New York Bicycle Accident Lawyers
Tens of thousands of New Yorkers commute by bicycle every single day. However, the busy streets of New York can be incredibly dangerous for bicyclists, even as more roads get dedicated bike lanes and other safety features to protect bicyclists. Unfortunately, bicyclists constantly face the risk of getting into an accident with a careless motorist or because of a dangerous or hazardous condition on the road. When you have been injured in an accident on your bicycle that wasn’t your fault, you deserve compensation for the injuries and losses you suffered. A bicycle accident lawyer from Harris Keenan & Goldfarb can help you demand accountability.
Since 1996, the attorneys of Harris Keenan & Goldfarb have vigorously advocated for the rights of injured accident victims just like you.
We have built extensive experience and a proven record in dealing with parties responsible for causing injuries and with their insurance companies. We don’t back down when the other side tries to avoid liability or offer our clients less than the fair and full compensation they deserve. When you choose us to help after you’ve been in a bicycle accident, we will work tirelessly to successfully resolve your case as quickly as possible. We’ll pursue the financial resources you need to recover from your injury and return to your normal life following a traumatic bike accident.
If you have been injured in an accident that was someone else’s fault while you were riding your bicycle, reach out to Harris Keenan & Goldfarb for a free initial consultation. You’ll get to speak to one of our New York personal injury lawyers about your legal options for recovering compensation.
Why Choose Harris Keenan & Goldfarb to Help You Demand Accountability from a Careless Driver?
After you have been injured in a bicycle accident in New York, you need excellent legal representation, whether you were hit by a negligent driver or because of some other party’s legal fault. A bicycle accident lawyer could help you recover full compensation. While you may have many attorneys and law firms to choose from for your case, remember that not all firms are equal. You deserve lawyers with the experience, resources, and track record of success necessary to ensure a favorable result in your case. At Harris Keenan & Goldfarb, we believe we stand out from other firms because of:
Our record of results obtained on behalf of our clients
Including having recovered millions of dollars in compensation over the years. We have represented clients in cases that make the annual lists of top verdicts in New York.
Our experienced legal team
That has more than 80 years of combined legal experience. Several of our attorneys have been recognized for their skill and achievements and were honored by groups and publications such as Super Lawyers and the Million Dollar Advocates Forum.
Our reputation for excellence, ethics, and compassion
Which we have built by providing our clients with the dedicated service they deserve from the moment they walk in our door all the way through securing recovery in their case in a settlement or at trial.
Our tenacity in advocating for our clients’ interests
When we take on your case, we put in the work and preparation necessary to see your case all the way through to trial, if necessary, working hard to obtain a favorable result that benefits you.
Bicycle Accident Statistics
According to the New York City Department of Transportation, approximately a quarter of adult New Yorkers report riding a bike in the city at least a few times per year, which equals about 1.6 million individuals. Of these people, about half, or nearly 800,000, report riding their bike at least several times a month. In 2020, there were a total of 6,343 bicycle crashes throughout New York City, which resulted in 5,175 cases of injury and 24 fatalities. Two thousand sixty-six of those bicycle accidents in NYC occurred in Brooklyn, while 944 accidents occurred in the Bronx.
Common Causes of Bicycle Accidents
Many bicycle accidents are caused by careless drivers striking a bicyclist with their vehicle. Some of the most frequent causes of bicycle accidents in New York include:
- Speeding drivers.
- Reckless driving, including swerving through traffic.
- Running red lights or stop signs.
- Passing a bicycle too closely.
- Tailgating.
- Failing to yield the right of way
- Distracted driving, including texting while driving, eating or drinking, applying makeup or grooming, or reaching around in the car for something.
- Driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs .
- Driving while tired or fatigued.
- Not using turn signals or mirrors when changing lanes or turning.
- Illegal turns.
- Backing up or pulling out of a driveway or parking space without looking.
- Opening vehicle doors of street-parked vehicles into the path of a cyclist.
- Poor visibility due to low lighting or adverse weather.
- Inadequate vehicle maintenance, including not maintaining tires or brakes.
- Defective vehicles or auto parts.
In addition to driver error, bicycle accidents can also be caused by poor road conditions, including potholes, trash or debris on the road, or broken or uneven pavement.
Recovering Compensation After a Bicycle Accident
After a bicycle accident, you may be entitled to file a claim against the at-fault driver or party to recover compensation for losses that you have incurred. At Harris Keenan & Goldfarb, we will fight hard to get you full recovery for:
Repair or replacement costs for your bicycle if it was damaged or destroyed in the accident
Bills and invoices for your medical or rehabilitation expenses
Home renovations or home health services to help care for permanent disabilities you may have suffered
Loss of wages/income if you’ve missed time from work due to your injuries
Loss of future earning ability when you are permanently disabled and cannot return to gainful employment
Physical pain
Emotional distress or trauma
Permanent scarring or disfigurement
Punitive damages, which may be awarded at trial if the at-fault driver engaged in reckless or egregious conduct
What Should You Do After Being Injured in a Bicycle Accident?
When you have been in a bicycle accident, you can take steps to help put yourself in the best position for pursuing a legal claim against the driver or other party at fault for the accident:
If you are physically able, try to use your cell phone to take photos or video of the accident scene. Capture details such as vehicle damage, road/weather/lighting conditions, traffic signals and signs, any visual obstructions for you or the driver, and any visible injuries you may have suffered.
Go to the hospital or see a physician as soon as possible after the accident for an exam to diagnose injuries you have suffered.
Follow your doctor’s treatment instructions and recommendations. Do not put off treatment or rehabilitation of your injuries.
Retain copies of bills and invoices for expenses that you incurred due to the accident, as well as copies of your pay stubs or tax returns to establish your lost income if you missed time from work.
Keep a journal to document the pain, impairments, and difficulties with daily life that you experience during your recovery from your injuries.
Don’t discuss the accident, your injuries, or your legal claim on social media, and avoid posting photos or videos of yourself engaging in physical activity while you are still treating or rehabbing your injuries. Your social media posts can be used against you to undercut the credibility of your claim.
Finally, make time to sit down with a bicycle accident lawyer from Harris Keenan & Goldfarb to discuss your next steps in seeking compensation from the at-fault driver.
The Claims Process Following a Bicycle Accident
After you have been injured in a bicycle accident that was caused by a negligent driver, you can recover compensation for your injuries and losses by filing an insurance claim.
You might be entitled to obtain compensation for your medical expenses and lost wages if you or someone in your household has an auto insurance policy. In New York, auto insurance policies are required to include personal injury protection (PIP) coverage, which provides benefits regardless of who was at fault for the accident. If your medical expenses and lost wages exceed your PIP coverage, you may be able to pursue further compensation from the at-fault driver’s liability insurance.
When you or your lawyer file a claim with the at-fault driver’s insurer, an insurance adjuster will investigate to determine the driver’s liability for the accident and the amount of loss that you have sustained. If the insurer agrees that their driver caused the accident, they may make a settlement offer. But if the offer doesn’t provide you with an amount of compensation that you find fair, you and your attorney can negotiate with the insurance company for a higher sum of money.
If you and your attorney cannot reach a settlement with the insurance company, you may need to file a lawsuit against the at-fault driver, although their insurance company will usually handle the defense. A lawsuit begins with filing a complaint in court. The at-fault driver (called a defendant in a lawsuit) is entitled to file an answer to respond to the allegations of your complaint. After pleadings have been filed, the parties will engage in discovery, which involves exchanging the documents and information that each party has as part of their evidence. Discovery also typically includes taking depositions of the parties, eyewitnesses to the accident, and the parties’ respective expert witnesses.
Assuming a lawsuit is not settled or dismissed by the court, the case will eventually reach trial, where the parties will present their evidence and arguments to a jury, or to the judge if the parties choose a bench trial. The jury or the judge will issue a verdict ruling in favor of one party or the other, and if the verdict is in your favor, the jury or judge will also determine the amount of compensation you are entitled to.
Harris Keenan & Goldfarb
How a Lawyer Can Help You with a
Bicycle Accident Claim
When you have a bicycle accident claim, you don’t have to try to fight with the insurance company on your own. An experienced attorney from Harris Keenan & Goldfarb can handle the details of your case while you focus on getting back to regular life following devastating injuries. Trust us to:
Thoroughly investigate the accident to recover all potentially relevant evidence, including accident scene photos, police accident reports, surveillance and traffic camera footage, and eyewitness statements
Document your injuries and losses to make sure we are pursuing full compensation on your behalf
Work with accident reconstruction, medical, vocational, and financial experts to provide persuasive opinion testimony to bolster your case
File insurance claims on your behalf and aggressively pursue a full financial recovery for you by getting the insurer to accept your claim or by negotiating a fair settlement
Pursue your claims in court or at trial when a favorable settlement cannot be reached, and litigation becomes necessary to demand justice for you
Frequently Asked Questions
Some questions we’re often asked about bicycle accidents include:
In New York, the statute of limitations normally requires you to file a lawsuit in a bicycle accident claim within three years of the date of the accident. You can talk to a bicycle accident lawyer from Harris Keenan & Goldfarb to get advice as to when you may need to file a lawsuit to continue pursuing your claim for compensation.
If you file a lawsuit after the statute of limitations has expired on your bicycle accident claim, the court can dismiss your case, which means you will have lost the right to demand financial recovery from the driver or other party at fault for the accident.
Even if you share some of the fault for a bicycle accident that you were injured in, you still have the right to pursue a claim for compensation for your expenses and losses. Under New York’s comparative fault law, an injured party is not barred from seeking compensation regardless of their share of fault for their injuries. That means you can file a claim even if you were 99 percent at fault for a bicycle accident.
However, under the comparative fault law, your compensation may be reduced in proportion to your share of fault for your injuries. For example, if you have $100,000 in losses from a bicycle accident that you were 30 percent at fault for, an award of $100,000 can be reduced by $30,000 to reflect your share of responsibility.
At Harris Keenan & Goldfarb, we represent victims of bicycle accidents in New York on a contingency-fee basis, which means you will not need to pay legal fees upfront to hire our firm for your case. Our attorneys are paid only if we can secure compensation in your case by obtaining a negotiated settlement or by winning a verdict in your favor at trial.
You should never accept an insurance settlement without first having it reviewed by an attorney. If you are offered a settlement by the insurance company soon after a bicycle accident, you likely are not being offered an amount of money that will fully compensate you for all the expenses and losses you will incur due to the accident. A bicycle accident lawyer from Harris Keenan & Goldfarb can review any settlement offer you receive from the insurance company, along with the facts and circumstances of your case, and advise you whether the settlement will provide you with fair compensation. If you have received a low offer, an attorney can negotiate on your behalf to potentially secure a larger offer.
We cannot predict whether your bicycle accident case will end up going to trial. While most bicycle accident claims are resolved in a settlement before trial, some of the factors that may influence whether you will need to go to trial in your case include:
- The severity of your injuries
- Whether you are still undergoing treatment or rehabilitation of your injuries
- The amount of your expenses and losses
- The amount of compensation you have demanded
- The complexity of the evidence in your case
- Whether the other driver or at-fault party contests liability for the accident or argues that you share some of the fault
We will work tirelessly to secure fair and full compensation for you as quickly as possible, but we will honestly advise you when we believe that you should go to court or to trial in your case.
Contact Us for Help When You Have Been the Victim of a Bicycle Accident
Don’t wait to talk to a personal injury lawyer after you have been hit by a negligent driver while riding on your bicycle. Call the New York bicycle accident attorneys of Harris Keenan & Goldfarb at 800-724-6529 today for a free, no-obligation case evaluation. Let’s discuss what our firm can do to help you demand accountability and justice for your injuries and losses.
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