Steven A. Bagen | April 1, 2025 | Personal Injury
It’s difficult to tell any bicycle accident survivor how much their case is worth without first evaluating the victim’s damages. The cost of your medical care, the severity of your accident-related injuries, the nature of your pain and suffering, and several other factors will influence the valuation of your case.
An attorney can tell you exactly how much your bicycle accident is worth. They will speak with you about injuries and pain, evaluate financial records, speak with medical providers and experts, and compose specific financial demands for liable parties.
Bicycle Accident Cases Can Be Worth Far More Than the Average Traffic Accident Claim or Lawsuit
When you are in a motor vehicle that is hit by another driver, you can suffer serious injuries and trauma. At least, though, a motor vehicle provides significant protection in the form of airbags, seatbelts, and a sturdy metal structure designed to shield you. Bicyclists have no such protection, and this is a primary reason why your bicycle accident case may have significant financial value.
Some more reasons why your attorney will be prepared to fight for a large settlement or verdict are:
- The potential that the at-fault driver did not see you: Motorists not being able to see bicyclists is one reason why many bike accidents happen. If a motorist does not see a bicyclist, there’s a significant chance they will hit that rider at a high rate of speed, causing severe injuries as a consequence of the high-impact collision.
- The possibility of a road rage-motivated collision: Some motorists do not feel that bikers have a right to share the road with motor vehicle drivers. The law says differently. Yet, the law cannot prevent motorists from giving in to their rage, which may lead them to engage in dangerous driving behaviors towards bike riders. Whenever a motorist has malicious intent, the resulting collision can be catastrophic.
- Riders’ risk of catastrophic injury: Speaking of catastrophic, riders’ exposure to an oncoming vehicle can leave them with debilitating brain injuries, spinal cord injuries, and other catastrophic ailments. If you suffer a severe, potentially disabling injury, the value of your case will reflect it.
- The psychological and emotional trauma riders often suffer: Riders don’t expect to be hit or run off the road by a motor vehicle. Even if a rider sees a vehicle coming, the crash can be shocking and intensely traumatic. A significant portion of injured cyclists deal with post-traumatic stress disorder, and that’s just one of several types of pain and suffering that may increase your case value.
When a vehicle hits a cyclist, it hits them directly. Even if the rider manages to avoid direct contact with a vehicle, they may be run off the road, thrown from the bike, and injured severely. These outcomes cause serious harm, and your case value needs to account for that harm.
Hire a Bicycle Accident Attorney to Determine Your Case Value and Demand Justice for Your Damages
Do not think you will simply add up your medical bills and bike repair invoices and know how much money you deserve. Determining your case value can be a complicated task because:
- You have non-economic damages to consider: Some of your damages will be strictly economic in nature. Your medical bills are one example. However, other damages—namely, your pain and suffering—will not have a financial value that’s obvious to anyone. Your bike accident attorney will know how to calculate your non-economic damages accurately.
- Future harm should be included in your case: Some bicycle accident victims do not fully heal by the time their lawyer is pursuing their financial recovery. This means their lawyer must consider future expenses, pain and suffering, and other damages when calculating the case value. This may require help from experts and can involve complex mathematical calculations.
- Liable parties may contest the value of your accident-related damages: Your lawyer will need to have the utmost confidence in their case valuation. Liable parties may disagree with the case value—if only as a negotiation tactic—and your attorney needs to have irrefutable justification for their valuation.
- The calculation has to be right: You likely have one chance at a post-accident financial recovery. This means that your case value must be correct. If it’s not, you may face the financial burden of medical costs, lost income, pain and suffering, and other damages that you should not have to pay for.
Attorneys understand how to calculate the cost of a bike accident. More importantly, they know how to calculate your accident’s value accurately. They will account for every consideration, from the severity of your injuries to future damages and the nature of your pain and suffering. You deserve a full and fair financial recovery, and anything short of that won’t be acceptable.
A Lawyer Will Total the Cost of Your Accident-Related Damages, and These May Be Among Those Damages
The value of any bicycle accident case depends on the survivor’s damages. As attorneys know, each survivor’s damages are unique. Expect your lawyer to arrange medical care, get you mental health services, have an in-depth conversation with you, and identify all accident-related damages, including:
The Cost of All Medical Care You Receive After the Collision
Riders should seek immediate medical care after their collision. You might need:
- Surgery
- Imaging of injuries
- Hospitalization
- Medications
- Medical equipment
- Rehabilitation
- Other medical services and items
Bicyclists hit by motor vehicles are victims. A victim should not have to pay for their medical care. Your attorney will document all of your medical needs, consult doctors to determine if you’ll need care in the future, and determine how much money you deserve for medical expenses.
Any Pain and Suffering Caused, or Made Worse, by the Collision
A bicycle accident can cause severe pain and suffering, such as:
- The pain of being hit by the motor vehicle (and of falling from the bike)
- Distressing memories of the accident
- PTSD
- Scarring
- Amputation injuries and other types of disfigurement
- Sleep loss
- Diminished quality of life
- Anxiety
- Depression
If you had preexisting conditions, like anxiety, those conditions might be worse after the accident. Your lawyer will understand how to calculate both new conditions and any conditions exacerbated because of the crash.
Professional Harm
Soreness alone might prevent a bicyclist from working for days, weeks, or longer after a crash. Most riders injured in traffic accidents suffer much more serious injuries than soreness. This means that you might lose:
- Income
- Earning power
- Bonuses
- Promotions
- Career advancement opportunities
- The psychological and emotional benefits that many people get from their jobs
Some bike accident survivors never work again. Whatever the extent of your professional damages, your lawyer will determine their financial value.
The Burden of Disability
Being unable to work is just one of the many challenges you might suffer if you’re disabled. You might also:
- Need one or more long-term caregivers
- Need family members to help care for you
- Endure pain and suffering for the rest of your life
- Have to purchase expensive medical equipment
- Need to update your residence with features related to your disability, like wheelchair ramps
- Lose the ability to engage in physical, cognitive, and social activities you derive immense joy from
A disability is a big deal. Your lawyer will familiarize themselves with any disabling injuries you have suffered, and their settlement demands will show just how serious your injuries are.
A Loved One’s Wrongful Death
Bike riders are all too often the victims of fatal collisions. Whether or not a motorist faces criminal charges when a bicyclist dies, the bicyclist’s loved ones can and should demand justice with a lawyer’s help. Damages that survivors often seek compensation for include:
- Funeral and burial costs
- Grief and all other forms of pain and suffering resulting from their loved one’s tragic passing
- A spouse’s loss of consortium
- Loss of the decedent’s income and other forms of financial support
- Loss of the decedent’s non-financial contributions to their household
- Any medical expenses related to the fatal bicycle accident
It is immeasurably important that your case includes an extensive and detailed accounting of your damages. Your attorney will create this list. They will use the list as they form their settlement demands and fight for all the compensation you deserve.
A Lawyer’s Job Is To Secure the Compensation You Deserve. Here’s How They May Do That.
A detailed record of your accident-related damages is a strong start. Your lawyer will be determined to finish the job, though, and that means securing all the compensation you deserve.
A bicycle accident lawyer may recover fair compensation for your damages by:
Following the Evidence to At-Fault and Liable Parties
There will be evidence of who hit you, ran you off the road, or injured you in another way. Your lawyer will gather that evidence, using it to determine and prove who is at fault for your injuries and damages.
Your attorney might build your case with:
- Witness statements detailing the crash
- Video of a motorist hitting you or running you off the road
- A police report
- Any statements by the at-fault party indicating they acted negligently
- Experts’ reconstruction of the collision
- Experts’ testimony about who is at fault for the accident
Some evidence is fleeting. Don’t wait to hire your lawyer so they can secure evidence and prove who is at fault for your bike accident.
Securing Extensive Documentation of Your Damages
Liable parties may do everything in their power to contest your claim. Your attorney will seek convincing proof of your damages, as liable parties may take convincing to pay the money you deserve.
Documentation used in your case may include:
- All relevant healthcare records
- Medical bills
- Experts’ diagnoses and testimony about injuries, mental health conditions, and your care needs
- An invoice showing the cost of replacing your damaged bicycle
- Income statement indicating lost income after the collision
Each client has their own unique accident-related damages. Your lawyer will obtain documentation that shows exactly the damages you’ve suffered, how severe those damages are, and how much money you deserve to be compensated for them.
Becoming Well-Studied in All Accident-Related Insurance Policies
Most bike accidents are covered by insurance. This means your lawyer will likely seek money from at least one insurer and maybe more.
If your lawyer is going to negotiate confidently and effectively with insurance companies, they will need to know the policies. Your lawyer will quickly study all policies related to your accident, and they will note all important details, including coverage limits.
Enthusiastically and Aggressively Negotiating a Settlement
A great lawyer lives to negotiate. They relish the opportunity to convince a liable party to pay their client the entire sum of money the client deserves. You should want an experienced bike accident lawyer to negotiate on your behalf because:
- Lawyers can be confident in their financial demands because they calculated and confirmed the accuracy of your case value
- Attorneys are often trained in the art of negotiation
- A bike accident lawyer’s negotiating experience can help them recognize bluffs, learn how to counter-argue and identify the other side’s pressure points
- A great lawyer is relentless, and they don’t shy away from tense, multi-round negotiations
Lawyers have thick skin and a determination to win for their clients. These are ideal traits for someone negotiating a bicycle accident settlement.
Taking Legal Action, If You Need Them To
Filing a lawsuit is one strategy a lawyer can employ after a bike accident. Your lawyer will help you determine if it’s a necessarystrategy. If you and your attorney decide to sue, trust in them to secure the case outcome you deserve.
Insurance Companies Don’t Always Treat Injured Riders Well, Hiring a Lawyer Will Protect You
When a biker suffers an injury by a negligent motorist or another liable party, they often know—for certain—that they are entitled to compensation. This is why you might be shocked if and when insurance companies deny your claim, try to lowball you, and generally make life difficult for you.
Your lawyer will protect you, insist that insurance companies pay the money they owe you, and take your case off your hands so you can heal. Find your bicycle accident attorney as soon as possible. Justice can’t wait.