Insurance premiums are determined by a combination of many items including age, driving record, how long you have been riding a motorcycle, the type of motorcycle and the area you are in. Let's look at these one at a time:

• There is nothing we can do about our age - at least not that I know of. The older you are the less you are going to pay for insurance.
• Your driving record is something you can do something about - like not getting tickets for speeding or driving without a license. Obviously, the absence of infractions keeps your premiums lower.
• The length of time that you have had a motorcycle endorsement on your license the lower your policy premiums. The insurance industry recognizes that the more you ride a motorcycle the more skilled you are and better able you are to avoid an accident.
• Usually, a bullet bike costs more to insure than a cruiser motorcycle.
• If you live in a rural area versus a city your premium will be lower.

A lot of the factors that go into determining your insurance premium are beyond your control, however there are a number of things you can do to decrease your insurance costs:

• keep you record clear of accidents, speeding tickets or other infractions and often insurance companies will decrease the premium on your next renewal.
• Take a riders safety class. Often insurers will give you a break on the premium if you can demonstrate (present a graduation card) showing you have completed a qualifying class. The Motorcycle Safety Foundation has an excellent resource for finding a program near you. Besides, it is the right thing to do.
• Tell the insurer that you store your bike in a secure location in the off season - like your garage. Consider installing an anti-theft device on your motorcycle such as Lojack for motorcycles.
• Consider insuring all of your vehicles with the same insurer because they often grant a discounts for multiple vehicles.
• Consider only purchasing coverage for teh times you ride your bike.

KSL reported the death of Tyler Wilde in Kaysville titling the article "Motorcyclist's Death Raises Questions About Bullet Bikes."

I am sorry that Tyler Wilde is dead. I extend my sympathies to the family and friends that he left behind. However, he was 21 years old and presumably able to make his own decisions about buying and operating a motorcycle. I have written about free choice and the joy of riding motorcycles in the context of the legal system because I am a motorcycle injury lawyer. I have commented about helmet laws, insurance and other legislation that wants to impinge upon free choice of motorcyclists. Ultimately I believe that liberty is sacrosanct. Free will and the choice to buy and operate a motorcycle or ride without a helmet is a personal decision and should be left a free decision without the intrusion of government.

I understand that KSL is a news organization and articles need to generate public comment in order to attract attention. Furthermore, the free exchange of opinion is of course what has made this country great. But to intrude upon free choice is problematic. Some will argue that requiring all motorcycle riders to wear a helmet is not unlike requiring all vehicle drivers to wear seatbelts. This is an erroneous argument and I have posted on this as well on my website at utahbikelaw.com.

I ride a Harley and I choose to wear a helmet and proper gear every time I get on my bike. I took a safety riding course and urge others to do the same before riding. At the beginning of every riding season I go to a parking lot and practice hard braking and cornering just to get back in the swing.

Free choice and not bullet bikes are what contributed to this young man's early death.

ILLINOIS: Police say 65-year-old William Opp and his 62-year-old wife Mary were riding on Highway 14 in Mulkeytown when witnesses say something happened to William Opp's rear tire and he lost control of the bike. His wife swerved trying to avoid hitting her husband. Mary, in turn, lost control of her bike. Neither of the Opps were wearing a helmet.

I wanted to comment on this article because proper following technique is important to avoid crashes just like this. Motorcycle Cruiser has an excellent article on group motorcycle riding and how to make it safe and fun for everyone.

OHIO: An Ohio woman was killed early yesterday when the motorcycle on which she was riding crashed in Hopewell, state police in Beaver said. Katheryn Shafer, 59, of East Liverpool, was a passenger on a motorcycle operated by her husband, Daniel L. Shafer, 58. The couple was traveling south on Route 60 at about 3:30 a.m. when Mr. Shafer lost control and the bike began to tumble.

This is a terrible accident and sounds like it could have been prevented had there been routine maintenance performed on the motorcycle. Every time I get on my bike I check the tires for any damage sustained in the last ride. When I am planning to ride with a passenger I calibrate my suspension to aid in better control of the motorcycle. I usually check my brakes and look for any pools of fluid that may have leaked from under my bike. How long does this take - seconds.

Here is a great article that touches on some of the basics of pre-ride motorcycle inspections. Try to get in the habit of a quick walk-around inspection before taking off on your next ride. It may save your life and the life of your passenger.

Insurance companies are experts at exploiting loopholes but the United States Senate is trying to help consumers by at least closing one loophole. The American Motorcycle Association is an advocate for the rights of motorcycle owners and recently published an excellent article dealing with how the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) is sometimes used by insurance companies to avoid paying for injuries while engaged in "legal transportation and recreational activities." Included in this category is riding a motorcycle.

At the end of the AMA article is a neat application that prompts you to enter your postal code and it takes you to an already written email addressed to your local representative urging his or her support. Please read the article and contact your representatives to ask for their support in correcting this unfair technical loophole that jeopardizes financial recovery if you are involved in a motorcycle accident.

It's now even more affordable for motorcycle riders to protect their bikes. Now, all riders can get a $50 rebate from LoJack on the purchase of their LoJack for Motorcycles Stolen Vehicle Recovery System. Simply visit Progressive's Web site--www.motorcycle.progressive.com--and download the online rebate form. And, Progressive customers who have LoJack installed on their bikes will also receive a 20 percent discount on their Comprehensive Coverage.

According to LoJack's website motorcycle theft is a big problem - more than 70,000 bikes were stolen in 2005 - that's more than $430 million in losses. Between 2001 and 2005, motorcycle theft increased 135%. Are you protecting your bike? Unfortunately LoJack is not available in Utah and appears only to be available in other major metropolitan areas.

CALIFORNIA: A 16-year-girl died as a rescue helicopter was landing to help her after her scooter was hit by a car on State Route 94 near Steele Canyon High School. And a 45-year-old Point Loma man was killed instantly when the driver of a full-size SUV reportedly made a left turn in front of him on Broadway downtown.

The number of scooters on the road are growing exponentially in tandem with the rise in gas prices - or so it seems. Almost everywhere I look there are scooters - often not wearing proper gear - riding without helmets, wearing shorts and light shoes or sandals. We are going to see an increasing number of accidents because scooters share the same malady as motorcycle riders - we are not easily seen because motorists simply are not looking for us.

I think it is imperative to always have your light on and for riders to wear the proper gear. You also have to have the proper kind and amount of insurance to ensure you recover financially from an accident. I write in depth in various articles on this blog about insurance but here I just want to remind scooter riders that they need underinsured and uninsured coverage in addition to the mandated coverage required by law in Utah.

UTAH: A motorcycle accident on I-80 on Saturday May 3rd shut down Parley's Canyon. A utility trailer came unattached from a car heading down the canyon. A motorcyclist behind it couldn't stop in time and slammed into it. The motorcylist was flown to the hospital in critical condition.

I think sometimes that motorists think that a motorcycle driver can avoid all road hazards by simply weaving. This is a false belief because like a motor vehicle inertia keeps the motorcycle moving forward. This is especially so if you are on the highway and are traveling at a relatively high rate of speed. Negligence appears to be present in this accident because all motorists that pull trailers should be responsible for ensuring that the trailer is securely fastened.

This would be a case of res ipsa loquiter. I think this term is Latin, I forget exactly which ancient language because I never thought such trivia was important to remember, but I do know what it means. Simply put, this term roughly translated means "the thing speaks for itself." In other words simply because an accident occurred raises an inference of negligence and that inference establishes the prima facia case for negligence.

A prima facia case establishes the legally required elements of the case in question. This prima facia case allows the trier of fact, be it a judge or jury, to infer that negligence exists and to find in favor of the plaintiff. The defendant then has a rebuttable inference to overcome and this effectively shifts the burden of proof to the defendant to prove that everything was correctly done and even in the absence of negligence the accident occurred.

If memory serves me correctly the case law in the United States stems back to the early days of our country when loading and unloading warehouses was done by hand. In that case men were storing barrels of flour on the second floor of a warehouse. One of the barrels was not chalked well and managed to roll out of the second floor door and landed on a passerby who was seriously injured. The passerby retained a lawyer and that lawyer went about trying to prove that the barrel was not properly chalked. This was very hard to do because he could not get witnesses or experts to show that it was the negligence of the men loading the barrels that allowed the barrel to escape. In other words the onus of proof remained on the plaintiff to prove negligence loading or storage of the barrel. In the absence of proof the case would fail. However, in this case, where the mechanism of injury is solely under the control of the charged party, an inference is allowed meaning that negligence caused the accident and made the warehouse liable for the injury.

In this trailer case the facts are very close to that of the flour barrel case. The means of securing the trailer to the vehicle was solely under the control of the motorist and an inference of negligence may be inferred. That specific negligence would be the negligent failure of the motorist to secure the trailer to the vehicle. There may be other negligence involved such as too large a trailer for the type of vehicle used to tow the trailer. I think that in this case the operator of the vehicle would be found to be liable for the accident.