Helping Injured Cyclists Secure Compensation
At Bill Easterly & Associates, we know that as a cyclist, you have as much right to the road as motor vehicles. Unfortunately, this right does not always guarantee your safety, as drivers can be careless and negligent around bicyclists. If you are a cyclist who has been injured in an accident with an automobile, pursue justice with the help of a Nashville personal injury attorney from our firm.
Our team has a combined 25 years of experience in personal injury law, over which we have compiled a comprehensive understanding of what it takes to win. We have successfully recovered millions of dollars for our clients and are ready to help you fight for the compensation you deserve. You should not have to suffer the damages caused by another’s negligence. Take action today.
How Our Lawyers Can Help With Your Bicycle Accident Case
Our priority is to take on the burden of dealing with the important legal and financial issues so that you can focus on your health and recovering from your bicycle accident. Crashes that involve cars and bicycles usually cause serious injuries. The recovery period is often long and difficult. You don’t need the added stress of dealing with insurance companies while you’re trying to heal.
At Bill Easterly & Associates, our dedicated personal injury lawyers stand like a shield between you and the chaos that can follow a bicycle accident. Our experienced legal team will:
- Collect evidence from all parties, documenting your bicycle accident and what caused it.
- Gather medical records and special evaluations if necessary to document the extent of your injuries, your long-term prognosis, rehabilitation needs, and required assistance.
- Interview witnesses to establish how the accident occurred and who was to blame for the accident.
- Call on our team of experts to reconstruct the accident or provide special insights that could prove valuable in your case.
- Manage all communications and negotiations with the other insurance company for the party responsible for your accident, keeping you safely out of the crossfire.
- Pursue every avenue for maximum compensation to demand justice from all responsible parties.
While you are focused on putting your life back together after a serious bicycle accident, you can relax knowing that the committed Nashville bicycle accident attorneys at Bill Easterly & Associates will stand up for your rights and seek the compensation you need.
Nashville Bicycle Accident Faqs
While the process may seem straightforward, it can be time-consuming and confusing. Insurance adjusters work for the insurance company – that means they are working to protect the company’s best interests and bottom line. Some companies take advantage of clients by giving them low offers or manipulate their answers in order to make it look like you were at least partially responsible for the accident, again resulting in an offer that could be lower than what you deserve.
An attorney can work to protect your best interests and negotiate with the insurance company to make sure you are getting the maximum amount of compensation you are due.
Tennessee is known as an “at fault” jurisdiction for the purposes of allocating blame. In practice, this means that you can recover on a claim for compensation for your injuries and other damages as long as the other party was more at fault than you were.
This is called the “49% rule.” As long as you were 49% or less to blame, you can recover compensation for your damages. However, the amount you are claiming will be reduced by the percentage to which you are determined to be at fault. For example, if you are claiming $100,000 in damages, and the court determines that you were 30% to blame, then the maximum you can recover would be $70,000.
Among the most common of all accident involving bicyclists are collisions at intersections. Liability is primarily determined by right-of-way rules. As bicycles are considered vehicles, cyclists are responsible for adhering to the same laws of right-of-way that drivers must honor. However, there are different factors that can contribute to liability. For example, an accident can occur when a car makes a right turn and a bicyclist is going straight through the intersection.
Due to the side-of-the-road laws, a bicyclist must stay to the right side, even when approaching an intersection. This can be extremely dangerous when cars turn right into the path of a cyclist, especially if a diver is not paying attention. If a car passes a bike and immediately turns right, cutting them off, the right-of-way laws are not necessarily applicable. In these instances, it will usually be determined that the driver was not adequately paying attention to his or her surroundings.
If you have been injured in a bike crash that was someone else’s fault, you may be entitled to compensation for your injuries, property damages, and other losses you suffer as a result of the accident.
Depending on the damages and injuries that you suffered as a result of the bicycle accident, you may be able to recover compensation for the following:
- Medical expenses
- Therapy or rehabilitation
- Lost wages
- Lost earning potential
- Pain and suffering
- Mental anguish
- Emotional distress
- Loss of companionship/consortium
- Disfigurement
There are some limits in Tennessee on how much you can recover for your injuries, any potential shared blame aside. The maximum you can recover in non-economic damages (damages that are difficult to quantify such as pain and suffering) for most injuries is $750,000.
If your injuries or losses are considered catastrophic, the maximum you can recover is $1 million.
