Motorcycle Accident Settlement? How Long Does It Take To Settle A Motorcycle Crash Case?
Motorcycle Accident Settlement? How Long Does It Take To Get a Settlement If Your Got Hurt In A Motorcycle Crash?
Experiencing a motorcycle accident can cause some serious problems in various aspects of your life. From physical, emotional, to financial damage – a motorcycle accident is a very hard situation, even if it isn’t your fault. Motorcycle accidents are caused by various factors but most commonly due to bike malfunction, another motorist, or just plain bad driving.
A motorcycle accident can pose major risks for everyone involved. Obviously, physical and emotional recovery is the number one priority after the accident. However, there is one factor that we should also consider taking proper steps for, financial damage recovery. The victims, depending on the injuries, may face large and sometimes unexpected medical bills.
In this article, we’re going to look at how motorcycle accident settlement works, how long you should settle a motorcycle injury, etc. Read on to find out more!
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Factors in a Motorcycle Accident Settlement
In this section, we’re going to look at the various factors that come into play in a Motorcycle Accident Settlement case. In any personal injury lawsuits or insurance claims, how you can present your case’s worth is one of the most important things you should work on.
Bias and Prejudice Against Motorcycles
When it comes to compensating and assisting an injured motorcyclist, personal bias shouldn’t be involved. However, even in law, there’s no escaping inherent human nature. Plenty of people tend to dislike and even mistrust motorcyclists. This preconceived judgment can still exist within a jury. In most cases, juries hand out lesser verdicts to motorcyclists compared to passengers or drivers of a car.
Insurance adjusters are aware of this blatant bias. This means that they may reduce their settlement offers accordingly. This bias is one of the biggest reasons why it is even more important to make a strong case for the injured motorcyclist.
How Each Party Value a Case
If you’re not familiar with the term “value a case” then don’t worry. Valuing pretty much means how one can come up with the best estimation of what the jury might give the plaintiff. Valuing also includes guessing the amount of money the defendant is willing to pay. Finally, it also looks at what the plaintiff would accept a settlement for the case without a trial.
This can be a lot to keep track of, but the two main factors you should focus on are the severity of the plaintiff’s incurred damages or injuries – how broken the motorcycle is or how serious the injuries are. Second, what percentage chance will the jury deem the defendant guilty for the accident.
Damages on the Plaintiff
Trying to estimate the outcome of a motorcycle accident settlement or case is very difficult. This is because, during the trial, the final decision for the amount the defendant has to pay to the injured motorcyclist depends entirely on the jury.
Personal injury damages such as lost wages and medical bills are easier to predict as it is concrete evidence which you can clearly demonstrate to the jury. For less concrete and subjective damages, such as “pain and suffering”, prediction for these are very muddy. The best you can do is an educated guess that’s based on past motorcycle accident cases. Due to every case and jury being unique, an analysis will only get you so far.
How the motorcycle accident affects the plaintiff’s everyday activities is also key in valuing the damages effectively. A good example is when a plaintiff is left with a permanent injury that makes moving around very difficult. If the injured person was very active and into sports before the accident, the jury may see the damages on “loss of quality of life” higher compared to a person who wasn’t very active, to begin with.
Basically, if the plaintiff’s injuries haven’t affected his livelihood, their lost earning will be much lower than those whose livelihood is severely affected by their injuries.
The Liability of the Defendant
Another major factor when trying to value a motorcycle accident case is the chances of the defendant will be found liable for the traffic accident. If the prosecutors or plaintiff has insufficient or little evidence that the defendant was at fault for the damages on the motorcycle and the plaintiff’s injuries, their case will go down significantly.
If the evidence against the defendant is weak, it doesn’t matter whether the damages on the plaintiff are high, the defendant won’t be eager to settle. They will be more inclined to take their chances in a trial at court. Similarly, the plaintiff may be more accepting with a low settlement amount because there is a high risk of not getting anything at court with weak evidence.
How Long Should You Wait to Settle a Motorcycle Injury?
Getting your check after settlement for motorcycle injuries generally takes between 30 days to six weeks after the accident date. However, this depends on a case-to-case basis. Most people will wait around 20 to 30 days to receive the first settlement offer from their insurance adjuster.
When you receive it, your accident lawyer will discuss the offer with you. They will help you negotiate if the offer is too low. This part of the settlement process moves fairly quickly, compared to others. Insurance companies tend to push back if your case is complicated. This is where a motorcycle accident lawyer comes in. A motorcycle accident lawyer will help you negotiate the best deal for your injury claim.
Insurance companies always aim to pay less for any claim, they might outright deny it, offer a low settlement, or even blame you for your motorcycle accident. A good example is if you weren’t wearing a helmet or they suspect you weren’t; they will say you are responsible for parts of the damages.
Conclusion
To conclude, a motorcycle accident can be very messy and hard for everyone involved. The bias and judgment against motorcyclists are very real and a huge factor to take into consideration when trying to settle. The amount of time you should wait to settle depends on the time limit of your insurance or state. Your motorcycle accident lawyer may recommend gathering as much evidence as possible to build a strong case.
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