Articles Posted in Bicycle Accidents

Statistics show that, in 2018, more than 850 people riding bicycles were killed in collisions with motor vehicles, a figure higher than any year in the previous 10 years. In 2015, there were more than 460,000 bicycle-related injuries, according to the Centers for Disease Control. Clearly, the danger bicyclists face on the road is a problem that is trending in the wrong direction. When you are hurt because a car, truck, or SUV hit your bicycle, you are almost certain to be the one who bears the brunt of the harm. As your injuries may likely be very substantial, getting everything you deserve in a lawsuit can be critical, so be sure to rely on an experienced San Mateo bicycle accident attorney to handle your case.

Over the previous decade, more than 30,000 accidents involving a bicycle and a motor vehicle have taken place just in the Bay Area. One very recent accident from outside the Bay Area has once again put bicycle safety in the spotlight.

Shawn Bradley, who played for 12 years in the National Basketball Association, suffered a catastrophic accident just one block from his home in southern Utah. As Bradley bicycled past a parked car, a driver hit him. That sent his bicycle into the parked vehicle, flipping him into the air and onto his back on the ground, according to a SI.com report.

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There is an unfortunate stereotype that says that, whenever there is a court case that involves a seemingly minor accident and a very large award of damages from a jury, the verdict was a result of “slick” plaintiffs’ lawyers, disingenuous plaintiffs’ doctors, and a gullible jury. As is the case in most walks of life, though, assumptions, generalizations, and stereotypes are often wrong.

In reality, there are a lot of situations in which even accidents devoid of high speeds or large vehicles still inflict permanent and life-changing injuries. If you are injured by someone else’s negligence, and that injury leaves you with hundreds of thousands of dollars of medical bills, your bill collectors are not going to ask how fast the other vehicle was going. Whether the vehicle that hit you was going 5 or 105, if the other person was at fault, you are entitled to receive a sum of compensation that fully reflects the totality of the harm that you’ve suffered. To make certain that you’re getting that level of compensation, be sure to retain a skilled San Mateo injury attorney.

In law school, students learn about someone called an “eggshell victim” or “eggshell plaintiff.” This refers to a situation in which the injured person has suffered more severe or extensive injuries than an “average” person might have suffered under the same circumstances. A Sacramento County case recently reported by the Sacramento Bee is a good example. A married couple in their mid 60s were out for a tandem bicycle ride on a bike path in Folsom when they approached two pedestrians from the rear. The husband signaled to the pedestrians with his bicycle bell. After initially stepping to the right, the female pedestrian moved quickly back to the left. The bicycle hit the female pedestrian and crashed on the trail.

Federal statistics show that more than 780 bicyclists lost their lives in crashes with cars, trucks or SUVs in 2017. In addition to those 780+ deaths, hundreds of thousands were injured. In many of these accidents, the driver of the car/truck/SUV is solely to blame. The driver may have been speeding, inattentive, distracted, intoxicated or many other things.

Sometimes, though, the true cause for an accident is more complex. Perhaps a traffic signal malfunctioned. Perhaps the intersection contained severely obscured sight lines or maybe there were other design flaws that played a role in the crash. When that happens, you, as the injured bicyclist, may be entitled to recover significant compensation, not only from the driver, but also from the governmental entity responsible for the unsafe road area where your crash took place. To make sure that you are getting a full and fair recovery that holds accountable all those responsible, be sure that you have a knowledgeable San Mateo bicycle accident attorney on your side.

A non-fatal, though nevertheless tragic, accident from Santa Clara County is an example of this kind of incident. As San Jose Inside reported, two boys – a 6-year-old on a scooter and a 13-year-old on a bicycle – were hit by an SUV as the boys crossed a street to go watch a 4th of July fireworks show. The 6-year-old was thrown some 30 feet through the air and suffered several fractures, including compound ones. The 13-year-old fared much worse, being dragged by the SUV for 30+ feet and suffering multiple seizures. The accident also inflicted a severe traumatic brain injury on the boy that, according to the family’s attorney, would “require special medical care and educational support for the rest of his life,” according to San Jose Inside.

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When you are injured in a bicycle accident that takes place on public property, there may be multiple ways to utilize the legal system. For example, if your accident occurred in a construction area on a public road, you may have a viable case against the government responsible for the road, the construction company doing the work and any other entities directly involved in the job. For reliable advice about whom you should pursue for compensation, be sure to rely on an experienced San Mateo injury attorney who has the experience and skill to get you the positive result you deserve.

S.D. was a man injured in a single-vehicle bicycle accident. According to an NBC 7 report, he was bicycling to work one December morning in 2017, traveling down the southbound bicycle lane of a street in San Diego. That same morning, construction crews were digging several large trenches as part of excavation work they were performing. The bicyclist hit a two-foot-wide ditch in the bicycle lane and the impact threw him from his cycle. When he landed, his head struck a big pile of dirt and rock, which caused the man to suffer injuries.

Those injuries were life-changing. The bicyclist suffered a cervical spine injury that left him with permanent quadriplegia. In other words, this previously active person would spend the rest of his life in a wheelchair.

Bicyclists have certain obligations when they take to the roads. They are required to observe the rules of the road, for example. Additionally, when a road has a bike lane and a bicyclist is traveling slower than vehicle traffic, the bicyclist is required to use that bike lane. This, of course, presents its own potential issue. What if you, as a bicyclist, are using the bike lane as required by the law and you encounter unsafe conditions in your bike lane, which eventually cause you to crash and suffer injuries? What legal options do you have? Whether you’re hurt in a bicycle accident like this or in a different way, you need answers. Be sure to get them from an experienced San Mateo injury attorney.

As reported by the Fresno Bee, D.B. and M.R. were two bicyclists in Fresno County who found themselves in the position of traveling down a bike lane that became treacherous. They were among seven members of the Fresno Cycling Club out for a Sunday morning ride northeast of the city. As the road dropped into a descent, D.B. and M.R. hit an area where the bike lane was covered in sand and gravel.

M.R., who was in front, was unable to stop before hitting the debris. She wiped out and fell into the northbound travel lane, where a passing vehicle struck her. She suffered a broken arm and dislocated shoulder joint, which eventually necessitated two surgeries. D.B. wiped out, too. He suffered a broken wrist and broken finger, requiring surgery to address the finger injury, the Bee reported.

Any time a loved one is killed due to the negligence of another person, it is heartbreaking. It is also a scary time, as the loss of a loved one may, in addition to causing great emotional damage, also inflict financial hardship upon the loved ones left behind. While no sum of money can replace the loss of loved one, an award of compensation may be both proper and necessary to address the possible financial crisis that a loved one’s sudden death might bring about. To make sure your family gets the compensation that you should, be sure to work with a skilled California injury attorney when it comes to handling your case.

A recent Southern California accident demonstrated how harmful alleged negligence behind the wheel can be. According to a Los Angeles Times report, the accident occurred on a straight and unobstructed stretch of Mulholland Highway in Los Angeles County. A Los Angeles Sheriff’s Deputy was returning from having responded to a call. A he traveled down the straight stretch of highway, he allegedly sent a personal text message to his wife and also typed on the patrol car’s computer. The patrol car eventually strayed into the bicycle lane and crashed into a bicyclist at roughly 48 mph. The bicyclist slammed into the police vehicle’s windshield.

Although he was wearing helmet, the bicyclist was declared dead at the scene. The Los Angeles government and the cyclist’s family reached a settlement in which the family received payment of $12 million.

As a bicyclist, a pedestrian, or another user of public roads or sidewalks, you are entitled to expect that the roads and sidewalks will be maintained in a safe condition and, if a hazard exists, that you will be appropriately warned about it. When that doesn’t happen, and you get hurt as a result, you may be entitled to compensation. Sometimes, this compensation may be achieved through a judgment and, other times, a settlement. A skilled Southern California bicycle accident attorney can provide you with needed representation in your case, including helping you analyze decisions like settling versus going forward with litigation.

A few months ago, the Los Angeles Times reported on one California bicyclist whose serious injures led to a large settlement. Peter was operating his bike along Valley Vista Road in the Sherman Oaks neighborhood of Los Angeles when his accident took place. While pedaling down the road, Peter encountered a large pothole. Unable to avoid the pothole, the bicyclist tried to drive through the hazard. The attempt was unsuccessful, and Peter lost control, with the crash throwing him to the ground. Peter then sued the City of Los Angeles.

In a case like Peter’s, there are certain essential things that you’ll need to accomplish in order to achieve a favorable result. First, you will need to show that the entity you sued was liable for the harm you suffered. In Peter’s case, he presented proof that the pothole was hazardous due to the deficient maintenance of the road and the low lighting in the area of the hole, which made the pothole “a concealed trap” for people like bicyclists, the Times reported.