If you were involved in a bicycle vs bicycle crash in the Bay Area, Oakland or anywhere in northern California, contact us today for a free consultation and case evaluation. We are the only personal injury law firm in northern California focused exclusively on bicycle related accidents.
Bicycle vs Bicycle Accidents
Bicycle accidents and injuries don’t only involve motor vehicles or dangerous road conditions. Sometimes they involve one bicyclist crashing into another bicyclist. That’s when insurance quickly becomes an issue. Although California requires the drivers of motor vehicles to carry liability insurance, no such requirement applies to bicyclists, so only a small percentage of riders carry bicycle liability insurance.
Homeowners Insurance
What many people don’t realize is that if they were at fault in a bicycle accident, and they have homeowners, condo or renters insurance, the accident is probably covered by that insurance. Standard policies of these types carry $100,000 of liability coverage. Some people even carry umbrella insurance that’s triggered after the $100,000 of liability coverage is exhausted. Umbrella insurance comes in increments of $1 million.
The Duty of Care
Regardless of whether a bicyclist is using a roadway or trail, that individual has a legal duty to use reasonable care, and ride the bicycle in a safe and careful manner, the same as any other reasonable bicyclist would ride in the same or similar circumstances. Sometimes one of the riders will be 100 percent at fault for an accident, while at other times, both riders might share fault. When both riders share fault, that raises the issue of comparative negligence, and any percentage of fault that is assigned to the claimant is deducted from his or her gross award. For example, if a claimant is awarded $50,000 in a verdict, and he or she was determined to be 20 percent at fault for the accident, the net award would be $40,000.
Contact Bay Area Bicycle Law
You already know that as a bicyclist, you’re vulnerable to serious injuries from any type of collision. If you suffered injuries in a crash in San Francisco, Davis, Oakland or anywhere in the State of California that was caused by another bicyclist, compensation might be available. You can contact our offices by phone or email to arrange for a free consultation and case evaluation. If insurance coverage exists in connection with your crash, we’ll consider representing you on a contingency fee basis. What that means is that if we enter into a retainer agreement with you, we won’t even get paid any legal fees unless we obtain a settlement or verdict on your behalf. Contact us right away after being injured in any bicycle accident. We’ll listen to you carefully, answer your questions and advise you of your legal options.