Geico Sponsors Scooter Pavilion At Cycle World Motorcycle Shows

Santa Ana, Calif. (November 21, 2008) – Advanstar Communications, a leading worldwide media company, announced today that they have joined forces with GEICO Powersports as the presenting sponsor of the all new Scooter Pavilion. The pavilion is set to be featured at every stop on the 13-city Cycle World International Motorcycle Shows presented by Toyota national tour.

The all new Scooter Pavilion presented by GEICO Powersports is an area designated to showcase the current scooter craze. From the Piaggio MP3 three-wheeler to the all-electric Vectrix scooter, the new Scooter Pavilion is the place to see and learn about all the latest high mileage transportation options now available. Showgoers can check out scooter accessories and compare more than 20 models from Aprilia, CF Moto, Genuine, Honda, KYMCO, Piaggio, Suzuki, Vectrix, Vespa, Yamaha and more. Visitors to the pavilion can also enter for a chance to win two new Honda Metropolitan scooters and matching helmets courtesy of GEICO Powersports.

“We couldn’t produce such a successful show series without the help of our sponsors and we are thrilled that GEICO, the country’s third-largest private passenger auto insurer, will join as presenting sponsor for our new scooter pavilion,” said Group Show Director Jeff D’Entremont. “With gas prices fluctuating, scooter sales are booming and more and more people are looking for alternative modes of transportation such as scooters, so we are expecting a great turnout at the new Scooter Pavilion presented by GEICO at all the shows across the country.”

“GEICO is proud to be a part of this event that will benefit those who appreciate the powersports lifestyle,” said Vince Giampietro, manager of GEICO Powersports and event marketing. “The Scooter Pavilion is a great place to learn about the newest equipment and our goal is to keep scooter-riders safe on the road and properly insured.”

For hard-core motorcyclists or casual riders, GEICO motorcycle insurance is designed with money-saving discounts, payment plans and GEICO's reliability to meet the needs of motorcycle owners. Specializing in a range of coverage policies, GEICO covers most types of motorcycles, including cruisers, street, sport, touring, high-performance bikes and scooters.

For the 16th consecutive year, Cycle World, the world’s most popular motorcycle magazine, is the title sponsor for the series and leading manufacturer Toyota will return for the 11th year as presenting sponsor. The Cycle World International Motorcycle Shows® presented by Toyota is the world’s largest motorcycle show series. For more information, call 800/331-5706 or visit motorcycleshows.com.

Source: http://roadracingworld.com/news/article/?article=35051

Competition in UK Private Motor Insurance 2007 - New Research Report on Companies and Markets

The brief analyzes the competitive developments in the UK private motor insurance market, discussing market concentration and competitor performance and providing analysis of the top insurers´ market share, GWP and underwriting performance over the last five years.

Scope

Analysis of the top private motor insurers´ growth or decline in market share and the trends driving these changes Performance data of the top
insurers in the UK motor insurance market.

Highlights

The market dominance of the largest players is expected to confer a greater control over the setting of premium rates and a greater ability to steer the market. This has been evident in the fact that the current underwriting cycle has turned before the market reached the level of losses seen in previous cycles.

Reasons to Purchase

Benchmark your company against your competitors based on current and past performance in the market Gain knowledge of competitive developments among private motor insurance providers.

Source:http://www.live-pr.com/en/competition-in-uk-private-motor-insurance-

Young man awarded €5m for motorbike injuries

A YOUNG man who suffered catastrophic head injuries when the motorbike on which he was travelling as a passenger hit a roadside earth bank has secured €5 million damages in one of the biggest High Court settlements of its type.

Approving the settlement yesterday, Mr Justice John Quirke said he had "real concerns" about how meeting the costs of future care for crash victims was dealt with here and he suggested the UK system was "infinitely better".

Given the large difference of opinion between experts about the costs of providing care for crash victims for the rest of their lives, there was a need to examine the "much better" type of compensation system in the UK which allows for periodic payments in such cases, rather than one large settlement, he said.

He made the comments in the case of David McCullagh jnr (30) who, through his father David snr, had sued the driver and owner of the motorbike, Anthony Leahy, Ballineadig, Farran, Cork.

Mr McCullagh, a painter and decorator from Ardcross, Crosshaven, Cork, claimed he suffered severe injuries and is now in a wheelchair as a result of Mr Leahy's negligence in controlling the bike when it hit an earth bank at or near Lee Valley Golf and Country Club, in Ovens, Co Cork, on June 25th, 2006.

Yesterday afternoon Mr Justice Quirke was told the case had been settled without a hearing.

The €4.98 million settlement provides for the cost of daily care to Mr McCullagh for another 33 years, a figure reached on the basis of medical opinion his life expectancy had been cut by 29 per cent.

Henry Hickey SC, for Mr McCullagh, said his side's expert had assessed the costs of care on the basis of the reduced life expectancy while another actuarial report had come up with a figure of €3 million for future care.

Mr Justice Quirke said he had "real concerns" about how the costs of future care for people in such situations is dealt with here.

The system here is supposed to cover all future costs but there was no way of doing that properly and it was the equivalent of "looking into a crystal ball", the judge said.

The judge approved the immediate payment out of €865,000 from the €4.9 million to include €250,000 towards the cost of adapting the family home for David and sums of €60,000 for his parents and €40,000 for his brother and sister for the care they had provided in the last two years for him. The remainder of the money will be paid into court pending wardship proceedings.

David's brother and sister had provided daily assistance bringing him to physiotherapy five days a week while he was in hospital in Dublin and Cork. The insurance company, which insured the motorbike owner, has already provided financial assistance towards home improvement, a car and daily physiotherapy, Mr McCullagh's counsel said.

Mr McCullagh has spent most of his time since the crash in Cork University Hospital and the National Rehabilitation Hospital in Dún Laoghaire and is staying in St Finbarr's Hospital in Cork pending the completion of works to his family home, his counsel said. Apart from his physical injuries which have confined him to a wheelchair, he is also affected intellectually, counsel said. He can carry on conversations but has speech difficulties.

Source:http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper

Insurers suffer from historic floods

Bridge – Bao Viet Insurance has had someone on duty until 1-2 am in the morning since the historic heavy rains began on October 31. Though having not calculated the damages, the group believes that it would suffer severe losses.

By the afternoon of November 3, or three days after Hanoi began sustaining the historic floods in the last three decades, over 50 car owners reported damages to Bao Viet.

The insurance group had estimated that the total number of sustained vehicles may reach 100, and that the group may have to spend several billions of VND to compensate the damages.
An official from Bao Viet said that the number of damaged cars may be bigger if counting the vehicles that were damaged in the expanded Hanoi. Bao Viet’s vehicle insurance has never before incurred such a heavy loss.

In the insurance policies with Bao Viet, there is a provision on compensation when cars are submerged under water. The clients, who accept the provision, have to pay additional premiums of 5%, but will be insured 100% for risks. If clients do not buy the insurance clause, they will not get the compensation if they try to kick start when the vehicles are flooded.

Among the 18 cars submerged on the underground floor at the C6 My Dinh residential quarter, some of them were Bao Viet’s clients. As this is a natural calamity, it is highly possible that the vehicles’ owners will be insured no matter what if they bought the insurance clause on compensation when cars are submerged under water.

The Head of the Vehicle Insurance Division, Dinh Quang Tan, said that since Hanoi became flooded because of the heavy rains, Bao Viet’s staff had to come to sites to assist clients to repair broken down vehicles. Tan said that the staff had to work overnight on October 31, when there were too many broken down vehicles. Only after assisting clients to rescue vehicles, the company will begin assessing the damage levels in order to define the compensation.

Bao Viet now has some 3 million clients who are the owners of motorbikes and 500,000 cars nationwide. In Hanoi, Bao Viet now holds 40% of the market share, followed by Bao Minh, PJICO, and PVI.

PJICO has also estimated that the number of damaged cars in the heavy floods may reach 100. Among the 18 vehicles submerged in the C6 My Dinh case, four were the clients of PJICO.
Insurers said that the number of broken down motorbikes in the floods was relatively large. However, as the motorbike owners only purchased the compulsory third-party insurance, and did not purchase insurance policies for body work, they will not receive compensation.

Source:http://english.vietnamnet.vn/biz/2008/11/811801/

Bike Insurance - ABI launches new principles for insurance policy

The Association of British Insurers, (ABI) have launched new principles which will enable policy holders adequate protection and enhanced risk based supervision, it has been revealed.

Motorbike insurance customers would like to know that ABI are more determined to provide enhanced protection for motorbike insurance holders as the insurance industry remains stable despite the instability of the current economic climate.

ABI had reported the key principles following the International Association of Insurance Supervisors’ annual meeting, last week.

General Director, Stephen Haddrill of ABI insisted that the scheme will consider several key principles to deal with current economic situation as fears that the financial crisis affecting the motorbike insurance industry grows.

The director said “These are difficult market conditions, but the insurance industry stands ready to work with the supervisory authorities around these principles as we believe that the maintenance and strengthening of them is the best basis for protecting policyholders on an ongoing basis.”

Haddrill also confirmed that the insurance industry is in a strong position regardless of the current financial downturn of the UK economy, after the Motor Cycle Industry Association (MCI) announced that bike sales had also been trying to beat the crisis.

Meanwhile, motorists are being urged to keep a look out for pedestrians as more people walk along Britain’s roads wearing earphones. A recent report by car insurance retailer, Swinton Insurance revealed that it has seen a significant increase in the number of accidents on insurance forms regarding ‘podestrians’ walking into the road wearing earphones.

Insurer Development Manager, Steve Chelton of Swinton Insurance said: “When an absence of vehicle noise is combined with the visual distraction of texting you end up with a podestrian that’s even more ignorant to oncoming traffic. This greatly increases the likelihood of them causing an accident.”

Source:http://www.onlyfinance.com/Bike-Insurance-News

Bike Insurance - British cycling has new partner -

British cycling has found a new partner in insurance, which means for those who are members of the organisation, exclusive bike insurance. The new form of cover is called BC Bike insurance, if you are wondering where you can locate this cover to purchase it you will find the cover at www.bcbikeinsurance.co.uk , additionally you will also be able to find out much more information about the product. You will also be happy to know that it is £10 cheaper if the policy is acquired online.

Claire Rollinson: membership services manager said “We have negotiated what we believe is a great deal for members, with flexible cover options. This means that you can tailor your cover to your exact needs and therefore don’t pay for unnecessary extras.”

Areas that are covered include protection against theft, loss as well as accidental damage to the figure of £5,000. There is also a Multibike discount of about 15%. Also includes bicycle hire until your bike is either repaired or replaced.


Source: http://www.onlyfinance.com/Bike-Insurance-News

Bike Insurance - Bike prices set to increase in 2009

Motorbike prices, are expected to increase in 2009, according to manufacturers. With the cost of materials such as aluminium and steel, along with shipping fees all on the increase, the price of a bike will be set to rise drastically. The increased prices is also expected to remain at a higher level in 2010, according to a spokesperson from the Retail Motor Industry Federation. This is due to the fact that, the materials, used for the production of motorbikes, will be those that have increased in price.

Moreover, the weakening pound against the euro and the present credit crunch, have also played a part towards the increase in the price of motorbikes. A spokesman from Ducati, the Italian motorbike manufacturer, said: "The main selling season has been and gone and obviously the credit crunch is going to now have an impact. Just look at the retail shops announcing drops in sales." Motorists, who are considering whether to buy a bike, have been advised to do so sooner, rather than later, before the price increase sets in. Also they should ensure that they have adequate motorcycle insurance to cover their bikes.

news source : http://www.onlyfinance.com/