Cherry Hill Bicycle Accident Lawyer

Learning how to ride a bike is a rite of passage for children and a healthy, fun activity for adults. You can hit the Cooper River Park Loop, the Wallworth Park Trail, or the Kresson Trails for a fun weekend ride. Of course, you can also use your bike to get to school or work. The persistent challenge is to stay safe.

Once you get off a bike trail and pedal through Cherry Hill streets, you become vulnerable. As much as you’re looking where you’re riding and are constantly watching for cars, you can’t always be protected from a car that makes a sudden stop, speeds up, or isn’t focused on the road ahead. When a collision happens between a bike and a car, it’s always worse for the bike and the rider.

If you’ve been struck by a car while cycling, you have options for seeking a fair remedy. Even if your injuries are minor, you’re still entitled to compensation for the disruption of your life and any possible damage to your bike. That is when a skilled personal injury attorney can be an immeasurable help.

Your attorney will be able to discuss if your claim has merit and how much you could be entitled to seek. Having those answers will help you decide your best course of action. Best of all, you can focus on your recovery while your attorney handles the rest.

New Jersey Bicycle Laws and Safety Regulations

New Jersey has some very specific safety regulations for bicyclists, all designed to reduce the risk of accidents. That begins with the helmet law. It requires anyone riding a bike who is under the age of 17 to wear a helmet. Of course, it is in the best interests of adults to wear a helmet, too.

Every bike must also have working brakes, a bell or other audible signal, and lights for night riding.

Most importantly, New Jersey has operating regulations for bicyclists under the Safe Passing Law. Even though a bicycle is given the same rights as a vehicle, bikes are required to ride as near to the right roadside as practicable. A bicyclist may move left under any of the following conditions:

• To make a left turn from a left turn lane or pocket
• To avoid debris, drains, or other hazardous conditions on the right
• To pass a slower-moving vehicle
• To occupy any available lane when traveling at the same speed as other traffic
• To travel no more than two abreast when traffic is not impeded, but otherwise ride in single file

You also need to ride in the same direction as vehicular traffic. As for motorists, they need to allow a distance of four feet between them and a bike when it is safe to do so. They also need to reduce their speed to 25 miles per hour when approaching a cyclist, if the driver cannot change lanes or give four feet of berth.

Violations carry a $500 fine and two motor vehicle points on a driver’s license when bodily injury results. The fine is $100 and no points when a violation does not cause bodily injury.

When examining how the accident occurred, it is important to know who was following the law and who might have been in violation.

Common Causes of Bicycle Collisions in South Jersey

There are many potential hazards on the road that cyclists need to constantly watch for, such as potholes, debris, reckless automobiles, or cracked pavement that can force cyclists to swerve out of the way. That can lead to an accident. In that scenario, you might have a cause of action against the municipality that is supposed to maintain the roads.

There are other common causes of bicycle collisions that need to be detailed in your claim that directly point to a driver being at fault. Consider the following reasons:

• Distracted driving
• Failure to yield
• Unsafe passing
• Dooring

Because of the circumstances of your accident, you might not be in a position to know what type of negligence occurred. That is why your attorney will conduct a thorough investigation into the driver’s actions and build a claim using any available surveillance footage, witness statements, or driver history to support your version of the accident.

Compensable Damages in a Bicycle Injury Lawsuit

When you seek damages from a bicycle accident, you need to calculate the full scope of your damages. There might be categories of losses you’re not even aware you’re entitled to.

These are the damages you can seek:

Economic Damages

You can seek compensation for emergency care, surgeries, hospital stays, physical therapy, and future treatments, especially for traumatic brain injuries or spinal cord damage. You also can seek lost income from missing work while you’re recovering. If the injuries from your accident prevent you from going back to your job or you can only work at a reduced salary, you can be compensated for that as well. Additionally, you can be reimbursed for any damage to your bike.

Noneconomic Damages

You should be compensated for any physical pain and suffering caused by the crash. That also extends to any emotional distress like anxiety or depression that you might have developed because of what happened to you.

Punitive Damages

If the driver is found to have engaged in gross negligence, you might be awarded punitive damages meant to punish a defendant for intentional harm. This often happens in accidents that occur due to drunk driving.

While there are no caps on noneconomic damages, there are caps on punitive damages, up to $350,000 or five times your economic and noneconomic damages, whichever is greater. It is important to note that punitive damages are only awarded through a jury trial.

How a Cherry Hill Bicycle Accident Lawyer Can Hold Liable for Your Injuries

It is essential for your bike injury claim to clearly establish liability. Your bike accident lawyer can help gather the evidence to support your claim against the driver. However, the driver is not the only person who can be held liable for this accident. If the motorist was driving a work vehicle, the company that owns the truck or car could also be held liable if it can be proven that they were lax in training or supervising their drivers, for example.

Municipal and state government agencies are responsible for keeping roads safe and free from hazards. That means taking care of potholes and removing debris. If those scenarios were factors in your accident, your Cherry Hill bicycle accident lawyer might be able to establish a claim against one of those public agencies.

There might also be an issue with a defective part of your bicycle. In those cases, your attorney could pursue a claim against the bike manufacturer. That would be considered a third-party product liability issue.