Motorcycle Accident Attorney Bossier City / Shreveport

Motorcycle accidents tend to result in a wide range of financial, physical, and emotional effects. You may be facing costly medical bills, pricey repairs, lost work time, and much more. If someone else’s negligence caused your accident, you have the right to hold them accountable for their conduct. Michael J. Vergis is a Shreveport/Bossier City auto accident attorney that represents injured people throughout the state of Louisiana. The quality representation Michael offers for each of his clients, as well as the attention he pays to each case, are the product of his unwavering devotion and hard work. Contact Shreveport motorcycle accident attorney Michael J. Vergis today to see how he can help secure and protect your financial future.

What are Common Causes of Motorcycle Accidents?

There are a number of things that might contribute to a motorcycle accident. The most common of these, however, are other drivers failing to see the motorcyclists. In fact, at least 50% of all motorcycle accidents can be attributed to an obstructed view of the motorcycle, whether due to a glare, other vehicles in the line of sight, or other visibility problems. This is why it is so important for cyclists to actively work to make themselves visible to other drivers on the road, such as wearing bright colors, using appropriate signals, and avoiding driving in another vehicle’s blindspot at all costs.

In addition, due to the tiny size of motorcycles, other vehicles sometimes overestimate how quickly they are going and turn into their path, inevitably causing an accident. This may also happen on the highway when changing lanes or coming to a complete stop in traffic. Tailgating also raises the danger of multiple vehicle crashes and motorcycle ejections, particularly with unexpected stops or lane changes.

Other common causes of motorcycle accidents include:

• Inclement weather
• Road hazards
• Reckless or aggressive driving
• Speeding
• Driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol (DWI in Louisiana)
• Motorcycle part defects

What To Do After a Motorcycle Accident

Motorcycle accidents, or any kind of accident for that matter, tend to occur when you least expect them. It can be easy to get caught up in the adrenaline and chaos of it all, but it’s important to your own and others’ safety that you have a general idea of what to do after a motorcycle accident. 

Remove Yourself from Impending Danger

The first thing you need to do is get to safety. If you find yourself in the middle of the roadway and in the way of oncoming traffic, remove yourself from harm’s way as soon as possible. This is, of course, if you are physically able to. You should also check to see if anyone else has been badly injured and assist them in getting to a safe area as soon as possible. 

Do Not Remove Protective Gear

In the initial moments of the accident, it is also important to remember that your adrenaline is likely in full gear. This might prevent you from feeling any pain from the injuries you may have sustained. As a result, you should not remove any protective gear, such as your helmet, before professional medical help arrives. Doing so may only exacerbate your injuries further. 

Call 911

Once everyone is out of the way of any further immediate danger, call 911 to report the accident and request medical attention. While paramedics aren’t required at every accident scene, motorcycle accidents tend to pose a higher risk for injury due to the lack of protection, so first responders may be incredibly beneficial in this scenario. This is true even if you don’t experience any pain or injury right away. Serious injuries may not show symptoms immediately, as they may take days, weeks, or even months to develop.

Gather Evidence

If you are physically able, the best time to gather evidence for your future case is at the scene of the accident while the evidence is still fresh. This might include taking pictures, videos, jotting down important details and obtaining a copy of the police report. This is also the time to gather information from the other drivers or parties involved. This includes names, phone numbers, driver’s license numbers, plate numbers, and insurance information. If there were witnesses who stuck around after the accident, be sure to obtain their contact information, as well. 

Contact a Bossier City Motorcycle Accident Attorney

The best time to get in contact with a motorcycle accident attorney is as soon as possible. The sooner your Bossier personal injury attorney learns about your case, the better. It is especially important that you speak with an attorney before accepting any settlement offer or even speaking with the opposing party’s insurance provider at all. Your attorney can also help you in contacting your own insurance company and informing them of the accident.

Who is Responsible for a Motorcycle Accident?

The legal notion of “negligence” is what governs liability in most motorbike accidents. When a person acts in a careless or reckless manner and injures another person, he or she is considered negligent. All drivers must use caution to prevent harming other drivers, passengers, pedestrians, or basically, anybody else on the road. If a driver fails to exercise reasonable caution and injures someone as a result, the driver is responsible for the accident victim’s injuries.

For the most part, the driver of another automobile or truck is frequently at fault in motorbike accidents. This is often due to the driver’s inability to see the motorcycle. Of course, it is possible that the motorcyclist might be the the negligent one and caused the accident as a result. For example, an intoxicated motorcyclist who swerves in front of an automobile and causes the car to crash would very certainly be held responsible for their own injuries as well as the injuries sustained by the other car’s passengers. 

In other circumstances, vehicle or motorcycle manufacturers or even roadway designers may be at fault. It simply depends on what caused the accident and what an attorney is able to prove. 

Louisiana is an at-fault, or “tort,” state. This means that any compensatory damages will come from the responsible party’s insurance company. However, in addition to being an at-fault state, Louisiana also possesses comparative negligence laws. What this means is that following an accident, the damages are allocated in proportion to the percentage of fault of either (or all) drivers. So if one driver is deemed 15% responsible and the other is 85%, each driver will be held financially liable for their corresponding amount of the damages. 

How Much Can You Get From a Motorcycle Accident Settlement?

There are a number of things that factor into how much someone is able to get from a motorcycle accident settlement. For example, you must take into consideration property damage, medical expenses, and the possibility of things like pain and suffering and mental distress that may have resulted from the accident. 

With the number of variables that contribute to the final settlement amount, you could be looking at anything from a couple thousand dollars to hundreds of thousands, or even millions of dollars. The severity of your injury, as well as the ability of your motorcycle accident attorney to represent you and negotiate a fair settlement, both play a critical role in increasing your amount of compensation. 

Why Do I Need a Motorcycle Accident Attorney?

Because personal injury is such a specialized field, it is important that someone experienced in navigating this area of law assists you in your injury claim. This is especially true when you have been involved in a motorcycle accident, as these accidents are often exceedingly dangerous and destructive. Having someone who has decades of experience in handling such claims can make a huge difference in how your case turns out and the amount of money you’re able to get from the insurance company. 

Keep in mind that insurance companies will almost always offer you the lowest amount possible, but an accident attorney can assist you in standing up to these providers and pursuing everything entitled to you as a victim. In addition, if there is uncertainty regarding who is responsible for the accident, your motorcycle accident attorney can help prove the required elements of negligence were present in the opposing party’s actions. 

Contact Shreveport/Bossier City Motorcycle Accident Attorney Michael J. Vergis Today

Being involved in a motorcycle accident can be an incredibly traumatic and dangerous experience, often resulting in severe and possibly life-altering injuries. Not only will your body likely suffer injury from the impact of the wreck, but your mental and emotional state may as well. This puts you in no condition to take on a personal injury claim on your own. 

Fortunately, Attorney at Law Michael J. Vergis is here for you each and every step of the way so that you can focus on recovering both physically and mentally. He will work to achieve the maximum amount of compensation possible for your motorcycle accident claim. By gathering evidence to determine liability and speaking personally with doctors and other medical professionals in order to determine an accurate number of the total losses and damages associated with your case, he will use this information to demand a fair settlement from insurance providers. If they refuse to offer a fair settlement outside of court, he is more than prepared to go to trial and fight for you.

If you’ve received injuries from a Bossier City or Shreveport motorcycle accident, call the law offices of Michael J. Vergis today at 318-698-3724 or send us a message for a free consultation.