| Dealing with SGI |
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| Tuesday, 03 October 2006 | |
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I thought I would post this up, as I have just been through the WHOOOOOOOOLE system through SGI, so I thought I would share for some people who haven't yet had to deal with the system so they can be better prepared. I will go through what happens in steps. I have just gone through the process in my car, but I have dealt with a written off bike as well! If Josh wants to post this as a sticky, that might help! Johnny is riding his bike down the street.. A car pulls in front of him and there is absolutely NOTHING he can do to avoid the accident. So Johnny braces himself for the accident, brakes hard and lightly hits the car and goes over the hood. Jonny gets up as he is not badly hurt other than a few scrapes and a sore leg. Shakes it off and looks at his bike. It did not do as well as Jonny, and Johnny is definitely not at fault. The claims process is as follows...
Get the police involved1. Call the police a) if the accident is bad enough, rather than searching for the number of the station, just call 911.. You never know how bad you might actually be hurt! 2. The police will ask you if you can ride your bike away or not. Let's assume you CAN NOT ride your bike away as the forks are bent a bit. They will call a tow truck for you. Saskatoon police deal with "Astro Towing", Regina mainly deals with "Club Towing" so the bike will be taken to their secured storage compound. 3. The police will take statements from both parties a) so make sure you get your story straight. They fill out a report which later gets sent to SGI, so get those facts exactly right when you tell them. It can affect your claims experience big time! 4. The police will give you an report/claim number a) this you should put in your pocket (or if you are driving a car, your windshield) as it is to be used with SGI later on. Dealing with SGI SGI can be a good experience for some, a bad experience for others. There are lots of factors that contribute to a good or bad claim with SGI, but if you follow these steps you should have a smooth transaction. I will break this section into 2 scenarios. 1 being your bike is repairable, and one being your bike is deemed a total loss (written off) 1. Call into SGI or file a claim online as SOON as you can a) Their website is http://www.sgi.sk.ca - I filed a claim online and received a call right away, so I'd recommend the internet if you have access. 2. You will receive a call within a day or so from a claims adjuster at SGI. a) They will collect data from you including the police accident number so make SURE you have it near you. They will also get your drivers lisence number, registration, and plate number as WELL as the particulars of the accident. Make sure you keep the story in line with what you told the police. 3. The claims adjuster will make an appointment to have it appraised a) Lets still assume the bike is at the towing compound. They will tow it to the SGI claims center on the day of your appointment. b) The adjuster will ask you this exact phrase "if your bike is repairable, where would you like to have it fixed" I would suggest you have it towed to the shop in town that deals with your specific brand. 4. Wait for a couple hours after the scheduled appointment at SGI. You do not need to go down to the claims center while they do it; it will be towed in for you. 5. Phone the dealership where your bike would be serviced a) a couple of hours after your appointment as previously stated. They will inform you if the bike has been towed there from the claims center. The Result 1. Your bike could have been towed directly to the SGI compound as the adjuster deemed it a total loss. **IMPORTANT NOTE** A total loss is any damage that exceeds 75% of the total appraised value of your bike 2. If this is the case, then you will get in touch with your adjuster (or he/she will get in touch with you) to negotiate a settlement for you. a) if you choose to accept the settlement, you will go down to the claims center, sign some papers and they will write you a cheque b) if you choose to argue their valuation, you can provide proof that you think the bike is worth more than they evaluated it at and they MAY raise the value. Provide receipts of work done, as well as comparison values of your bike. A good source of reference is www.canadatrader.com c) Arbitration: you can choose to go this route. SGI will send you the forms to have their arbitrator come to a common value of your bike. This process takes awhile so be prepared to walk! 1. The adjuster was not able to properly evaluate the damage on the bike.. a) this will mean that the bike will be sent to the dealership as "report cost" 2. The dealer will need to do their own appraisal of the bike. They will include prices of the parts that are needed to fix the bike. Be prepared, as this sometimes takes time to do. 3. A "rolling adjuster" or an adjuster that drives around to different dealerships will come and approve or dissapprove of the work. This is called a supplementary appraisal, and usually takes 1-2 business days to arrive back at SGI for approval or decline of repair. a) IF the final value is MORE than 75% of the value of the bike, proceed back to the RED section. b) IF the final value is LESS than 75% of the value of the bike, proceed to the ORANGE section below. 1. This is the best option! (but sometimes the most rare) Your bike was evaluated at SGI, and they deemed the damage was less than 75% of the appraised value in which they will have your bike towed to the dealer, and it will be repaired for you! Remember, a lot of bikes go down in the summer so the dealers sometimes take awhile to get parts in/fix your bike. Accidents arent very fun, but if you follow these steps you should be back on the road as soon as possible! Related Articles:Learn to restore motorcycles to Museum Quality from a MuseumMotorcycle Math 101 SGI Rate Proposal Motorcycle Restoration Chinese Motorcycles - The Next Wave? Get Your Motor Running Preparing your metric bike after winter |
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| Last Updated ( Thursday, 04 January 2007 ) |
