The 1-year PIP deadline — when it applies to motorcyclists
Motorcycles are not "motor vehicles" under Michigan's no-fault act, MCL 500.3101. That means a motorcycle-only crash — a single-bike loss of control with no car, truck, or SUV involved — does not trigger PIP benefits at all. PIP becomes available only when a motor vehicle is involved in the crash.
When PIP is available, MCL 500.3145(1) requires written notice of injury within 1 year of the crash. Notice must include the name and address of the injured person and the time, place, and nature of the injury. A separate 1-year clock runs from every unpaid PIP benefit.
Priority order under MCL 500.3114(5)
- Insurer of the involved motor vehicle owner or registrant.
- Insurer of the involved motor vehicle operator.
- The motorcycle operator's own auto insurance (if any).
- The Michigan Assigned Claims Plan.
The one-year-back rule
Even when a PIP claim is filed on time, MCL 500.3145(2) caps recovery at losses incurred in the 1 year immediately before the lawsuit is filed. Wait 18 months to sue and the first 6 months of unpaid medical bills are permanently gone.
The 3-year deadline to sue the at-fault driver
To recover pain and suffering, disfigurement, loss of enjoyment of life, and excess wage loss and medical costs above no-fault coverage, you must sue the at-fault driver directly. Under MCL 600.5805(10), that lawsuit must be filed within 3 years of the date of the crash. The claim is governed by Michigan's serious impairment of body function threshold under MCL 500.3135.
The 3-year clock runs whether or not your injuries have finished healing. It does not stop while adjusters negotiate, while doctors evaluate, or while you wait to see how bad things really are.
Mini-tort and property damage
Because motorcycles are not "motor vehicles" under the no-fault act, the standard $3,000 mini-tort under MCL 500.3135(3)(e) does not typically apply to bike damage. Property-damage lawsuits still share the same 3-year statute of limitations as the bodily injury claim under MCL 600.5805(10).
Special situations
Minors and legally incapacitated persons
MCL 600.5851 tolls (pauses) the 3-year bodily injury statute of limitations for minors and adults who are legally incapacitated at the time of the crash. The 1-year no-fault deadlines are not tolled in the same way.
Wrongful death
A Michigan wrongful death case arising from a motorcycle crash must be filed within 3 years of the death under the Wrongful Death Act and MCL 600.5852. PIP survivor's loss benefits still run on the 1-year no-fault schedule.
Michigan Assigned Claims Plan
If no motor vehicle insurer is available for PIP, motorcyclists injured in a crash involving an uninsured motor vehicle can apply to the Michigan Assigned Claims Plan within 1 year of the crash under MCL 500.3172. No extensions.
UM / UIM coverage
UM and UIM coverage is a matter of contract, not statute. Your motorcycle or auto policy sets the deadline — sometimes as short as 1 year to give notice and 3 years to sue. Read the policy the same week the crash happens.
Government-owned vehicles
A crash caused by a city, county, or state vehicle triggers the Governmental Tort Liability Act's 120-day notice requirement under MCL 691.1404. Miss that notice and the case is over before the 3-year clock ever mattered.
Why acting immediately matters
- Evidence disappears. Skid marks fade, dashcam footage is overwritten, and witnesses forget what they saw at motorcycle-crash speeds.
- The one-year-back rule keeps eating PIP. Every extra month of wage loss and medical care becomes uncollectable.
- Rider bias runs against you. Adjusters use every delay to argue your treatment gaps mean the injury "wasn't from the crash."
- You lose settlement leverage. Insurers know a case near its statute deadline has fewer options, and price offers accordingly.
Not sure if your motorcycle-crash deadline has passed?
Call Jay Trucks & Associates. We'll pull the crash date, every relevant policy, and your treatment timeline, and tell you exactly which clocks are still running — free of charge and with zero obligation.