If you were involved in a motorcycle accident that wasn’t your fault, then you have a good chance of receiving compensation. However, how much compensation you’re entitled to and who pays out varies. Attorneys regularly handle motorcycle accident claims, so work with a motorcycle accident lawyer if you’ve been involved in an incident.
The person responsible for paying for damages in motorcycle accidents is typically the person liable for the accident. More specifically, the liable party’s insurance company will usually pay out after a motorcycle injury claim. An experienced personal injury lawyer will most likely be able to determine liability by investigating your case.
Drivers in a passenger vehicle are often the ones responsible for a car accident involving a motorcyclist. The at-fault driver must then contact their insurance company, and the insurance adjuster typically considers the liability of all parties involved.
If the insurance adjusters working on the case determine the motorcyclist isn’t liable, then the at-fault party will usually be held responsible, and their insurance company will likely offer the motorcyclist a settlement.
Sometimes there’s no other driver involved in a motorcycle accident. Instead, the accident is caused by a defective motorcycle component. Many accident victims may feel they can’t seek compensation if they suffer injuries in an accident caused by a faulty motorcycle part. However, this isn’t strictly true.
You should seek legal advice from qualified personal injury attorneys to see if you can hold the product manufacturer responsible for your injuries. Many attorneys have experience recovering compensation in product liability cases like yours.
You may be able to seek compensation from the product manufacturer if:
Your attorney should let you know if you can pursue damages from the motorcycle manufacturer. They may be happy to represent you and help you build your product liability personal injury case.
Wet and icy roads can lead to more dangerous driving conditions, and dangerous driving conditions may lead to accidents. If you got into a motorcycle accident on wet or icy roads, then you or the other driver may still be held liable for the accident if one of you was driving negligently.
However, poor conditions aren’t always caused by wet or icy roads. Some roads are poorly maintained, or perhaps an obstruction such as an open sewer grate was left on the road.
The government may be responsible for the accident if your accident was caused by a poorly maintained road or an obstruction. You may be able to pursue damages from the government entity responsible for maintaining the road.
If the government may be liable for the accident, then you need to act fast. Most motor accident cases have a statute of limitations of two years. However, if you wish to seek compensation from a government entity, then you only have six months to contact an experienced lawyer and make your motorcycle accident injury claim.
Sometimes a motorcycle crash isn’t the fault of the other driver. If you, the motorcyclist, are liable for the accident, then the other side may file a personal injury lawsuit against you. Your insurance company should pay out if you have the appropriate insurance coverage.
If your accident didn’t involve another driver or unmaintained roads, then you most likely won’t be able to recover compensation. Your health insurance should help you cover your medical bills, and your insurance policy may reimburse you for damage to your vehicle.
According to many reports, the average motorcycle accident settlement in Texas is $200,000. However, motorcycle accident cases vary considerably, and how much you may win could be substantially lower or higher than the average settlement. Below, we’ll go over some of the things motorcycle accident victims may be compensated for.
Reimbursement for the cost of your medical treatment is generally considered one of your economic damages. Economic damages have an exact monetary value.
You may be reimbursed for your medical treatment after a motorcycle accident. This applies whether you sustained minor injuries, such as road rash, or more serious injuries. It’s usually easy for both attorneys and insurance companies to determine how much you can be reimbursed for regarding these medical costs.
You will need to keep copies of your medical bills so the amount you are being reimbursed for can be calculated. Keep copies of your bills, even if your only bill is for a small case of road rash.
Some physical injuries and brain injuries may require ongoing treatment, which can be extremely costly. You may be able to be reimbursed for your future medical treatment. This applies even if treatment for your injuries will go on after you settle your motorcycle accident case.
You may receive a sum that covers the cost of your treatment, even if the treatment must go on for the rest of your life.
You may be compensated for lost wages as part of your economic damages. The injuries you sustained in your accident may leave you unable to work for a substantial period of time while your motorcycle accident case is ongoing. In fact, some people’s injuries are so bad that they’re never able to return to work again.
The lost wages you can recover as part of a motorcycle accident claim include:
During a motorcycle accident case, personal injury lawyers and insurance companies typically use your salary at the time of the accident to calculate your future earning capacity.
Property damage may be one of the economic damages involved in your motorcycle accident claim. You may be reimbursed for the cost of repairing your motorbike.
If your motorcycle is beyond repair, then you may be compensated for how much the bike was worth at the time of the accident.
Pain and suffering damages are non-economic damages. They’re often included as part of a fair settlement, but they’re harder to calculate than economic damages. Your personal injury attorney will typically use a formula to calculate your pain and suffering damages, and pain and suffering damages often cover a wide variety of things.
Some of the things covered include:
The financial cost of mental pain and suffering can’t be calculated the way you can calculate how much it costs to treat common injuries such as broken bones. Therefore, insurance companies may attempt to value your pain and suffering differently from how your attorney has valued it. After all, insurance companies want to pay out as little as possible.
However, when your attorneys use a formula to calculate pain and suffering damages, they’ll usually attempt to negotiate with insurance companies to win you a fair settlement.
Loss of consortium is often included when attorneys calculate pain and suffering non-economic damages. Loss of consortium is not involved in every injury case. It may be relevant to your case if you’re filing on behalf of a loved one who lost their life in a motorcycle accident.
Punitive damages are separate from financial damages and pain and suffering. You may be awarded punitive damages if you can prove the liable driver was grossly negligent or acting with malice. Punitive damages are intended to punish the person liable in motorcycle accident cases.
To calculate how much you could win in punitive damages, your attorney will typically double your compensatory damages. They’ll add this amount to a sum equal to your pain and suffering damages.
Your attorney needs to gather evidence in your favor to build your case. They may obtain a copy of the police report, gather documents related to your financial losses, speak to witnesses, obtain the footage from cameras near the accident scene, and much more.
They’ll generally do everything they can to prove that you weren’t liable for your injuries and to show that the other party was responsible for what happened. They’ll use the case to show why you’re entitled to the amount of compensation you’re claiming.
Your attorney will typically have the expertise to calculate the value of your physical pain, mental anguish, loss of consortium, and other non-financial damages. They generally know how to best apply the formula used when calculating pain and suffering compensation. They’ll also do what they can to fight for you to win the full value of the pain and suffering calculated.
It often takes a lot of negotiation to get the insurance company to pay out a fair sum. If you may be entitled to a particularly high settlement, then negotiations might go on for a considerable amount of time. The company may not want to pay out the full value of the pain and suffering calculated by your attorney.
Rest assured that your attorney has most likely represented people involved in motorcycle accidents numerous times. Therefore, your lawyer will often be familiar with the tactics the insurance company may use to get you to accept a lower offer.
If your attorney believes the insurance company won’t offer you fair compensation, then they may advise you to go to trial. If your lawyer doesn’t believe you have enough evidence to win your case in court, then they may advise you to walk away with a lower settlement to avoid taking a risk and going to trial.
If you can’t settle, and your attorney deems it advisable to go to court, then your lawyer should have plenty of experience to defend you in the courtroom. They should argue your case to the best of their ability and do everything they can to win you a fair sum.
Contact Brian C. Gutierrez at 979-271-5338 for a free consultation if you need a motorcycle accident attorney to work on your case. Our attorneys have worked with the victims of motorcycle accidents before, and we may be able to help you win compensation. Visit our website to read more motorcycle accidents blog posts, too.
There are many factors that are considered when preparing a case for a client injured in a motorcycle accident. Showing that the other driver was at fault is critical to a successful outcome. We can investigate your personal injury claim, look for evidence to support your claim, interview witnesses, and consult with experts, as needed, to prepare your case for settlement negotiations or trial in Bryan or College Station.
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