Car ran over gfriend on legend – advice sought

[Kurt]

On Tuesday, my SO was coming back from a club ride, a car that was going straight decided at the last moment to turn left in front of her. She is fine. Legend is 01 model seems fine, ksyrium, alpha q, right campy shifter, bar, etc. are toast. The fork snapped just below the headset. The lady in the car is at fault and has insurance. My question is should she just try and get the whole enchilada totaled or is the frame most lightly ok and just getting individual parts or pairs of things or what. I guess it somewhat hard to get individual items, although she can. I would imagine the insurance company would be delighted to pay for anything because medically she is fine. She is, btw, a highly skilled cyclist and expert at descending, meaning she wants everything back to the way it was and also to have confidence that an internal weld will not sever in the middle of a downhill. There is a guy I know of that has a geo bed or whatever you call them and there are also testing labs around that can do dye penetrant exam’s if that’s the right way to go. She and I are also too busy to run around and do this stuff. Anyhow, you get the jest.

Thanks,

Kurt

[David Kirk]

here is my opinion............don't sue me......I have nothing of value. If the bike looks OK it most likely is. Ti will bend and crumple long before the welds crack. So if the alignment looks and feels right I'd say the bike was fine.

If it were mine I'd have the alignment checked and if that's OK I'd ride it without a care.

Dave

[BumbleBeeDave]

I'm very glad she is OK!

Now, about that bike . . . The lady is YOUR loved one. Now would you rather have her on a whole new--and reliable--bike? Or would you rather go visit her at the hospital after her head tube snaps at 45mph on a downhill sweeper--because you decided to be nice to the retard who hit her by not pushing the insurance co. for a whole new bike? :crap:

Get my drift here?

Good luck!

BBDave

[Ginger]

I think with any crash that does that much damage to a bike with something as unmoving as a car? Have your shop total the frame. If the insurance company balks, make them pay for high level testing of ALL the welds on the bike.
Your shop can help you with the details, I'm sure Serotta has places they have to send such bikes to for testing. Or maybe they do it themselves?


Of course, you can always get the original frame back from the shop...she could keep it as a permenantly mounted trainer bike...

Just a thought.

(My September crash was another bike that crossed wheels with me and the CSi was fine, the carbon got a bit scuffed, but the fork and wheels were good and true. No total on the bike and I wasn't worried about it...but if I hit a car, or a brick wall, I'd be having the thing replaced. )

[jpw]

That's right. Demand the insurance company x-ray the welds!
If they refuse to do so point out their personal injury liability regarding the frame if it were ever to fail while in subsequent use. They won't do either of course. They will cough up for a shiny new Legend. Yum, yum.

It's all about the art of applying pressure in just the right place, their piggy bank.

[Ahneida Ride]

I vote with Ginger. New Legend !

[Kevan]

Kirk has it. Take it to your shop for a check up.

[larryp2]

new bike.....ljp

[Tom Byrnes]

Kurt,

I'm sorry to hear about your SO's accident. I'm glad that she is okay.

I vote with BBD, Ginger and Ahneida. Get the bike declared a total loss. If the insurance company balks, let the insurance company pay for and have the needed diagnostic testing done to prove that the bike can be repaired and safely used again.

Tom

[M_A_Martin]

remember to have the headset removed and check the head tube for ovalization on both ends...if the fork broke off at the headset it could have transferred some force...

Yeah, I seriously doubt that a ti tube would get ovalized that way but I was doing some contemplation...

Time to go to the bar with my new riding buddies...

[Carlo]

jpw writes:
"Demand the insurance company x-ray the welds!
If they refuse to do so point out their personal injury liability regarding the frame if it were ever to fail while in subsequent use."

If you accept any compensation you'll sign a "Reciept and Release" by which you agree that you'll not sue them for anything else arising from this incident. If you keep the frame and components, and something fails later causing injury you'll have no recourse against the insurer or insured. They will not have personal infury liability for a subsequent injury caused by undiscovered damage to the frame.

I would insist on a new bike, but wouldn't take legal advice from an internet bicycle discussion forum.

Good luck, glad your SO is okay.

Regards,

Carlo

[bob1992]

Kurt- my 2 cents: I was hit back in October while riding my Legend. I was fine, the front wheel was obviously destroyed, but beyond that I couldn't tell the extent of the damage. I took it to the Serotta dealer I bought it from. He's great, used to build frames himself, and has a frame alignment rack and a tool to stress the fork to see if it has been damaged. He checked everything, the frame and fork were fine, front rim and hub were destroyed, and the shifter/brake levers were damaged enough to warrant replacement. The key to getting these things replaced was having him talk to the driver's insurance investigator and explain everything, as the claims person I talked to couldn't imagine a bike costing what a Serotta does.

The bottom line is your girlfriend is okay, and if a knowledgeable shop thoroughly inspects the frame and doesn't find any damage, it's pretty hard to imagine how there could be any "hidden" damage that could cause damage later on. Good luck!

[Tom Byrnes]

Kurt,

Your SO can separate or bifurcate her claim into two parts: (1) property damage and (2) personal injuries and damages, including medical bills and loss of earnings, if any.

Bifurcation of a claim happens all of the time in the typical, run-of-the-mill auto vs. auto accident. The insurance company can settle the property damage and then later try to resolve the personal injury portion.

If your SO settles the property damage potion of her claim, she should be sure that she is signing a Release for only the property damages. She does not need to settle her injuries portion of her claim at the same time she settles her claim for her damaged bike in case there are some nagging injuries.

Good luck.

Tom

[Climb01742]

tom makes a great point. years ago, i was in a bike-to-bike crash in NYC. i felt ok right afterwards, but as weeks passed, i started having more and more nagging back and leg pains. luckily, it wasn't major stuff, i had just twisted all kinds of stuff, and the misalignment issues came out over time. my then-chiro fixed me up, but it did take awhile and a few dollars. the bikes damage may be evident now. your SO's may not. i hope she's 100% a-ok, but it may take a bit of time to know for sure.