Sibley Motorcycle Accident Injury Attorneys

When tragedy occurs, motorcycle injury attorneys act as committed defenders for riders. With a focus on motorcycle accidents, they navigate legal challenges to ensure justice and compensation for injured riders.

Tips to Avoid Some of the Most Common Motorcycle Accidents

Many motorcycle accidents are avoidable if the rider is knowledgeable about good riding techniques and safety measures. Here are eight common motorcycle crashes and how they can be prevented.

1. Drinking and Driving

According to the 1981 Hurt Report, the largest study ever conducted on motorcycle accident causation, alcohol is a factor in 50 percent of all bike wrecks. This is obviously preventable.

How to Avoid It: Don’t drink and ride. Alcohol affects skills that are fundamental to riding a motorcycle, such as balance and coordination. Drinking alcohol while riding plays a particularly big role in motorcycle accident deaths.

2. A Car Turns Left in Front of You

This is the most common motorcycle accident. A car doesn't see you or thinks you are going a different speed and turns in front of you at an intersection. Distraction, blind spots, or inattention are often to blame, as most drivers looking for cars only notice the absence of cars, not that there is a motorcycle in the lane.

How to Avoid It: Look for signs that someone may turn in front of you:
- A car is at an intersection waiting to turn.
- There’s a gap in traffic near an intersection, driveway, or parking lot.

In either situation, slow down, cover your brakes, and get ready to take evasive action. Also, consider the following:
- Is the driver clearly able to see you, without any obstructions?
- Is that person actually looking at where they are going?
- Are they looking at you? Can you see their eyes?
- Where are their wheels pointing?

Look at the wheels of the car, not the actual vehicle. Under no circumstances should you “lay the bike down.” Your best chance of survival comes from shedding as much speed as possible before impact, and you’re going to be able to do that best with the bike completely upright, using both brakes. Even if you only have time to lose 10 or 20mph, it could be the difference between going home with bruises and not going home.

3. You Hit Gravel in a Blind Corner

You’re out riding your motorcycle on curvy country roads when you come around a corner and hit a patch of sand or gravel. You lose control of the bike and wreck.

How to Avoid It: Ride at a pace where your reaction time and ability to take action match your range of vision. On winding roads, “Slow In, Fast Out” is a good rule to follow. Enter corners wide to increase your vision and enter at an easy pace. You can pick up the speed on the way out, once you can see all the way through.

4. You Entered a Corner Too Fast

When you are riding your motorcycle and enter a corner too fast, you may realize that you are not going to make the corner as it tightens.

How to Avoid It: Ride only as fast as you can see and use visual clues like telephone poles and signs to judge a road’s direction, even if that road is disappearing over a blind crest. Pay attention to cues from the road where you are going to end up.

If you do find yourself going too fast on a corner, the best approach is to trust the bike and try to ride it out. The bike is likely more capable than you are, so it’s really you that’s not capable of making the corner. Take as much lean out of the bike as possible by hanging off, looking where you want to go, and being as smooth as possible on the controls. Remain calm and try to ride through the corner rather than trying to stop the bike.

5. A Car Changes Lanes into You

While you are riding your bike on a multi-lane road, a car in another lane suddenly swerves into your lane without seeing you. Motorcycles are often in drivers' blind spots and the drivers don't notice them because they are looking for cars.

How to Avoid It: Be aware of where other drivers' blind spots are and stay out of them as much as possible. As the signs on many semis say, "If you can't see my mirrors, I can't see you." If you can't see the driver in their own mirror, they probably can't see you next to their car.

Beware of situations where lane changes become more possible. If highway traffic is slowing down and one lane is moving faster than others, cars are going to try to move into the faster-moving lane and probably won't look to see if there is a motorcycle next to them.

Watch for cues that a car is going to change lanes:
- The car has its turn signals on.
- The car's wheels are turning.
- The car is swerving in its own lane while the driver checks his mirrors.
- The driver’s head is moving around, looking at traffic.

6. A Car Hits You from Behind

You are stopped at an intersection and the car behind you doesn't see you and runs into the back of your motorcycle. If you were in a car, it wouldn't be a huge accident, but on a motorcycle, you might be killed.

How to Avoid It: When you come to an intersection, try to stop to the side rather than in the center of a lane. It is a good idea to flash your brake light rapidly by tapping the brake lever. Also, be prepared to move the bike by keeping the bike in gear and having your right hand on the throttle in case you see that you need to get out of the way. Pay attention to what’s behind you so you can move to avoid the car hitting you from behind if possible.

7. Your Riding Buddies Are Careless

You’ve seen it happen. A group is out for a ride together when one of them stops suddenly. The person riding behind him is too busy daydreaming to notice that he stopped and hits him from behind.

How to Avoid It: Make sure everyone is aware of proper group riding etiquette and knows to ride in a staggered formation. You’d be amazed how many people are unaware of this simple technique. Riding in staggered formation increases vision and moves bikes out of line with each other so a temporary lapse in attention won't cause a wreck.

8. You Locked Up the Front Brake

You have to stop quickly due to traffic and you grab the front brake in a panic.

How to Avoid It: Learn to use your front brake. It might seem counterintuitive, but the front brake is the most powerful and difficult-to-master component on your motorcycle. It can change your speed much quicker than your engine.

If you’re learning to ride, haven't mastered this skill, or bought a new bike and need to become familiar with it, find a big, empty parking lot and start practicing. From a set speed (say 30mph), start braking at a certain mark, then repeat over and over until you’ve reduced your braking distance as much as possible. You should be able to feel the tire on the very edge of locking up and the rear wheel lifting off the ground. Then go and practice at higher and higher speeds until you can use the maximum braking ability of your motorcycle reliably and safely.

Emotional Trauma after a Motorcycle Accident

Motorcyclists are at risk for myriad injuries in the event of a motorcycle accident. This can range from soft tissue injuries and fractures to spinal cord and head injuries. In some cases – especially in cases of severe injuries – motorcyclists who were involved in an accident might suffer from emotional trauma in addition to their physical ailments. In such cases, Iowa motorcyclists pursuing a liability claim or lawsuit against a negligent driver can factor this emotional distress into the claim.

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) may develop following a traumatic event like a motorcycle accident. Once known as a condition that soldiers exposed to the battlefield might develop – and previously referred to as shellshock – the condition might manifest for a variety of reasons. According to the National Institutes of Mental Health (NIMH), PTSD symptoms are grouped into three categories:
- Re-experiencing: flashbacks, nightmares, and thoughts about the incident;
- Avoidance: avoiding certain events or actions, as well as emotional numbness, guilt and depression, difficulty remembering the event, and more; and
- Hyperarousal: easily startled, edginess, trouble sleeping, and intense episodes of anger.

Head Injuries and Depression

Head injuries are a major concern for motorcyclists in the event of an accident. That’s why most states have implanted motorcycle helmet laws (Iowa repealed its motorcycle helmet laws) and advocacy and safety groups recommend their use by all operators and passengers.

Various researchers have studied the association between traumatic brain injury (TBI) and depression. One study published in 2004 in the Archives of General Psychiatry found that one-third of study participants developed major depressive disorder within the first year after sustaining a TBI. The researchers concluded, “Major depressive disorder is a frequent complication of TBI…” Another study published in 2002 in the Journal of Nursing Scholarship found, “Chronic stress was significantly and positively related to post-TBI depression.” This stress may be related to the recovery process and other mitigating factors after a serious injury.

Emotional Trauma in Personal Injury Cases

Your motorcycle accident claim will account for medical expenses related to physical injuries like head injuries, spinal cord injuries, and more. It may also account for emotional trauma after the accident.

Emotional trauma that may be included in the monetary damages awarded you after an Iowa motorcycle accident includes:
- Mental health assessment;
- Counseling;
- Treatment; and
- Mental anguish.

Keep in mind, though, that failure to wear a helmet might reduce your settlement if you suffered head injuries. The insurance company or defendant might argue helmet use may have prevented or reduced the severity of the injury. Talk to your attorney about how your helmet use may factor into your claim and whether it might have any bearing on emotional or noneconomic damages you might recover.

Recovering Compensation for Disfiguring Injuries in Motorcycle Accidents

Riding a motorcycle is a risky business. With ever-increasing traffic jamming our highways and frustrated commuters behind the wheel, a motorcyclist must learn to drive defensively and anticipate and react to the poor or aggressive driving of other motorists.

According to the Iowa Department of Public Safety, motorcycle accidents accounted for only 2 percent of all road accidents in 2012, yet they resulted in 12 percent of serious, injury-related accidents and 14 percent of all accident fatalities. The best way to beat these statistics is to follow the rules of the road and wear a helmet. However, even the most cautious riders have accidents, and if you suffered disfiguring injuries in a motorcycle accident, you may pursue compensation for damages.

Check Your Insurance Policy and Consider a Third-Party Liability Claim

It is a good policy to keep complete coverage on your bike; it is a dangerous risk not to have yourself properly insured. Not all accidents involve other vehicles, and you need to be able to cover medical and living expenses while you recuperate. If you have been seriously injured or disfigured due to weather conditions or unintentional driver error, you are entitled to collect money from the insurance company if you have purchased the right type of motorcycle insurance coverage. Additionally, you may file a third-party claim against another driver's liability insurance if the other driver caused your accident.

Hire an Attorney Immediately

It is important to talk to an attorney as soon as possible after the accident. If you were in a serious accident, never settle with an insurance company until you obtain professional legal advice.

Insurance companies have lawyers and experts on their staff, and it is in their best interest to offer a quick settlement. This, however, is not usually in the victim’s best interest. Even if the settlement sounds fair, you are not in the physical or emotional condition to make proper judgments on these kinds of decisions. A reputable attorney will represent you, so all you have to worry about is getting better.

Types of Compensation for Which You May Be Eligible

Victims of motorcycle accidents who suffered serious or disfiguring injuries may be entitled to compensation for their medical bills, hospitalization and long-term care, hiring of caregivers, physical therapy, and any loss of earnings. Depending on the severity of the injury, these expenses not only may compensate for current damages but also future ones.

In addition, an accident victim may be entitled to pain and suffering and emotional distress related to the disfiguring injuries. In the case of extreme scarring or amputation of a limb, a person may need both emotional and physical therapy to help heal the wounds. There also could be long-term complications and the possibility of future issues that need to be addressed when discussing compensation.

Consulting a Motorcycle Accident Attorney

The toll from severe motorcycle injuries can encompass substantial medical expenses and long-term care costs for victims and their families. Lost wages may compound matters, especially if employment becomes unrealistic for an extended period. Getting help from a motorcycle accident attorney allows the pursuit of comprehensive compensation, from financial damages and emotional distress such as pain and suffering.

Victims of these accidents should seek consultation with a motorcycle accident attorney, as damages may be extensive and recovery of compensation is important.

At Walker, Billingsley & Bair, our motorcycle accident attorneys can represent you in dealings with your insurance company, or when filing a personal injury claim. Set up your consultation now by calling 641-792-3595.