It’s easy to get overwhelmed after you’re involved in a motorcycle accident in New York City. It can be difficult to know what you should – or should not – do to help yourself and protect any legal claims you might have against a negligent motorist. It’s important to consider your actions after a motorcycle accident carefully. Your decisions can have consequences that affect you for years to come. Here’s what our NYC motorcycle accident lawyers suggest you do if you’re involved in a wreck.
Report the Motorcycle Accident to the NYPD
Not only will it be important for you to have a formal record of your motorcycle accident, but reporting the crash is typically required by New York State law. Do not hesitate to call 911 to let the police know that you’ve been involved in a motorcycle crash and to ask for first responders to be dispatched to the scene.
Move to a safe location out of harm’s way while you wait for them to come and exchange information with other motorists at this time. Once they arrive, emergency medical professionals can render first aid, stabilize victims with serious injuries, and transport injured riders to the hospital, if necessary.
The police will conduct a preliminary investigation and document important details about your motorcycle crash into a police report – including the time and location, traffic conditions, damage to property, weather conditions, and even preliminary assessments of fault. The officer can also issue citations if one of the parties involved violated the law. Evidence of traffic violations can be helpful in establishing liability and forcing a negligent party to pay you damages in a lawsuit.
Seek Emergency Medical Care
Your health and safety should be your first priority after a motorcycle crash.
Get yourself to the closest emergency room for a thorough medical assessment as soon as you can – even if you don’t think that you’ve been badly injured. The shock of a motorcycle accident can mask signs of critical internal trauma – including internal bleeding, spine injuries, damaged organs, and other serious afflictions.
If these types of injuries are diagnosed right away, there’s a good chance that they could worsen, cause permanent damage, or death. Your trip to the ER will serve two purposes. First, it’ll ensure that your motorcycle accident injuries are promptly diagnosed and treated, thereby reducing the chances that you suffer from serious complications or permanent impairments. Second, it’ll create a record of your injuries and help to establish a causal link between them and the motorcycle accident. This will be critical if you want to recover compensation from an insurance carrier or a negligent party.
Resist the Urge to Apologize or Admit Blame
Motorcycle accidents can happen for many reasons. Often, multiple factors can contribute to a crash and, in turn, multiple parties can be at fault. The only way to know for sure how and why your motorcycle crash happened – and who’s liable – is with a thorough investigation. If you admit fault or apologize before the true circumstances of the crash are known, it can cause problems for you when you file an insurance claim or lawsuit.
If you apologize, your good-intentioned statements can be taken out of context by the insurance company and used against you as you pursue compensation with an insurance claim or lawsuit. If you admit blame, the insurer can use that to potentially deny your claim or significantly reduce your financial recovery. Under New York’s pure comparative negligence doctrine, a victim can recover damages for an accident, but any award will be reduced proportionately to shared fault.
So, while your apology or acceptance of some of the blame right after the crash might be made with good intentions, they can seriously jeopardize your ability to recover compensation in the future. It’s best to focus on getting medical care for others who may have been injured in the motorcycle accident and reserving comments about your role (or perceived role) in the crash.
Gather Evidence and Document the Scene of the Motorcycle Accident
If you’re not transported from the scene of the motorcycle accident in an ambulance, do your best to document the incident by taking pictures and video footage. Photographs will capture the moment and preserve valuable pieces of evidence or information that can help potentially help your attorney build your case. It’s a good idea to take pictures of:
- Crash debris
- Physical injuries
- Traffic conditions
- Traffic signs and signals
- Tire tracks and skid marks
- The scene of the crash from a wide angle
- Damage to your motorcycle and other vehicles involved in the crash
If something seems unusual or interesting, take a picture. Record a quick video of the aftermath of the scene. You never know what you might capture that can be valuable as you seek damages.
Contact an Experienced New York Motorcycle Accident Attorney
While you could file an insurance claim with the at-fault driver’s insurance company on your own, it’s better to hire a motorcycle accident attorney to represent you throughout the claims process. The insurance company might try to get in contact with you shortly after the crash. The adjuster will want to ask questions, and most of them will be designed to get you to say things that can be used to deny your motorcycle accident claim or convince you to accept a lowball offer.
When you’ve turned to The Platta Law Firm, our NYC personal injury lawyers will represent you during all conversations with the insurance company and defend you against their manipulative strategies. We’ll force the insurer to consider your claim fairly and make a good faith effort to compensate you in full.
Hiring an attorney can help you understand your rights and give you peace of mind as you focus on your physical recovery. While you get better, our motorcycle crash lawyers will investigate your case, consult experts, evaluate evidence, and work hard to obtain maximum compensation on your behalf. Don’t hesitate to call our New York City law office at (212) 514-5100 to schedule a free consultation today.