How Riders Can Avoid Lawsuits Due To Negligence In Accidents

Last updated Thursday, October 6th, 2022

Motorcycle accidents cause serious fatalities that are of major concern to traffic authorities. Causing a motorcycle accident due to negligence is a serious traffic offense. One of the possible outcomes of negligence in motorcycle accidents is facing a lawsuit. Given the often overwhelming legal processes that follow motorcycle accident cases caused by negligence, it’s prudent for riders to avoid lawsuits as much as possible.

Here are some tips for being a safer rider to avoid lawsuits due to negligent riding on the road.

Obey Traffic Rules And Regulations To Avoid Lawsuits

Law-abiding riders will rarely find themselves in situations where they’ll be involved in a lawsuit as a result of negligent riding. Following motorcycle traffic rules is a sure way to avoid lawsuits and accidents in general.

Conversely, proving that a rider was negligent in a motorcycle accident requires a lawyer to determine the following elements:

(1) That it was necessary by law that a rider exercises care when on the road

(2) That the motorcyclist didn’t exercise care as was expected of him or her

(3) That the rider’s actions caused the victim’s injuries and damages

As long as an attorney can prove these elements against a rider in a motorcycle accident, he or she can be charged with negligent riding. In this regard, by obeying all the stipulated laws, you’ll avoid being careless or negligent as a rider and avoid lawsuits.

Some of the laws you should always obey include riding at an appropriate speed, not riding under the influence of alcohol and other drugs, not splitting lanes, and ensuring that your motorbike is in a good condition at all times.

Therefore, as long as you can obey rules and regulations, you can avoid lawsuits due to negligence.

Being Insured At All Times

Insurance coverage is important, especially in the event of a motorcycle accident. Depending on the type of insurance cover you purchase, you’ll be able to take care of any financial liabilities that arise from an accident.

More importantly, if the accident is because of negligence on your part, your insurance agency will be able to help you avoid a lawsuit. On the other hand. if you’re at fault in a motorcycle accident and you don’t have insurance, chances are high that you’ll have to face a lawsuit.

Depending on the injuries and damages sustained by the accident victim, he or she might not be patient enough to wait for a payout from your personal finances because this might take time.

Therefore, on the advice of his lawyer, the victim might opt to file a lawsuit against you so that you have a legal obligation to compensate him for the injuries and damages caused.

For this reason, it’s highly advisable you have adequate motorcycle insurance at all times. Accidents can happen at any time, whether they were unavoidable or through negligence. Hence, in order to avoid lawsuits and their outcomes, it’s imperative for riders to make sure that they’re fully insured.

Agreeing To An Out-Of-Court Settlement

Once you’re found responsible for negligence in a motorcycle accident, you have to take care of all the liabilities that come forth. The injuries and damages that the victim of the accident incurs will need to be financially taken care of.

For example, you have to pay for all the medical bills, losses, and expenses for damage repairs. This is why motorcycle insurance is so important for all riders. If you’re adequately insured, your insurance agency will pay the required compensation to the victim.

Since the possibility of a court case in such a situation is high, what you should do to avoid a lawsuit is to agree to an out-of-court settlement between the parties involved.

There are various parties in a motorcycle accident arising from the negligent use of your motorcycle. The parties include:

• The victim
• The victim’s lawyer
• Your insurance company
• Your lawyer
• And you

Consequently, in order to avoid a lawsuit, the parties have to agree to a settlement without going to court. In this case, your lawyer and your insurance company have to decide on a feasible payout. This needs to be sufficient to compensate the victim.

Usually, the facts and the details of the negligence case are on the table for negotiation. A successful negotiation will make it possible for you to avoid a lawsuit.

Hence, riders in negligence-related motorcycle accidents should consider an out-of-court agreement to avoid the often tedious and costly lawsuit processes.

Implications & Responsibilities When Carrying A Motorcycle Passenger

For many motorcyclists, carrying a motorcycle passenger is a normal thing. However, there is more to carrying a motorcycle passenger than just having someone on the back of your bike. There are legal implications and responsibilities expected of all motorcyclists when they’re carrying passengers.

Statistics from the US Department of Transportation indicate that in 2016, there were 5,286 motorcycle fatalities in the country. This statistic includes passengers if the rider involved was carrying a passenger on his motorcycle at the time of the crash.

That’s why it’s important for riders to understand the responsibilities when carrying motorcycle passengers. As a rider, it’s your duty to ensure that your passengers are taken care of to protect them from accidents and also to avoid getting into serious legal implications in case of an accident or incident.

Therefore, here are some of the legal implications and responsibilities you should be aware of when carrying a motorcycle passenger.

Wearing Safety Gear

The safety of a motorcycle passenger is of top priority. Just like you, as a rider, have to put on safety gear to protect yourself from any incident, you have a legal responsibility to ensure that your passenger has protective gear as well.

Motorcycles can be extremely dangerous in the event of an accident, given that both the rider and passenger are highly exposed. For that reason, it’s paramount for a motorcycle passenger to wear safety gear when riding on the back of a bike.

One piece of safety equipment that a motorbike passenger should have is a helmet. Therefore, it’s the responsibility of the rider to provide a helmet to passengers at all times.

In Missouri, riding a bike without a helmet is a serious violation of traffic law, thus riders have a legal responsibility to provide their passengers with a helmet at all times. If you’re found to be breaching this law, you’re subject to punishment according to the laws of the state.

In Illinois, motorcycle passengers should also have protective glasses to protect them from any material that might cause injury to their eyes. Hence, as a rider, you have to always ensure that your passenger has the necessary safety gear to offer the required protection when on the road.

Skillful Riding

Skillful riding is important when carrying a motorcycle passenger. Lack of adequate skill and experience contributes greatly to serious motorcycle accidents. You should always know that when you’re carrying a passenger, you have an extra responsibility to protect the life of that person.

Skillful riding requires you to adhere to traffic rules as well as consider different aspects of high-standard riding whenever you’re on the road. One of the skills that you need to have and practice is situational awareness.

With this skill, you’ll know how to ride in different situations. Also, you’ll make the right decisions when carrying your passenger. Moreover, it will be highly valuable to develop excellent cornering skills. This will provide your passenger with much-needed comfort and safety.

Therefore, it’s essential that you’re an experienced rider and have a safety attitude before choosing to carry a passenger on your bike. Undoubtedly, it’s your responsibility to ensure that you learn the necessary skills to enhance safety when carrying a motorcycle passenger.

Compensation In The Event Of An Accident

In the event of an accident, a motorcycle passenger should be compensated if you were at fault. You have the responsibility to take care of your passenger when in transit. If you neglect this responsibility and cause a motorcycle accident, you have to fully face the legal implications that ensue.

For example, the motorcycle passenger can decide to file legal claims against you. This will require you to pay for the injuries caused after the accident. This is where your liability insurance comes in.

Since it’s mandatory to have liability insurance, you’ll use your policy to compensate your passenger after an accident if you are the one at fault.

In order to avoid getting into such a scenario, it’s vital for you to ride your motorcycle carefully. Remember, you’re not the only one on the bike. Therefore, you have to be extra vigilant to protect yourself from the financial and legal implications that may arise.

Proper Knowledge Of Your Bike And Maintenance

Proper knowledge of your motorcycle and constant maintenance of the same is important. This will maintain both your safety and that of your passenger.

A motorcycle passenger does not understand your motorcycle as you do. Therefore, it’s your responsibility to make sure that all operational recommendations for your motorcycle are taken into account. This will ensure the safety of your passenger.

For example, you should know whether your motorcycle is designed to carry a passenger. If yes, you should be aware of its weight limitations. Moreover, it’s the responsibility of a rider to ensure that proper motorcycle maintenance is done before carrying a passenger.

Riding a motorcycle with some of its parts not functioning properly could potentially place the life of your passenger at risk. In the same vein, this could lead you to serious legal implications for endangering the life of your passenger.

For this reason, it’s significant that you bear in mind that you have a responsibility to know and maintain your bike regularly. This will avoid certain risks when carrying a motorcycle passenger.

Legal Rights Of Pedestrians Involved In Motorcycle Accidents

Pedestrian fatalities in motorcycle accidents are an issue of national concern. Motorcycle accidents involving pedestrians often lead to catastrophic outcomes with the possibility of both parties sustaining life-threatening injuries.

However, in most cases, it’s the pedestrians hit by motorcycles who suffer grievous injuries. This is because the impact is harder on them than on motorcyclists. Therefore, just like in any other accident situation, the victims suffer both physical and emotional losses that are often overwhelming.

It’s not easy moving on from an accident as a pedestrian, especially if one sustains multiple injuries. Therefore, it’s necessary for pedestrians to understand their legal rights. It’s almost certain that if pedestrians in motorcycle accidents don’t have sufficient knowledge of the legal rights entitled to them, they might not have successful claims.

Therefore, it’s critical that pedestrians become fully aware of the law that protects them as they use the road. Here are the fundamental legal rights that pedestrians in motorcycle accidents should be aware of.

Duty Of Care To Pedestrians To Avoid Lawsuits

It’s a legal right for pedestrians to be accorded a duty of care by motorcyclists. This is a legal right in legal jurisdictions around the world. When pedestrians are on a crosswalk, they have the right of way.

Therefore, motorists and motorcyclists should allow them to cross first. Unfortunately, this does not always happen, thus causing accidents involving pedestrians. In this case, it’s the pedestrian who is at a higher disadvantage of sustaining severe injuries in the event of an accident.

Motorcycles are fast and are made of a material that can cause serious injuries to victims of motorcycle accidents. It’s for this reason that pedestrians should receive a duty of care from motorcyclists and motorists.

What this means is that riders should exercise reasonable care when riding their motorcyclists on a roadway that has pedestrians crossing. If a motorcyclist happens to hit a pedestrian and he or she didn’t exercise reasonable care, he or she is legally liable for the accident.

Motorcyclists have to yield to pedestrians and allow them to cross the road safely in order to avoid accidents. If, as a pedestrian, you get hit by a motorcycle because of a rider’s breach of your right to a duty of care, then you can take legal action against him.

Therefore, pedestrians need to be aware of this legal right. This is so that they can defend themselves effectively in the event of an accident.

The Right To Legal Representation

Accident victims need legal representation to effectively go through the legal processes that follow. They need legal representation to face the parties that will be involved in a case stemming from a motorcycle accident.

For example, the at-fault motorcyclist, his lawyer, and his insurance company may try to prove that the pedestrian involved in the accident was the one in the wrong. The experience of the rider’s lawyer and the insurance agency may prove to be too much for the victim to handle.

It’s for this reason that pedestrians in motorcycle accidents need to know that they have the right to legal representation. A lawyer with legal expertise and proficiency is necessary to help a victim involved in a motorcycle accident.

The lawyer will be in a position to undertake all the intricacies of the compensation case better and more professionally. On the other hand, going it alone can be costly and damaging for a pedestrian victim because he or she might lack the legal know-how required for a successful case.

Therefore, if you are in a motorcycle accident or a loved one becomes a victim of such, you should not hesitate to practice your legal right. You should contact a qualified lawyer to assist you in navigating through the legal processes that ensue.

The Right To Compensation

Conclusion On How To Avoid Lawsuits