San Diego Bicycle Accident Lawyer

350 10th Avenue, Suite 1000

San Diego, California 92101

(760) 991-0000

The San Diego area is as close to a bicyclist’s paradise as you can imagine. On most days, the number of bicycles seems to outnumber the number of automobiles and motorcycles on residential streets and even the numbers of casual strollers on the sidewalks.

It is also a tragic fact that the area’s almost perfect climate has also helped to create a situation where bicycle accidents have become one of the leading contributors to the steadily increasing numbers of emergency room visits and hospital admissions throughout the area.

Determining Fault In Bicycle Accidents

The question of who was responsible for a bicycle accident is much more important than deciding which box should be checked on a policeman’s accident report. Determining “fault” in an accident will often mean who must bear the costs of medical care for the accident victim for at least the immediate future or if someone might be facing criminal charges.

When a police officer investigates an accident, he or she is concerned with the “mechanics” or the “physics” of the accident rather than determining who was legally responsible. The investigator’s role is to provide the information that a civil court will use to determine who is liable for any damages that occurred as a consequence of an accident.

Accidents very rarely, if ever, are 100% the responsibility of one or the other involved parties, In California, the courts will use the doctrine of “comparative negligence” to determine how the damages awarded should be “adjusted” to reflect the degree to which one party contributed to an accident and thus to their own injuries.

The courts have also adopted the position that children cannot be held to the same standards of caution as adults or of children that are only a few years older. By this position it would be reasonable to expect a child of 12 to know that it is dangerous to ride a bicycle into oncoming traffic, but it would be unreasonable to expect a child of 7 to understand that danger and to exercise the same degree of caution as an older sibling.

Time Limits On Bicycle Accident Claims

As in other personal injury lawsuits, the State of California has established time limits for the filing of bicycle accident injury lawsuits. These time limits, known as statutes of limitations, are as follows:

• Bicycle accident resulting in personal injury: within 2 years of the date of the accident
• Bicycle accident resulting in death: generally, within 1 year of the date of death although some exceptions are possible

A special, and rather complex, situation exists when the party responsible for a bicycle accident is an employee of either a municipal government or the State of California. In these cases, a claim must be filed with the California Victim Compensation Board within 6 months of the date of the accident. Since such claims are handled differently, and not following the right procedure can result in losing the ability to sue the responsible party, it is best that you contact a personal injury attorney as soon as possible after the accident.

The San Diego Bicycle Accident Lawyer At The Doan Law Firm Fights For You

If you, or a member of your family, have been injured in a bicycle accident you will want to make sure that you will receive the full amount of compensation to which you are legally entitled. You are also interested in seeing that justice will prevail, especially when a family member has been severely or perhaps even fatally injured.

Those in the San Diego area who are considering filing a bicycle accident injury lawsuit should contact the San Diego bicycle accident lawyer at the Doan Law Firm by calling (760) 991-0000 to arrange a free review of the facts of your case and to take a look at your possible courses of action.

At the Doan Law Firm, you initial consultation with our San Diego bicycle accident attorney is always free and will never obligate you to using our firm. Should you decide that we should represent your bicycle accident injury case, we will never ask you to pay any charges or fees that will be necessary for us to win your bicycle accident injury case. Instead, we will assume responsibility for all necessary expenses in exchange for an agreed upon percentage of your final claim settlement.