Bicycle accidents happen every day on the streets of Riverside, often resulting in serious injuries or, tragically, fatalities. When you’re injured in a bicycle accident, the resulting medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering, and emotional trauma should not be your responsibility, but the responsibility of the at-fault motor vehicle driver or pedestrian who caused the crash. Below we’ll review what a bicycle accident entails, look at some common injuries that occur, and cover the types of economic and non-economic damages that may be recoverable via a personal injury civil lawsuit.
A bike ride can be a great source of aerobic exercise or a leisurely activity enjoyed by a family. But it shouldn’t turn into an unfortunate experience that leaves you injured because of someone else’s negligence.
A bicycle accident can involve any incident where a bicyclist is assaulted, struck, or injured by someone else. While cars most often cause bicycle accidents, there are various scenarios that can leave you crashing or colliding into something or somebody.
Bicyclists may be struck by joggers, dog walkers, or motor vehicles. Additionally, road design flaws or potholes can cause a bicycle crash without much warning, causing serious injuries.
A bike accident can entail a collision with a solid structure, or an encounter with a pedestrian in a crosswalk. Regardless of the severity of the accident, you have a right to seek financial compensation for any injuries you’ve sustained as a result of someone else’s negligence (whether that be an individual or an entity).
Attempting to collect as much evidence as possible at the accident scene is recommended.
If you are not seriously injured, try to take some pictures of the aftermath of the accident, including the following:
Call 911 if you experience an injury, and be sure to undergo a thorough medical examination. This will provide a timeline and a record of the accident, as well as the resulting injuries – two factors that can be helpful when pursuing a personal injury claim.
Our experienced attorneys can help you pursue a financial award for your personal injury case. Contact us online or by phone for a free consultation today.
After you’ve been seen by a physician, contacting an experienced Riverside bicycle accident attorney at Dordulian Law Group (DLG) should be your next step. We’ll fight to protect your rights under the law and recover a maximum damages award for your injuries – physical and psychological.
If someone else’s negligence, carelessness, or simple human error clearly caused your bicycle accident and injuries, you may file a personal injury civil claim seeking to recover financial damages. When you sue after a bicycle accident, you have the ability to name anyone or anything that was involved (e.g. an at-fault truck driver or road design defects).
If the bicycle accident was a hit-and-run, it could be more difficult to assign fault than if the driver remained at the scene of the crash. However, police can work off of eyewitness statements and acquire security camera footage from local residences, businesses, and witnesses who might have recorded the accident using their phones. Additionally, at DLG we dispatch our Chief Investigator, former LAPD detective Moses Castillo, on every bicycle accident case. Castillo has decades of experience investigating major car accident and bike accident cases with the LAPD’s elite Central Traffic Division. He will investigate your case and uncover any evidence that might help your claim.
California is a comparative fault state, which means that even if you played a role in the bike accident that caused your injuries, you could still be eligible to recover some compensation. A percentage of fault is assigned to the defendant and the plaintiff in most bicycle accident cases. The award is then reduced based on the percentage placed on the plaintiff, so long as it is less than 100%.
Many bicyclists who experience injuries are under the impression that they don’t have a valid claim. But if you’ve been injured in a Riverside bike accident, the experienced legal team at DLG can help you determine whether or not you have a claim, and how much that claim is approximately worth in terms of an ultimate damages award.
Some of the injuries commonly suffered in Riverside bicycle accidents include:
Schedule an appointment online for a free consultation today, or call us directly to speak to our top-rated, expert car accident attorneys.
Bicycle accidents are a serious issue – both in California and throughout the country. There are over 500,000 bicycle injuries recorded every year in the U.S. The state of California holds the dubious distinction of being number one in the country for annual bicycle accident fatalities. But beyond injuries, bicycle accident fatalities are also known to occur.
If you lost a loved one in a bicycle accident, you could be eligible to file a wrongful death lawsuit seeking to recover funeral expenses, lost income, loss of support, and more. Contact a DLG wrongful death attorney as soon as possible to ensure your rights are preserved.
Almost 35% of all bicycle accidents that cause fatalities involve drunk drivers. And in California, bicyclists can be on the roads throughout the year. Additionally, more and more people are choosing to bike to and from work to avoid traffic congestion. Accordingly, bicyclists can encounter unsafe and unseen situations whenever heading out for a bike ride.
Assigning an exact number to a bicycle accident claim can be difficult, as each one is different from the next. However, there are a variety of factors that go into determining the value of such a claim, including your percentage of fault, if the defendant acted maliciously, and if you are no longer able to earn a living through the type of work you did prior to the bike accident.
A typical Riverside bicycle accident claim might include the following damages:
In most personal injury cases, there are four elements that must be present and proven in order for the claim to succeed. If any of these elements are missing from your Riverside bicycle accident claim, it might be more difficult to prove the case.
The first of these elements is that a duty of care was owed to the plaintiff. Drivers owe others sharing the road a duty to drive safely at all times. If a driver caused a bicycle accident, the driver likely violated that duty of care.
The second element that must be proven is that the duty of care owed to the plaintiff was violated. The simple fact that the accident occurred should be enough to prove the claim, but providing plenty of visual evidence and eyewitness statements (like mentioned above) can ensure that the case does not encounter any hurdles.
The third element that must be proven is that the plaintiff was injured in the bicycle accident (as opposed to another incident). For this reason alone, it’s advisable to always seek medical attention following a bicycle accident.
The fourth and final element that must be present is proof that the accident and injuries were caused by the defendant named in the lawsuit (as opposed to someone else who may have caused them).
With the experienced Bicycle Accident Division attorneys standing by at DLG, we can prepare your case based on our past successes and develop a winning legal strategy that will help prove your claim and ultimately recover a maximum financial damages award.
There is a two-year statute of limitations – essentially a deadline – under which most personal injury lawsuits must be filed. This means that you have two years from the date the accident occurred to file a claim, according to California Civil Code of Procedure section 335.1.
If the bicycle accident was caused by someone or something related to a government entity in the state, California Government Code section 911.2 allows you six months from the date of the accident to file a claim.
Statutes of limitations can be difficult to discern without legal training, and unfortunately many bicycle accident victims wait too long to file a claim. Don’t let this happen after sustaining a bicycle accident injury. Contact DLG today for a free consultation. We’ll guide you through the legal process, answering any questions you have along the way, and provide a general estimate for how much your claim may be worth.
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Unfortunately, if you are hoping that a health insurance policy will cover any injuries sustained in a Riverside bicycle accident, that hope won’t likely go very far. Between the high deductibles that need to be met and the cost of any serious medical care or rehabilitation, it’s easy to accumulate significant debt from medical expenses.
Rather than relying on an insurance company, it is in your best interest to speak with DLG and our Riverside bicycle accident lawyers about your case as soon as possible.
At DLG, we have decades of experience helping all types of personal injury victims recover the maximum compensation they deserve. For a bicycle accident claim, you need an experienced and dedicated team to handle the complexities and ensure you aren’t taken advantage of by the at-fault party.
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Do you have a case? Let's find out.
Do you have a case? Let's find out.
Sam Dordulian founded DLG after serving as a Deputy District Attorney for Los Angeles County. Today, he helps injured victims pick up the pieces and make a full recovery after an untimely accident. With his experience of over 100 jury trial victories, Dordulian prepares every case for trial, ensuring that a lowball settlement offer from a defendant is never accepted.
Instead, if the person or entity responsible for your bicycle accident refuses to settle for a maximum damages award, we take the case to trial and prove it before a jury. With Dordulian’s courtroom experience, you can rest easy knowing that your bicycle accident case is in good hands. We only accept settlements that are in your best interest, offering you complete coverage for any future medical care or lost wages.
Contact us online or by phone in Riverside at 951-336-0011 to schedule a free consultation with a member of our Bicycle Accident Division team today. Our experienced firm has a 98% success rate and more than 40 years of combined experience representing clients injured in both bicycle accidents and all other types of personal injury claims. We’re here to help you get back on your feet and make a complete recovery – physically, emotionally, and financially.
We have secured more than $200 million in settlements and verdicts throughout the years for injured clients like you. Put your trust in a proven firm like DLG that will vehemently fight for your right to maximum compensation. For a Riverside bicycle accident injury, the best call you can make is to D-L-G.