What to Do After a Motorcycle Accident

Motorcycle accidents can be traumatic and life-altering, having a life-long impact on your overall health and well-being. If you’re in a motorcycle accident, there are steps that you can take immediately after to protect your safety, health, and legal rights.

Read on to learn more about what to do after a motorcycle accident, common injuries you can sustain during a motorcycle crash, and how engaging legal representation can help streamline the process of seeking justice.

Ensure Your Safety and Health First

Your safety should be your main priority right after an accident. Move to a safe location that is out of traffic. Check yourself for injuries, and call for medical help.

Even if your injuries seem minor, it’s essential to seek medical attention. You want to ensure there are no hidden or delayed injuries. Also, medical records create a paper trail proving your pain and suffering. This record will be crucial for future personal injury claims.

Call Emergency Services Immediately

Once you’re safe, call emergency services immediately. Share with them where you are and what happened. Ask for both police and paramedics to the scene. The police will write an official accident report, an unbiased, third-party overview of the accident. The police report will benefit your future legal cases by proving that you were not at fault for the motorcycle accident.

When emergency services arrive, some people may waive the paramedics at the accident scene, especially if they do not want to pay the ambulance fee. However, even if your injuries are not life-threatening, you should still seek medical treatment to be safe.

Gather Evidence at the Scene

As you wait for emergency services to arrive, collect evidence. This proof includes taking photos of the following:

• The accident scene
• Road conditions
• Vehicle damages
• Injuries
• Other relevant details

Collect as much information as you can before leaving the crash scene. This data will help you and your attorneys build a strong case.

Get Contact Information from Witnesses

Eyewitness testimony can be helpful, especially when building a personal injury case. Before leaving the accident scene, write down witness names and contact information. The witnesses can provide another perspective on what caused the motorcycle accident.

Do Not Admit Fault or Apologize

As you exchange information with the other drivers involved, do not admit fault or apologize for the accident. Keep your conversations limited to essential information, and do not exchange small talk. Anything you say can be held against you in future lawsuits.

Other drivers may trick you into admitting fault, especially on record. You will have difficulty disproving your words in a personal injury case, so it’s best to be on your guard when conversing with other drivers.

Seek Medical Attention Immediately After the Accident

Many motorcycle accident victims may refuse medical treatment at the accident scene because they do not believe their injuries are severe enough. That is your choice, but you want to seek immediate medical attention as soon as possible after an accident.

A doctor can help assess your well-being and rule out any serious injury. Some injuries may not be immediately apparent. Concussions, traumatic brain injuries, internal bleeding, whiplash, and other conditions may take time to manifest. Delayed injuries are common in motorcycle accident injuries.

Your medical records can also help prove the extent of your injuries and support your personal injury case.

Report the Accident to Your Insurance Company

You must report the accident to your insurance company as soon as possible. Many insurance companies require that you report it within a certain amount of time, so make sure you read your policy to understand its requirements.

Your insurance provider will start the process of getting your bike fixed or totaled out. Be honest about the circumstances surrounding the motorcycle accident. Provide only factual information, and do not embellish.

Your insurance company can use anything you say to deny your claim, even if you were not at fault for the motorcycle accident.

Contact a Motorcycle Accident Attorney

It can be challenging to know what to do after an accident. A motorcycle accident lawyer can help provide legal guidance after an accident. They ensure your rights are protected, especially if you faced serious injuries or damages due to a motorcycle accident.

Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers can help you navigate the legal process. We specialize in motorcycle accident cases and can help maximize your chances of obtaining a favorable outcome based on our deep expertise.

How a Lawyer Can Help with Your Claim

There are many benefits of working with the Chicago motorcycle accident attorneys from our team, including:

• Handling insurance claims: Motorcycle accident lawyers help interface with insurance companies. We will go back and forth to provide all insurance information to help you get the maximum compensation.
• Negotiating with the other party: Insurance companies often provide low offers or delay compensation to force you to settle. Your motorcycle accident attorney knows how to handle the games insurance adjusters play to get you a fair settlement.
• Taking the case to trial: If your attorney cannot reach an agreement out of court, they will take your case to trial to help you get the compensation you deserve.

Common Injuries Sustained in Motorcycle Accidents

Motorcycle accidents can cause serious bodily harm, especially if the driver is not wearing proper protective gear. Common injuries a driver might sustain include:

• Broken bones: Broken arms, legs, shoulders, backs, etc., may occur.
• Traumatic brain injuries: Victims may face damage to their brain tissues that could cause changes in behavior, mobility, and function.
• Spinal injuries: Spinal cord injuries can cause temporary or permanent paralysis.
• Cuts and bruises: Lacerations and bruising may occur from the crash impact.
• Road rash: Motorcycle drivers may face different degrees of road rash from hitting the pavement.

The severity of the injuries can depend on the speed at which you were going, the accident circumstances, if you were ejected from the bike, if you were wearing protective gear, and more. Motorcycle riders should always seek medical attention after an accident. Additionally, you should also engage legal representation to protect their rights.

How Motorcycle Accidents Differ from Car Accidents

A motorcycle accident is complex and differs from a traditional car accident. Due to the lack of protective enclosures on a motorcycle, the injuries are often far more severe.

Because motorcycles may be difficult to see, proving that the other driver was at fault for the accident may involve additional legal complexities. Specialized legal representation like Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers can help victims navigate these challenges and more.

The Importance of Following Up on Medical Care

Most injuries require frequent care until they are healed, and motorcycle accident injuries are no different. After your initial consultation, ensure you seek continued medical care. This medical follow-up can include:

• Ongoing check-ups to monitor the healing process
• Physical therapy to help you recover your strength
• Mental health treatments and therapy to treat PTSD

Continued medical support will ensure your full recovery. It will also help strengthen your personal injury claim.

Filing a Personal Injury Claim After a Motorcycle Accident

Personal injury claims can help reduce the financial burden of a motorcycle accident. You can recover compensation for:

• Medical bills: Doctor’s visits, physical therapy, ambulance rides, prescription medicine, and other medical expenses can be covered.
• Lost wages: If you cannot work, you can get compensated for your past, current, and future lost wages.
• Pain and suffering: You can get compensated for the emotional distress you faced after the accident in addition to tangible costs.

A Chicago personal injury attorney from our team can help you understand your legal options. We will recommend legal action to help you secure maximum compensation for your motorcycle accident. Our law firm can help you compile evidence and negotiate with insurance companies.

Statute of Limitations for Motorcycle Accident Claims

The statute of limitations for filing a motorcycle accident varies by state. Typically, it is two years from the date of the accident, though you’ll want to check with your state regulations to be sure.

Your legal counsel can help guide you through the process; however, it is best to file a claim quickly to ensure you can recover compensation for your damages.

The more time between the accident, the more likely evidence will be lost or witnesses forget what happened. Timely claims are the best way to preserve evidence and retain eyewitness testimony to help support your case.

Secure Expert Legal Representation!

Knowing what to do after a motorcycle accident can be challenging, but Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers can help.

We are deeply experienced in handling motorcycle accident cases, helping our clients recover compensation for their personal injuries, pain and suffering, lost wages, and more. Experience the many benefits of working with a top-rated personal injury firm.

Call us at (888) 424-5757 for a free consultation or fill out our contact form.

All content undergoes thorough legal review by experienced attorneys, including Jonathan Rosenfeld. With 25 years of experience in personal injury law and over 100 years of combined legal expertise within our team, we ensure that every article is legally accurate, compliant, and reflects current legal standards.