Riding a motorcycle can be an enjoyable experience, especially in the scenic city of Duluth, but a negligent driver could put an unpleasant end to your ride.
Motorcyclists are more vulnerable than people in cars due to the design of the motorcycle and the absence of safety features like seatbelts or airbags. As a result, most bikers drive carefully and defensively—but unfortunately, some vehicle drivers may not be so conscientious.
After a motorcycle accident, you may have significant expenses for your medical care. Bikers often suffer severe injuries, such as broken bones, dislocations, internal injuries, head or traumatic brain injuries, eye or face injuries, soft tissue injuries, and more.
While you’re recovering from these painful injuries, you may not be able to work, leading to even more financial stress in addition to your physical pain.
How Can a Duluth Motorcycle Accident Attorney Help After a Bike Crash?
Depending on the extent of your injuries, you could have months of recuperation ahead of you, as well as the possibility of permanent disabilities or disfigurement. The responsibility for covering these and other associated losses lies with the at-fault driver’s insurance company.
You might think it will be as simple as filing a claim, but unfortunately, the insurance adjuster may not be inclined to settle your claim for its full worth. There are two common issues we frequently see in these cases:
- The insurance company denies the claim. Most often, the reason is that the insurance adjuster believes you were at fault for some reason. Fault can be challenging to establish for several reasons, which we’ll discuss in the next section. There could also be an issue if the insurance adjuster thinks the accident is not covered due to a clause or exclusion in the policy.
- The insurance company quickly makes you an offer. Why is that an issue? Frequently, the insurance company’s initial offer is for much less than your claim is worth. The reason this is such a problem is that most people aren’t experts on insurance and don’t know what amount their settlement should be. We often talk to clients who are only considering some of their damages or who may have future costs as well. When the insurance adjuster makes an offer after an accident—especially if they do so very quickly—there is a good chance the offer won’t cover everything. The adjuster hopes the injured party will accept it anyway. Then, when the injured person realizes they have more damages, they will have already signed paperwork releasing the insurance company from any further responsibility in the accident.
A dedicated motorcycle accident attorney can help by safeguarding your legal rights in both of these situations. If the insurance adjuster denies your claim due to a disagreement about fault or any other reason, we will fight to demonstrate that you didn’t cause the accident, or we’ll work to refute other assertions.
Have you already received an offer from the insurance company? We strongly encourage you to speak with a lawyer before making a decision—even if it seems like a good offer.
If it covers everything, you can go ahead and accept it, but if there are unaddressed damages or future medical costs, we’ll help you determine what your claim is really worth. Then, we can negotiate with the insurance company to get you the settlement you need to recover.
Why Does the Other Driver or the Insurance Company Think You’re at Fault?
This can be an infuriating situation. You’re injured, in pain, and facing a mountain of medical bills, and now the driver who hit you says it was your fault. Worse, their insurance company agrees!
There are a number of reasons why motorcyclists are sometimes blamed for accidents that weren’t their fault:
- The driver really thinks it wasn’t their fault. Maybe they don’t have all the information about what happened. Maybe they think they’re a great driver and couldn’t have been wrong. Either way, they believe you caused the accident.
- The driver knows they were wrong but doesn’t want their insurance rates to go up.
- Some people have the misconception that motorcyclists are more prone to risky or reckless behavior. A recent study found that motor vehicle drivers are actually more likely than motorcycle riders to engage in high-risk behaviors like driving under the influence, texting and driving, and speeding. However, stereotypical ideas about bikers persist for many people—including drivers and insurance adjusters.
- The insurance company adjuster believes the other driver’s version of what happened because it gives the adjuster an excuse to deny your claim. If you were at fault, they don’t have to pay anything, and one crucial aspect of the adjuster’s job is to reduce costs for the insurance company.
- The driver admits they were at fault, but the insurance company still tries to shift the blame onto you. Yes, they can do that. Georgia uses modified comparative negligence statutes, which permit parties to share fault in a personal injury situation like an accident. Although one party can be 100 percent at fault, it’s also possible for each party to have some portion of responsibility.
What if You Are at Fault or Partly at Fault?
Under modified comparative negligence, you can still collect damages from the other party as long as you are less than 50 percent responsible for the accident. But there is a catch—you’ll lose your percentage of fault from your final damages.
For example, if you were 20 percent at fault and had $20,000 in damages, you would only receive $16,000.
In some ways, this system is beneficial to anyone who has a small amount of fault in an accident. Unlike the pure contributory negligence system used in some states, modified comparative negligence doesn’t completely bar you from recovery because you were, for instance, 5 percent to blame for your injuries.
If your percentage of responsibility is low, you will still collect most of your damages and will only be responsible for your share of culpability. The downside is that the insurance company adjuster knows all about modified comparative negligence and may use it to unfairly reduce your settlement.
It’s in the adjuster’s best interest to claim that you were at fault, even if the evidence is minimal, for several reasons:
- Some injured people will accept that they were at fault or assume they can’t prove otherwise and will not fight the insurance company. When this happens, the insurance company pays nothing and never has to prove the injured party did anything wrong.
- Even if the injured person denies fault, there is a good chance the insurance company will still save money. If they can make an argument that you were at least 50 percent at fault, they pay nothing. There is no need to prove you were 100 percent at fault, only 50 percent or more.
- If the evidence against you is weak, the insurance company can still argue that you were 10 or 20 percent at fault, and they can reduce what they pay by that amount.
It’s important to understand that in most motorcycle accident cases, the insurance company doesn’t have to go to court to argue their case. Usually, they will negotiate with the other driver’s insurance company until both companies agree on the percentage of fault and who will pay what.
This scenario is most likely to happen if you don’t have a lawyer. Your insurance company will, of course, argue that you weren’t to blame because they don’t want to pay, either; however, they may be more willing to compromise if the other driver’s insurance company argues you have some percentage of fault below 50 percent.
For instance, if your insurance company agrees you were 40 percent to blame, they pay nothing—and you lose 40 percent of your damages.
If you have an experienced motorcycle accident attorney on your side, we will fight to show that you had little or no fault in the accident. Our investigators will collect as much evidence as possible, from witness testimony to photo or video evidence, to show how the vehicle driver was at fault.
Once the other driver’s insurance adjuster understands how strong our case is and knows that we’re just as knowledgeable about personal injury law as they are, they will most likely agree to a fair settlement. In the unlikely situation that they don’t, we’re prepared to argue your case at trial—but the majority of cases are settled out of court.
One final note about fault: Never speculate about fault after an accident. We’ve met more than a few people who were convinced they caused an accident because they made a minor mistake that had no bearing on the crash.
You should answer the responding officer’s questions honestly, but there is no need to state who you think caused the accident or volunteer any information you weren’t asked about. If you believe you might have been partly at fault, please speak with a lawyer to learn more about your case.
How Can You Find a Professional Motorcycle Accident Law Firm in Duluth?
If you or a loved one have been hurt in a motorcycle accident, please contact the CEO Lawyer Personal Injury Law Firm for a free consultation. There is no obligation, and if we take your case, you won’t pay anything until we win or settle it.
Attorney Ali Awad founded the CEO Lawyer Personal Injury Law Firm and turned it into one of the fastest-growing personal injury law firms in the country. With more than twenty years of combined experience, he and his team have recovered millions of dollars for injured people and their families.
In his spare time, he likes to post entertaining yet educational videos about legal topics on social media. To work with this expert legal team, call (470) 323-8779 today.
