Riding a motorcycle and being involved in a motor vehicle accident with a passenger vehicle or commercial truck can have devastating results.
If you are lucky enough to survive an accident like this, your life will be flipped upside down in a matter of seconds.
One second you’re enjoying the open road, and the next you’re struggling with enormous medical bills.
You’re also facing years of physical recovery, and you may start to wonder if life will ever be the same again.
Even though nothing can undo the pain of the accident, if you are injured in a motorcycle accident, there is compensation for your damages available to you via motorcycle accident claims.
Experienced motorcycle accident attorneys can help you receive several types of compensation.
In the article below, we will discuss personal injury lawsuits resulting from motorcycle accidents and how you can be compensated after a motorcycle accident.
What To Do After A Motorcycle Accident
The things you do and the things you don’t do after the crash will impact your odds of physical recovery and the compensation you receive in your injury claim.
The very first thing you should do after your accident is to seek medical treatment no matter how you feel.
Sometimes motorcyclists will feel little to no pain or other symptoms even after a severe crash.
But when the adrenaline wears off, pain and stiffness related to these hidden injuries will begin creeping in.
This is why you should always seek medical attention immediately after a motorcycle crash.
A delayed diagnosis hampers your physical recovery, and it will give the insurance company of the negligent driver reason to argue that you failed to mitigate your damages after the crash.
If you’re able to, you should also collect as much evidence as possible from the accident scene.
Start by taking photographs of the accident scene, property damage to your motorcycle, the other vehicle, and other things that may be useful to your motorcycle accident lawyers, like any road hazards.
Additionally, the moments after a crash are likely your only opportunity to identify any witnesses to the accident.
Jot down the contact information of any witnesses to the accident.
Their accounts of the accident can be crucial to your injury claim.
You also need to call law enforcement and notify your insurance company about the crash.
Responding officers will prepare a police report that can also help you win your motorcycle accident claim.
Avoid discussing your accident with the other driver or their insurance carrier.
You should only talk about your accident with your injury lawyer.
To win compensation for your injuries, you must prove that the other driver was at fault.
Proving Fault In Motorcycle Accident Claims
There are a lot of steps involved in winning your personal injury claim.
The first step is proving negligence.
To collect money to cover your motorcycle accident injuries and other losses, you will need to prove that the other driver was negligent.
Acts of negligence in your crash may include:
- Speeding
- Driving distracted
- Running a stop sign or a stoplight
- Unsafe merging
- Failing to yield
- Driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol
- Failing to check blind spots for motorcyclists
In addition to proving that the other party was negligent, you also have to prove that their negligence directly led to the crash and your injuries.
If your insurance company or a judge finds you to be 50% or more at fault for your accident, you may not be able to recover any compensation for your injuries.
Having a motorcycle accident lawyer is important to help you prove fault so that you will be able to collect compensation for your damages due to the crash.
Special Damages in Motorcycle Cases
There are two common types of damages available in a motorcycle injury claim: special damages and general damages.
They are also referred to as economic and non-economic damages.
Special damages, or economic damages, financially compensate a motorcycle accident victim for out-of-pocket expenses.
These damages can be assigned a specific dollar amount, and typically include:
- Past and future medical costs
- Costs to repair or replace your motorcycle
- Lost wages and loss of earning capacity due to the injuries resulting from your motorcycle crash
- Loss of irreplaceable or priceless items
General Damages in Motorcycle Cases
General damages, or non-economic damages, compensate crash victims for non-monetary losses related to the motorcycle accident.
It’s more difficult to assign a dollar amount to the damages, but they often make up the most significant part of a personal injury claim or lawsuit.
Examples of general damages include:
- Pain and suffering
- Lowered quality of life
- Emotional distress or mental anguish
- Physical impairment
If you lost a loved one in a motorcycle accident you may be able to claim additional damages under the Wrongful Death Statutes, like:
- Loss of love and companionship
- Loss of household and personal services
- Burial expenses
- Funeral expenses
- Grief
Pain and Suffering
Pain and suffering damages often make up a huge chunk of settlements after a motorcycle crash.
Motorcycle riders injured in an accident will experience physical pain and emotional anguish.
Things you used to take for granted, like playing with your kids or grandkids, are now difficult or next to impossible to do.
Your ability to enjoy life is shrunk, and you should be entitled to compensation for your pain and suffering.
Pain and suffering aren’t always easy to grasp.
When someone is negligent and causes a foreseeable injury to another person, that person is entitled to be made whole again.
The injured person often pays a hefty price for this negligence, especially after a motorcycle wreck.
The at-fault party must reimburse the injured person for the harm they caused.
Fair compensation for pain and suffering shifts the burden of payment to the person who caused the pain and emotional anguish.
Lost Wages Or Profits
It is very common to miss time from work because of your injuries if you are able to return at all.
Because of this, you will likely be entitled to compensation for lost wages or lost profits.
If you were making $2,000 per week before the accident and missed a year of work after your crash, you have lost wages in an amount of $104,000.
Medical Expenses
After a motorcycle wreck, it’s common for the rider to sustain bodily injuries that require the assistance of a medical professional.
If you suffer injuries, you need to identify which insurance provider must pay for the treatment.
This is typically left up to your attorney to decide after they have examined the details of your particular situation.
Some automobile insurance policies carry medical payment coverage that can pay medical bills.
If you don’t have medical payment coverage, you may need to resort to private health insurance, Medicare, or Medicaid.
If the accident was caused by another driver, the insurance policy will cover your damages.
Were You Injured in a Motorcycle Accident?
If you suffered severe injuries or lost a loved one in a motorcycle wreck, you may be eligible to file a personal injury claim to seek thousands of dollars of compensation for your damages.
Taking legal action against the liable party can seem intimidating, but having a knowledgeable lawyer by your side can help.
Not only do seasoned personal injury lawyers understand your legal rights, but they know precisely which damages to demand on your behalf and will get you a fair settlement.
Alexander Shunnarah Personal Injury Attorneys represent all 50 states nationwide.
No matter where you are, we’ll fight for you.
Our experienced team of attorneys is knowledgeable about the compensation motorcycle accident victims deserve, and we’ll work hard to get it for you.
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