There are numerous campaigns aimed at reminding motorists to share the road with motorcycles. Despite those efforts it’s inevitable, motorcycle accidents can and do still happen. In Colorado alone there are more than 184,000 motorcycles registered and that doesn’t include out of town tourists. No matter how many campaigns are created drivers still make mistakes, therefore it’s up to motorcycle riders to be vigilant as well. Read below to see some of the most common causes for motorcycle accidents and ways to potentially avoid them.
Blind Spots
Blind spots are tricky for drivers even when a car is there. Drivers brains are more trained to spot vehicles rather than motorcycles. The result is a driver not seeing you and swerving into your lane unexpectedly. This causes many motorcycle accidents, although it’s not intentional on the driver’s part. This is surprisingly a main cause for car and truck accidents as well. One way to eliminate this is to be vigilant of where you are riding. Try to stay out of blind spots on cars, so you can be seen in the mirrors. A quick glance over the shoulder can be difference in you needing a personal injury lawyer or escaping harm altogether.
Coming from Behind
This can cause a problem anytime you stop on a motorcycle. It can be a sudden stop or even a routine stop such as those at stop signs or red lights for intersections. If you’re in the middle of the lane it can be easy for a driver to overlook you and focus on the two brake lights in front of you. You can do your part to eliminate this by stopping on the side of the lane instead of in the middle. Always be vigilant of the cars coming up behind you, and leave plenty of room to move if need be. This can be extremely important when visibility is limited due to weather, or even when a drunk driver is behind the wheel.
Car Doors
Sometimes drivers have a hard time looking before opening their doors for cars and trucks, so motorcycle riders have an increased risk. This can happen when there are cars parked on the side of the road next to a lane of moving cars. To decrease the risk of an open door leading to a motorcycle accident, try to leave enough room so that open car doors won’t hit the motorcycle. No matter how inviting the area between the car door and moving traffic may seem, all it takes is one time and one person not looking for a motorcycle accident to happen.
If you do find yourself involved in a motorcycle accident don’t hesitate to seek help from a personal injury attorney. More than half of all personal injury cases are related to motor vehicles and about 96% of those cases end up settling out of court. You do everything you can on a motorcycle to protect yourself, but not all accidents are preventable, and if you find yourself in one make sure you continue to protect yourself by finding an attorney as soon as possible.
