Phoenix, Arizona Motorcycle Accident Lawyers

What Should You Do After a Motorcycle Accident?

It’s important to act quickly after a motorcycle accident. In Arizona, the statute of limitations for filing a personal injury lawsuit after an accident is just 2 years. Once the time limit on the statute of limitations runs out, you lose the chance to file a legal claim forever.

But that’s not the only reason to act quickly. If you want to get compensation for an injury after an accident, you need evidence to back up your claim. The stronger your evidence, the more convincing your case will be – and you’ll get a much better settlement, too.

You should take 3 steps immediately after a motorcycle accident:

1. Get checked out by a medical professional,
2. Start gathering documentation and evidence, and
3. Talk to a motorcycle accident lawyer.

Why is it so important to see a doctor right away? Most motorcycle accident injuries are catastrophic – spinal injuries, skull injuries, traumatic brain injuries (TBI), concussions, major blunt trauma, broken bones or ribs, internal bleeding, torn tendons, and more. You may not realize the full extent of your injuries until hours or days later. This happens the most often with latent injuries, which aren’t obvious right away but can lead to serious problems later on.

Getting medical attention right away not only protects your health but also starts the process of documenting your injuries immediately after the accident. This is extremely important because to win your case, you must prove that the accident caused your injuries. The longer you wait after your accident to get checked out, the harder that becomes to prove.

Who Is Liable in a Motorcycle Accident?

Under Arizona law, whoever is responsible for causing a motorcycle accident is also legally responsible for compensating victims who were injured in the accident.

When it comes to determining fault in traffic accident cases, Arizona is a comparative negligence state. Anyone involved in a crash is responsible for damages according to how much they were at fault for causing the crash. So if someone is 100% responsible for causing a crash – for example, they were ignoring traffic laws while you were doing nothing wrong – then they must pay 100% of the damages.

With comparative negligence, even injury victims can be held responsible for their share of fault. For example, if the facts show that you were 20% at fault, then you can only recover 80% of your total damages. This can still amount to a significant sum.

Proving fault isn’t always simple, especially if you have opposing sides with different versions of what happened. A driver who’s actually at fault may try to blame you instead to avoid having to pay out a settlement or bumping up their insurance premiums. Insurance companies may try to lowball you with settlement offers that are a fraction of what you actually deserve.

A good personal injury lawyer can help you gather the evidence you need to prove your case.  The more evidence you have to back up your version of events, the harder it will be for anyone to argue against you. Solid evidence also helps in the settlement negotiation process – when the other side knows you’re likely to win in a long and expensive court case, they’re more likely to make a good settlement offer to avoid going to court against you.

What Can You Claim After a Motorcycle Accident?

A claim for personal injury after a motorcycle accident helps you recover:

• Economic or specific damages – Actual losses and expenses that you experienced as a direct result of your injuries such as medical bills, the cost of long-term physical therapy or supportive care, and any income you lose from being unable to work.
• Non-economic or general damages – The law compensates victims for their pain, emotional suffering, or loss of enjoyment of life as a result of their injuries.
• Punitive damages – In some cases, whoever is at fault in a motorcycle crash acted in such a way that they should be punished for their behavior. You may get punitive damages if the at-fault driver had a history of reckless or drunk driving, was driving with a suspended license, or tried to run from the scene of the accident.

If you’re a surviving family member of a motorcycle accident victim who passed away, you could have a survival action on their behalf or a claim for your loved one’s wrongful death.

How Long Does It Take To Get Compensation For an Accident?

A personal injury lawsuit could take anywhere between several months to over a year to resolve. The timeframe you can expect for a personal injury claim depends on:

• The facts of your case – Is it clear what happened, or are there multiple perspectives?
• The amount of damages – The higher the stakes, the bigger a fight you can expect.
• The strength of your evidence – There’s no point in arguing against a slam-dunk case.

At SGP Law, we know that you don’t have any time to waste so we get straight to business putting together your strongest possible case from the beginning. We prepare like we’re going to court precisely so that you can avoid a long court battle – if we can prove from the outset that you’ve got a high chance of winning, the other side will be more likely to settle before trial.

Why Do You Need a Motorcycle Accident Attorney?

It may be tempting to trust your insurance company that they’ll take care of your needs after a motorcycle accident. That’s what you pay them for, after all. But insurance companies don’t actually have your best interests in mind – not like a lawyer does. For insurance companies, the most important thing is the bottom line for shareholders. And that means paying out the least amount of money they can get away with on policyholder claims.

When you work with a motorcycle accident lawyer, your attorney is looking out for your long-term future, not just your short-term survival. If you sign a settlement agreement from an insurance company without speaking to a lawyer first, you could be leaving thousands of dollars, maybe even millions of dollars on the table. And once you sign a settlement, you lose the chance to file another claim for your accident.

With a contingency fee structure, talking to an attorney comes with no risks and costs no legal fees upfront. At AZ Injury, you don’t pay us until we win your case and recover compensation for you. When we take on your case, you get the full support of our law firm and our network of experts at your back. If we don’t win, you don’t pay. You don’t have to worry about how you’ll afford a lawyer when you’re already dealing with so much after your accident.

After a motorcycle injury, you need someone in your corner. We’re here to help. Contact us or call us at (480) 272-8700 now to get started with your free case consultation.