Does Motorcycle Insurance Cover Hitting an Animal
Hitting an animal is covered under comprehensive coverage, if you carry it, not collision.
Comprehensive coverage pays for this, collision doesn't
Hitting a deer or any other animal is treated as a comprehensive claim, not a collision claim. Insurers class it this way because you didn't collide with another vehicle or a fixed object. The animal moved into your path.
This matters because comprehensive is optional. If you carry only liability coverage, or liability and collision without comprehensive, hitting an animal isn't covered at all. Check your policy's declarations page for a line that says comprehensive or "other than collision." If it's not there, this kind of damage comes out of your own pocket.
Whether you actually have comprehensive coverage
Older riders who've owned a bike for years sometimes dropped comprehensive at some point, especially once the bike was paid off and the collision coverage felt like enough. That's the first thing to check before you assume you're covered.
Some riders only carry comprehensive and collision when the bike is financed, then drop one or both once the loan is paid off. If that happened with your policy, an animal strike would be a repair bill you cover yourself.
Call your agent or log into your policy account and look for comprehensive by name. Don't go by what you remember choosing years ago. Rates and coverage get adjusted at renewal, and what you had at purchase isn't always what you have now.
What counts as hitting an animal versus swerving to avoid one
If you actually strike the animal, that's comprehensive. But if you swerve to avoid it and lay the bike down or hit a guardrail instead, many insurers treat that as collision, since the animal is no longer the direct cause of the damage.
This distinction matters for your deductible, since comprehensive and collision deductibles are sometimes set at different amounts on the same policy. It can also matter for how the claim affects your record, since a comprehensive claim is generally not treated as being your fault, while a collision claim sometimes is.
When you report the claim, describe exactly what happened. Tell the adjuster whether you hit the animal directly or went down avoiding it. That detail decides which part of your policy pays and what you owe toward the repair.
Questions people ask about this
does a comprehensive claim for hitting an animal raise my rates?
Comprehensive claims are usually treated as no-fault, since the animal caused the damage rather than your own driving error. That said, how it affects your rate at renewal is up to your insurer, so ask them directly how a comprehensive claim is handled on your policy.
what should I do right after my motorcycle hits an animal?
Get yourself and the bike off the road if you can, then check for injuries before anything else. Take photos of the bike, the road, and the animal if it's safe to do so. Call your insurer to start the claim and ask what documentation they need.
does motorcycle insurance cover the damage if the animal runs off after I hit it?
Yes, coverage depends on the collision happening, not on what the animal does afterward. Your insurer may ask for a police report or your own written account since there's no animal to point to as evidence. Photos of the damage and the scene help support the claim.
is hitting a dog or a cat covered the same as hitting a deer?
Comprehensive coverage generally applies regardless of what kind of animal you hit. The coverage is based on the type of incident, not the species involved. Confirm with your insurer if you're unsure, since some policies word this differently.
will my motorcycle insurance cover a deer strike if I don't have collision coverage?
Yes, a deer strike falls under comprehensive, not collision, so you don't need collision coverage for it to be covered. You do need comprehensive coverage specifically. Check your declarations page to confirm you carry it.
See how comprehensive coverage for your motorcycle compares across insurers.
Pull up your current policy's declarations page this week and confirm whether comprehensive coverage is listed, not just collision and liability. If you're not sure what you're looking at, call your agent and ask them to read it back to you in plain terms. Ask what your comprehensive deductible is, since that's what you'd owe if you hit an animal. If you don't currently carry comprehensive, ask what it would cost to add it before your next renewal. Keep a note of the date you checked, since coverage can shift at renewal without much notice.
