David Woolf is a California bicycle accident attorney who represents victims hurt in bicycle accidents. These accidents often involve a biker and a motor vehicle. However, some victims are hurt by unsafe road conditions. A bicycle accident lawyer can help victims by negotiating a better settlement offer and filing a personal injury lawsuit if no settlement is adequate.
What is a bicycle accident case?
A bicycle accident case is when someone riding a bicycle gets hurt because of someone else’s negligence. This makes it a form of personal injury case. With the help of a personal injury attorney, the victim can demand to be compensated for his or her losses that were caused by the negligent party.
That negligent party is often the driver of a motor vehicle. Many bike accidents, including some of the most severe, happen when the driver of a car or a truck is negligent.
However, some bike accidents are caused by the negligence of someone other than a motor vehicle driver. In some cases, the defendant or liable party can be:
- a pedestrian who stepped in front of the biker without looking,
- the owner of a dog who got away and caused the biker to crash,
- a property owner who left a hazardous condition for bikers on their premises,
- the designer, manufacturer, or retailer of a defective bike part, or
- a government municipality, for failing to maintain roads or bike trails, or for unreasonably putting bikers in harm’s way.
What are some common causes of bike accidents?
Some of the most common causes of bike accidents include:
- distracted driving,
- drunk driving or driving under the influence of drugs,
- drivers passing a bicyclist too closely,
- motor vehicle drivers turning right without checking for bikers,
- a negligent driver not yielding right of way to a bike rider,
- occupants in cars parallel parked on the roadway opening their car door without looking for bikers, a practice known as “dooring,”
- speeding,
- drivers running a stop sign or a red light, or violating other traffic laws,
- motorists who misjudge how fast the biker is going,
- dogs that have escaped their owner or yard and chase the bicycle rider,
- unsafe conditions on private property,
- poorly designed bike lanes or trails, and
- poorly maintained bike paths, like those with large potholes.
Even if the biker was partially at fault for his or her accident, they may still be entitled to compensation. In California, these shared fault accidents are resolved through the rule of pure comparative fault. This rule reduces the compensation that the biker can recover by the share of responsibility they had for the accident. It means that injured bikers who were violating a bicycle law or not practicing perfect bicycle safety may still be able to recover compensation for their injuries.
What are some common bicycle accident injuries?
Bikers can suffer some serious injuries in a crash, especially if they were hit by a motor vehicle. Without much in the way of protective equipment, bikers often suffer the following injuries:
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- broken hands or wrists, from when they try to break their fall,
- fractured arms or elbows, often from the impact with the ground,
- lower extremity injuries, like broken bones in the foot, ankle, leg, or knee from the impact with the vehicle,
- spinal cord injuries and other serious back injuries,
- traumatic brain injuries (TBIs), especially if the cyclist was not wearing a helmet at the time of the car accident,
- concussions and other head injuries,
- broken ribs,
- internal bleeding,
- severe or life-threatening cuts or lacerations, and
- whiplash.
Some of the most catastrophic injuries can end with a fatality. In these cases, a bike accident attorney can help the victim’s loved ones file a wrongful death case.
What compensation can hurt cyclists get?
Cyclists who have been hurt in a bicycle crash can recover financial compensation for their legal damages. A bike accident victim’s legal damages are all of the economic and non-economic ways that they have suffered because of the other party’s negligence. In a bike crash case, these legal damages will generally include the injured cyclist’s:
- medical bills, including medical expenses for foreseeable future care,
- costs of emergency medical treatment,
- wages lost from the accident and during the victim’s recovery process,
- any reduction in the victim’s earning capacity from a disability that will make it more difficult for them to earn a living,
- pain and suffering,
- emotional distress,
- costs of repairing or replacing property damage, like the victim’s bicycle, and
- loss of consortium, for the victim’s family.
Under California’s pure comparative fault, this compensation can be reduced by the biker’s role in causing the crash.
How can a bicycle accident lawyer help in my case?
A California bicycle accident attorney can help victims in 2 ways:
- by negotiating a settlement that fully compensates the victim, and
- by filing a personal injury claim against the responsible party, if no fair settlement offer is made.
Soon after a bike accident, an insurance adjuster for the responsible party will approach the victim. An initial offer will be made to settle the case out of court. The timing and the amount of this settlement offer are designed to make it seem like a good deal for the victim. However, it almost always drastically undercompensates the victim as the insurance company tries to end the case for as little as possible.
Injured bicyclists who get the legal advice of a lawyer from a reputable law firm who has years of experience filing bicycle accident lawsuits will often see their settlement offers rise substantially. Insurance companies realize that victims with legal representation understand their rights and the amount of compensation that they are entitled to receive.
If no fair settlement offer is made and the statute of limitations is approaching, a bike accident lawyer can help the victim file a personal injury lawsuit. This accident claim is a formal demand for compensation. The trial date will serve as a deadline for settlement negotiations. If no settlement is made, then the victim’s personal injury lawyer will present the case to the judge and jury. Their verdict will end the case.