When a biker hits the dirt, one of two things tends to happen – severe brain injuries or death.
Statistics across the nation are showing an increase in the number of motorcycle accidents that result in personal injuries such as broken shoulders, broken or crushed bones, soft tissue damage and brain damage – often called Traumatic Brain Injury or TBI. The facts are that the National Highway Traffic Administration reports over 38,000 deaths as a result of motorcycle crashes between 1976 and 1999. One may only conclude, and rightfully so, that the numbers have not gone down in the intervening years.
Why are the bike crash rates so high? There are a number of reasons, and they may include unsafe road surfaces, particularly rural roads, difficulties seeing properly, undivided roads, being under the influence of alcohol or drugs, reckless driving, and night driving. Interestingly enough, close to 60% of the motorcycle fatalities happened during the night. You might also notice that weather doesn’t seem to affect the statistics all that much.
Other reasons often cited for motorcycle accidents have to do with defective parts, poor manufacturing and poor quality aftermarket parts. If any part on a motorcycle is out of whack, poorly installed, improperly maintained or is defective (cracked, chipped, bent, etc.) then this will affect the overall ride. Just one part that vibrates that is not supposed to will make the bike hard to control, and at highway speeds, this may be the kiss of death.
Motorcycle accidents have been likened to trying to ride a bucking bull at the local rodeo – where she stops nobody knows. Indeed, when a bike does stop after the rider has lost control of it, head injuries are often a catastrophic side effect. It doesn’t help that many riders eschew the use of helmets and/or don’t think they need to have a proper driver’s license to operate a motorbike.
Licensing is such a major concern because roadside deaths involving bikers show that one out of every five bike riders wasn’t properly licensed – meaning they did not have the right experience to properly handle such a deadly weapon. Nor did the riders involved in accidents have the proper safety gear.
If you have been in a motorcycle accident and survived, speak to a motorcycle injury attorney about filing a personal injury lawsuit. If members of a family who lost a loved one due to a bike crash want to file a wrongful death suit, contact a highly skilled attorney to explain the options for ensuring justice.
Bradley J. Hofland is with Las Vegas Divorce law firm, Hofland, Beasley & Galliher. The law firm focuses on Las Vegas family law, custody, and Las Vegas personal injury. To learn more about Las vegas divorce, las vegas personal injury, las vegas divorce lawyer, las vegas family law, las vegas family law attorneys, las vegas personal injury lawyer , visit Hoflandlaw.com.
