{"id":1713,"date":"2019-11-27T10:00:00","date_gmt":"2019-11-27T10:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/harshlaw.com\/?p=1713"},"modified":"2019-11-27T10:00:00","modified_gmt":"2019-11-27T10:00:00","slug":"redlands-bicycle-lawyer-expect","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/harshlaw.com\/redlands-bicycle-lawyer-expect\/","title":{"rendered":"Redlands Bicycle Lawyer \u2013 What to Expect"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Mark Harshbarger of HarshLaw provides legal experience to\nbicyclists and their loved ones in the event of a serious or fatal accident\ninvolving a vehicle. With an increase of commuters, recreational and amateur\ncyclists sharing the already crowded roads, accidents between cars and bikes\nare unfortunately becoming more common.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Always request the police come and create a report if you\nare ever in an accident with a vehicle where a collision or serious injury has\noccurred. While you may have the information already, it is a helpful document\nto have prepared by third-party officials if any facts become disputed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What information is contained in a police accident\nreport?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The police report will likely and should contain the\nidentity of the vehicle driver\u2019s insurance company. Additional helpful\ninformation will include location of the accident, the identity of the driver\nand may indicate statements made by you and the driver of the other vehicle. It\nmay also identify any witnesses to the accident. It is prudent that you speak\nto and retain your own lawyer. If possible, this should be done early in the\nprocess who will communicate with the insurance carrier on your behalf.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How does liability for the accident become determined?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

After initial medical and police assistance, the first step\nin the legal process of recovery is to define which party was at fault, or if\nthere was fault with both the cyclist and the vehicle driver. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here are several initial questions that may be used to\ndetermine fault:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

  • Was there a right of way established for the vehicle or bicycle?<\/li>
  • Was the cyclist aware a vehicle was about to exit or merge into the area the cyclist was occupying? <\/li>
  • What was the level of attention to the road of the cyclist?<\/li>
  • Was the bicycle operating within reasonable speeds?<\/li>
  • Did the cyclist utilize reflectors and or illumination if at night or low light?<\/li>
  • Was the cyclist distracted by a headphone or other device?<\/li>
  • Was it possible for the cyclist to ride clear of the danger?<\/li>
  • What attempts did the bicyclist do to avoid the collision?<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n

    After the Accident: Preserve Evidence!<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    As soon after an accident as possible, all relevant evidence\nshould be carefully and fully gathered and preserved. Some of the evidence to\ncompile are police reports and the names and addresses of witnesses.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    • Photographs of bicycle<\/li>
    • Photographs of vehicle<\/li>
    • Photographs of injuries<\/li>
    • Photographs of accident area from vehicle\u2019s\nperspective <\/li>
    • Photographs of accident area from bicycle\u2019s\nperspective<\/li>
    • Photographs of accident area from alternative\nperspectives<\/li>
    • Name and phone numbers of any witnesses that may\nhave seen the accident<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n

      Photographs depicting the scene of the accident as it\nexisted at the time of the accident should be taken. Make certain to secure and\npreserve the damaged bike for forensic analysis, avoid the desire to repair it\nor continue to use it until after discussing with your attorney. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

      Preserve any GPS or mobile app data. If wearing a Go Pro\ntype camera, be certain to preserve the video. Photographs of the vehicle\ninvolved should be taken as soon as possible. Do not destroy or lose any\nevidence. This can result in severe sanctions including the dismissal of a lawsuit.\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      Be proactive in obtaining evidence and the early assistance\nand intervention of an attorney can be key to preserving relevant evidence. In\nmany cases, this evidence may directly impact the ultimate result of a lawsuit\nas forensic evidence can in some cases scientifically establish the manner in\nwhich an accident occurred.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

      Mark Harshbarger of HarshLaw provides legal experience to bicyclists and their loved ones in the event of a serious or fatal accident involving a vehicle. With an increase of commuters, recreational and amateur cyclists sharing the already crowded roads, accidents between cars and bikes are unfortunately becoming more common. Always request the police come and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1713","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/harshlaw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1713","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/harshlaw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/harshlaw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/harshlaw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/harshlaw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1713"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/harshlaw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1713\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/harshlaw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1713"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/harshlaw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1713"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/harshlaw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1713"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}