The most well known myth about bikers is that they cause a lot of accidents. The truth is, other vehicles are usually at fault.
While you may not know this, it’s a fact that just about one out of two fatal motorcycle wrecks involves another vehicle. If you’ve taken a good hard look at any of the latest accident statistics, you’ll be shocked to find out that just about every 90 seconds there is a biker fatality in the U.S. That’s frightening in terms of the toll it takes on human lives; those left behind.
The statistics are as high as they are largely due to the fact the bikers have very little, if any, kind of protection when they do get into a wreck. Many have up close and personal encounters with the pavement and leave most of their skin behind. Many suffer multiple bone breaks and fractures, not to mention spinal cord trauma, head damage and crushed or amputated limbs. Gruesome, but that’s the hardcore truth.
You would think if a biker had the potential to get into a smack up, whether they are anticipating it or not, they would wear protective helmets. Sadly, the statistics are showing that out of roughly 6,000 deaths every year, just about 60 percent of the riders were not wearing helmets. This isn’t to say that they may not have been fatally injured in another manner even while wearing the helmet, but it’s been proven that those helmets do help bikers avoid traumatic brain injury.
If you think rush hour traffic is a major pain in the posterior, try riding it out on a motorcycle. You’re out there hanging in the wind, exposed to big trucks that don’t see you, negligent drivers who don’t see you and various other hazards, like lousy roads, which will throw you over the handle bars into traffic if you hit something the wrong way.
And that isn’t the worst of it all. The worst thing is that most people think motorcycles and their riders are the authors of their own misfortunate accident. This actually isn’t the case in many crashes. The “at fault” driver is usually another vehicle, and the reason? They don’t see the biker. Nonetheless, if an accident happens and the biker is killed due to the negligence of another, this is a wrongful death and the family of the victim has the right to file a lawsuit with an Austin personal injury attorney to obtain compensation.
The whole point of a wrongful death lawsuit is to get money for the family left behind, to allow them to continue on financially and emotionally. Compensation requested from the courts by an Austin personal injury attorney may include funds for medical bills, funeral and burial expenses, pain and suffering and other expenses the family have had to take care of as a result of the death of their loved one.
Robert W. Lee is an Austin personal injury lawyer for The Lee Law Firm. If you need an Austin personal injury lawyer, contact an Austin personal injury attorney from The Lee Law Firm. Visit RWLeelaw.com.
