Century City Bicycle Accident Lawyer

Century City Bicycle Accident Attorney

Bicycles are fun to ride and a healthy, environmentally conscious alternative to standard local transportation. Many people in Century City ride bikes to commute, for exercise, or for pleasure. While most can reach their destinations and enjoy their rides safely, bicycle accidents can happen in various unpredictable ways, often resulting in devastating harm to the cyclist.

Helping Bicycle Accident Victims Recover in Century City, CA

If you were recently injured in a bicycle accident, you have the right to seek compensation for your damages if another party caused the accident. Under the state’s personal injury laws, any party responsible for harming another party is liable for all resulting damages. An experienced Century City bicycle accident attorney can help determine the optimal path to recovering the compensation you deserve in this situation.

Heimanson & Wolf, LLP, is a seasoned team of personal injury attorneys in Century City who have successfully represented many past clients in a wide range of cases, including those arising from bicycle accidents. We know how traumatic and damaging any bicycle accident can be and the host of damages an accident causes. We could help prove fault for your damages if another party’s negligence or misconduct behind the wheel caused your accident. Time is a critical factor in any personal injury case, so it is advisable to seek legal counsel you can trust as quickly as possible after your accident to increase your chances of success with your civil action.

How to Prove Liability for a Bicycle Accident in Century City

The first challenge you will face as you seek compensation for any personal injury is proving fault for the injury. Bicycle accidents can happen for many of the same reasons that other vehicle accidents occur, including:

• Distracted driving, which is especially dangerous for bicyclists because they are easier for an inattentive driver to overlook. Distracted driving is the most reported cause of all vehicle accidents each year.
• Driving under the influence (DUI), which is illegal and punishable by fines, jail time, driver’s license suspension, and other penalties at the court’s discretion. Penalties for DUI increase substantially when this behavior results in bodily harm or death.
• Traffic violations, which can potentially startle drivers and easily cause serious accidents. Bicyclists have the right to expect nearby drivers to obey traffic signals and maintain a safe flow of traffic. When they do not, they can easily cause damaging accidents.
• Any time a driver exceeds the speed limit, they are more likely to cause an accident. Speeding will reduce how much time and distance they have to slow down or stop and avoid a collision. Any accidents that happen at higher speeds are likely to result in catastrophic injuries, and this is especially true for bicycle accidents.

Your Century City bicycle accident attorney can assist you in gathering the evidence you need in order to firmly establish liability for the recent accident. Once you have identified the driver or drivers at fault for your accident, you can proceed with claiming compensation for the damages they caused.

Claimable Damages in Your Bicycle Accident Case

California’s personal injury laws allow the victim of another party’s negligence or misconduct to hold that party accountable for the economic losses they caused. Your Century City bicycle accident attorney can potentially help you secure compensation for economic damages, including:

• Medical expenses. Bicycle accidents can easily result in severe bone fractures, traumatic brain injuries, and a host of other physical harm. The defendant who caused your accident is liable for any medical care you need in order to reach maximum medical improvement. This includes not only immediate healthcare expenses like hospital bills but also long-term treatment costs if you need physical therapy and other restorative care.
• Lost income. Many bicycle accident victims cannot work during recovery from their injuries. If this applies to your case, you can hold the defendant accountable for the money you cannot earn because of their actions. Your attorney can help calculate lost income and lost future earning capacity if you were left permanently disabled by the defendant’s actions.
• Property damage. You can seek compensation for the cost of repairing or replacing your bike and any other property lost in the accident.

Aside from your economic losses, you can also seek pain and suffering compensation from the defendant. The state’s personal injury laws do not place a limit on how much you can ask for in a bicycle accident claim, and your Century City bicycle accident attorney can provide guidance to determine an appropriate amount to reflect the severity of your experience. They might seek pain and suffering compensation based on how long it takes you to recover from your injuries, or they might opt for seeking a large lump sum if your accident resulted in any permanent harm.

Ultimately, a Century City bicycle accident attorney is the optimal resource to consult to accurately determine the full potential value of your claim. The average person might be able to calculate immediate economic damages like lost wages and hospital bills, but they are likely to struggle in determining the full long-term economic impact of their accident and appropriate pain and suffering compensation to seek from the defendant.

When you pick Heimanson & Wolf, LLP, to represent your bicycle accident case, you are investing in years of professional experience in personal injury law. We will carefully review the details of how your accident happened, help gather the evidence needed to prove fault and establish the full scope of your damages, and guide you through the process of ensuring accountability and the compensation you deserve for your damages.

FAQs Century City, CA Bicycle Accidents Laws

How Do I Prove Liability for Bike Accidents in Century City?

Every bicycle accident claim plaintiff will face different challenges when it comes to proving liability for their damages. To succeed with your case, you must prove that another party directly caused the accident in question. This may be accomplished with physical evidence from the scene of the accident, eyewitness statements from anyone who saw the accident happen, and even expert witness testimony that your attorney can arrange on your behalf.

Can a Bike Rider Be Liable for an Accident?

California law gives bicyclists many of the same rights as motor vehicle drivers, but they also have the same responsibilities. It is possible for a bicyclist to face liability for an accident, but when a bicyclist shares fault with a driver, the driver is almost always going to face a higher level of liability. The state enforces the pure comparative negligence rule, so the judge overseeing the case will assign a fault percentage to each liable party to reflect their level of fault. The plaintiff’s fault percentage is deducted from their final award.

What Happens if a Bicycle Accident Is Fatal in Century City?

If you recently lost a member of your family in a fatal bicycle accident, you likely have the ability to file a wrongful death suit against the at-fault driver. This type of civil claim mirrors a personal injury claim in several ways, but while a personal injury case seeks compensation for the victim, a wrongful death claim aims to compensate the victim’s family.

Will I Win a Larger Case Award if I Hire a Century City Bicycle Accident Attorney?

It’s possible to start a personal injury claim without an attorney, but you risk settling for less than you legally deserve. You could also make procedural errors in filing your case, delaying your claim’s progress through the court. Hiring a Century City bicycle accident attorney to represent you not only allows you to focus on your recovery while your attorney manages your case but also increases your chances of securing as much compensation as the law allows. Your legal team will know how to uncover every available channel of recovery to increase your final award.

How Much Money Does a Century City Bicycle Accident Attorney Cost?

It’s understandable to have some concerns about the potential cost of hiring legal representation when you are already struggling with economic damages from your accident, but most personal injury attorneys work on a contingency fee basis. With this billing arrangement, you will not pay upfront or ongoing attorneys’ fees. Instead, you pay your attorney a portion of the final award you obtain from the defendant, but only if you win your case. If your attorney cannot recover compensation, you are not required to pay any legal fees.

The attorneys at Heimanson & Wolf, LLP, know how damaging and traumatic a bicycle accident can be in Century City, and our firm has helped many past clients recover from similar accidents. If you are unsure how to proceed with your recovery efforts, we can help. Our team can guide you through every phase of your case until you secure the compensation you legally deserve. Contact us today to consult a Century City bicycle accident attorney you can rely on to help you recover from your accident as fully as possible.