Q	Who pays for the damage to my motorcycle after a Michigan motorcycle accident?
A	The at-fault driver is not responsible for any damage done to your motorcycle—not even your deductible.  If you want your motorcycle replaced or fixed you need to buy Collision Coverage with your insurance company.  Exception: you can force the other driver to pay if he was uninsured, if your motorcycle was reasonably parked or if another motorcycle caused the damage.
Q	What is Michigan Mini-Tort payment for damage to a Motor Vehicle and can a Michigan motorcyclists get it?
A	Mini-Tort is the exception to Michigan’s No-Fault Law regarding damage to a Motor Vehicle.  Its design is to have the at-fault driver’s insurance company pay you up to $500 for your deductible.  However it is for Motor Vehicles and a Motorcycle is not a Motor Vehicle under Michigan’s No-Fault Law.  Therefore, a biker can not obtain this $500 Mini Tort money like a driver of a car, truck or van can.  Michigan motorcyclists get shafted.  Therefore, when choosing your collision coverage chose your deductible knowing you probably will never get it back.
Q	If I purchased Collision Coverage on my motorcycle, are all the extras, accessories, and customization that I added covered?
A	Probably not.  Typically the insurance company is insuring a “stock” motorcycle and if damaged they will pay the lesser of two options: 1. The present Fair Market Value of the “stock” motorcycle which would not include the additions or special work/materials.   Or   2. The cost to repair the motorcycle.  Some insurance policies will include $1,000 for accessories.  If you want to make sure your custom work and accessories are replaced, you probably need to purchase an Accessories Rider.
Q	What are the Michigan No-Fault Benefits?
A	No-fault benefits that are potentially available to Michigan Motorcyclists.  They include 85% of your wage loss up to a monthly maximum which is presently approximately $4,600.00 (it goes up every year),  payment of all medical bills for life, payment of up to $20.00 per day for household chores, mileage or transportation to and from the doctor and potentially attendant care (payment to medical professionals, friends or family for taking care of you for your medical needs).
Q	When is a Michigan motorcyclists entitled to No-Fault benefits?
A	In order to qualify for No-Fault Benefits a “motor vehicle” must be “involved” in the accident.  A “motor vehicle” is defined by Michigan Law as a car, truck or van but a motorcycle is not known as a motor vehicle.  “Involved” does not require physical contact between the motorcycle and the “motor vehicle” this is a common misconception.  Further, no-fault benefits are payable even if the motorcyclist was at fault in any way.  Important exception: If you are the “owner” and driver of an uninsured motorcycle you do not qualify for no-fault benefits.  Therefore it is a very important to make sure your motorcycle is insured.  Your motorcycle only needs the basic insurance coverage for you to qualify for No-Fault Benefits.
Q	What is “full coverage” on my Michigan motorcycle?
A	There is no legal definition of “full coverage” therefore you must be very specific when talking to your insurance agent.  You need to specifically ask for certain kinds of coverage.  See below for the insurance coverage we recommend
Q	What is the minimum coverage I need in Michigan to be legal?
A	Michigan requires that you minimally have a 20/40 Bodily Injury coverage policy on your Michigan motorcycle.  This will protects others from your potential negligence.  The coverage would pay any individual up to $20,000.00 or any group of individuals as a total of $40,000.00 in a single incident, but never paying a single person over $20,000.00
Q	What if a Michigan motorcyclist  was involved in a hit-and-run Michigan motorcycle accident where I do not know who the at-fault driver is?
A	Michigan motorcyclist’s involved in a hit-and-run accident may still be able to recover no-fault benefits and even compensation for his/her injuries provided he/she had uninsured motorist coverage.  Typically, these Uninsured Motorist policies require contact between the motorcycle and other vehicle.  See below for recommended coverage.
Q	What if I did not have insurance on my Michigan motorcycle, do I have any claims?
A	If you are the driver and “owner” of an uninsured motorcycle you do not qualify for no-fault benefits.  However, unlike a driver “motor vehicle” (car, truck or van) a motorcyclist may still bring a claim for his or her injuries in a negligence claim.

Recommended Insurance for Michigan Motorcycles
As an attorney who has been involved in over 1,000 motorcycle crashes we recommend the following insurance for Michigan motorcycle owners:

Bodily Injury Coverage:  As said above you must have the this type of coverage to be legal. We recommend $100,000 of bodily injury coverage.  However, only a 20/40 policy is required.

Uninsured Motorist Coverage:  You may still be able to recover even if the other vehicle and driver are uninsured.  This may be true even if you can’t identify the other driver – this is often the case with a hit-run incident.  Under the circumstances, the Third Party claim is made with the automobile insurance of your vehicle or the vehicle of a relative that lives with you.  However, this claim can only be made if the policy had special optional coverage called Uninsured Motorist Coverage.  Physical contact between the vehicle is often required.  We recommend at least $100,000, the more the better.  This directly benefits you.

Underinsured Motorist Coverage:  If a negligent driver/owner causes an accident and has a small insurance policy that does not adequately compensate you for your injuries for a Michigan motorcycle accident, then you may obtain additional money from your own insurance company if you have Underinsured Motorist Coverage.  We recommend at least $100,000.00.  The more coverage the better because this allows the injured Michigan motorcyclist to collect more for his/her injuries.

Collision Coverage:  This is up to you if you wish to have it or not.  You must decide if your motorcycle is worth replacing or fixing.  Again remember you rarely can ever make the at fault driver pay your deductible, so chose you deductible knowing that it will never be returned to you in the event of a loss.

Medical Coverage:  This is additional coverage that you can purchase.  If you have health insurance that does not exclude motorcycle injuries it is not necessary in my opinion.

Accessories Coverage:  Most basic collision policies for Michigan motorcycles only cover a stock bike or say $1,000 worth of extras.  If you have customized your motorcycle, you may want to purchase an Accessories Insurance Rider.  Ask your agent if any accessories or customizations comes with the standard Michigan motorcycle policy then decide if you wish to buy this Rider.