Motorcyclists in New Rochelle could find their lives changed in an instant during a serious crash. A few bad decisions by another driver can put you in the hospital and even cause serious, long-term injuries.
Our lawyers can help you seek justice after a motorcycle accident. Whether your injuries are mild, moderate, or serious, we can take your case, file against the at-fault driver, and seek to get total compensation for these injuries.
For your free case evaluation, call The Martello Law Firm’s motorcycle accident lawyers at (914) 685-6950 right away.
Common Injuries from Motorcycle Accidents
Our motorcycle accident lawyers can help you seek compensation for all kinds of injuries after an accident.
Minor Injuries
Not every injury is incredibly serious. Many accidents involve road rash, bruises, cuts, and scrapes. If you were hurt in a low-speed collision, even these aches and pains can justify pain and suffering damages, plus coverage for any medical treatment you needed.
Moderate Injuries
When injuries are more serious, the medical care cost goes up. You may have spend hours or a few overnights at the hospital, plus the cost of X-rays, MRIs, casts, follow-up appointments, etc. These costs can be more than you can be expected to absorb, and getting compensation is a must.
On top of this, injuries like broken bones and sprains/strains could stop you from working. When your income is affected, the costs and expenses build, but you cannot work to afford them, and a spiral begins. We can also seek compensation for lost earnings and other damages to stop the spiral.
Serious Injuries
Fortunately, serious, life-altering injuries are the rarest, but you might be one of the few who need substantial help. Serious injuries can include…
- Amputations
- Lost function
- Serious back, neck, and spine injuries
- Brain injuries
- Lifelong disabilities.
Our lawyers can seek out compensation for high-dollar medical bills, ongoing treatment, and other care to deal with these injuries. We can also seek out the cost of future lost earnings to cover you for as long as your disability lasts.
On top of this, the pain and suffering associated with life-altering injuries is often quite high.
Do Motorcycles Have No-Fault Insurance?
If you also drive a car or have been researching auto insurance coverage for your crash, you may be familiar with the no-fault insurance rules in New York. These laws often prevent lawsuits for anything less than “serious injuries” – a specific legal threshold with a more specific definition than what we discussed above.
Fortunately, these rules do not apply to motorcycles. This means you can always file directly against the at-fault driver’s insurance, and you can always sue for pain and suffering. There are no restrictions on this right, and you do not have to use your own insurance first before suing.
You may, however, still opt in to some first-party coverages, such as medical payment coverage to help with care costs or collision coverage to help with vehicle repairs.
Can I Sue for a Motorcycle Accident in New Rochelle?
As mentioned, there are no no-fault laws for motorcycle accidents in New York. These would typically be the biggest bar to a lawsuit, but without them, the path is clear to sue the at-fault driver in most cases.
However, you may not need to sue in every case. Our lawyers can negotiate with the defense and see if their insurance is willing to cover your injuries in full without needing to go to court. If they refuse or try to undercut your damages, we can always turn to the courts for relief.
Even after you file, your case can still be settled, even up to a “courthouse steps” settlement on the day of trial.
What is My Motorcycle Accident Case Worth?
It is impossible to put a value on a motorcycle accident case without going into the specific details. Damages are based on what harms you faced and the specific values of the medical care, lost wages, and other costs.
Economic Damages
There is a range of “economic” damages you can claim based on the charges and expenses the accident caused you.
As discussed above, many cases involve medical expenses. You may heal up quickly, or you may need ongoing care, and the specific cost of every service will be added to your total damages.
Also, as we discussed, lost earnings can be claimed. Again, for more serious injuries, these could involve future costs.
On top of these, other incidental costs – such as childcare during a hospital stay, motorcycle repair costs, and more – can also be claimed to complete your “economic damages.”
Non-Economic Damages
“Non-economic damages” is essentially a synonym for “pain and suffering” or “emotional distress.” These damages pay for the physical, mental, and emotional toll of the accident.
It is presumed that these damages flow from any injury, so you do not need to prove they exist in the first place. However, specific details about your situation will help prove the severity of these damages.
For example, if your injury will cause you to lose the ability to participate in activities you love, stop you from lifting your children, or put you through grueling physical rehab, you face higher pain and suffering.
We can often employee standard calculation methods for non-economic damages, such as choosing a multiplier between 1.5 and 5 to reflect the overall severity. We then multiply your other damages by this factor to get the total damages.
Do I Have a Case?
We cannot determine whether you have a case without examining the facts ourselves. However, you usually have a case if the crash was caused by the other driver’s mistakes or traffic violations and you faced injuries.
How Long Do I Have to Sue?
Most motorcycle accident cases need to be filed within 3 years of the crash. This may seem like a long time, but you need to call a lawyer much sooner. That gives us time to build your case and file without running too close to the deadline.
Who is at Fault?
In most motorcycle accident cases, the other driver can be blamed for at least some of the harm. New York law allows us to divide fault among multiple parties, and you can still get the defendant to pay for the share of damages they caused you.
Typically, fault is decided by looking for traffic violations like speeding, drunk driving, running a red light, etc.
Contact Our Motorcycle Accident Lawyers in New Rochelle Today
Reach out to The Martello Law Firm’s motorcycle accident lawyers for a free case review at (914) 685-6950.
