Baton Rouge Motorcycle Accident Lawyer

Motorcycle accident victims often experience a greater amount of damage after a traffic accident compared to car drivers. This is because they have less protection during the crash, and the only barrier between them and the road is their protective gear. Motorcyclists are far more likely to die after an accident compared to car drivers, which means their economic burden is higher because they are left with severe injuries. If you are a motorcyclist that was not at fault for your motorcycle crash, you can work with a Baton Rouge personal injury lawyer who can stand up for your right to receive a settlement. Contact Murray Law in Baton Rouge today for a free consultation. 

Taking On an Insurance Company After a Motorcycle Wreck in Baton Rouge

Motorcycle riders often get approached by the other party’s insurance company with a reduced settlement offer. Because they don’t know how much they should receive in their personal injury claims, they often accept a small lump sum. A personal injury lawyer can protect you from these types of offers. They do this by:

Accurately Estimating Your Settlement

Your personal injury lawyer will help you estimate your damages using traditional and proven methods. They will investigate your motorcycle accident, review all of your economic and non-economic damages, and calculate how much you are owed. The more severe your injuries the higher your settlement. 

Including Pain and Suffering

Insurance companies typically leave out pain and suffering damages, which are also important. Pain and suffering damages make up a majority of your settlement. These damages are based on your emotional turmoil. For example, any depression, embarrasment, anxiety, shame, PTSD, or other dark emotions are pain and suffering damages. Emotions such as these impact your well-being, which is why they should be taken seriously. Your Baton Rouge motorcycle accident lawyer estimates them using a multiplier based on a number between one to seven. Once a number has been selected, it is multiplied by your economic damages to estimate your total pain and suffering damages. This amount is added to your total damages.  

Advising You to Decline Recorded Statements

You are protected by your personal injury attorney in many ways. The other party’s insurance company may attempt to request a recorded statement and ask you questions. Never agree to a recorded statement cause everything you say can be used to reduce your settlement. When seeking compensation, the insurance company may attempt to argue that your injuries weren’t that serious, using your statement as evidence. Our personal injury attorneys will handle all conversations with the other party so that you don’t have to speak to the other party’ insurer yourself. 

Reminding You to Not Post On Social Media

Our law firm of personal injury attorneys has your best interests at heart and will request that you don’t mention anything about your motorcycle accident on social media. The other party’s insurance company will be paying attention to everything that you do online. Posting about your motorcycle accident, mentioning your activities, and any other information can be used against you. Let your attorneys represent your image to your benefit during your case. Avoid exposing yourself online. 

Don’t accept cash offers from the other party either. Motorcycle crashes are not only life-threatening, but the damages that result from them can permanently make you disabled.

Determining Fault in Motorcycle Accidents

Attorneys are experienced and understand how fault is determined according to traffic and state laws. The other party can be held responsible once your attorney proves how they caused your damages. They do this by performing an investigation by doing the following:

Reviewing Traffic Camera Footage

If your motorcycle accident was caught on camera, your attorney can analyze the footage. Our attorney’s knowledge of traffic laws allows us to pinpoint how the other party broke a state law. 

Subpoenaing the Other Party

Distracted driving is one of the major causes of motorcycle accidents. Your attorney can subpoena the other party’s cellphone company to find out if they were texting while driving. In the State of Louisiana, drivers must use hand-free devices to use their cellphones. 

Requesting the Police Report 

Attorneys use evidence from the police report to review any details from the accident that can help your case. Your attorney will find out if any citations were issued and if the report has any factors that may show how the other party is at fault.  

Analyzing Photographic Evidence

The pictures that you take of your motorcycle accident show how devastating your injuries were. Additionally, your attorney can use photographs as evidence that you weren’t the one to cause the motorcycle crash. 

Speaking To Eye Witnesses 

Eyewitnesses may hold the key to additional evidence. They can provide valuable information about your motorcycle crash to help support your claim.

Damages You Can Recover After a Motorcycle Wrongful Death

In your personal injury claim, you can include both economic and non-economic damages. Your attorney will include:

Medical Expenses

Any medical bills that were caused by your personal injury can be compensated for. This is even if they are ongoing costs like physical therapy. 

Lost Wages

The income you were unable to make because of your injuries will be included in your settlement. This includes past, present, and future lost income that you didn’t receive while you were recovering from your injuries. 

Pain and Suffering Damages

Your negative feelings that were caused by your motorcycle crash will also be calculated with the help of your attorney. 

Property Damages

Any mechanical repairs that were covered by your insurer will also be included in your settlement.

Wrongful Death Damages

Surviving family members and eligible dependents of a motorcycle accident victim can receive wrongful death damages on their behalf. This includes funeral bills, burial costs, loss of consortium, lost earning capacity, and more. 

You can also receive punitive damages if the other party was grossly negligent in some way. However, this comes from the court system and not through your personal injury attorney. 

What You Need In a Baton Rouge Motorcycle Accident Attorney

Once you start working with a personal injury attorney, you can receive the guidance you need to get fair compensation. Your attorneys work hard to fight for your right to a settlement after a horrible motorcycle crash. They provide resources, estimate your personal injury damages correctly, negotiate on your behalf, and more. You should find an attorney that has the following talents:

Experience In Motorcycle Accidents

You need an attorney who has had proven success in taking on motorcycle accident cases. They should be specialized in motorcycle personal injury law to provide the best results. With a deeper understanding of personal injury law, your attorney can discover how the other party is liable and how much you should receive. Motorcycle cases can’t be treated like car accident cases, which is why you need someone experienced. 

Their Schedule Isn’t Overbooked

Your attorney should be attentive to your needs. When your attorney is overwhelmed with clients, they often fall behind and can even miss deadlines regarding your personal injury claim. The communication may be lacking and you will be unable to know immediately if the other party responded to or formed a rebuttal against your claim. This behavior can also be the cause of frequent errors. Make sure your attorney has the time to take on your case so that you get the proper attention you need. 

They Are Reputable

You will need a law firm that has a great record of establishing positive relationships with their clients. If the law firm you’re researching has a history of clients suing them, then they are likely not going to give you a good experience. Make sure that your personal injury law firm is ethical and genuinely cares about you. 

What Are Reasons the Driver Can Be At Fault For My Baton Rouge Motorcycle Accident?

Drivers can cause crashes due to their own neglectful actions. Motorcycle accident injuries could have been avoided had the driver been more cautious and paying attention.

Left-Hand Turn Accidents

When a car is turning left at the traffic light at an intersection, the driver might accidentally hit a motorcyclist because they are only checking for cars and large vehicles driving into their path. Smaller vehicles, such as motorcycles, can pass in front of them unnoticed when the driver takes a left at the light. 

Blind Spots

Drivers often don’t see motorcyclists because the bikers are in their blind spots. The main reason this happens is because bikes are much smaller vehicles and often go unnoticed when driving beside cars. 

Speeding 

Speeding is a very common occurrence and can be the reason why the other driver wasn’t able to stop in time before crashing. It is possible for investigators to find out if the other driver was speeding by observing the impact left behind by the car and estimating the velocity the car was traveling at based upon the property damage. 

Texting or Talking on the Phone

Distracted driving is one of the most common reasons why a driver may not have been paying attention. They are sometimes texting or talking on the phone and unable to focus on what is going on around them. In Louisiana, drivers cannot look at a phone or hold it in their hands while they are operating a vehicle. Instead, they have to use hand-free devices. To see if the other party may have been distracted while driving, your attorney can subpoena them and obtain cellular history data from their phone company provider. This will let them know if the driver was using their phone right before the crash. 

Dozing Off At the Wheel

Some drivers are simply tired and are unable to pay attention while driving. Whatever the reason for their fatigue, a sleepy driver can make major errors while operating their vehicle. 

Under the Influence

Car drivers may be under the influence of drugs or alcohol while driving on the road. Intoxication can prevent the driver from focusing on the road and can also create delayed reactions to emergency situations. If the police at the scene of the accident notice something is wrong with the driver, they may administer a breathalyzer test or request a drug test. Your attorney can request the results of this test, as this can be used as additional evidence for your settlement claim.

Traffic Violations

The other driver may be very careless with their actions and made illegal lane changes, passed red lights, didn’t yield, and exhibited other behavior that caused the accident. Sometimes road rage may have caused the other driver to drive recklessly, leading up to a crash. If there were traffic cameras nearby where the crash occurred, your attorney can request the footage to review how the accident happened. 

What if I’m Partially at Fault?

In Louisiana, even if you are partially at fault you may be due damages. For example, if the other party is responsible for only 1% of the damages in your motorcycle accident, you can still claim that amount in a settlement claim. Your Baton Rouge lawyer can determine who is at fault by reviewing your case and letting you know how much you may be due in compensation.

What Are Common Injuries You Can Get in a Motorcycle Accident?

Motorcycle accidents can cause many severe injuries that take time to recover from. Here are some of the most common:

Road Rash

Road rash gets its name from the bright red scratches and bruising you might receive from being dragged across the road. This injury happens when your skin comes into contact with the pavement, creating a shallow wound that aggravates the surface of the skin. Road rash is superficial but still painful and can cause an infection if left untreated. 

Broken Bones

The impact of a crash can cause broken bones. This can happen to arms, legs, fingers, toes, and even ribs when your body hits the pavement, gets crushed by the motorcycle or is hit by a vehicle. The front chest and rib cage face the road and often hit the ground when a motorcyclist is flung forward. It is not uncommon for broken ribs to happen after a motorcycle accident. 

Internal Injuries

Another risk of motorcycle accidents happens when organs rupture internally because of a blunt force. Internal bleeding can happen, putting your life at risk. Collapsed lungs can happen when the rib cage is broken or an external force punctures the chest. This is one of the most deadly injuries you may experience. 

Gashes and Lacerations

Cuts are a common occurrence during an accident because of broken glass, twisted metal, hard pavement, and other sharp objects. Gashes can cause severe bleeding, injured muscle tissue, and severed tendons. 

Traumatic Brain Injuries

Even if you are wearing a helmet, you may still be at risk for a concussion, hemorrhage, or another severe brain injury that can put your life at risk. 

How Do Lawyers Help in Baton Rouge Motorcycle Accident Cases?

When you get into a motorcycle accident in Baton Rouge, LA, your lawyer can find the evidence to prove that you are not at fault for your injuries. Even if you are partially a fault, you can still receive a settlement. Call Murray law now for a free consultation.