PERSONAL INJURY
BICYCLE ACCIDENTS
Not only is Florida home to year-long summers and the most famous mouse on the planet, it’s also home to highest rate of bicycling deaths in the whole country. In fact, it’s double the national average.
If you’ve been injured in a bicycle accident and you believe the accident was caused by someone else’s negligence, you may have a personal injury claim against the at-fault party for your medical bills, lost wages, and other damages. A bicycle accident injury lawyer can help you protect your rights while exploring your legal options to seek the compensation you deserve.
COMMON CAUSES OF
BICYCLE ACCIDENTS
Many Floridians are surprised to learn that the most common bicycle-related traffic accidents involve drivers between the ages of 20 and 24 years of age. Most tend to blame the older population of drivers for the high number of road accidents, but the same studies concluded that drivers over the age of 75 were the least likely to be involved in car and bicycle-related collisions.
The most common negligent causes of bicycle related road accidents include:
- Distracted drivers
- Careless drivers
- School busses
- Failure of drivers to yield the right of way to cyclists
- Motorists running stop signs
Bicyclists can also be responsible for accidents, however.
cyclist rightS in
florida
While cyclists in Florida have “all the rights and all of the duties applicable to the driver of any other vehicle,” as stated by the law, there are certain exceptions. Regulations are in place when it comes to riding with a child under the age of 4 years, and anyone under the age of 16 must wear a bicycle helmet. However, cyclists in Florida are more than entitled to their fair share of the road.
Where available, cyclists should stick to the bicycle lane, and if one is not available, they should stay as far to the right of the road as possible. As you can imagine, though, this can lead to many accidents when drivers make right turns across bicycle lanes without yielding or noticing cyclists. It would seem many drivers do not take notice of bicycle lanes; however, Florida law does not excuse such negligence.
DO YOU HAVE AN INJURY CLAIM?
If you have been injured in a bicycle accident that was caused by another driver, you can take legal action against the at-fault driver, whether or not they were wholly responsible for causing the accident. If you are seeking to make a bicycle injury claim on your own or someone else’s behalf, you’ll have to prove the following:
- That the driver did something either negligent, careless, or violated the rules of driving. Drivers are expected by the law to be reasonably safe, and when someone falls short of this expectation, this can be considered a breach of legal duty.
- That the driver’s breach of legal duty was directly responsible for the bicycle accident. You will be required to show that the accident was directly linked to the driver’s negligent behavior.
- That the accident resulted in actual, legitimate harm being sustained, either physical, financial, or emotional as a result of the death of a loved one.
CONTACT A FLORIDA BICYCLE ACCIDENT ATTORNEY
