Leesville is a great place to ride your bike, whether you’re commuting around town or enjoying a leisurely ride. When you’re involved in a bicycle accident, you may suffer serious injuries and your bike can be ruined. But if someone else caused your bike accident, you don’t have to pay for the medical bills and property damage all on your own.
You may be able to recover compensation for your medical expenses, lost income, pain and suffering, and other damages. You may want to settle your claim with the insurance company or file a lawsuit. A Leesville bicycle accident lawyer from Laborde Earles Injury Lawyers can help you navigate the complex world of personal injury law.
We Serve Bicycle Accident Victims and Their Families
At Laborde Earles Injury Lawyers, we know that a bicycle accident can be an emotionally and financially challenging time for victims and their families. That’s why we offer our 100+ years of combined experience in personal injury law on contingency fees. We can handle many aspects of your case so you can focus on recovery and healing.
Don’t let the cost of a lawyer prevent you from seeking the justice and compensation you deserve. Let a bicycle accident lawyer from our office take on these tasks:
- Gathering evidence of your accident and injuries
- Reviewing the accident report and interviewing witnesses
- Communicating with insurance companies and legal teams
- Filing insurance claims
- Determining negligent parties
- Negotiating a settlement on your behalf
- Filing a personal injury lawsuit
- Representing your rights in court
Laborde Earles injury was great for me they took care of me very fast and professional. If for any reason I need legal help they will be who I use.
ClientYou Can Seek Compensation for Your Bicycle Accident
If you’re injured in a bicycle accident, you may be stuck with mounting medical bills while you’re out of work to recover. Your injuries may prevent you from going back to work or earning as much as you did before your accident. But you don’t have to deal with the financial repercussions of your bike accident if someone else caused it.
Here are some economic and noneconomic damages you can recover from a bicycle accident:
- Medical bills
- Future medical treatment costs
- Lost wages and benefits
- Future lost income and earning capacity
- Diminished earning potential
- Property damage costs, like repairing or replacing your bicycle
- Funeral costs, burial costs, lost spousal or parental income, and other wrongful death costs
- Pain and suffering
- Disability, scarring, and disfigurement
- Lost companionship and support
- Diminished quality of life
How Much Compensation Will I Get?
The amount of compensation you might get for your bicycle accident can depend on many different factors, including:
- How old you were at the time of the accident
- The type of injuries you sustained
- The severity of your injuries and your prognosis for recovery
- How the accident occurred
- How many negligent parties were involved
- Your potential sources for compensation
A Leesville bicycle accident lawyer from our office can calculate your damages and give you an estimate of how much compensation you may be entitled to. Then, we can use that figure to negotiate or file a lawsuit for the best possible compensation.
I thank God for Digger & David. I don’t know what we would have done if it hadn’t have been for them.
Rick Smith | ClientProving Negligence in Your Bicycle Accident
We can work to prove that another party acted negligently and caused the bike accident that injured you. We must prove that:
- They owed you a duty of care.
- They were negligent and breached their duty of care.
- Their negligence caused the accident.
- The accident caused your injuries.
We can hold many different parties accountable for your Leesville bicycle accident. But who these negligent parties are and how many were involved depends on how and where your accident occurred. Some potential negligent parties to your bicycle accident might include:
- A driver or other motorist
- Another bicyclist
- A government entity in charge of maintaining roadways, bike lanes, sidewalks, or trails
- A private company whose employee caused your accident
- A manufacturer that produced the bicycle, vehicle, or parts that malfunctioned
- A property owner
The reassurance from Digger and his staff gave me that renewed hope that it’s going to be okay down the road.
ClientCommon Causes of Bicycle Accidents Around Leesville, LA
Louisiana enforces many laws that protect bicyclists’ right to use the road safely and responsibly. But some drivers don’t want to share the road with bicycles, and others may use the road carelessly, causing an accident.
Here are some of the most common causes of bicycle accidents in the Leesville area:
- Dooring: This refers to when a car or truck door opens on an incoming bike. Motorists are required to look for incoming bikes before opening their door, per RS 32.283.
- Failure to look for bicycles when turning or changing lanes: Cars and trucks may have blind spots that prevent them from being able to see bicycles on either side of them. Some drivers just don’t look in their mirrors for bikes when turning left or right, or even when they change lanes. These situations can cause side-swipe collisions, clipping, or head-on collisions.
- Aggressive driving: Drivers who don’t want to share the road with bicycles may attempt to run them off the road, have a close following distance, or harass bike riders, which is illegal per RS 32.201.
- Driving under the influence: Driving while intoxicated can impair judgment, lead to reckless behavior, reduce responsiveness, and cause other impairments that could cause a bicycle accident.
- Speeding: Drivers who speed risk not having enough time to stop when they see a bicycle or other obstacle, which can cause an accident.
- Failure to maintain safe passing distance: Louisiana law, per RS 32.76.1, requires cars, trucks, and other motor vehicles to maintain at least a three-foot passing distance when overtaking a bicycle on the road.
- Driving in the bike lane: Motorists are not allowed to use the bike lane unless making a turn or entering or exiting a roadway, per RS 32:203. A bicycle may not have the room they need to safely navigate the road or can be hit by a vehicle when a motorist drives in the bike lane.
They treated us like no other people would. Whenever we needed something they were there for us. I put my trust in them and I don’t regret it.
ClientChoose Laborde Earles Injury Lawyers to Handle Your Bicycle Accident Case
You may have limited time to file a lawsuit to recover compensation after your bicycle accident. Per CC Art. 3492, the statute of limitations in Louisiana for personal injury lawsuits is just one year from the date of the accident. Per CC Art. 2315.2, you have one year from the victim’s death to file a wrongful death lawsuit if you’ve lost a loved one to a bicycle accident.
The sooner you can start working with a lawyer from our firm, the more time you have to file a personal injury or wrongful death lawsuit before the deadline. Contact our office today for your free case review to explore your legal options.
