hi everyone,

i originally posted this in the new rider forum, but perhaps its more appropriate here in the insurance forum.

this is my first time in an accident. ever. in 16 years driving; although first year of riding. i have no clue what to do, so please be gentle.

the short of it is that i was in an accident on my motorcycle. the only outcome in the end was a scrape on my knee and damage to my motorcycle. nobody else was hurt, no other property was damaged, the other car involved didn't receive any damage and was not even written up in the accident report. more details below if you care...

i currently have an accident report in my hand that names only me and i'm not sure if i need to report it to my insurance company or not. i don't intend to file a claim as the damage to my bike will be less than my deductible ($1000). should i still report this to my insurance company? will my rates go up even if i don't file a claim? what happens when i try to renew my insurance next year? what happens if i want to buy another car or bike and want to get that insured? i'm not sure what to do at this stage.

could i please get your advice on this?

oh, the insurance company i'm with is primmum if that matters at all.

many thanks in advance,
jus

===

details:

so i was on my motorcycle the other night near my apartment. i was following a right-curve in the road when a cab on the opposite side of the street started turning left out another apartment block into the street. unfortunately, that was at the apex of the turn and i suppose he didn't see me. i braked to avoid him as it looked like he didn't see me and was continuing to proceed, however i braked too hard and was thrown off my bike. after a few choice words for the cab driver, i looked back to see my bike on its side in the middle of the road. shortly after a tow truck, ambulance, and fire truck showed up. it turns out the superintendent in one of the nearby buildings called 911 to report the accident. i spent the next little while being checked out by the fire department folks and the paramedics in the back of the ambulance. when the police showed up, they told me that though the other guy was an ***, he technically didn't impede the flow of traffic because he didn't cross the centre line (recall he was turning left out of the building on the other side of the road). i think he might have let the cabbie off with a warning (i really don't know) and then the cabbie left. when the cop came back to the ambulance and handed me an accident report listing just my details. nothing was filled out about the other driver and nothing was filled out in the comments about the details of the accident other than the approx. speed field. no damage or anything else listed. the damage to my bike is minor and probably not even over the cost of my $1000 deductible. just a crack in the fairing, a bent clutch handle, and a broken left-side mirror. i intend to pay for the repairs out of pocket (or even do some of them) myself.