What to Do After a Bicycle Accident?
May 28, 2021
The last thing any person expects is that they will sustain an accident when they head out on their bicycle. Unfortunately, bicycling comes with many risks, regardless of the age of the cyclist. Here, we want to discuss the steps that should be taken immediately following a bicycle accident as well as in the days and weeks after the incident to help ensure that you recover the compensation you need. Bicycle accidents are not uncommon throughout the state of California, and any bicycle rider should try to keep these basic steps in mind, even if they have never been involved in a bicycle accident before.
1. Contact the police
As soon as a bicycle accident occurs in or around Orange County, somebody needs to call 911. The police need to come to the scene, and EMS professionals need to evaluate every party involved. It is crucial to have a police report related to the bicycle crash, particularly as you work to secure compensation through an insurance carrier or through a personal injury lawsuit against the at-fault party.
2. Seek medical care
The single most important thing for any bicycle accident victim to do is to seek medical assistance immediately. It is not uncommon for bicycle accident victims to not realize the full extent of their injuries right after an accident occurs. When the adrenaline starts coursing through our bodies after a major incident, it can mask the signs and symptoms of severe injuries.
Any bicycle accident victim needs to seek medical care from a trained healthcare professional. This could include allowing EMS personnel to take the victim to the hospital. This could also include the bicycle accident victim having a friend take them to an emergency room or clinic to be evaluated by a doctor.
Seeking immediate medical care accomplishes two goals. First, this helps ensure the injury victim’s well-being. Second, this helps establish a direct connection between the accident and any potential injuries.
3. Gather evidence
If it is safe to do so at the scene of a crash, and if the injuries are not too severe, accident victims and others involved can begin gathering evidence. There are various types of evidence that need to be obtained and preserved in order to have the best chance of success in securing compensation. Using a smartphone or another camera, it will be beneficial to take photographs of:
- Damages to any vehicles or the bicycle
- Any injuries
- Skid marks
- Debris around the accident scene
- Traffic and weather conditions
Additionally, the names and contact information of any eyewitnesses should be written down. Eyewitnesses could play a crucial role when it comes to insurance carrier investigations or when talking to a personal injury jury. Finally, the name, driver’s license number, and registration information of any other drivers involved need to be written down before the scene is cleared.
4. Contact an attorney
If you or somebody you care about has been involved in a bicycle accident caused by the careless or negligent actions of a driver in Orange County, you need to contact a skilled attorney as soon as possible. An attorney can use their resources and legal expertise to handle every aspect of the claim. This will include gathering additional evidence that the injury victim may not be able to obtain on their own, such as video surveillance from nearby cameras, the safety record of the at-fault driver, and more.