claims form

Can I claim losses and expenses in a motorbike accident compensation claim?

Sign-up to make a compensation claim today - use our quick and easy form to begin your claim for thousands in compensation.

Start Your Claim Now

Can I claim losses and expenses in a motorbike accident compensation claim?

In short, the answer is yes. In any personal injury claim you’re normally entitled to claim for reasonable losses and expenses caused as a result of the accident or injury, and it’s the same for motorbike compensation cases as well.

That being said, we often find losses and expenses in motorcycle injury claims can be a lot higher. With injuries typically more severe, and a multitude of expensive damaged gear and clothing, it’s not surprising at all for injured motorcyclists to have to recover higher losses and expenses when they’re the victim of an accident claim.

A rider isn’t punished and forced to cut their losses short at all.

What losses can a motorbike rider claim?

Typical losses will be things like:

  • Lost earnings from time off work
  • Replacement helmets – often vital, as you normally have to replace the helmet after any accident. Good quality helmets cost money
  • Replacement protective gear damaged in the accident
  • Damaged clothing items
  • Repair or write-off costs for your beloved bike (often the saddest part!)

You could also claim for care and assistance on an hourly rate basis, and private physiotherapy that’s often very useful for injured riders. Keep receipts for bus and / or taxi journeys for getting around without your bike, or mileage claims for car use if that applies.

How do I know what I can and can’t claim back?

Generally speaking, you may be able to claim back any cost or expense where the following applies:

  • The cost / expense was caused as a direct result of the accident
  • The cost / expense has arisen as a direct result of injuries that were caused by the accident
  • The cost / expense is reasonable and shows your effort at mitigating your losses
  • The cost / expense would not have occurred had it not been for the accident and / or injury

Mitigating your losses means keeping them to a reasonable minimum. You don’t have to be forced to buy the cheapest replacement helmet and gear on the market, but equally, don’t try and buy gear that cost ten-times what you paid for yours because its designer or luxury. It should be like-for-like as far as is reasonably practicable.

Ultimately, it’s about putting you back in the position you were in had the accident have never occurred. If you have lost out or paid for it and it was reasonable to claim it back, you should be able to include it.

Will my lawyer guide me when it comes to losses and expenses?

Good lawyers will always guide you and make sure you’re fully aware of what you can and cannot claim, so you have every opportunity to recover reasonable losses and expenses. Notably, some lawyers do try and do things a bit “cheaply” and are not always bothered about maximising your reasonable losses. There is a difference between lawyers not bothering; doing it right; or even going overboard.

You can only claim what’s reasonable, and if you intentionally go overboard with it, you can land yourself in hot water.

So, you should be careful when instructing a law firm, but that applies when it comes to selecting the right lawyer anyway. Our advice is simple: do your homework, and choose the right specialist lawyer for you.

Start Your Claim

You can call our claims team free from a landline or mobile on 0800 634 7575 or click on the link below to create a call back with one of our expert Injury Claims team.
Start Your Claim Today

Fill out our quick call back form below, and our claims team will contact you when you're ready to talk to us.

Our claims team will call you back at a time that's suitable to you.
Your privacy is extremely important to us.
Information on how we handle your data is in our Privacy Policy
solicitors regulation authority
make a claim now