What Should You Do After A Motorcycle Accident?
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), motorcycles only account for about 5% of all drivers.
However, research has found that motorcycle accidents happen about 27 times more often than passenger car accidents.
And during those accidents, bikers face a high risk of serious injuries or death when they are involved in a motor vehicle collision because they have little to no protection.
If you’re ever involved in a motorcycle crash, you will likely be very overwhelmed.
Not only will you be dealing with your injuries, but you will likely be confused, angry, and upset.
That makes it very hard to think clearly and do what needs to be done after the accident.
You may also be wondering, Should I get a lawyer after a motorcycle accident?
If you are fortunate enough not to be badly injured after a bike crash, there are a few things you should try to complete at the scene of the accident.
In the article below, we will discuss a few of them.
Make Sure Everyone Involved In The Accident Is Okay
The very first thing you need to do after your accident is to make sure that you and anyone else involved, including pedestrians, are okay.
There’s nothing else you need to worry about until you ensure the safety of yourself and those around you.
Call an ambulance if someone is hurt, and make sure everyone else is at a safe distance from the collision and out of the way of traffic.
Once everyone is safe, you can move on to everything else that needs to be done.
Get Necessary Medical Treatment
If you are injured in an accident, you need to seek the necessary medical treatment as soon as you can after the accident.
This is critical to your health and overall well-being.
The only way you can make a complete recovery after a motorcycle wreck is if you seek the medical care you need and follow your doctor’s orders.
But another reason you should seek medical care is that it will help prove your injuries and damage if you have to file a personal injury lawsuit.
Insurance companies and your insurance agent will try to use gaps and delays in your medical treatment to challenge your injuries.
They will claim you weren’t injured in the accident since you didn’t seek immediate care.
Seeing a doctor right away and going to all of your follow-up treatments will help prove your injuries.
Obtain a Police Report
Always call the police after any type of accident.
When you call 911 after a motorcycle accident, a police officer will come to the scene to make a police report.
This police report will be a crucial piece of evidence for your personal injury claim, especially if the liability is contested.
If you’re going to have to take legal action, the accident report prepared by the law enforcement officer will give the opinion of the responding officer, which could prove to be crucial.
Exchange Information With The Other Driver
Unlike car accidents, motorcyclists rarely escape without injury after being involved in a crash.
Sometimes the injuries are severe, like a traumatic brain injury, or minor, like small cuts and abrasions, but there is almost always some type of injury.
Even if you don’t immediately feel pain or other injury symptoms, you still need to get the insurance, vehicle, and personal information from the at-fault driver.
It’s pretty common for someone to feel okay at an accident only to feel the onset of motorcycle accident injuries in the hours, days, or weeks that follow.
Take Pictures Of The Accident Scene
If you’re able to, you need to take as many pictures of the scene of the accident as you can.
Pictures are much more reliable than a first-hand account of the accident.
The pictures you take of the accident scene can provide valuable clues and information that can help the insurance adjuster and investigators determine liability in your accident.
Emergency responders will likely take pictures of the accident as part of the police report, but you can protect yourself by taking additional photos yourself.
Take pictures of the damage to your motorcycle and the damage to the other vehicles involved in the accident.
You should also take photos of any visible physical injuries you’ve suffered at the scene as well.
Focus on taking pictures of anything you think might support an insurance claim or lawsuit, like any hazards that may have led to the accident, poor road conditions, skid marks, and the vehicle’s license plates.
Gather & Preserve All Evidence
In addition to taking photos, you also need to gather and preserve all other forms of evidence.
This is especially important in a motorcycle accident because of the increased chance of a severe injury that increases the importance of receiving fair compensation.
Get the other driver’s information, but also get information from any witnesses, responding officers and emergency personnel, or anyone else who comes on the scene and assists in the accident.
It would help if you also keep your bike in the condition it was in at the time of the wreck in case the other driver disputes fault.
Your bike may contain evidence, or it could be used in accident reconstruction to show who was indeed at fault.
At the very least, take several pictures of the bike that will show the condition it was in.
You need to do as much as you can to ensure you receive a fair settlement.
Don’t Accept an Early Settlement Offer
Once your insurance company investigates your accident, they will know who was at fault.
But, even if the other driver was found at fault, they are still going to want to pay out as little as possible because insurance companies are in the business of making money.
If a claim can’t be outright denied, they will take measures to pay out as little as possible.
One strategy widely used to avoid large payouts is offering an early settlement to accident injury victims.
Your insurance carrier wants to offer you a lump sum of money right away, hoping that you will accept it and the case will be closed.
However, this offer is usually much lower than what you actually deserve.
Instead of accepting the first offer, you should use it as a starting point for negotiations with an experienced personal injury attorney on your side.
Never accept an offer without speaking to an experienced motorcycle accident attorney.
A motorcycle accident lawyer will be able to negotiate a higher settlement for you than you could on your own.
Contact The Mabra Law Firm
As you can see, there are several things you should do in the aftermath of a motorcycle accident.
If you are dealing with one of the common injuries that occur after a motorcycle accident, you need to seek medical care.
Even if you don’t have visible injuries, it’s often still in your best interest to get checked out by a doctor.
The next thing you should do is speak to a qualified personal injury lawyer that can ensure you receive maximum compensation.
If you are in Georgia, The Mabra Law Firm offers free consultations for anyone who has been involved in a motorcycle crash.
Whether you have severe injuries, minor injuries, or you still haven’t noticed any injuries, it is always important to contact an experienced lawyer who can protect your legal rights.
Contact the attorneys at The Mabra Law Firm by filling out the form below to schedule your Free Consultation today.