You have a friend, on the road.

Unlike with a car accident, even relatively minor motorcycle accidents often result in serious harm. This makes it especially important to make sure that you seek medical attention as soon as possible after your accident. Sometimes the injuries from an accident can be obvious, but sometimes they don’t become apparent until later. If you don’t have a record of seeking medical attention for your injuries immediately, it can be difficult to prove that they were caused by your accident. 

After arranging for medical attention, there are also a few other things you should try to do as soon as possible. They may not all be possible if you have suffered severe injuries, but they can help support your claim.

• Report the accident to the police as soon as possible.
• Exchange contact information and take down the other driver’s information (license plate, insurance)
• Exchange contact information with any witnesses, if possible
• Take photographs of the scene, including any skid marks, road hazards, damage to each vehicle, or other details you feel may be relevant.

You will also want to contact a Motorcycle Injury Attorney as soon as possible. They will be able to help you to investigate to find and preserve evidence of your accident as well as handle the details of negotiating with your insurance while you focus on your recovery.

The time allowed for filing a suit for injuries stemming from a motorcycle accident, called the Statute of Limitations, is two (2) years from the date of the accident. After this period, it is likely that any attempts to file a claim for your injuries will be rejected by a court. It is important to remember that this is the time allowed to file a suit, not a requirement for its completion. Once your suit has been properly filed, the legal process will continue until a conclusion has been reached. 

Because insurance companies know this, they will often stall negotiations in hopes of pressuring you into accepting a lowball offer or missing your opportunity to file a suit at all. This is one of the reasons why it is important to get in touch with an experienced Motorcycle Accident Attorney as soon as possible after your accident. They have the experience dealing with these sorts of situations and will be able to help you navigate the process, including taking the issue to court if necessary.

Part of dealing with motorcycle accidents is knowing what the common causes are so that you can avoid them. While aiming for a full recovery is something that we try to do, it’s always best to be equipped to avoid an accident as best as possible in the first place. 

• Left-hand turns are especially dangerous. Almost half of the accidents involving a motorcycle and another vehicle happen when the other vehicle is making a left-hand turn, so be especially careful at intersections where a left-turning car may become an obstacle.
• Poor weather conditions, like rain or snow, are especially hard for motorcyclists to deal with. Whenever possible, try to avoid riding under these conditions, or with extreme caution if you have no choice. With only two wheels, loss of traction could result in loss of control of your motorcycle.
• Doors opening into a motorcyclist’s lane are another common cause of accidents. Keeping an eye out for vehicles that have just parked can help reduce the risk of having a car door block your lane.
• Larger vehicles changing lanes are another common cause of accidents. Be prepared to ride defensively if you see a vehicle’s turn signals, as they may not see you if you’re in the vehicle’s blind spot.

While it’s impossible to control how other people drive, staying alert is the best thing you can do to avoid accidents. Try to avoid riding while tired, as it can slow your reaction time and make it harder to clearly notice potential hazards, and definitely pass on riding if you’ve had any drinks. Even if you think you’ll probably be okay, a large percentage of fatal motorcycle accidents have involved a rider or other motorist who had been drinking.

The specific details of what your insurance may cover tend to differ based on the degrees of optional insurance you may have. At the basic, legally mandatory level of insurance, your insurance will only cover liability for damages that you cause in an accident. In other words, if you yourself are injured, you’ll have to go through the other party’s insurance while proving that they are at fault for an accident.

Minimums include

• $25,000 for bodily injury liability for a single person.
• $50,000 for bodily injury liability total for an accident.
• $15,000 for property damage liability for an accident.

Because motorcycle accidents tend to result in more severe injuries than other types of accidents, it’s generally a good idea to get more than the bare minimum. It’s also usually a good idea to look for Underinsured or Uninsured Motorist Coverage. If the other party is uninsured, or their insurance coverage isn’t enough to cover for your injuries, you could find it difficult to get all of your medical bills covered. These kinds of additional coverage help to cover your expenses while you recover if the other party is incapable of meeting the requirements.

Insurance companies know that when you’ve been in an accident, you’re likely to be off-balance and vulnerable. This is why they will often reach out to you shortly after advice looking for statements about the accident, or pushing you for details that they might be able to use to weaken your case. You are not obligated to answer them. It is usually safer to let a Motorcycle Accident lawyer handle those conversations, as they will be more familiar with these and other tricks insurance companies pull, such as

• Outright denying your claim in hopes you won’t pursue the case further
• Making lowball offers early on before you’ve had a chance to find out the full extent of your damages
• Delaying investigating or looking at the claim, in hopes that you’ll run out of time to pursue the case and file a suit.
• Arguing for questionable loopholes to deny responsibility

Insurance companies have had years of experience arguing why they shouldn’t have to properly compensate people for their injuries, so it is also important to make sure you have someone with similar levels of experience fighting for your rights.

For people under the age of 18 – and this includes both riders and passengers – if you’re riding on a motorcycle, motorbike, or on a utility type vehicle or all-terrain vehicle, a helmet is required. The helmet must also meet the standards established by the Director of Motor Vehicles. This restriction doesn’t apply when riding on private property.

However, even if it is not legally required for adults to wear a helmet, it’s still a really good idea to do so anyway. According to studies from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, helmets reduce the risk of dying in a crash by 37%, and riders with helmets are only one third as likely to suffer traumatic brain injuries in the event of a crash. Something as simple as strapping on a helmet could save your life.

To understand how fault works for motorcycle accidents in Idaho, there are two important things to know. The first is that Idaho is an At-Fault State, and the second is that they measure fault with a method known as Comparative Negligence.

• At-Fault: Idaho is an At-Fault State, which means that the person at fault for the accident is responsible for the damages caused in that accident.
• Comparative Negligence: Idaho is a Comparative Negligence-based state. The fault of both parties for an accident is calculated as a percentage based on how their driving behavior contributed to the accident, and the compensation modified accordingly. 

The limit for receiving compensation even if you were partially at fault is 50%. As long as you are found to be less than 50% at fault for an accident, you will still be able to receive compensation, though it will be reduced according to your portion of fault for an accident. If you were found to be only 20% at fault for an accident, for example, and the damages were considered to be $20,000, you would be able to receive up to $16,000, or 80% of your damages after your fault was deducted.

When it comes to calculating the damages for motorcycle accidents, it can usually be broken down into four main categories.

• Medical Expenses

This includes both your medical expenses from the accident so far, as well as predicted medical expenses for completing your treatment. The goal here is to get you as close as possible to your original condition. This could include hospital bills, physical therapy, surgeries, or medication required for your recovery, among other things.

• Lost Wages

This covers the wages you could have earned during the time you were recovering from your accident, as well as potential future earnings that were lost. If your leg was mangled in an accident, preventing you from working in your field in the future, this would cover that as well.

• Property Damage

This most frequently includes damage to your motorcycle. This could be the cost of getting your motorcycle repaired, if possible, or compensation for its value according to the Kelley Blue Book value for your motorcycle, which may include depreciation for its age and condition.

• Pain and Suffering

Being in a motorcycle accident can be traumatizing, and the law accounts for that. Suffering from PTSD related to the accident, damage to the injured person’s relationships with their family or spouse (“loss of consortium”), or compensation for a family’s primary provider being unable to work might all be involved here.

While there may sometimes be other types of damages specific to your case, and an attorney will be better able to help you go over the details, these are the basic types of damages typically compensated for in an accident.

As long as they have their own, regular, permanently attached seat. Many motorcycles are not designed for multiple passengers, and for those motorcycles, you can’t legally take a passenger with you. This is for the protection of both the rider and the passengers. If someone isn’t able to be properly seated, they’re more likely to throw off the balance of the motorcycle and potentially cause an accident.

 If your motorcycle’s seat was designed for carrying two people, that’s another story, and they can ride along with you just fine. You’re also good to go if your motorcycle has a second permanent, regular attached seat firmly attached to the rear or side of the vehicle, so for those of you who are looking forward to riding double – maybe even have your older kids ride along with you – that’s something to look into when deciding on your bike.

The ‘Red Light’ law is a law in Idaho that says that if (and only if) you’re stopped at a red light controlled by a triggered traffic-control signal using a vehicle-detection device, and it doesn’t change for a full cycle of the light – for example, because the sensors didn’t pick up your motorcycle – that you can then proceed as if it had been a stop sign. This law is a little tricky, and a little dangerous, as other vehicles may not expect you to behave in this way, and unpredictable behavior is a frequent cause of accidents. 

This does not apply to intersections not controlled by those sensors, so be sure to come to a complete stop when coming to a red light at an intersection and make sure to wait for a full cycle of the lights. Claiming that you believed it to be a sensor-triggered light when it was not generally isn’t accepted as a defense, so as always, proceed with caution.