Motorcycle accidents have devastating consequences. The Insurance Information Institute reports that 4,976 people died in motorcycle accidents in 2015 alone. They also reveal that motorcyclists are 27 times more likely to die in a crash per mile driven compared to cars and also five times more likely to sustain injuries.
These statistics are not meant to clip motorcycle riders’ enthusiasm, but rather to indicate that the carelessness of others can place you at great risk. When the worst case scenario does happen, and you are involved in a motorcycle accident, the injuries and medical bills can be devastating. Another unfortunate fact, one that will come as no surprise to motorcyclists, is that other motorists, pedestrians, and the public at large have a negative view of you. YOU came out of nowhere, YOU shouldn’t have been lane splitting, YOU were driving too fast.
With a poisoned jury pool and law enforcement officials often writing biased police reports looking to pin liability on the motorcyclist, you should strongly consider hiring a motorcycle accident attorney if you have been injured in a collision. In a complex motorcycle accident case involving big-time injuries, trying to go it alone can be a big-time mistake.
Here are just a few benefits you can obtain from the services of an experienced personal injury lawyer:
Fewer Mistakes
A good attorney will save you from, well… yourself. I am not trying to be high and mighty, as I’m equally fond of the saying “an attorney who represents himself, has a fool for a client.” Representation in a legal matter is a good idea when it is outside your own personal area of expertise.
Oversights in your personal injury case can turn a strong, legitimate claim into one that is legally ineligible for compensation. If a deadline gets blown, it can mean “game over” for your case. You have your own life to lead and it is not your job to know how to dot every “i” and cross every “t,” — that is what a personal injury lawyer is for. Even so, if you pursue your case on your own, the defendant and court system will not be lenient on you because you simply “didn’t know.”
Not only will hiring a good attorney save you from yourself, but it will also save you time. Unless you’ve had dreams of living a real life episode of Law and Order — the longest, slowest, and most unsatisfying episode of Law and Order ever — you can instead spend your time doing something more interesting, like catching up on actual episodes of Law and Order, catching up with friends, catching up on laundry. Let’s be honest, even catching a cold is probably more interesting than running your own personal injury case.
Better Claim Preparation and Documentation
Filing a personal injury claim requires strong documentation to back up your interpretation of events and to affirm the extent of your injury, medical costs, and overall damages.
A personal injury attorney will investigate the scene of the accident, find and question witnesses while their memory is still fresh, and gather all the paper documentation that supports your case and damages. They will make sure your physicians and medical providers thoroughly diagnose and treat your injuries. This ensures that you get the treatment you need and creates a crystal clear record of your pain and disability to present to the defendant and — if need be — the jury, thereby increasing the value of your case.
A personal injury attorney will help you avoid common pitfalls in the type and amount of treatment you receive. Getting the wrong treatment, or worse, failing to get treatment when you should have can sink the value of your motorcycle case. A good lawyer will know what damages you should claim — including many things you probably would never have thought of — how to present them, when to present them, and what specific facts to highlight that the insurance companies find important. The net effect? Increased value on your case.
A San Francisco Personal Injury Lawyer Can Level The Playing Field
Deny. Delay. Defend. That is the insurance industry mantra. Deny valid claims altogether. Defend their denials by forcing claimants into litigation. Delay payment as long as possible on meritorious claims. After all, holding onto your money as long as possible is profitable for them; it can earn interest and be put to other uses the longer they keep it. A personal injury lawyer will know when to call bull-loney, know which insurance company tactics may actually be illegal, and know what levers to push and pull to force the defendant into line and how to keep the pressure on to get your case settled for fair value.
See what a good San Francisco personal injury lawyer can do for you if you’ve been injured or if a loved one has been killed in a motorcycle accident by following the preceding link. To see if you may have a case, get started with a free consultation today by using the phone number above or the contact form to the above right.
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