Insurance Co have written my bike off

[Tricky Dicky]

Have a 2006 Vara 1000 with 14K miles FSH and in great condition. A few weeks back I was hit from behind by another bike sending my bike and I forward into another bike in front - all got up and rode home. Damage to all bikes appeared pretty superficial.

Liability for the accident was pretty straight forward and I hoped to get my bike back but both my insurers & the third party insureres have valued my bike at ?5,000, sent me a cheque for ?3,500, and my damaged bike returned to me with a salvage value of ?1,500 and a Category D status.

Damage appears minimal - front mudguard, handle bars / steering bent, foot rest hanger bent, RH fairing cracked, rear number plate light, and then a few minor scuffs here and there.

Now in a dliema whether to repair the bike or just ring a bike breaker to get my ?1,500. Don't know how much effect a Cat D will knock the resale value. It just seems too good a bike to let go for ?1,500.

Anyone had a similar experience / advice

[aboynamedsue]

Your bike being classed category D itself isn't necessarily too serious. The bike can obviously be fixed. Chances are the front won't be straight when you take all the broken stuff off and will need a bit of persuasion. (medium weight sledgehammer and a short length of 4 x 2 should do it.) It will be quite hard to see how far out of line it is until you have new bits to fit.
Before you do anything you should ask your insurance company about insuring a fixed Cat D because some won't touch it. Then price up all the replacement parts you need and after that it's up to you. Potentially it could be back on the road and you with a small kitty for a night out. Hope this helps,
Mudguard 75ish RH fairing Scarymoney, headlight if needed scary money.

hope this helps.

[S Barker]

The "bent steering" is most likely to be the bottom yoke.

It  would have to be a hefty whack from another bike to bend the chassis.

[Tricky Dicky]

Thanks for the advice guys - think it will have to go don't think I will have the same confidence in it as before.