Personal Injury Lawyer
Since the start of the pandemic, many people have taken to cycling as an alternative to public transit or just a reason to get out of the house. With this influx of cyclists, an increase of bike related accidents has occurred as well. Being faster than a walking pedestrian, but still slower and smaller than a car. Cyclists are claimed by most drivers to be less noticeable and more unpredictable, also being able to turn sharper than a car can. As a personal injury lawyer can explain, this doesn’t always mean that cyclists are always at fault in a bike related collision, in fact the opposite is still true. However, given a bike being a semi-unique travel mechanism, cases involving bike/car collisions are more complicated and take a bit of extra effort and investigation to make a successful case. Here’s what will influence your case below:
The police report: a great influence in your case will be the police report as the officer has a “mild,” though not complete understanding of the law and can deduce certain aspects of the incident. The courts take the reports of law enforcement in high regard when it comes to determining what happened at the scene and how the officer paints you in their report will affect the success of your case. It’s also to be noted that even if the officer paints you in such a manner that you are at fault, that doesn’t mean your case will be unsuccessful. At the end of the day, the law as it is written in legislation is king.
Photographs and surveillance footage: Video footage will show a good deal of what happened, but usually not all because more often than not the footage obtained wont have captured all angles of the incident or maybe not even the full scene. Still, getting footage of the incident will confirm many points especially when both parties end up disagreeing on what actually happened. It’s at that point that the footage can at least provide the basic framework of the incident and dispel any “non-truths” so to speak.
Eyewitness statements: As it always has been, the most trustworthy influence in a bike accident case is the neutral third-party eyewitness. The eyewitness can better convey angles, speed and generally a full account of what happened provided they can remember. This is more reliable and the law officer’s mere deduction which is in another sense, simply an educated guess. The eyewitness is the most influential force in a bike accident case so it would be to your benefit to have one.
Thanks to The Injury Education Center for their expertise in the area of bike accident personal injury law.