Tag Archive for: motorcycle accidents

motorcycle injury

The Role of Expert Witnesses in Motorcycle Injury Cases

When you’re involved in a motorcycle accident, life changes in an instant. While occupants of larger passenger vehicles often walk away from motorcycle accidents with little more than property damage, motorcyclists are at risk of serious and fatal injuries. To make it worse, motorcyclists often struggle to get full and fair compensation after a collision. The bias against motorcyclists often means that they are blamed for every accident that happens, even if the other driver is at fault.

That’s one reason your attorney may recommend the use of expert witnesses in your motorcycle injury claim. They can make complex topics easier to understand and strengthen your claim. Ready to start your case? Call McPhillips Shinbaum at 334-262-1911.

Accident Reconstruction Experts

Your attorney may turn to accident reconstruction experts if your crash is complex or involves multiple vehicles. Some collisions are cut and dry—it’s easy to see what happened, what went wrong, and who’s to blame. Outside of those crashes, it gets a little murkier. Figuring out who is to blame is critical if you want to recoup your losses, and an accident reconstruction expert can analyze the evidence to figure out precisely what happened, when, and how fast both parties were going.

If your case goes to court, the accident reconstruction expert may strive to make your accident more understandable to a jury of laypeople. This may involve making diagrams or videos showing how the crash happened in slow motion.

Motorcycle-Specific Expert Witnesses

Motorcycles are complex vehicles that are different from cars in many crucial ways. For this reason, insurance adjusters and others who work in this sphere often misunderstand how they work and how they behave in a collision. These types of errors can lead to huge misunderstandings about how the accident occurred and who was negligent.

A motorcycle expert can provide in-depth insight into how the motorcycle functions, its maneuverability and handling, and how it may act in a crash. This can also be used to explain how you suffered certain injuries.

To go one step further, your attorney may also seek out an expert in protective gear. When a rider isn’t wearing protective gear at the time of a crash, it’s common for the other side to claim that their injuries are entirely due to the lack of safety gear. An expert in this area can look at the facts of the crash and determine whether or not that’s true.

Economic and Vocational Experts

You may suffer profound economic losses as a result of your motorcycle accident. Those who suffer catastrophic or disfiguring injuries may find themselves permanently unable to work. Others aren’t able to continue in their current line of work and are forced to take a pay cut to work in a different position. It’s difficult for the average person to calculate exactly how those losses will affect you. 

An economic expert may be able to provide additional information. They can fully explore the economic consequences of your accident, such as lost wages, lost future career growth opportunities, the loss of health insurance and retirement contributions, and more. When you consider everything you truly lose when you have to give up your career, it is far more than just your annual salary.

Vocational experts are well-versed in how complex injuries can affect an individual’s ability to work. Your attorney may hire them to show how your specific line of work is impacted by your injuries.

Medical Experts

If you suffered complex or multifaceted injuries in the crash, figuring out the care you’ll need moving forward can be a challenge. Doctors and other medical specialists can be a great source of information and commentary on this topic. They may also be able to comment on the injuries you sustained, what likely caused them, and how they line up with other motorcycle injuries they’ve seen in the past.

Injured in a Motorcycle Crash? Call McPhillips Shinbaum Today

The team at McPhillips Shinbaum is committed to helping you fight for the compensation you’re owed after a motorcycle accident. Take the first step in your claim now—just call us at 334-262-1911 or contact us online.

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Not So Easy Rider: Reducing the Risk of Injury for Alabama Motorcyclists

Motorcyclists know that the question is not if you will have an accident while riding a motorcycle but when? Automobile drivers often fail to see motorcyclists in traffic. The Alabama Department of Public Safety reports that nearly 40 percent of motorcycle accidents involve situations where a motor vehicle turns left into the path of a motorcycle.

A recent study conducted by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) found that the most common non-fatal motorcycle injuries involve leg and foot injuries (30%) and head and neck injuries (22%), followed by damage to the upper body (20%) and arms and hands (18%).  Studies also show that when a motorcyclist takes appropriate safety precautions, such as wearing a helmet and bright protective clothing, the likelihood of injury and death is significantly reduced.

These laws and guidelines are important to motorcyclists in Alabama:

  • License required.  Riders must be at least 14 years old. The licensing requirement includes mopeds.
  • Protective gear. Alabama requires riders to wear a helmet, and studies have shown that helmets reduce the risk of death in a crash by more than 40 percent, and the risk of head injuries by nearly 70 percent.  Other protective gear is recommended, such as gloves and brightly colored jackets, to protect your skin from abrasions and to make you more visible to other drivers.
  • Take a safety course.  About one-third of those killed in motorcycle accidents each year have not received formal training.  Taking a refresher course from time to time can be beneficial for veteran riders as well.
  • Know your vehicle.  Choosing the right sized motorcycle and maintaining it in good working condition can prevent injuries.
  • Follow traffic laws.  A motorcycle’s easy maneuverability encourages some motorcyclists to speed, swerve and perform other risky behaviors on the road.  Resist the temptation and drive safely.
  • Don’t drink and drive. In 2010, nearly 30 percent of fatally injured motorcyclists got on their vehicles with blood alcohol content above the legal limit.

Our firm fights for the rights of motorcyclists and their loved ones to obtain the compensation they deserve following an accident.  If you require legal assistance, call our office today.