Mike,
My SIL is a registered auto dealer here in NYS. As such, he (and me, by extension) can buy from wholesalers and clearing houses.
In the past 5 years, we have collectively bought, repaired, retitled and sold about 25 cars, motorcycles and travel trailers.
The most recent acquisition was a 2015, 30 ft travel trailer that a tree limb fell on...very minor roof damage and slightly more ceiling damage. Likely will cost less than $200 to repair. This trailer is worth $24,000 to $26,000. It's got a fireplace in it! A fireplace!! We'll expect to make a 150% profit, not bad for 8 hours labor and a calendar wait (for retitle) of 2 months.
But wait.
Also recently acquired was a 2016 Moto Guzzi "Bobber", it had bent front forks, a very slight bend in the aluminum front wheel, and a broken piece of trim on the engine. It has 2 miles on the odometer! No damage to the tank, pipes, bars, levers, turns signals...well, you get the picture. I mean, you can hardly drop a bike on grass without breaking a turn signal. Anyway, this bike is worth about $13,000 and is much in demand. Total cost to repair has been $700. Expected profit is 90%.
These are but two of many, uhmmm, puzzling insurance write offs. We often have this conversation at home, and can't understand why the vehicles are underwritten the way they have been. My sons Moto Guzzi had a jammed ignition lock, which we deduced could only have happened after it was written off, yet he paid less than $3,000 for a bike with 203 miles on it, a scratched tank, and no other damage on it. BTW, that bike was worth $9,000!
So, to answer your question, no, the bikes are no more uniquely underwritten than the cars and trucks. But, as I said, you can hardly drop a bike on grass without breaking a clutch lever or shift peg. Every little scratch apparently requires full replacement of the component, and any associated clamps, fasteners, etc. A Moto Guzzi gas tank costs $1,100 to replace.
But to answer the question you haven't asked...How can this be right? I'll simply say, it isn't. To write off a $28,000 trailer for a thumb sized hole in the roof seems ludicrous, but I see it every week. Maybe this is what people want, to be overpaid for their damaged vehicles, even if it means excessively high premiums for everyone, including themselves?
Lastly, should you have stayed on two wheels instead of going canoe centric? Well, your canoe can't accelerate 0-60 mph in 3 seconds while getting 45 mpg!
But my motorcycles can't cross St Regis Pond. And so what if some idiot with a smartphone rear ends you while your paddling, maybe you'll lose some gel coat. But on a motorcycle...
