Unique Aspects of Clearwater Motorcycle Accident Cases
Traffic accidents can often be quite overwhelming. Motorcycle accidents can be especially difficult to handle when they occur. In Florida, there are very specific laws and mandates that dictate motorcyclists to help avoid traffic accidents for this exact purpose. A skilled motorcycle wreck accident attorney would be well-versed in the laws and intricacies of this type of traffic accident. To learn more about the unique aspects of Clearwater motorcycle accidents, read the following information and then contact a dedicated attorney for help if you have been injured.
What Makes Motorcycle Accidents Unique?
Motorcycle accidents differ from auto accidents. They do not have the same personal injury protection that is mandatory in Florida for insurance purposes. A motorcycle is a smaller and less-protected vehicle, the injuries that people sustain are usually more significant. Motorcycles are not as visible to a lot of people. Automobile drivers expect to see pedestrians at crosswalks and they are trained to look for those. Motorcycles have a small signature, so a person cannot see them as well as they can in the car. A lot of people do not look for them. A lot of motorcycle accidents happen not because the motorcycle driver is doing something wrong, but because the cars around them are not looking for them.Motorcycle accidents normally share significant bodily injury and property damage.
Comparative Negligence in Clearwater
Clearwater is a comparative negligence jurisdiction like the state of Florida. When there is more than one individual who shares the liability for an accident, the fault of the party is comparative to each other. In other words, if one driver is 50% liable, the other driver is 10% liable, and there is a third party that is 40% liable, each one of those can be assigned that level of liability for the accident. At that point, the verdicts are reduced by the appropriate numbers, depending on who has the liability.The extent of the injuries and the potential claims available to different parties or insurance providers will dictate what damages a victim of a motorcycle accident is going to have.
Importance of Motorcyclist Vigilance
The fact that the person is not surrounded in steel is probably the person’s number one hint as well as the fact that automobile drivers sometimes are not expecting to see motorcycles or do not look for the signature of a motorcycle when they are driving. It is far more difficult when they are driving their motorcycles than when they are driving their cars. As a result of this, it is important for motorcyclists to take the appropriate safety measures. This is one of the unique aspects of Clearwater motorcycle accidents that highlights the need for extreme care when operating a motorcycle.
Law Enforcement of Motorcyclists
Motorcycles are governed just like automobiles for purposes of traffic control and traffic liability. A person has the same burden that an automobile driver would have. Law enforcement is responsible for enforcing traffic laws. When a person has signed their driver’s license, the person is obligated to follow the laws of the road in the state of Florida.
Another one of the unique aspects of Clearwater motorcycle accidents is the influx of different types of motorcycles. A motorcycle is defined as anything that is not a car. Whether it has two wheels or three, Can-Am, it is a type of motorcycle. Also, there is a new type of vehicle called the Slingshot, which is classified as motorcycles because they have less than four wheels. Above 250 CCs is considered a motorcycle and I below 250 CCs is considered either a scooter or a moped. For more information about the variety of laws and other unique aspects of motorcycle accident cases, contact a dedicated attorney today.