Russo Law serves clients living in Winter Haven, Florida with motorcycle accident injury claims. We handle motorcycle accidents caused by DUI drivers, texting and driving, hit and run drivers, Uber or Lyft drivers, and uninsured motorists. Schedule a free consultation to discuss your injury claim with a Winter Haven motorcycle accident lawyer today.
Frequently Suffered Motorcycle Accident Injuries
Your motorcycle injury claim can often involve any of the following:
- neck and back pain
- trauma from contact with the handlebars or other motorcycle parts
- bulging or herniated discs
- nerve injury
- neck or back surgery
- broken bones or torn ligaments
- mild traumatic brain injry
- rotator cuff tear
- paralysis
- spinal cord trauma
Characteristics Of A Florida Motorcycle Accident Lawsuit
Riding a motorcycle is a lot of fun but it carries with it a higher risk of injury or death when an accident does happen. A motorcycle accident case is likely to have a large emergency room bill, often $30,000-$50,000 for even a modest accident. Accidents with severe injuries often have six-figure hospital bills. Thereafter, there are bills for months of therapy.
Paying for these medical bills is another matter as many riders do not carry insurance for their bikes. Oftentimes, the rider’s own health insurance is the only way that medical bills get paid.
Obtaining a settlement that covers all of a rider’s damages from the at-fault driver can also be challenging as many automobile policies contain coverage limited to $10,000, $25,000, or $50,000. Your lawyer will help you maximize the amount that you pocket from a settlement. The strategy to do this depends on the circumstances presented by the case.
For instance, Florida’s collateral source statute (section 768.76, Fla. Stat.) prevents most health insurance from asserting lien rights against a settlement after the settlement date. In this particular scenario, a quick settlement is most beneficial to the rider because it can cut off the health insurer’s right to collect a lien for significant medical treatment that has not yet occurred.
There are other cases where this strategy does not work because the health insurer is actually just a health plan set up by a large employer (i.e. Publix, Coca-Cola, Pepsi, Wal-Mart, American Airlines, etc.) and is actually the company’s own money. These health plans can assert crushingly brutal reimbursement rights from a settlement that can leave the rider with nothing.
Finally, at the trial of a motorcycle accident case, there are issues such whether the failure of the rider to wear a motorcycle helmet would have made a difference and whether there was comparative fault on the part of the rider. There are often no easy answers to these questions. To get the maximum value from your case, you will need the help of motorcycle accident lawyer to guide you in the right direction.
Winter Haven Motorcycle Community
Winter Haven has a growing population of over 48,000 people. Riding motorcycles is a Central Florida passion for many people with great rides in many different directions. Winter Haven is centrally located to US Highway 17 and US Highway 27. These highways often lead to back roads favored by avid motorcyclists. The metro area of surrounding areas of Eloise, Wahneta, Jan Phyl Village, Eagle Lake, and Dundee also have scenic drives favored by Florida motorcyclists.
The climate in Winter Haven, Florida is also quite conducive to motorcycle riders, making it a very popular sport. Mild winters with warm spring and fall temperatures make for great rides.
Motorcycle Accident Insurance
One of the unique things about riding a motorcycle in Florida is that your car insurance policy generally does not apply when you are riding your motorcycle. While Florida does not mandate that motorcycle owners carry insurance on their bikes, I always recommend that motorcycle owners should carry at least the same amount of insurance coverage on their motorcycles as they do their cars. The reason for this is that the risk of serious injury or becoming a wrongful death statistic is greater than in a car should an accident actually occur.
Read more to learn more about specific terms used in Florida motorcycle accident claims.
Contact a Winter Haven Motorcycle Accident Attorney for a Free Case Review Today
If you or a family member has suffered an injury in motorcycle, please contact Russo Law to discuss the merits of your case with a motorcycle accident attorney . The facts and circumstances of every accident are unique. A consultation with a Winter Haven motorcycle accident lawyer is free.
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Quick Motorcycle Accident Answers
☑ Is the consultation free?Yes-the initial client consultation to determine whether you have a case is free. There is no obligation to sign up. If your case is accepted, then we do not charge unless money is recovered.
We can help give you an idea of what your case is worth but we cannot tell you what it is worth. For that matter, no attorney can tell you what your case is worth until all of your medical and recovery information is available. However, at that point, you are usually at a mediation and are having to make the decision between settling or going to trial.
More information on the value of a personal injury case in Florida
You generally have four years from the date of injury to file a motorcycle accident lawsuit in Florida courts. You have five years to file an uninsured motorist claim if you have this coverage available on your motorcycle policy.
Read Our Blog For More
For recent legal topics, please see our motorcycle accident injury blog or see our FAQ page. We are here to assist clients with motorcycle accident injury lawsuits in Winter Haven and Polk County, Florida. If you do not have transportation, we offer a consultation at your hospital suite or home.