Motorcycle accidents can be quite disastrous, often leading to serious injuries and fatalities. In fact, according to a report published by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), motorcyclists are at greater risk of getting injured or killed in an accident compared to occupants of cars and other vehicles. Throughout Ohio and Southeast Michigan, hundreds of motorcyclists suffer injuries in collisions every year. These accidents often lead to serious injuries and, in severe cases, death. Keep reading for the five most common motorcycle accident risk factors.
#1: Speeding
Speed is one of the most common causes of vehicle collisions throughout the United States. The higher the speed a vehicle travels, the more difficult it is for the vehicle to stop. Speed limits are in place to help drivers handle sudden incidents, such as a motorcyclist making a sudden turn. Speeding can also lead to breaking other traffic laws, such as running stop lights or ignoring yield signs. Vehicles that are speeding can easily crash into a motorcyclist, causing severe injuries.
#2: Failure to Follow Traffic Laws
Drivers who speed past stop signs, ignore traffic lights, disregard yield signs, or break any traffic law put the drivers, cyclists, and pedestrians around them at risk. Traffic laws are in place to protect people on the road, and drivers who fail to follow these laws can easily cause an accident with a motorcyclist.
#3: Alcohol and Drug Use
Driving while under the influence of alcohol and drugs is incredibly dangerous and leads to thousands of deaths and injuries per year. Drivers who consume these substances and get behind the wheel significantly impair their judgment. They cannot respond to sudden events on the road in an appropriate manner. In addition, intoxication causes drivers to ignore vital traffic laws. Any of these conditions can cause a vehicle motorcycle collision.
#4: Motorcycle Malfunction
Many things can go wrong when operating a motorcycle. Whether it is a product defect, a manufacturing error, or a result of inadequate maintenance, the vehicle could malfunction and send a motorcyclist into a dangerous situation. Brakes could fail, a tire could pop, or something could go wrong with the engine. Whatever happens, a malfunctioning motorcycle can cause serious injury and death.
#5: Unsafe Lane Changes
Motorcyclists depend on drivers staying aware of their presence while they’re on the road. However, drivers might fail to check the road before changing lanes and collide with a motorcycle. In addition, the driver could fail to signal before they enter the next lane, leaving the motorcyclist with little time to react.
Take Legal Action with an Experienced Motorcycle Accident Lawyer in Toledo
If you or a loved one suffered injuries due to a motorcycle accident in Ohio or Southeast Michigan, help is available. You can recover damages to compensate for your losses through a personal injury lawsuit or insurance claim.
Although nothing can take away your pain and suffering after a motorcycle accident, an experienced motorcycle accident lawyer from Gallon, Takacs & Boissoneault will work relentlessly to secure the compensation that you and your family need and deserve.
For more than 65 years, we’ve helped victims in Toledo and the surrounding area in Northwest Ohio. If you need legal assistance from a motorcycle accident lawyer, contact us today at 419-843-6663 or use our online contact form.
Michael Bell, is Partner and Personal Injury Attorney at GT&B since 2007. His entire career has been committed to protecting the rights of those injured through no fault of their own. Mike concentrates his practice in the areas of car wrecks, trucking accidents, medical negligence, wrongful death, birth injuries, defective products, nursing home abuse & neglect, dog bites, construction accidents and slip & falls.
