As a Michigan motorcyclist, should I buy an umbrella policy?  What is an umbrella policy?

An umbrella policy is extra bodily injury or liability insurance that covers beyond the limits of your home, auto, motorcycle, watercraft or RV insurance.  It is an inexpensive way to obtain more bodily injury coverage, further, it covers multiple items that you own.  For example, if you have a house, a car, a truck in a motorcycle, the umbrella policy purchase will be additional liability coverage for all those items.  Caveat: there is usually a minimum bodily injury coverage required for each of the underlying insured items.  For example most vehicle policies must be at least $250,000 of bodily injury coverage before the umbrella policy picks up.

What are the no-fault benefits a Michigan motorcyclists may be entitled to?

A Michigan motorcyclist is entitled to no-fault benefits when a “motor vehicle“ (car truck or van) is involved in the  accident.  An uninsured owner and operator of a Michigan motorcycle is not entitled to no-fault benefits under the law.

The Michigan no-fault benefits include:

1. Medical expenses: payment of medical bills up to the amount chosen by the insured.

2. Wage loss: presently a maximum of about $6200 a month for up to three years

3. Household chore /also called replacement services: up to $20 per day for as long as three years.

4. Medical transportation or mileage

5. Attendant Care: these are nursing type services provided once you’re discharged from a hospital or care facility.  They are payable to a professional company, an individual or even a family member or friend of the injured motorcyclists.  Attendant care is part of medical expenses and is payable by the hour.  Attendant care provided by family or friends is limited to 56 hours per week.

As The Motorcycle Lawyer, what is your best advice for Michigan motorcyclists?

Best advice for Michigan motorcyclists includes:

1. Have health insurance.  So many motorcycle wrecks do not include a “motor vehicle” which provide for some medical bill payment.

2. Insure your motorcycle.  Just a minimum policy will make you legal.  The reason why this is important is without insurance on your motorcycle you are not entitled to no-fault benefits when a motor vehicle (car truck or van) is involved in your accident.

3. Have uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage on your motorcycle.  This insurance pays you for your pain-and-suffering and potentially excess medical bills if the negligent driver has no insurance or not enough insurance.

4. Choose unlimited PIP medical on your cars trucks and vans.  The reason for this is if the “motor vehicle” (car truck or van) that was involved in your crash is unknown or uninsured, your own car truck or van will pay the no-fault benefits.  This occurs more often than you think.  Consider the statistics of uninsured drivers out there.

MICHIGAN MOTORCYCLE HELMET LAW FAQ’s

What insurance coverage do I have to have on my Michigan motorcycle if I want to ride without a helmet?

Michigan law requires special insurance called First Party Medical Benefits coverage in the amount of $20,000 for the un-helmeted operator.

If you wish to carry an un-helmeted passenger, the law requires an additional $20,000 of this coverage.

The other requirements under Michigan law is that you be at least 21 years old and if you are the operator that you have a motorcycle endorsement for more than two years or have earned a motorcycle endorsement by passing a certified motorcycle safety course.

So to recap, Motorcyclists who wish to ride without a helmet in Michigan:

- Must be 21 yo to operate or ride as a passenger without a helmet in Michigan.

- Operator of the motorcycle must have motorcycle endorsement for more than two years, or must have earned a motorcycle endorsement by passing a certified motorcycle safety course.

- Must have special insurance (First Party Medical Benefits) in the amount of $20,000 for the unhelmeted operator.

- Must have special insurance (First Party Medical Benefits) in the amount of $20,000 for the unhelmeted passenger.

MICHIGAN MOTORCYCLE ACCIDENTS INVOLVING ROAD DEFECTS (INCLUDING ROAD CONSTRUCTION HAZARDS & NEGLIGENCE)

If my Michigan motorcycle accident is because I hit a pothole, is there anything I can do? (Do I have a case?)

If a pothole is in the roadway and the government entity responsible for the road knew about it or should have known about it for over 30 days, you may have a case.

All damages may be recovered from the entity responsible for the roadway defect. This could be Michigan Department of Transportation or MDOT/the State of Michigan, or a County.

A special notice must be sent to the government entity responsible for maintaining the road.  It is basically a letter that outlines specific details.  The notice time limit may be 60 days or 120 days depending upon whether the defect is under the control of the city, county or state.  Therefore time is of the essence in these types of cases.

If the hazard a road defect was caused by the negligence of a construction company that did or was in the process of doing work on the roadway you may have a case against the construction company or their subcontractors.  Cases against construction companies do not require the hazard to be in existence for more than 30 days nor does it require the special notice as described above.

MICHIGAN MOTORCYCLE ACCIDENTS INVOLVING ANIMALS (LIKE DOGS, HORSES, COWS, GOATS AND DEERS)

What can I do if I hit a dog or other domestic animal on my motorcycle in Michigan?

In motorcycle accident cases that were caused by a domestic animal, the owner of the animal can be held responsible for all the damage that was caused.  Most commonly are crashes that involve dogs.  I have also had motorcycle accident cases that involve farm animals such as a horse, cow or a goat.

We have handled many cases where the motorcyclist is going over the crest of a hill and to his or her surprise there is an animal directly in the path of the bike.  We’ve also had a couple cases where a dog runs directly into the motorcycle causing it to go down.

In these cases, we have been successful pursuing the owner of the animal’s homeowner’s insurance to cover the medical bills, lost wages and pain-and-suffering of our clients.

MICHIGAN MOTORCYCLE ACCIDENTS INVOLVING ANIMALS (LIKE DOGS, HORSES, COWS, GOATS AND DEERS)

Do I have a case if I hit a deer on my motorcycle in Michigan?

If a Michigan motorcyclist hits a deer, there is no personal injury case for the motorcyclist to bring.  A deer is a wild animal and in no one’s control.  Further analysis, the motorcyclist is not entitled to Michigan no-fault benefits either because there is no ‘motor vehicle’ (meaning car truck or van) involved.

If the motorcyclist has a motorcycle insurance policy with medical coverage, it may pay medical bills.  If it has collision coverage, the damage to the bike would be covered. Health insurance may also be a source to pay medical bills in a deer-motorcycle accident.

Passengers on motorcycles may have a personal injury case.  I have brought what we call ‘friendly claims’ for passengers against the operator’s motorcycle policy if there is a reasonable argument that the operator should have seen the deer and slowed down or operated the bike in a different and safer manner.

See my other posts on the subject to read about my recommendations for motorcyclists insurance coverage.

Medical Coverage On Michigan Motorcycle Insurance Policy

What medical coverage can I purchase on my Michigan motorcycle insurance policy?

Let’s start with what you cannot purchase on your actual motorcycle: you CANNOT purchase no-fault insurance (which would include PIP medical) on your motorcycle.

You can purchase medical coverage on your motorcycle that is called, “First Party Medical” coverage and pays medical bills that are not paid by any other sources.

I do not recommend it if you have covering health insurance. Talk to your insurance agent to see if it is right for you.

MICHIGAN MOTORCYCLE STORAGE INSURANCE

What insurance should I keep on my Michigan motorcycle when I store it?

I do not recommend that you cancel your full coverage insurance policy on your motorcycle during winter storage.  As discussed in a previous post here, it’s important to know that your Homeowner’s Insurance policy does not cover your bike.

Your motorcycle’s Comprehensive Coverage will cover damages if you end up having a flood, fire, or storm, or other damage that can occur while your motorcycle is in storage. Comprehensive will also pay for loss if your bike is stolen.

I know some people try to save a few pennies by canceling some kinds of coverage on their bikes, for example their Bodily Injury coverage since they will not be writing a motorcycle.  However, I also recommend keeping Bodily Injury Coverage active. You need it to be legal on the road, and you know you’re going to want to get on your bike as soon as the weather cooperates the next spring.  I have had many calls from people who say "I just was going around the block" or "just down the road" because it was a nice day and unfortunately were involved in an accident without insurance.

If they get in a motorcycle crash, they're stuck with the ramifications: a damage motorcycle that the other driver, even if negligent, does not have to pay for, because you are uninsured you are not entitled to no-fault benefits potentially leaving you with tens if not hundreds of thousand dollars in medical bills being owed and if the driver that hit you was uninsured, you have no uninsured motorist coverage to pursue.

Again, I do not recommend canceling any of your coverage however if you must, at the very least, keep your Comprehensive active while your bike is in storage in case of damage or theft.