Motorcycle accidents are exceptionally dangerous, as the rider is virtually unprotected. Even a slow-speed impact can lead to severe injuries or loss of life. Many motorcycle crash victims require expensive long-term care and treatment. They may not be able to return to work, and the financial impact can be devastating. Contact our Memphis motorcycle accident injury lawyers today.
If you or a loved one has been seriously hurt in a crash, call the legal team at the Law Office of David E. Gordon as soon as possible. Our personal injury attorneys will protect your right to the level of compensation that you deserve. Start now with a free consultation. En Español.
How Can a Motorcycle Accident Attorney Help You?
If you or a loved one has been injured in a motorcycle crash, you may be wondering what options you have. Experienced motorcycle accident attorneys in Memphis can help you resolve your insurance claim, negotiate medical debts, handle collections and government liens, and much more. Here are just a few of the ways that the Law Office of David E. Gordon can help with your case:
Thorough and comprehensive investigations
Our team will immediately begin investigating the circumstances of your motorcycle crash in order to figure out what happened and who is responsible. Our team will gather medical records, crash reports, police documents, witness statements, and anything else that might support your case.
Experienced and aggressive negotiations
After a motorcycle crash, you could have a lot of bills for your medical treatment. You and your family have enough to worry about. Let David E. Gordon take on the insurance company for you. With decades of experience as a board-certified trial lawyer in Tennessee, David E. Gordon will show the insurance company that you mean business. Often, just knowing that an experienced litigation attorney is handling the case can be enough to motivate insurance companies to make swift and fair settlement offers, even in challenging cases.
Focused and proven litigation results
Over the years, David E. Gordon has litigated many cases to trial, obtaining substantial compensation for the firm’s clients. While we know that your first priority is getting well and trying to cope with immediate financial pressures, there are times when the insurance company may not be willing to settle. In a lot of cases, adjusters may undervalue crash victims’ claims and injuries. Never take a lowball offer without first consulting with an experienced litigation attorney who has the track record and proven skills to help you determine the appropriate compensation for your injuries.
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Compensation in a Bike Injury Claim
One federal study found that motorcyclists with a single leg or foot injury — common injuries in motorcycle accidents –typically had hospital charges of $20,745. Motorcyclists with foot or leg injuries and another injury faced hospital charges of $56,288.
How will you pay expensive medical bills and make up for any wages lost if you’ve had to miss work? If someone else caused your injuries, you should not have to pay those bills and other expenses related to the accident. Our goal is to help you and your family recover for these costs, including:
- Doctor bills
- Hospital bills
- Nursing care
- Ambulance or airlift costs
- Prescription drug expenses
- Rehabilitation costs
- Prosthetic devices
- Cost of home refits (wheelchair, etc.)
- Future anticipated medical expenses
- Loss of income
- Loss of future earning potential
- Pain and suffering
- Mental anguish
- Loss of Enjoyment of Life
At the law firm of David E. Gordon, we begin our work for you right away. Our first job is to determine what caused the wreck that injured you. To prove your damages, our motorcycle accident lawyers will use your work, financial, and medical records. We may hire a life care planner to set out your care needs and costs and an economist who will create a future projection using relevant inflation and discount rates.
Statute Of Limitations On Motorcycle Accident Claims
Tennessee, like all states, has strict rules about how long you can wait to bring an automobile accident claim. The same is true of motorcycle collisions or any other personal injuries. Generally, you will have just one year to file a lawsuit against those you believe are responsible for your injuries. This means any negligent drivers, their employers, corporations, or other parties involved in the crash. There are limited circumstances where the time limit could even be less than one year, such as when government defendants are involved.
Because it can often be very difficult to determine the precise deadline for filing a case, it is unwise to delay speaking with an attorney. The sooner that you are able to speak with our Memphis motorcycle accident attorneys about your case, the sooner you can determine the appropriate statute of limitations, possible damages you could collect, and whether you have a strong chance of success. The Law Office of David E. Gordon can help you better understand your rights and make sense of the complex and ever-changing developments in Tennessee law.
Steps To Take After a Motorcycle Accident
In the hours and days immediately following your motorcycle accident, you will likely be suffering from serious physical injuries, and you may be worried about paying the bills, keeping the lights on, and managing the growing piles of medical debt that you are incurring. Fortunately, there are a number of things that you can do in the aftermath of the crash to help your case for compensation. Here are five simple steps that you should take after a motorcycle accident:
- Go to the hospital immediately – Your physical well-being is of paramount importance. Your first priority must be getting the medical attention that you need. The longer you wait to get medical treatment, the easier you make it for the insurance company to deny your claim or argue that your injuries were not caused by the crash. What’s more, important injuries might be missed, leaving you with painful and lasting conditions that could go uncompensated.
- Gather evidence – One of the most important things that you and your family can do after a motorcycle collision is to gather relevant documents and collect evidence to give to your attorney. This evidence can include police reports, the names of witnesses, insurance information, health plan information, photographs of the scene and your injuries, and anything else that may help your claim.
- Follow your medical treatment plan – One of the easiest ways for an insurance company to deny your claim is to argue that your injury was not as serious as you claim it was. One of the most common ways an insurance adjuster does this is by arguing that you failed to follow your treatment plan, suggesting that you were not as injured as you claim. Also, long gaps or delays in treatment may suggest that you injured yourself at some time after the accident. In short, stick to the plan and do as your doctor recommends.
- Stay off social media – The Internet can be treacherous for injury victims. Simple things like posting a video of yourself, photographs from a vacation, or random comments about the collision can often be taken out of context by savvy insurance investigators and defense lawyers. Completely harmless social media posts can be twisted and misconstrued to make you look dishonest or like you are exaggerating. Simply do not give an insurance company the ammunition it needs to deny your claim and stay off social media altogether.
- Hire an experienced attorney – When it comes to fighting for compensation after a motorcycle accident, nothing substitutes for the skill and experience of a Memphis board-certified trial attorney. With decades of experience and a proven record of success, David E. Gordon can carefully and thoroughly navigate the civil justice system on your behalf.
Serious Injuries Caused By Motorcycle Accidents
Motorcycle accidents, unlike typical auto accidents, generally result in far more severe injuries. Because motorcyclists and their passengers do not have the structural protections of a vehicle, even minor impacts can be devastating. Broken bones, concussions, traumatic brain injuries, and even amputations and death are not uncommon. The following are just some of the other common personal injuries that our Memphis firm helps clients with each year:
Concussions. There is no such thing as a minor concussion. All concussions can lead to a post-concussive syndrome, including headaches, nausea, dizziness, fatigue, and many other lasting effects.
Spinal cord injuries. When the spinal cord is damaged, it can lead to permanent paralysis, a lack of mobility, and a shortened life expectancy.
Disc injuries. A disc is a small structure that protects the spinal column in a person’s back. Discs can become herniated and protrude, causing serious pain. In more severe cases, disc injuries require surgery and can take months or even years to heal.
Soft-tissue injuries. The muscle, ligament, and tendon tissues in your body are often referred to as soft tissue, and these can become torn and inflamed after a motorcycle crash.
Back and neck pain. Perhaps the most common injuries after a motorcycle crash are back and neck pain. Whether it’s due to a torn muscle or inflamed and aggravated joints after a crash, back and neck pain are real, and they can keep you from working, going to school, or enjoying your daily life.
Muscle strain and sprain. A pulled or torn muscle can be very painful. In many cases, steroid injections, lengthy physical therapy sessions, or surgery may be required in order to get relief.
Dislocations. When a person’s limbs are dislocated from their joints, it can require extensive rehabilitation in order to regain strength, mobility, and range of motion.
Burns (including road rash injuries). For motorcyclists, road rash is a unique injury rarely seen by victims of other types of collisions. This occurs when the bike is laid down and the rider continues to slide on the pavement, often burning through clothing and causing severe burns, scrapes, and other damage to the motorcyclist’s skin.
Disfigurement. Whether due to amputations, road rash, or surgical scars, deformities, and permanent disfigurement are common in motorcycle crashes. The law allows specific compensation for permanent disfigurement when it is caused due to someone else’s negligence.
Death. Sadly, many motorcycle crashes claim the lives of riders and their passengers. In fact, statistically, motorcyclists have a higher chance of being killed in a serious collision than if they were in a traditional motor vehicle. If you have lost a loved one in a motorcycle crash, there may be specific types of compensation that you can recover. While no amount of money can bring back a loved one, compensation can be used to help with things like funeral expenses, burial costs, medical expenses, and to replace income and other forms of support that may have been lost due to the death of your loved one. Our dedicated Memphis motorcycle accident lawyers can help.
Common Causes Of Motorcycle Accidents
Motorcycle accents are often caused by simple, yet tragic mistakes. Here are some of the common ways that motorcycle accidents happen according to our trusted Memphis attorneys:
Inattentional blindness
Motor vehicle drivers are often not looking for motorcycles. Their minds are trained to look for two headlights and four wheels, so when they see a smaller vehicle that does not match the description, their minds do not always recognize it. Inattentive drivers often pull out directly in front of motorcyclists, causing high-speed and fatal collisions.
Distracted driving
As a Memphis attorney can attest one of the leading causes of serious and fatal motorcycle crashes nationwide, distracted driving continues to claim thousands of lives every year. While most distracted driving accents seem to be tied to cellphone use, there are many other things that can take a driver’s attention off the road. For instance, drivers may be distracted by flashy signs or billboards, they may be lost and looking for an address, some may be eating in their cars, while others may be reading, fidgeting with devices, or distracted by other people in their vehicle. Regardless of the distraction, when a driver takes his or her eyes off the road, the consequences can be deadly.
Impaired driving
Year after year, we see the continued devastation caused by drunk drivers, as well as those who operate their vehicles while impaired by drugs and prescription pharmaceuticals. Even if a person has a prescription for a medication, he or she can still be impaired to a degree where it is unsafe to operate a motor vehicle. When impaired drivers take the wheel, they put everyone at risk.
Aggressive driving and road rage
We should not forget that some drivers are simply aggressive. They weave in and out of traffic, traveling at speeds far too fast for the conditions. They tailgate, intimidate, and even instigate road rage events. Aggressive drivers often forget or disregard the basic rules of the road and can drive so recklessly that they place everyone around them in serious danger.
Let Our Memphis Motorcycle Accident Attorneys Help
If you need an affordable Memphis motorcycle accident lawyer after a serious crash, trust the Law Office of David E. Gordon. Our firm accepts cases on a strictly contingent-fee basis. This means that we do not charge big upfront retainer fees. Instead, our fee is contingent on the outcome of your case. This means that we will always share the same goal as our clients – to recover maximum compensation. More importantly, though, if we cannot recover compensation for you, then you owe us nothing. In fact, it’s completely free to get started, as initial consultations are always free. There’s truly no risk and no obligation. For a private and free consultation with an attorney, contact us today.
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