Insurance Companies May Try to Blame You

There are many times when insurance companies try to blame motorcyclists. Unfortunately, Florida’s “no-fault” auto insurance law doesn’t apply to motorcyclists. Therefore insurance companies can use this to deny you just compensation.

Even When Partially at Fault You’re Entitled to Some Compensation

Even when partially at fault for a motorcycle accident you’re entitled to some compensation. However, you’ll need to hire a motorcycle accident lawyer to prove that you’re not 100% at fault and how much you’re entitled to recover. This requires crash site evidence (e.g., debris, skid marks, damaged road signs, and barriers) that disappears quickly. You may also need evidence from other sources (e.g., traffic cameras, the driver’s phone records).

You May Have Options Besides Filing an Insurance Claim

Florida leads the nation when it comes to uninsured drivers. Even insured drivers don’t always carry enough insurance to completely cover the costs of your injuries. In either case, your only option is to file an insurance claim. Before doing so you should contact a motorcycle accident lawyer to determine against whom you should file the claim (e.g., a vehicle manufacturer, your motorcycle’s manufacturer, a government agency).

You Must Prove How Much You’re Entitled to Recover

Regardless of what type of claim you have, you must prove how much you’re entitled to recover. While doing so you shouldn’t just consider the cost of the motorcycle accident into consideration, but you should consider other factors like pain and suffering and your current and future loss of income. There may be other losses you’re entitled to recover from as well.

You’ll Need to Know When and If to Settle

Eventually, you may receive a settlement offer. Deciding whether to accept it is a major decision that could impact your life for years to come. This is why you should talk to a motorcycle accident lawyer before making any decisions so that you have as much information in front of you as possible.

Hiring a Lawyer Doesn’t Cost Anything Up Front

Although you may think that it’s expensive to hire a motorcycle accident lawyer, it actually doesn’t cost you anything out of pocket. These lawyers work on a contingency-fee-basis, meaning that you don’t pay them anything for representing you unless you win. Therefore these lawyers don’t take a case unless they believe that they can help maximize how much money you’ll win. This is also why you’ll get more money once you hire a lawyer to represent you.

You Only Have One Opportunity to Assert Your Legal Rights

You only get one opportunity to assert your legal rights when you’re in a motorcycle accident. Those who try to represent themselves frequently walk away with less money than they’re owed, if they get anything at all. With a lawyer on your side, you’re setting yourself up for success. You’ll also feel confident knowing that you’ve taken the right steps to protect yourself and your loved ones who are also indirectly affected here.

Talk to a Motorcycle Accident Lawyer in Palm Harbor, FL Today

When you’re injured in a motorcycle accident you should contact us at Blenner Law Group immediately. Not only can we answer your questions and provide you with a no-obligation consultation, but we’re committed to ensuring you get everything you deserve. Reach out to us today.

Picture Credit: 123rf.com

The post Reasons To Hire A Motorcycle Accident Lawyer appeared first on Blenner Law Group.

Unfortunately, there will be times when an insurance company will reject a legitimate claim or take its time when it comes to paying it. There will also be times when someone who’s injured in the accident, whether a driver or a passenger, will be offered less money than they expect to receive. This may not even be enough money for them to pay for things like repairs, injuries, or other costs that are associated with the accident. Fortunately, the laws in Florida do protect those who are injured in a car accident.

Understanding the Costs of a Car Accident

The money that you’re offered by an insurance company after an accident won’t always be enough to help you cover all the costs that you’ve incurred. Unfortunately, you’ll be responsible for anything that the insurance company doesn’t pay for unless you seek fair compensation.

Many people are surprised when this happens to them because being in a car accident isn’t cheap. You need to figure in the cost of car repairs, taxis, medical treatment (don’t forget medication, long-term medical costs), lost wages at work (these may be significant if you’re seriously injured), and other incidentals. Sometimes you’ll also have the added cost of replacing your personal property (e.g. phone, jewelry) if it was damaged in the accident.

Filing a Claim

Since car collisions are so expensive you must get all the documentation you need at the time of the accident. This includes pictures and contact information of the other drivers and any witnesses. You should also spend time notating any details you remember as soon as possible as they may prove helpful later.

It’s also important to keep any receipts that are related to your injuries and damages (e.g. medicine, taxis, specialist visits). Saving these alongside any notes regarding your treatment or the accident itself is helpful. Simply store them in an envelope so they’re available when you need them.

Fortunately, it’s fairly straightforward to file a claim. Simply contact your insurance company and ask them to start the claims process. The insurance company will then inform you about what steps you need to take. Make sure you take notes of this conversation.

You’ll want to make sure you have all this information in order as your next step should be to contact the Blenner Law Group in Palm Harbor, FL.

Picture Credit: Freepik

The post How To File An Insurance Claim After A Car Accident In Palm Harbor, FL appeared first on Blenner Law Group.

Understanding Florida’s Motorcycle Helmet Law

Florida didn’t have a universal motorcycle law (F.S. 316.211(3)(b)) until 2000. This law mandates that anyone under the age of 21 or without an insurance policy that has at least $10,000 in medical benefits must wear a helmet. However, anyone over the age of 21 with the proper insurance doesn’t need to wear a helmet. Furthermore, everyone must wear protective eyewear.

This means that if you sustain a motorcycle injury while obeying this law your injury attorney can protect your right to collect damages from the driver who’s at fault for causing your injury claim. It’s up to you to decide what’s right for you but there are some instances where it may impact how much compensation you’re awarded. This is something that an injury attorney will be able to determine for you.

Understanding Florida’s Unique Insurance Laws for Motorcyclists

While Florida is a no-fault state for car insurance this isn’t true for motorcycles. Instead, motorcyclists are allowed to register their motorcycle without obtaining any proof of insurance. Of course, you can purchase coverage for medical payments but it’s rarely enough when there’s an injury claim. When this happens you’ll need to hire an injury attorney to pursue compensation from the party that’s at fault.

Understanding Florida’s “Helmet Defense” System

In Florida, there’s a system in use that’s known as “pure comparative fault.” This system weights the legal responsibility of anyone who makes an injury claim that’s based on a crash. What this means is that you can hire an injury attorney to help you pursue your claim even if you’re partially at fault but how much money you’ll receive will be proportionate to your degree of fault.

When you sustain a motorcycle injury while not wearing a helmet the defense’s injury attorney may use “the helmet defense” tactic to reduce your damages. According to this tactic even if the other driver is found to be at fault for causing the accident you may be considered partially negligent based on how much worse your injuries were made since you weren’t wearing a helmet.

There are times when a helmet may not even factor into a case. For instance, if you sustain a motorcycle injury consisting of a broken leg from someone crashing into you the decision not to wear a helmet is irrelevant to your injury claim. However, if you’ve developed a traumatic brain injury from this same accident then it could be argued that you may not have sustained this motorcycle injury had you been wearing a helmet. If this comparative fault claim is successful, your damages may be reduced significantly. When this happens you may be held responsible for 20% of the accident and so instead of being awarded $100,000 you’ll only receive $80,000. It’s at times like this when you’ll want to have an experienced attorney on your side to help you challenge insurers and defense attorneys effectively.

If you receive a motorcycle injury in Palm Harbor and St Petersburg, contact an injury attorney at Blenner Law Group for an injury claim consultation today.

Picture Credit: Freepik

The post Insight Into Florida’s Motorcycle Helmet Law appeared first on Blenner Law Group.

Florida Motorcycle Passenger Laws

When you look at Florida motorcycle laws you’ll see that the majority of them address the operator. However, there are some laws that pertain to the passenger. For instance, a passenger can’t ride on a motorcycle that isn’t designed for two people to ride. Some of the other laws that passengers must follow include:

• Anyone over the age of 21 isn’t required to wear a motorcycle helmet as long as the driver has an insurance policy that covers $10,000 in the event a personal injury occurs. However, you should know that if you do get into a motorcycle accident while not wearing a helmet the defense will probably use this against you.
• Children who ride on a motorcycle must wear a helmet.
• Two-passenger motorcycles should have footrests for the passenger. The passenger should be able to reach these footrests with their feet so they won’t create a balance issue for the driver.
• While it isn’t against the law for a passenger to ride on a motorcycle while intoxicated it isn’t advisable. If you get into a motorcycle accident the defense may try to say that the intoxicated passenger contributed to the crash or caused a personal injury to themselves especially if it’s proven that the driver wasn’t able to pay attention or they themselves weren’t holding on at the time of the motorcycle accident.

Liability for Florida Motorcycle Passenger Injuries

While every personal injury resulting from getting into an accident while riding a motorcycle is different most lawyers will explore the same avenues of liability.

Drivers

The owner and operator of both the motorcycle and the vehicle that it got into the accident with will be investigated. In this case, you may find that the other driver was at fault. There are many instances in which it can’t be determined for certain who caused the personal injury so both the motorcyclist and the driver of the passenger vehicle will be listed as the defendants.

Defective Parts

It’s possible that the motorcycle or any protective gear being worn at the time the personal injury occurred was defective. Whether any of these things caused the operator to lose control of the motorcycle or made the motorcycle accident worse will be taken into consideration. Typically this will include looking at things like brake failure, fuel system malfunctions, defective tires, dangerous design issues, or any other type of malfunction.

The Involvement of Alcohol

If anyone who’s involved in the accident was drinking, it’s possible that the establishment that served them the alcohol could get into trouble. This is especially true if anyone was under 21 or known to be an alcoholic. Such instances would fall under Florida’s dram shop law, F.S. 768.125.

Conclusion

Typically motorcycle passenger injuries in Florida aren’t found to be the result of the passenger’s actions. There are many things that do need to be sorted out though. Fortunately, if you get into a motorcycle accident the Blenner Law Group is there to help. They’ll get you the answers you need regarding your legal options so contact them today.

Picture Credit: Unsplash

The post Your Rights As A Motorcycle Passenger In Florida appeared first on Blenner Law Group.

Take into account the fact that personal injury attorneys based in the state of Florida will only accept personal injury cases on a strict basis. They only get paid if you win the case, so personal injury attorneys tend to be quite blunt when it comes to your chances of winning.

Knowing about the things which these attorneys take into consideration will help to prepare you for what you can expect if you ever need to file a personal injury lawsuit.

The carelessness of the Defendant

There are a few things that need to be shown to prove liability when filing a personal injury lawsuit. For starters, the defendant must have owed a duty of care to the plaintiff to use reasonable care. Then, the defendant must have breached that duty. And finally, the injury resulted due to that breach of duty.

First and foremost, if you are unable to show that the defendant failed to use reasonable care then you have no basis for your case. What counts as reasonable all depends on the circumstances surrounding the accident, so this varies from case to case.

Insurance Policies

Taking advantage of the various insurance policies that may be available is another thing that can help to bolster your case. Insurance policies can help you to gain more awards and money from the case, assisting in your recovery.

If you are involved in a traffic accident with a shipping truck then you might be able to take advantage of many different insurance policies. Not only is the driver of the truck liable, but the carrier and even the shipping company owe you compensation.

Getting a professional personal injury attorney, such as those available at the Blenner Law Group, is essential. This is because many insurance companies will do all that they can to avoid paying you what you are owed.

Any Pre-Existing Conditions

In Florida, it is quite common for defenses to say that injuries you may have sustained were there before the incident. That means that you should carefully prepare your case to ensure you can prove that the injuries you sustained were caused by the defendant.

Don’t stop at your physical damages, though. Make sure to take note of the damages to your finances, professional life, and emotional state, as these can all be used to bolster your case.

Conclusion

This list is not complete, and many other things should be taken into account when attempting to file a personal injury case. The specific facts and information of your case will dictate how things should be handled.

If you have been injured and are looking for compensation and justice then make sure to contact the expert professionals at Blenner Law Group. With all of the things that you need to take into account to get the justice that you deserve it’s best to have a professional attorney there who can guide and assist you every step of the way.

Don’t settle for less. Over 25 years of experience and a heart to assist in any way he can has made Walt Blenner a premier personal injury attorney in the Palm Harbor and Tampa Bay area. Get your injury case evaluated at absolutely no cost, and take the first step towards compensation today.

Picture Credit: Pexels

The post Things That Could Affect A Personal Injury Lawsuit appeared first on Blenner Law Group.

Picture Credit: Freepik

The post Who Is Going To Pay For My Medical Expenses Following My Florida Car Accident? appeared first on Blenner Law Group.