Call for a FREE Consultation

Santa Ana Bicycle Accident Attorneys 

The beautiful coastal environment and welcoming weather of the beaches and other features around Santa Ana and Riverside are naturally inviting to bicyclists of all levels, from the sightseeing amateur to the professional-in-training. While it would be ideal if motorists heeded the road and watched out for bicyclists, this is not always the case, and negligent driving results in a great many injuries to cyclists in Santa Ana each year.

If you or a loved one has been injured in a bicycle accident caused by the negligence of another party, you could be entitled to compensation for the associated damages. Generally, when another party is found liable for your injuries, they are responsible for your damages. These include present and future medical costs, lost wages, and future earnings potential, and in some cases damages for pain and suffering or even punitive damages. 

Often, it is the insurance company of the at-fault driver who will be responsible for paying you. Keep in mind, they have teams of claim analysts and attorneys working to reduce or deny whatever claims they can. What determines whether you have a claim for damages, and in what amount, are the unique facts and circumstances of your Santa Ana bicycle accident. 

To determine if you have a right to compensation, and how our Santa Ana bicycle accident attorneys can help, connect with the Law Offices of Benjamin Arsenian. 

Your Santa Ana Bicycle Accident Attorney Determines Fault and Pursues Your Damages

Before considering the most common causes of bicycle accidents, we’ll briefly explain when you are entitled to damages, and how one of our Santa Ana bicycle accident attorneys can help on your case. The two main functions of your Santa Ana bicycle accident lawyer are:

  1. Prove the fault or liability of the other party
  2. Accurately measure and prove the damages associated with your injuries

When you are injured in a bicycle accident that was caused by someone or something else, the party that caused your injuries will generally be liable for their associated costs, or damages. This is a legal concept known as “negligence”. 

Negligence has four parts, each of which you must prove in order to collect compensation to cover the costs and damages linked to your Santa Ana bicycle accident injuries: 

  1. Duty – the party that injured you must have had some duty towards you. For example, all drivers on the road have a duty to follow all traffic laws and regulations in place. 
  2. Breach – the duty that the other party had towards you must have been breached. For example, if a driver is texting while driving, they are engaging in distracted driving, and violating CA law. 
  3. Causation – the breach of duty on behalf of the other party must have been the cause of your injuries. For example, when a distracted driver runs a red light and hits a bicyclist with the right of way and injures them, their breaches of duty in terms of distracted driving and running a red light will make them liable for any resulting damages. 
  4. Damages – to collect compensation, there must be measurable damages that you can prove with evidence. Damages generally include medical and occupational costs, and in some instances damages for pain and suffering, or punitive damages which are meant to deter certain behaviors. 

The legal concept of “negligence” might seem complicated, but the attorneys working for the insurance company of the at-fault party know it inside and out. It is essential to understand that when you file an insurance claim, the insurance company does not work for you, they work for profit. The more claims they settle for less than they deserve or can deny outright, the higher their profit margins. Without an attorney of your own, it can be difficult to accurately measure your complete present and future damage, then collect them in full. 

Common Cause of At-Fault Bicycle Accidents 

When you are injured in a bicycle accident caused by another party, they will be at fault for your injuries. Our Santa Ana bicycle accident attorneys have successfully represented clients with long-term, life-altering injuries caused by the following: 

  • Distracted driving – as explained by the CDC, distracted driving is when a driver is mentally, manually, or visually impaired while driving. For example, when texting while driving the driver’s mind is on the text, and at least one hand and their eyes are on the phone.
  • Drunk driving – all drunk driving is preventable, and all drunk drivers are liable for the damages they cause for willingly getting behind the wheel while intoxicated. 
  • Aggressive driving and/or speeding – when drivers violate the rules of the road, they will be liable for injuries that result from accidents their driving causes. 
  • Drowsy driving – The National Highway Safety Transportation Administration (NHTSA) notes that in 2017 alone there were over 91,000 police-reported crashes involving drowsy drivers, which led to approximately 50,000 injuries and nearly 800 deaths. 
  • Equipment malfunctions – If a vehicle or equipment malfunction, such as a brake malfunction, causes a bicycle accident, the equipment manufacturer could be liable in whole or in part for your damages. 

Identifying the exact cause of your bicycle accident can be difficult, as you might not remember the exact circumstances leading up to your injury, or they may have been impossible for you to see. Contacting the police immediately following your bicycle accident is helpful to create an immediate report of the incident, which can record information you cannot observe while also providing valuable evidence for your case later. 

Your Lawyer Collects Evidence to Prove Fault to Win Your Claim

Your Santa Ana bicycle accident lawyer uses legal instruments like requests for production, depositions, and more to gather information from the other party and any witnesses to prove the cause of your accident. Once you have us on the case, we immediately begin building your claim and helping you schedule appointments with our medical and occupational experts to accurately measure the damages associated with your injuries. 

Common Santa Ana Bicycle Accident Injuries

When motor vehicles collide with bicycles, the resulting injuries to an individual on non-motorized vehicles without the benefit of a metal chassis surrounding them are oftentimes far greater than any injuries experienced by the motorist. If you or a loved one has gone through a bicycle accident, it is essential to seek immediate medical attention as soon as possible after your accident. Some injuries are not noticed in the excitement and adrenaline of the accident, and brain injuries and others may not be apparent to the naked eye. 

Common injuries associated with bicycle accidents include: 

The CDC estimates that between 2009-2018, there were 596,972 emergency department visits for bicycle-related TBIs in the United States. The rates of TBI are highest among adult males, and children and adolescents aged 10-14 years. Whatever the age of the person injured, when life-altering, long-term injuries are experienced, the associated costs can be substantial. The purpose of pursuing a personal injury settlement is to ensure that these costs are covered now and into the future for your family so that you are not left covering them out of your household budget. 

Injuries that result in a long-term impact on your ability to engage in social situations and things you enjoyed prior to the accident, and that result in lost wages in the short-term and earnings potential in the long term, can entitle you to substantial damages. It is necessary that you gather evidence, draft a claim, and file it with the insurance company of the at-fault party. The process can be difficult, and our Santa Ana bicycle accident attorneys can help you through every step of the way. 

Connect with a Santa Ana Bicycle Lawyer For Help Now

To learn how a Santa Ana bicycle accident lawyer can help on your case, reach out to us today. While many potential new clients worry that they cannot afford our services, that is simply not the case, because:

  • Your initial case review is free
  • We only get paid if we win, and you never pay a dime out-of-pocket

We take personal injury cases on contingency, which means that if your case is a fit with our firm and we take you on as a client, we only get paid if we win. Our payment comes out of a portion of the compensation we earn on your behalf, so there is no out-of-pocket cost, ever. It is helpful during your initial consultation to have access to as much information about your accident as possible, including medical records, police reports, pay stubs to demonstrate lost wages, as well as any insurance inquiries you may have received. 

It is best to contact one of our Santa Ana bicycle accident attorneys as soon as possible, before communicating with the insurance company. To get started now, give us a call at 714-400-2000, or contact us to schedule your initial consultation. 

Accidents