinning off of the road, and destroy large amounts of the chassis and engine. This is to say nothing of the injury to the rider. Even wearing proper gear, broken bones are a real possibility, and without protective covering, a rider can severely injure their skin or suffer permanent disfigurement. The higher cost to fix bikes combined with greater injury payouts means that in addition to accident rates as a whole, individual cases and the amount of money spent on each one will also affect insurance premiums.
Motorcycle insurance coverage is essential for anyone who plans to take their bike out on the road, but will cost more than vehicle insurance because of the higher accident rates for motorbikes and the cost of repairing both bikes and their owners. So long as these rates remain high, the cost of insurance will not come down, and bikers can expect to pay more for the coverage they receive.