a man riding a motorcycle

Motorcycle Collision Insurance Coverage

When you’re on the open road, it’s important you’re doing what you can to protect yourself from the unexpected — and that’s what insurance is all about. Our motorcycle collision insurance coverage is simple coverage that protects you and your ride, giving you peace of mind every time you hit the highway.

Collision insurance can protect you and your motorcycle from financial loss. This insurance kicks in to help protect your finances when your bike is damaged by other vehicles, even if your bike is totaled. And that can mean a lot, especially if you’ve got a custom bike.

Motorcycle collision insurance can cover you in the following ways:

  • Damage resulting from your bike falling over
  • Total loss-related claims
  • In accidents not involving another motorcycle or vehicle

Is Collision Insurance Required for Motorcycles?

Although states don’t require motorcycle collision insurance, if you’ve got a loan or lease on the bike, you’ll likely be required by your lending company to have this coverage. Your lender may also require that you carry lease or loan gap insurance, so if you total your bike you’ll be able to cover the gap between what your bike is worth and what you owe on it.

Even if you own your bike outright, lease or loan gap insurance is important because it helps to prevent you from paying out of pocket for accidents resulting in repairs that cost more than what the bike is worth. And it’ll help cover you when the damage is considered a total loss.

What’s Not Covered by Collision Insurance for Motorcycles?

You won’t have coverage under certain circumstances for your motorcycle. Check with your agent to learn about the full extent of your coverage. Although you may be able to extend coverage with an additional endorsement or rider, motorcycle collision typically won’t cover you under the following circumstances:

  • Motorcycles used for commercial purposes
  • Motorcycles used for racing or competition

Other Motorcycle Insurance Coverage Options

Although there are occasions where this insurance won’t cover you, take some comfort knowing that American Family Insurance’s suite of motorcycle coverages can help protect you in a variety of ways. It’s great motorcycle insurance coverages like these that set us apart. Here are some of our additional motorcycle coverages available to you to better protect your bike.

Comprehensive coverage.

If your bike is parked or stored and gets damaged, your motorcycle collision coverage won’t cover that loss — but comprehensive coverage may. Comprehensive also covers hail damage, damage from items that fall on the bike, vandalism and theft too. Having either collision or comprehensive alone can leave you exposed, so it’s wise to pick them up together.

Bodily injury liability coverage.

If you’re responsible for an accident, bodily injury liability coverage helps cover costs associated with injuries to your passengers, the driver and passengers of the other vehicle. It also can help pay for injury to pedestrians and bystanders who may have been involved.

Like our auto bodily injury liability coverage, it’ll help cover the medical expenses and lost income of others injured in that accident. Without it, you could be on the hook for those costs yourself.

Medical expense coverage.

Just like its name implies, this coverage helps pay for injuries to you and your passengers that result from accidents and other covered events. It also helps pay for medical bills even if you lend the bike to another family member.

Uninsured and underinsured coverage for motorcycles.

Although similar, these separate coverages protect you from having to pay out of pocket if you’re in an accident and the other at-fault driver has either no insurance or insufficient coverage. Uninsured coverage for

motorcycles can also cover hit-and-runs. Uninsured and underinsured coverage for motorcycles are important to have because so many on the road today are driving without any form of insurance or choose the minimum amount of coverage required.

Motorcycle Emergency Roadside Assistance.

Our emergency roadside assistance for motorcycles can get you back on your way quickly by helping to pay for the fluids, supplies and labor you need to get your bike up and running when you’re stranded on the road.

Does Collision Insurance Cover Custom Bike Parts?

Standard collision insurance likely won’t cover customizations to your bike. But you can get additional coverage to better protect the custom mods and investments you’ve made to make your bike uniquely yours. Your agent can help you select coverage that best insures the additions you’ve made to your bike.

Is There a Deductible for Motorcycle Collision Coverage?

Yes, this policy will require you to pay a deductible in certain circumstances. A deductible is the out-of-pocket expense you’ll have to pay before your coverage helps pay for the damage — up to the limit of your policy.

Put another way, if your policy has a $500 deductible, and the total cost of damage to your motorcycle is $4,000, American Family Insurance will pay the remaining $3,500 after you’ve paid your $500 deductible. And remember that your deductible amount adjusts with your premium: lower deductibles will have higher monthly premiums, and higher deductibles will see lower monthly premiums. Get in touch with your agent to compare pricing and coverage to be sure you’ve got the right protection at a price you can afford.