Why Did Your Bicycle Accident Happen?

Our Longview, Houston, and Santa Fe bike accident lawyers will put investigators on your case right away. They can inspect the accident scene, take photos, interview witnesses and collect other important evidence. Our law firm may also consult with accident reconstruction experts. We want to know why your bike crash happened – and who should be held responsible for it.

In most cases, negligent drivers cause bike accidents in East Texas. Our bike accident lawyers often see crashes that result from driver inattention, distraction, alcohol impairment and speeding. In many situations, drivers simply refuse to respect cyclists’ rights to share the road.

The most common types of bicycle accidents that The Sloan Firm handles involve negligence such as:

• Right cross – A driver emerges from a driveway, parking lot or side street and goes right into the path of a cyclist.
• Left cross – A driver and cyclist approach an intersection from opposite directions, and the driver fails to yield and turns left into the cyclist’s path.Right hook – A driver who is ahead of a cyclist turns right at an intersection or moves into the cyclist’s lane (typically without using a turn signal).
• Backovers – A driver backs out of a driveway or parking space without looking and hits a cyclist.
• Tailgating – A driver follows dangerously close to a cyclist, leaving the no chance to avoid a collision if the cyclist needs to stop or swerve in order to avoid a pothole or other obstacle in the road.
• Dooring – A driver who is parked on a street opens his or her car door directly in the cyclist’s path.
• Buzzing – A driver carelessly or intentionally passes dangerously close to a cyclist, often running the cyclist off the road. As Bike Texas points out, car drivers should leave at least three feet of space for cyclists, while commercial truck drivers should leave six feet of space.
• Of course, drivers often try to blame cyclists for these accidents. They may claim that the cyclist failed to yield or drove on the wrong side of the road. They may also insist that they could not see a cyclist because the cyclist failed to wear bright clothing or use a bicycle light.

Under Texas law, you can still recover damages in a bike accident lawsuit even if you were partially responsible for it. Your compensation would be reduced according to the percentage of fault assigned to you. You would be barred from a recovery only if you were “51 percent” or more at fault. The Sloan Firm will thoroughly investigate the cause of your bike crash in order to defeat any wrongful attempts to blame you for your bike crash.

Do not hesitate to reach out to The Sloan Firm today if you have been involved in a Bicycle crash in Houston, Longview, or Santa Fe, NM. Our experienced Bicycle accident attorneys are here to help you get the compensation you deserve.