fruitappel

Yesterday morning, on the commute to work, I was hit pretty hard on the rear of my bike. The car hit me on the rear hub from the side. Thank god I'm okay; I have some pain in the ribcage/arm and bruised fingers. Anyway, the bike seemed not too bad at first, but I couldn't cycle on it anymore because the rear wheel was stuck to the frame. I thought it would be the rear wheel that's bent, but at home, I took out the wheel, and it was fine. Now, looking from straight behind the bike, I noticed the whole rear end of the bike is off, bent to the right side (was hit from the left).

Is this beyond repair? It is an aluminum frame. I bought the bike brand new in December 2023 (a month ago)... Sorry, I did not take off the rear rack; I want to leave it the way it is for now until I have settled with insurance and such. I hope I can make a claim against the car driver. It is really the frame thats bended, not the rear rack.

_ForceD_

I’m not a frame builder, but I’d guess that it probably could be bent back into proper shape. But it’s probably never going to be like new, or unnoticeable. One of the things I’d really be concerned about are unnoticeable cracks, especially at the welds. Maybe something you should have checked/evaluated by a professional frame builder. But otherwise, I would think money for a new bike would be coming your way from the driver’s insurance company. That is if the driver was cited, and you or the police got the driver’s information. You could check with the company to see if they’re going to reimburse you for the bike.
Edited to add: Glad you’re OK.

Dan

bboy314

If it was steel, likely repairable. Being that it’s aluminum I would definitely consider it unsafe to try and bend back.

Andrew R Stewart 

I don't offer Al frame realigning due to the chance of cracks developing. You are now suffering the cost of the "feature" of an AL frame. Welcome to the disposable bike frame business model.

If this bike was bought new the brand might have a crash replacement policy to reduce replacement cost. If bought used, sorry but no consumer consideration is likely to be offered. While this time of the year generally has the least number of used bikes for sale the ability to bargain with a seller is greater than during the spring/summer. If the right used bike were available the two bikes could be merged into one that has the better parts and wear condition.

Glad to hear that you're basically OK. I take it no incident report was made with the local police? If you did report, and if you were in the right, the car driver's insurance might be a source of reimbursement. Andy

Steve B.

You cannot bend aluminum without heat treating it. As told to me by Klein bicycles way back. I’d say the frame is toast.

Iride01 

You'll spend more money trying to have it fixed than the bike is worth. And few people at a bike shop are going to want to deal with a frame that is really bent.

Hopefully the driver of the other vehicle realizes that they are responsible for whatever your states laws are for damage to the property of another. You bike is in most places a vehicle too under the law. You also should check with your insurance agent or agents. They might actually cover some of your loss if the other person doesn't pay for their mistake.

Especially check if you have a automobile insurance policy. Your bike might be covered under some of the various clauses for damage from another motor vehicle. For theft or loss from a fire, many times a homeowners policy will cover it. But all insurance companies vary on this. You never know unless you ask.

New bike you bought with a credit card? Check with the card issuer and see what benefits they may offer for loss/damage of something that new.

_ForceD_

Apparently the OP is located in the Netherlands…base on his few posts previous to this one. It sounds like he was really enjoying his new ride. I dunno what the laws are there. I just hope that a police reports was filed, the driver identified, and that the OP will received some compensation for the damaged bike.

Dan

RB1-luvr

hope your aches and pains heal quickly and if the driver was in error, you get your bike replaced by them soon.

cyccommute 

Even if that were steel, it would not be worth repairing.

Nope. It’s done. Time to send it off to that big aluminum can factory in the sky!

GamblerGORD53

Ooooff. Still in the excited phase of a new bike. That's his new tour bike, $1,900 Triban. Insurance owes him a new frame. Looks to be too small anyway, IMO. It just isn't the right bike for hauling either, half fenders and all.
Likely any bike frame would have been totaled. But still, steel is real. My heavyweight took a 3 mph hit in the same area from both a Honda 150 in Saigon and a sporty car doing a R turn. The car got a broken plastic bumper and I got a temporarily bent kick stand. LOL. Bike jumped up a couple inches, but I did NOT even fall over either hit. The MC actually hit me right on the chain stay where the Rohloff brace arm is.

fruitappel

I have contacted a lawyer, and it seems that in the Netherlands, if you are a cyclist or pedestrian involved in a traffic accident with a motorized vehicle, you have significant rights. I should, at the very least, get 50% of my damages covered by the car driver's insurance. I will go to a bike shop tomorrow to have them check the damage for the insurance.

@GamblerGORD53, yes, that was the new bike I just bought and posted about on the forums. I paid €1200 last month.

Can't wait to be done with all this and have a working bike again ...

FBinNY 

If it were mine, and all my own doing, I might take a shot at saving it.

But that's highly qualified, and fortunately shouldn't apply here. If none was filed, immediately file an accident report and open a claim against the driver claiming the bike as a total loss.

Also, add some fair compensation for your injuries. If you're not greedy, the total claim will be small enough that the insurer will want to close it out quickly. In the event that they only want to pay depreciated value for the bike, the injury portion should make up the difference.

choddo

50% ? I’d have thought in a bike friendly place like the Netherlands you’d be looking at 100%

If someone crashed into your car you wouldn’t expect them to only cover half the repair.

CrimsonEclipse

Sucks to be hit.
But you're getting a new frame.

dedhed

So is it like in the US and they total the bike you can buy it back at a steep discount?
Virtually new component parts salvaged from paying scrap price for it may have some value to you. Would to me. Stick them on another frame and have a cheap bike with new parts.
Around here an insurance company does want to screw around disposing of a small item. I did that with a stolen lawn tractor. They literally told me just keep it after it was recovered. Still in use today at my rental

FBinNY 

I don't know about the Netherlands, but in the USA you'd only be entitled to the lesser of actual repair cost or the depreciated value of a total loss, with insurer getting salvage value.

If it were a 3yr old 25,000 car, the most would be blue book value, which us why they often total cars with body damage to multiple panels.

ScottCommutes

OK to settle for somewhat less than replacement cost. Buy the same bike. Keep all the old components as spares. Mess around with the frame if you want but don't spend a ton on it.

choddo

Yeah if it’s a write-off here in the UK then the same applies afaik.

cyccommute 

Granted it has been a number of years since I was hit by a car on a bicycle but the bicycle was not depreciated. I was paid full replacement cost. Bicycles are usually a fraction of the cost of a vehicle and insurance companies may to settle at replacement value to avoid court cases with a sympathetic victim.

Yes, that is the way most cars work. However, modern cars use unibody construction which means that bending of the body compromises the integrity since the frame and body are the same. It would cost too much to fix.

KerryIrons

Agreeing with other posters that if the frame is that bent, it is done for. The only hope is that after removing the rack you see that the frame is OK and it was just a bent rack. And per other comments, it seems whoever rammed you should pay for this. Such a shame to have a one-month old bike be damaged beyond repair. If you could find a cheap frame, you could swap the components and that would be cheaper than a new bike.

anga

If this is a Decathlon bike, frames may be available.
Check with cycle service in nearest store.

squirtdad

I understand that if the airbags go off, the car is normally totaled, due to the unibody construction

wheelreason

Don't know about the UK, but here insurance does not necessarily cover all repairs, in fact, cars are routinely "totaled" and you get fair market value, not replacement, AND, in some states, there is "no fault" each party's insurance covers their own, and no NHS, Dental is good though...