When a driver collides with a bicycle rider, proving liability and pursuing compensation can seem fairly straightforward. The motorist was negligent and hit the rider, therefore is liable for damages.
However, bike crashes can get a bit more complicated when a driver doesn’t necessarily collide with a bicyclist but indirectly causes the rider to crash. Can the driver be held liable in no-contact collisions?
No-Contact Scenarios
To give you a visualization of a no-contact scenario, let’s say that a bicycle rider is riding through an intersection when an inattentive driver cuts off the bicyclist to make a turn. As a result, the rider loses control of their bike and crashes, sustaining injuries.
This would be an example of a no-contact bicycle accident. Some of the most common causes of these incidents include:
- Inattentive drivers
- Motorists making unexpected lane changes
- Motorists turning across traffic
- Drivers swerving into the bike lane
Since the driver failed to follow traffic laws and keep a proper lookout, these dangerous maneuvers can be shown to have directly caused the injuries of the rider.
Damages You Can Recover After a Bike Crash
Needless to say, injuries sustained in any bicycle accident are often much more severe than those sustained by vehicular passengers and drivers.
As a result, the damages that an injured biker may receive are typically larger than those awarded in regular car accidents. Some of the damages that your bicycle accident attorney can help calculate include:
- Medical expenses
- Ongoing medical treatment
- Lost wages
- Lost earning capacity
- Long-term or permanent disability
- Pain and suffering
- Emotionally damages
Speak With Our Dedicated Legal Team
If you’re injured in a no-contact bicycle accident, you must have an experienced injury attorney review your case for free and determine what your best legal options are. Since there was no physical contact between the rider and motorist in these situations, no-contact cases rely heavily on evidence such as witness statements and traffic laws.
Our dedicated legal team is standing by ready to help build your case from the ground up and pursue the compensation you deserve.
Contact Fowler Helsel Vogt at (559) 900-1280 to get started on your bicycle accident case. We are available 24 hours a day to answer your call.