Bicycle Insurance 2021 | How Cyclists Can Get Their Bike Repaired or Replaced & Medical Bills Paid

So, what should cyclists know about bicycle insurance in 2021, particularly for the repair, replacement of your bicycle, or the medical bills for any injuries in case the worst were to happen?

All cars if they're on the road have to have property damage insurance in Florida if they have insurance at all. And they'll have $10,000 for property insurance. So if a driver causes injury to you and damages your bicycle, you're gonna first look to the driver's insurance company under their property coverage to pay for the repair or replacement of your bike. If you are hit by a driver with no insurance, then you're gonna have to look to your policy. And the safest place to look is to have a specialty coverage on your bike called Velosurance. It's one of the specialty carriers in Florida. They only insure bicycles. Velosurance will pay for your bike if you're injured in a crash if the driver has no insurance. The unique thing about Velosurance is you name the deductible you want to pay. Let's say you want a deductible of $200. You bought your bike three years ago. It cost $3,000. And your bike is destroyed. And the other driver was at fault and they don't have insurance. Velosurance presumably would replace your bike under the terms of their policy, less the $200 deductible.

As far as your medical bills are concerned if you are injured it will be covered by PIP if you own a car. You're required to have PIP coverage, medical insurance on your automobile. And even if a driver causes a crash and the driver's at fault and you're not at fault, your auto insurance, the medical portion will pay the first $10,000 of your medical bills in Florida. If you don't have insurance or live with somebody that does, then you're gonna look to the driver's vehicle insurance that caused the crash. And if they have that insurance, you should get the first $10,000 of your bills paid for.

Many times the medical bills may be much more than $10,000. And the way to protect yourself in Florida is to make sure you have uninsured motorist (UM) coverage. This will protect you from the driver that had no liability insurance or not enough liability insurance to pay all of your medical bills. UM is the most important coverage you can carry on your auto policy. Every cyclist should have at least $100,000 in UM coverage but get the most you can afford. $250,000 or even a million dollars is the best. The bottom line is you want to make sure that you have enough insurance to pay for the total amount of your losses which means you need to assume the worst-case scenario.

[katijones]

This is critical info cyclists cannot get anywhere else, Jim. Thank you for creating this!

[thomasjefferson]

I'm mostly concerned about my bike getting stolen. Veloinsurance says they cover theft. Do they require a super heavy lock and how do you prove your bike was locked up when it was stolen?

[joelamb]

I work with Jim as the other attorney in the office. I can't tell enough how critical it is to have the right insurance for when you ride. If anyone would ever like to have their insurance policies reviewed by an attorney, please let us know by phone or email! Our main focus is and will always be protecting cyclists and their families