Every year, Denver holds the annual Colorado Motorcycle Expo. For many people, a motorcycle is not just a mode of transportation. It is a part of their livelihood. With thousands lining the expo to see the vintage and custom bikes, you can see the passion that comes from the restoration and riding of these motorcycles.
With great freedom can come greater danger. Unlike an automobile, a motorcycle doesn’t protect you in a box of metal during a crash. There are no airbags that deploy during a head-on collision when on a motorcycle. Accidents involving motorcycles are often more fatal than a motor vehicle accident on its own.
Firouzbakht Law Firm knows how devastating motorcycle crashes can be, leaving victims with financial losses and other injuries. When you need to file a personal injury claim, we are your Denver motorcycle accident lawyer.. Our goal is to gain fair compensation for your recovery.
Riding a motorcycle on the road already presents more hazards for the rider than riding in a passenger vehicle. Some of the main causes of motorcycle accidents are:
Motorcycle accident attorneys can help you get compensation for damages when you have sustained an injury from one of the above or other scenarios. Motorcycle accidents cause severe injuries, which make it imperative for riders to seek compensation when they have been injured and must seek medical treatment.
Even using the best safety gear on a motorcycle, in an accident, catastrophic injuries can occur.. Most of the injuries that may be sustained require a long recovery process. Here are the common motorcycle accident injuries that motorcycle riders sustain when involved in an accident:
Brain Injury and Head Trauma – Even with a helmet on, if a motorcyclist strikes their head on the pavement or against something hard during a collision, they could suffer serious brain damage. Even if the injury is not fatal, like a traumatic brain injury, it could cause long-term and permanent disabilities.
Spinal Cord Injuries – The head, neck, and back are often vulnerable areas in an accident. Your body is not protected on a motorcycle like it is in a vehicle. When thrown from a motorcycle, fractures of the spine could result in total or partial paralysis. Victims who suffer from such injuries may never recover fully.
Road Rash – Even though the idea of scrapes and cuts doesn’t seem like a big deal, road rash can be fatal. While the body and the pavement rubbing cause road rash, the removal of the layers of skin can leave the rider exposed to infection if not cared for properly. The rider is also often left with asphalt or other debris in the wound, which can be a painful process to endure. Road rash can leave bikers in physical pain, chronic pain, and dependant on medications to heal.
Bone Injuries or a Loss of Limbs– Fractures and breaks are common in accidents – motorcycle or automobile. These often require surgery and rehabilitation depending on where the injury is and the severity of the injury. In injuries that are too severe, there may be amputation. Insurance carriers do not always cover physical therapy costs, so personal injury lawsuits often include compensation for these visits.
Facial Injuries – The face is full of small bones and vulnerable tissues. Not all riders feel the need to protect themselves completely. This can cause the loss of eyes, sight, and other facial fractures, which can cause disfigurement or are hard to fix. Helmets can help mitigate the risk of these types of injuries.
Internal Bleeding and Internal Organ Damage – Internal bleeding is always something to be aware of in these types of accidents. While not immediately apparent at times, excessive trauma from a motorcycle accident can create catastrophic injury – only inside the body.
Victims of motorcycle wrecks often find themselves in need of help due to motorcycle injuries taking their quality of life. Fatal injuries should still be addressed and an experienced attorney can pursue a wrongful death claim on behalf of the family.. Sadly, many motorcycle accident claims result in claims for motorcycle deaths. Wrongful death claims in Colorado should be handled by a motorcycle crash attorney so that the liability in the case can be established and the negligent driver brought to justice.
There are three primary kinds of damages that a Denver personal injury attorney will pursue for injured motorcyclists. These damages are economic, non-economic, and punitive. The legal team does not technically pursue punitive damages. A jury will often award punitive damages for an egregious offender as a means of punishment in civil court.
Economic Damages – Economic damages are losses that have a quantifiable amount that can be proven to the court. These are hospital bills, other medical bills, physical therapy, lost wages, property damage, motorcycle repair, and other tangible and provable monetary amounts. Payments may also be required to compensate for future lost wages due to the inability to work for weeks or months.
Non-Economic Damages – Non-economic damages are not as easily assigned a monetary amount. The amount requested for non-economic loss is often negotiated with the insurance company because they are not necessarily provable. Many times it comes down to witness testimony about the difficult time the victim and their family are having to gain this type of financial recovery. These include pain and suffering, emotional anguish, loss of consortium, loss of enjoyment of life, loss of quality, loss of companionship (wrongful death claims), and other types of damages resulting from the accident's injuries.
Another tactic used in motorcycle accident injury claims is the settlement process. Denver experienced motorcycle accident lawyers can make sure that when the insurance company offers you a settlement - it is a fair settlement..
Motorcycle accident settlements are often offered by an insurance company on behalf of the defendant who knows they are at fault. The amount offered will depend on the economic damages presented to the court. They will likely try to ignore the non-economic damages at first. They do not look at the details or the factors that have resulted from the injuries, they only want to see doctor notes. They have a maximum amount of coverage that was purchased with the defendant's policy, their goal is to settle for as little as possible.
When Firouzbakht Law Firm files your motorcycle accident claims, we already know how much the insurance company can payout and will fight for your recovery.
Colorado motorcycle laws require motorcycle riders to obey the same traffic laws that other vehicles follow on the roadways. Even though Colorado recognizes that motorcycle rules vary from state-to-state, they do expect that those from out-of-state who come to Colorado know the laws before driving a motorcycle on the roadway.
Colorado law and CDOT (Colorado Department of Transportation) also have a minimum safety standard that all motorcycle riders are required to follow if they wish to operate their motorcycle on the road. Although not required, the state does look kindly to those who take some type of motorcycle training. It also makes getting the motorcycle endorsement on your license easier.
Motorcycle helmets are not legally required for those motorcycle operators who are 18 years of age and older. The state does express that wearing one can greatly reduce the risk of head injury in the event of an accident. The state requires that anyone under 18 wear a helmet if they are on a motorcycle. The helmets must be DOT-approved to be admissible.
Some form of eye protection is required in Colorado, regardless of age. The recommended eye protection is the visor of a DOT-approved helmet, but also admissible are goggles, safety glasses, plastic glasses, and anything else that can surround the eye. Windshields on a motorcycle are not considered to be adequate for eye protection.
All motorcycles that will have passengers must have footrests. The passengers are also required to utilize these footrests. Passengers are also required to ride in the seat behind the driver of the motorcycle or sidecar. There is no riding in front of the driver permissible in Colorado.
As a team of legal experts in Denver, our focus is helping motorcycle crash victims and the lives negatively impacted by an accident find the money to pay for their growing bills. Traffic accidents that involve an oncoming motorcycle can be especially catastrophic, even producing fatalities. The at-fault driver has to be held responsible for their role in the circumstances that occurred.
Even though the vast majority of motorcyclist injuries cause emotional pain, the claims process shouldn't cause additional stress. Firouzbakht Law Firm is skilled in the insurance requirements and makes every effort to do an investigation and obtain police reports to ensure that every base is covered.
If you or a loved one have been the victim of a motorcycle accident and need an experienced Denver motorcycle accident lawyer, Firouzbakht Law Firm has the legal team that is right for your case. Our lawyers work on a contingency fee basis, meaning that we do not get paid if we lose your case. Are you interested in a free consultation and start the legal process?
Contact us through our online form, or give us a call in our offices. Let us provide the answers to the questions you might have about motorcycle accident laws and the way we recover damages for the common injuries motorcyclists sustain in an accident. We handle the insurance provider of the at-fault parties, providing you with the outcome you desire.
