Motorcycle Wreck

I am selling my motorcycle, so I posted an advertisement online. This man called and he said he wanted to see the bike. I was at work that day, so I asked my friend to assist this man. I received a call at work from my friend and told me that the guy was test driving my motorcycle and got into a wreck. He damaged my bike. So my friend got his number and his car tag #. This just happened yesterday morning. He said that he was going to get in touch with his insurance company to get this handled. My friend called me at night to remind him about it, and he told my friend to give him 5 days to get well, because he was kind of injured as well and he wants to take a look at the motorcycle again. Why? I don't know. My friend told me that he told him the day he looked at the bike that he is not going to buy the bike, so I don't know the reason why he wants to take a look at the bike again and wait after 5 days. I don't have insurance on that bike neither its registered, because I don't really use it. I just want to know if anybody knows how to go about this kind of situation. Thank you.

"I don't have insurance on that bike neither its registered,"

And you let somebody ride it on the street?

That's the scary part.

I suggest you find out if the accident was reported to the police and/or involved another vehicle.

You might have some unpleasant surprises coming from the authorities.

I'm guessing he wants to look at the bike again in preparation for blaming you for letting him drive a "defective" bike.

I'm also guessing that he's probably not going to respond to any requests that he pay for the damage to the bike. You might have to sue him.

You are describing a "bailment" type relationship with the driver of the cycle. If his negligence caused the damage then he should be responsible for the damages.

His insurance may not cover the damages since many car and even motorcycle policies do not cover a "non-owned" motorcycle.

If you are unable to get voluntary compensation for your damages, then you need to document the loss ( repair costs or reduction in value of the motorcycle ) then if the damages fall within the jurisdiction of your small claims court, you might need to pursue the matter towards judgement.

Now the nuances of successfully collecting judgement amounts can present their own challenges, but are probably better described elsewhere at this website.

Thank you for you fast reply. Well, here's the thing, we called the police last night to file a report. He came to the house and my friend talked to him. The cop said that the guy who did the damage is supposed to be the one calling and filing a police report. So, he left. I guess he couldn't really do anything at all.

To tell u honestly, this bike is for my friend. I just signed my name for him, because he said he needed a transportation (back 2005). I should have not let him deal with this issue, since he's the one who caused all these anyway.

I think my main concern is now... Should I go ahead and register the bike and get it insured? I know it's too late, but I'm just tired. I already talked to my friend, and he said he will do his best!? He doesn't have a job, and I am the stupid one still trusting him to get these issues resolved. I guess I don't have a choice now to put down money for this bike who in the first place is a favor that I did for my "irresponsible friend".

Also, does anyone know if there's a legal way of transferring the bike to my friend's name? The bike still has a balance on it, and I'm just tired of being stressed by this bike since we bought it. Every time he would drive it, the time he didn't want to register and put insurance on it and so on. I don't have money to pay it in full. My so called friend is obviously don't care enough to get it out of my name and how these are all affecting me.

Thank you for your time of reading my post.

Should I wait for this guy, because what adjuster_jack has just posted really scared me big time! Or should I hire a lawyer now, just in case things turn out differently as it should (which is the RIGHT thing to do for this man). I don't have insurance on the bike, so if he would ever sue me (w. lies), he can't really get anything from me. That's why I'm also wondering, if do I have to get insurance for the bike now and get it registered already or wait 'till this issue get resolved?

I can't conceive of any reason not to wait 5 days. The alternative is to sue, and that certainly wouldn't get resolved in 5 days. If you want, you can send the guy a letter discussing what happened, noting the guy's promise to get back to you in 5 days, and saying that you look forward to hearing from him.

I'm not sure I understand a lot of this. I think you're saying that you took out a loan for this bike because your friend couldn't get credit. If so, not having it registered or insured was a HUGE mistake since the loan agreement almost certainly requires that.

"Should I go ahead and register the bike and get it insured?"

You need to figure out what you want to do, including whether you want to insist that your friend get the bike refinanced in his name. As noted, the loan agreement probably obligates you to have the bike registered and insured. Frankly, the lender usually will obtain forced insurance and charge you for it if you don't provide proof of insurance.

"Also, does anyone know if there's a legal way of transferring the bike to my friend's name?"

Presumably, you simply fill out an appropriate form that you can obtain from the DMV. Of course, doing so may have an effect on the loan. You also don't want to give up ownership until and unless the loan gets taken care of.

I may have scared you a bit but I think your best move is to just lock up the bike and keep your deadbeat friend from getting his hands on it.

Then just wait and see what happens.

If there are any penalties for not having insurance and registration, they are going to happen even if you don't have insurance and registration now.

And as long as nobody's riding it, there's no sense in getting them now. Might be a good idea to just surrender the license plate to the DMV.

It would be a good idea to save your money in case you need it for something else.

Meantime, did you ever find out if the guy who had the accident hit somebody else or just laid it down by himself?

I've been told that the man insisted to test drive the bike, I live where the road is downhill. So, he turned the wheel too fast, fell off from it and dumped it. It was just on my neighbor, right in front of my house.

Thank you for your reply. Does it have to be a letter because my friend said that he already talked to this man over the phone, and he said to give him 5 days and he wants to see and "test drive" the bike again. Obviously, I told my friend that this man can't test drive the bike anymore after what he did to the bike. I just don't know how to go about this issue. We're dealing w/ somebody we do not know, as I've said this man is from online. He can have mechanic look at the bike to make sure nothing is wrong with it, but there's no way he will be test driving that bike anymore.

I didn't know any of these things... The bike hasn't been registered and has not had insurance on it for a year now, and nobody even the lender really checked up on it. My friend told me that it's OK, since he is not going to be ridding it anyway.
I guess what adjuster_jack is saying is right, I have to surrender the license plate to DMV. But u said I am obligated to insured and register the bike or it will get repossessed.
I am so confused on how to go about this. What would you do if u are in my shoes?

Thank you for your help.

"What would you do if u are in my shoes?"

I don't know the terms of your agreement with your friend (if you even had one). It seems that you just cast your credit worthiness to the wind, which is highly irrational, so it's hard to say what I would do under the circumstances. I would probably demand that my "friend" get me out from under everything within, e.g., 20 days or I would take appropriate actions to protect my interests. In your case, that probably means consulting with a local attorney to figure out exactly what can be done.

"Does it have to be a letter because my friend said that he already talked to this man over the phone, and he said to give him 5 days and he wants to see and "test drive" the bike again."

Of course it doesn't "have to be" a letter. You don't "have to" do anything. However, this thread is all about you making poor decisions and trusting your friend. Don't you think it's time to start making smart decisions? There is almost never a down side to documenting things in writing.

"I've been told that the man insisted to test drive the bike, I live where the road is downhill. So, he turned the wheel too fast, fell off from it and dumped it. It was just on my neighbor, right in front of my house."

I'm guessing that the guy isn't going to report to the police, cause he'd basically have to admit to being at fault and HE was the one operating the bike without insurance or registration, so he'd likely end up getting cited for it. "I didn't know" is never an excuse.

I still suggest you lock the bike up and not let anybody near it till you have it insured and registered.

Don't take any more chances.