You’re on your bike. The world is a blur around you. Pavement and rubber (and leather). You’re flying. And then, Crack. Bike accident. You’re on the ground. Folded in half. Hundred yards of road rash. Blood. You’re thinking faster than you ever thought — every thought. Ever. And you ask, What do you do?
Simply consult a motorcycle accident lawyer in Atlanta — your motorcycle attorney. He’s… what? We’d guess he’d be, like, a kind of superhero if superheroes were regular people who wore suits.
How a Motorcycle Accident Lawyer Can Help
Investigating the Accident
But piecing together all of the evidence to figure out what happened and why and then turning that information into a bike case is absolutely the first step. Building a good case? The lawyer will do the hunting. That means speaking to witnesses, getting the police paperwork (necessary to use the info in a criminal case where the person is not necessarily convicted), getting photos of the road, getting red light camera footage to solidify your case later on — no detail is too small, and no piece of information is too unimportant to help increase the chances of recovery.
Let them do that work, and go back to getting better, relieved that someone is building a bike case just for you. Let them spend their mental energy on finding things — both the questions to ask and the subpoenas to send, the cases to look at … how to build this case. All you need for this is the right lawyer.
Dealing with Insurance Companies
Let’s face it- the insurance company isn’t your friend. They are a business and a bad one that will do anything they can to protect their profits and not pay a claim. A good lawyer won’t back away from that and will fight to make sure you don’t get taken advantage of, and they will fight to make sure you receive the proper compensation so that you can get better and get on with your life. Your lawyer has your best interest at heart, not their profit margin.
Calculating Fair Compensation
How can we answer that when we don’t know where it is hiding? For that is what we can do for you — we can go and find it wherever it is hiding — how much medical debt you have, how long you haven’t been able to work, pain and suffering, replacing your cycle, etc. We will also find out how much it has changed your life because it has — whether it is mental anguish or the time between you and your family, etc.
Finally, we are going to get you a settlement that equals 100% of the accident. We will ask for numbers that equal that, and we can help you not have to pay for something that you have no control over. We cannot give an exact plan of things — it changes every time. However, your attorney will do what he or she can to help you rebuild your life.
Common Concerns About Hiring a Lawyer
The good news is that almost every motorcycle accident lawyer you’ll ever meet will take your case on a contingency basis. That way, you don’t have to have money to get a motorcycle accident lawyer. And your motorcycle lawyer has some incentive to help you get the best results possible, in that they don’t get paid if they can’t win your case.
But there’s more good news. It’s probably the case that your motorcycle accident lawyer is going to get you more money than you would have gotten on your own. More leverage to negotiate, more understanding of the minimum you should accept as a settlement, and more knowledge of how the insurance company is trying to stonewall you… there are all sorts of advantages, and your lawyer does all the work while you try to put together the pieces of your “new normal.”
The Impact of Local Expertise
Riding a motorcycle in Atlanta is arguably the most free way to travel. You don’t have to wait in line; you don’t even have to go through all the chaos for the most part. But then you do again because not all four-wheel motorists have the respect to “share the road.” If you stay at the wheel, what do you have at your disposal but association football kicks to counteract that encroaching SUV? Even then, all the kicks in the world might not save you.
For more information on reducing your risk of accidents, check out this comprehensive guide on motorcycle safety from the NHTSA.
From dealing with bad insurance companies to taking your case to trial (jury trial), the lawyer will be there to make sure you are heard. The lawyer knows your enemy (the insurance company for the guy you will be suing) and will fight to get you the best settlement possible. Whether it is protecting you, letting the jury hear your side, or making sure you are treated fairly, The Lawyer will be with you every step of the way.
Photo above: BepsLabor Via Canva Pro
