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Many bikers do not understand their motorcycle insurance, and in case of accident, insurance companies take advantage of that lack of knowledge and do not pay victims what they are entitled to receive. Not understanding insurance also causes bikers to carry more or less insurance than they should. Before you drive your bike again, take a moment to review your motorcycle coverage.
In South Carolina, all motorcyclists are required to carry liability insurance to cover bodily injury and property damage. The minimum amounts are $25,000 of bodily injury coverage per person, $50,000 of bodily injury coverage per accident, and $25,000 of property damage coverage per accident. This is referred to as 25/50/25. Remember, these are state-mandated minimums.
To determine whether 25/50/25 is sufficient coverage, think of how often and where you ride. Do you usually carry a passenger? Now think of a possible accident during a typical ride, and the bodily injury and property damage that could occur. Knowing that motorcycle riders are often hurt in accidents, do you think that coverage is adequate? Would the minimum property damage coverage replace your bike as well as repair a car you might hit?
Another option to pay for medical expenses is medical payments coverage. This pays for reasonable healthcare and funeral expenses for you and your family, even if you are at fault, for a period of one to three years.
Uninsured and underinsured motorist insurance ensures compensation for accidents where the at-fault driver is underinsured or uninsured, including hit-and-run accidents. In South Carolina, uninsured / underinsured coverage is portable, meaning it may apply to not only car accidents (whether you are the driver or passenger), but also motorcycle and pedestrian accidents. The law requires uninsured motorist coverage, while underinsured motorist coverage is optional.
In addition to liability insurance, you may wish to purchase collision and / or comprehensive insurance to cover damage to your bike. Collision coverage protects your bike in the event of a crash with an object or other vehicle, while comprehensive coverage covers damage caused by other mishaps such as flood and fire. In both cases, you have a deductible, which is the amount you pay before insurance kicks in. You choose the deductible, which affects the price of your policy. When you add both coverages to your policy, you are “fully insured.”
The first step to ensure you have the proper amount of motorcycle insurance is to look at your riding habits and determine how much will adequately protect you. In order to receive the compensation you and your family are entitled to, it’s important to know what your policy covers.
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Taking a motorcycle road trip is one of my favorite weekend activities. It’s nice to just get away and unwind on the open road. And there’s no better time to embark on a motorcycle trip than the beginning of spring when all the trees and shrubbery are in bloom. Not to mention, the weather is perfect for an open-air drive.
South Carolina is one of my favorite places to ride and the best region for driving is the beautiful Lowcountry. Here, you’ll travel past sprawling marshes, horse- and cow-clad farms, forests, and rivers.
Below are three of my favorite South Carolina rides:
Trip to Beaufort: If you’re looking to soak in some picturesque scenery on your motorcycle trip, you’ll definitely want to take a trip to Beaufort. Here, you can enjoy a nice picnic in Hunting Island State Park, enjoy nature walks, or explore Beaufort’s old historic district. This quaint seaside town is a great way to enjoy nature and the coast.
Image above taken from BeaufortSC.org.
Highway 28: The Blueridge Parkway offers some great twists and turns, as well as sprawling views of valleys and rolling hills. Sometimes it’s nice to get away to the mountains and breath the fresh air from above sea level!
Cherokee Foothills Scenic Highway: Witness waterfalls, lakes, rivers, mountains, and a variety of wildlife on this picturesque route through northwestern South Carolina. On your way along this highway, there are a handful of state parks that are great to stop at and enjoy a picnic or relax as you enjoy the quiet natural surroundings.
What’s your favorite South Carolina ride?
One of our favorite places to find great information and news pertaining to motorcycles, pets / animals, Charleston, and law is on Facebook.
Below are just a few of our favorite Facebook pages that we’d like to share with our blog readers. We hope you find them as wonderful and as beneficial as we do!
See below for 5 of our favorite Facebook pages:
ATP Gun Shop & Range’s Facebook page is a great place to find upcoming shooting education classes and learn about local gun shows and events.
We love the Lowcountry Harley-Davidson Facebook page because it provides great information on motorcycle parts, brands, products, and biker lifestyle.
Tri-county Bikers Helping Bikers
The Tri-County Bikers Helping Bikers Facebook page focuses on this non-profit charity organization that works to help raise money for injury motorcyclists. We are a huge supporter of this organization and hope that you will be, too. We enjoy visiting their Facebook page to learn about upcoming biker events in the lowcountry, as well as news and information pertaining to the South Carolina motorcycle community.
We love the Charleston Animal Society because of their mission to help the animals of the greater Charleston area. We also support their mission to educate animal owners on how to care for their pets.
We’re huge supporters of local animal organizations and shelters, which is why we love Lowcountry Paws. This organization works to educate people about local animal events, pets up for adoption, and more.
You can also Like us on Facebook by clicking here.
Nothing is worse than a frigid snow storm to inconvenience a motorcyclists to purchase a full-coverage helmet. Snow pelting your face at 65 mph, is not a feeling you want to experience. A full-coverage face-shield on an open-face helmet will block the snow, but you run the risk of having more water droplets drip onto your face.
You also want to be sure to stay warm and dry. When you become wet and cold your mind begins to doze, reducing the mental awareness you need to stay alert on the road.
Once you’re dressed appropriately, you now need to focus on traction.
No matter what, if ice starts forming on the road or there’s a wintry snow / ice mix, you want to be sure to get off the road. If you slip or another car slips, you run the risk of facing personal injuries—and there is no four-wheel drive that will protect you or other drivers from slipping on ice.
How much? The easiest way to test traction is to feel for it with your rear brake.
Assuming you know how much deceleration you can develop on dry pavement before the rear tire breaks loose, you have a gauge of what’s available if you repeat the test when the road is covered with snow. This also assumes that you have a reasonable amount (say 3/16 of an inch) of tread depth. If you do this at moderate speeds on a flat, straight road, it won’t become a thrill ride. Avoid locking up the rear wheel on a steeply crowned road, where it will tend to slide downhill and out of line.
You also can do a couple of things to improve traction. Premium aftermarket tires are virtually certain to give better wet-road grip than original-equipment tires. Also, a slight increase in tire pressure also improves the wet-weather traction of any tire.
Have you picked up your www.lowcountrybikers.com bumper sticker? If not- you’re missing out! Stop by our office or give us a call at 843-795-9300 so we can send one your way.
Whether you ride a motorcycle or not, help us spread the word that all drivers need to keep an eye out for bikers!
A motorcycle / car hybrid created by Brian Fekel.
Share this unique invention with your friends on Facebook.
On my bike at the Bikers Helping Bikers Event
As many of you know, I am a lifelong biker and Charleston personal injury, criminal defense and workers compensation lawyer who serves the entire South Carolina tri-county area. One of my passions is to help bikers and others understand their rights on and off the road, stay educated on current and upcoming motorcycle legislation, and stay posted on upcoming motorcycle rallies and events in South Carolina.
Because my main goal with this blog is to facilitate conversation among the biker community in the lowcountry and elsewhere in the world, I’d love to welcome all of the Biker’s Law readers to send me any pictures, news, or event information pertaining to motorcycles. Whether you just restored your bike and want to showcase it on our blog, are attending an upcoming biker event that you want to spread awareness about, or want to share your advice on biker safety, I invite you to send any of your submissions to me at blog@uricchiolaw.com.
I look forward to hearing from you all!
