What are the Most Common Motorcycle Injuries?
There are few forms of transportation more romanticized than the motorcycle. Planted into our collective imagination is the image of a windblown rebellious loner, ignoring the rules of safety and mocking the diffidence of conventional society. Unfortunately, those rules exist for a reason; motorcycles are incredibly dangerous and accidents happen all the time. Although falling off of an open vehicle that is traveling at 60 miles an hour can cause many injuries, there are a few that are the most common.
Road Rash
Road rash is caused when a person is dragged across a road at a high rate of speed. It can cause permanent damage to the skin if you are not treated for it right away.
Head Injury
Head injury is a common problem when a person has a motorcycle accident if the rider is not wearing a helmet. Head injuries can result in brain damage torn tissue and internal bleeding.
Bone Fractures
When a car hits a bike the rider can often be catapulted into the air and they can land with tremendous impact. This can result in bones being broken or fractured. A fracture can actually be worse than a break. A bone fracture is a medical condition where the continuity of the bone is broken. The bone may crack without damaging the surrounding skin causing a closed fracture. It may also damage the surrounding skin and that is known as a compound fracture.
Permanent Disfigurement
Motorcycle accidents will often result in permanent disfigurement to a person’s face. When you ride a bike, your face is your windshield and you do not have any airbags on the sides of your vehicle to protect you. Deep scrapes and broken bones often result in permanent disfigurement.
Common Causes of Accidents
There are a few typical reasons that motorcycles get into accidents. It is a good idea to be mindful of them when you are driving.
Lane Changing Accidents
When a car changes lanes it can result in an accident if drivers are not paying attention. A car is less likely to be aware of a motorcycle that is driving in the lane into which they are trying to merge. Bikes are often in a driver’s blind spot.
It is best to pay careful attention to drivers in the next lane. If you see them turning their head or looking in their rearview mirror, you should probably anticipate that they are going to turn.
Alcohol and Motorcycle Accidents
A study by the Insurance Information Institute revealed that 29% of motorcycle accidents involved intoxicated drivers. Your senses are deadened when you drink and that can cause errors in judgment.
It is best not to drink any alcohol if you are driving a motorcycle. Even if the other driver was very drunk and you only had a single beer, you are much more likely to get injured if you are on a bike.
Reporting an Accident to an Insurance Company
When you have an accident with injuries, it is important to call the police and wait for them to arrive. Get names of witnesses and take pictures if you can. It is also important to call your insurance company as soon as possible.
Insurers do not like motorcycles. The injuries from an accident are almost always worse and more expensive than a regular car accident. They often try to avoid paying motorcyclists what they deserve.
If you have had a bike accident, you should find a professional personal injury attorney to represent you. A trained lawyer will have years of experience in dealing with insurance companies. Motorcycle accident lawyer Jugo and Murphy will work hard to get you a fair settlement so you can keep moving forward; carefully.
Authoritative Sources:
https://www.iii.org/fact-statistic/facts-statistics-motorcycle-crashes
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