Were you recently injured in a motorcycle accident in San Antonio, Texas? If so, contact our San Antonio motorcycle accident lawyers at George Salinas Injury Lawyers by calling (210) 225-0909 and find out how we can help you work toward a meaningful financial recovery.
Our clients benefit from a team of award-winning Texas trial attorneys with decades of combined experience in all personal injury matters. We fight powerful insurance companies on their behalf, securing millions of dollars in compensation.
How George Salinas Injury Lawyers Can Help After a Motorcycle Wreck in San Antonio, TX
What exactly caused your motorcycle accident? Who’s at fault? How exactly do you respond if an insurance company tries to blame you for the wreck? What’s your motorcycle accident case worth, anyway?
Don’t try to tackle these important questions on your own. Our experienced San Antonio personal injury lawyers are ready to get the answers you need and fight to get the money you deserve.
By choosing George Salinas Injury Lawyers, you’ll put a team of passionate, top-rated Texas trial attorneys in your corner. You’ll get a team of attorneys who have dedicated their careers to effecting change and getting results for catastrophically injured motorcycle accident victims like you.
You’ll also tell those responsible that you won’t be accepting a penny less than you deserve.
Throughout the claims process, our team will:
- Handle all aspects of your motorcycle accident case so that you can focus on recovering from your physical and emotional wounds
- Carefully analyze evidence we’ve gathered during an investigation and throughout the discovery process
- Work closely with respected motorcycle accident experts and specialists
- Anticipate and defend against claims of shared fault
- Aggressively negotiate with insurance companies, at-fault motorists, manufacturers, and other parties on your behalf
- Offer guidance and advice to you and your family throughout the claims process
- Bring your case to a jury in Bexar County, TX, if you’re not offered a fair settlement
The costs of a motorcycle accident can be quite high. At George Salinas Injury Lawyers, we don’t want the perceived cost of a lawyer to add to an already stressful situation. We work on a contingency fee basis. You pay nothing for our help unless we win your motorcycle accident case.
Get in touch with a member of our law office in San Antonio to begin your journey toward a full financial recovery today.
How Common Are Motorcycle Accidents in Texas?
Motorcycles are incredibly popular in Texas, with more than 96,600 bikes registered statewide. Unfortunately, riders often share the road with larger vehicles. Many times, these cars are driven by motorists who aren’t happy to share the space. As a result, motorcycle accidents are exceedingly common in the Lone Star State.
According to the Texas Department of Transportation, no fewer than 8,322 motorcycle accidents were reported statewide in 2021.
67 percent of these motorcycle accidents occurred in urban parts of the state like San Antonio.
Based on these motorcycle accident statistics, there are roughly 22 to 23 motorcycle crashes in Texas every single day. Many of these motorcycle wrecks change the victims’ lives forever. In 2021, 545 motorcycle accidents were fatal, while another 2,275 resulted in serious personal injuries. Thousands more caused a wide range of mild-to-moderate injuries to those involved.
We Represent Catastrophically Injured Motorcyclists in San Antonio
As a motorcyclist, you have limited safety gear and equipment to protect yourself in the event of a crash. Motorcycle helmets, boots, gloves, jackets, and crash bars can significantly reduce the risk of death, but you’re still susceptible to severe, potentially life-changing injuries — especially as cars and trucks are much larger in size than you and you don’t have safety devices like airbags to absorb any of the crash impacts.
When you suffer serious injuries, you should be “made whole” or compensated for all of the past and future consequences of the harm you’ve experienced. Sometimes, this can result in victims being entitled to millions of dollars in damages because their injuries are so severe that they affect their work ability or quality of life.
The more serious the injuries, the more important it is to have a trusted advocate on your side who has handled motorcycle accidents and catastrophic injury claims in the past. At George Salinas Injury Lawyers, we fight to help motorcyclists (and families) in San Antonio who have suffered:
- Broken bones
- Burns
- Road rash
- Cuts and lacerations
- Concussion
- Traumatic brain injury
- Spinal cord injury
- Nerve damage
- Back injury
- Neck injury
- Leg injury
- Joint injury
- Soft tissue damage
- Amputation
- Wrongful death of a family member
Seek medical care at the closest hospital in San Antonio immediately after your motorcycle is involved in a car accident. Your doctor can document your injuries, including their severity and the treatments that you are likely to need. These medical records can be invaluable in proving that your damages were related to the collision and in showing the extent of the harm the other driver should compensate you for. After you’ve received medical attention, then reach out to a member of our law firm to discuss your legal rights and options.
What Causes San Antonio Motorcycle Crashes?
Most motorcycle accidents are a consequence of negligence – a failure to exercise reasonable care.
Some of the most common contributing factors to San Antonio motorcycle crashes include:
- Speeding
- Unsafe lane changes
- Tailgating
- Distracted driving
- Drunk driving
- Unsafe turns
- Road rage
- Failing to yield the right of way
- Running red lights and stop signs
- Lane splitting
- Road defects
- Negligent vehicle maintenance
- Vehicle defects
Many of these behaviors are against the law. For example, violating the speed limit in Texas is illegal, as is drunk driving. When a driver commits a violation of a safety regulation, this can make it easier for collision victims to pursue a claim for compensation.
Crash victims normally have to show negligence or wrongdoing by demonstrating that a hypothetical reasonable driver would have been more careful — but demonstrating a violation of a safety rule creates a presumption of negligence. This is based on a legal doctrine called negligence per se, which says a violation of regulations designed to prevent injuries is sufficient proof of carelessness.
In the aftermath of an accident, it’s helpful to call the police to the crash scene so they can create a report and document any illegal or unsafe behavior they observe. For example, if police are called to the crash scene and perform a breathalyzer, this can give the crash victim invaluable evidence as they can use the results to show the other driver was drunk and thus should be liable for losses.
Sometimes, the cause of a crash is also in dispute. Police reports can help clear up confusion, as can statements from witnesses to the accident. Since crash victims must prove that the other driver was the cause of the accident in order to get compensation, victims may want to get the contact details from other people at the scene who could testify on their behalf if there’s conflict over how the accident happened
Our motorcycle accident attorneys in San Antonio will actively work to uncover every potential cause of your crash.
Who’s Liable For Injuries Caused by a Motorcycle Accident?
Liability for a motorcycle accident in San Antonio could be shared by one or more of the following parties:
- Driver of a passenger vehicle
- Another motorcyclist
- Bicyclist
- Pedestrian
- Truck driver
- Bus driver
- Uber or Lyft driver
- Employer of a negligent party
- Property owner
- Motorcycle or vehicle manufacturer
- Manufacturer of faulty or defective motorcycle safety gear
- Government agency
If you were partly responsible for your own motorcycle accident, this does not mean you can’t pursue a claim for compensation. Under Texas Code Section 33.001 “a claimant may not recover damages if his percentage of responsibility is greater than 50 percent,” which means as long as the other driver was mostly responsible, they can be forced to compensate you for losses. However, Texas Code Section 33.003 says the “trier of fact.” must decide how the blame is shared, so the crash victim will see their damages reduced based on their percentage of fault.
George Salinas Injury Lawyers will help you to prove the other party to the accident was at least 51% at fault so they can be made to pay for your losses.
We can also help you to identify all possible defendants as there is sometimes more than one person to blame. For example, if a motorcyclist is performing work duties at the time of the accident, their employer can be held responsible. That’s because Painter v. Amerimex Drilling I, Ltd makes clear employers are vicariously liable for “employee’s negligent acts if those acts are within the course and scope of his employment.”
Ultimately, anyone whose negligent or intentionally harmful actions contribute to a motorcycle accident – directly or indirectly – can be on the hook for resulting damages. Some cases can be more complicated, though, including claims against government agencies since sovereign immunity rules limit when a victim can take legal action against public officials.
Texas Motorcycle Laws
Texas has many motorcycle laws on the books that drivers and motorcyclists must follow.
For example, Texas Transportation Code Section 521.021 makes clear that motorcyclists are required to have a driver’s license to operate a motor vehicle on the highway. That license must have a motorcycle endorsement, or be a “Class M” license in order for the driver to legally operate a motorcycle. Texas Code Section 521.148 also mandates that motorcyclists complete a driver safety class before getting a motorcycle endorsement on their license.
In addition to these and other motorcycle-specific laws, motorcycle riders in Texas must also obey other rules of the road including yielding when it is another driver’s turn, obeying the speed limit, not driving while intoxicated, and not running red lights or going through stop signs.
Drivers also have some basic obligations with regard to sharing the road with motorcyclists, including requirements to follow all of the standard driving rules, to yield when required, to stay in their lanes when making a turn, and to act with reasonable care not to harm those who are riding.
Unfortunately, both motorcycle riders and drivers sometimes break the rules — and this can increase the chances of a motorcycle crash happening. As mentioned above, a broken safety rule creates a presumption of negligence, which can make it easier for the opposing side to argue for their preferred resolution to motorcycle accident claims.
George Salinas Injury Law Firm is familiar with all of the laws surrounding motorcycle accidents on Texas roadways — and with all of the laws governing how drivers and motorcyclists must interact with each other and share the roads.
If you or someone you love was hurt in a motorcycle crash, we can evaluate the specifics of your case, confirm how the law applies, and help you to make a claim if you have legal grounds to take action. Don’t hesitate to reach out for legal support, because motorcycle accident laws can be complicated and you need to focus on recovery while your legal advocate focuses on navigating the civil justice system and getting you the money you deserve.
How Does Shared Fault Affect a Motorcycle Accident Case in San Antonio, Texas?
Texas is one of several states that adopted a modified comparative negligence system. There is a 51% bar to recovery. Simply put, you can recover compensation for injuries sustained in a motorcycle crash as long as you’re not mostly to blame.
Damages are reduced in direct proportion to degree at fault, up to 51%. Once your share of the blame is equal to or greater than 51%, a third-party financial recovery is prohibited.
Our personal injury attorneys in San Antonio will be ready to counter efforts to shift blame and limit or bar your financial recovery. We’ll demand proof of these allegations and work to uncover evidence that supports the fact that others are responsible for causing your traumatic motorcycle accident.
What Types of Damages Are Recoverable in a Motorcycle Accident Claim?
You can generally recover economic damages and non-economic damages in a motorcycle accident claim or lawsuit.
Economic damages are awarded to help offset the financial costs and losses associated with your motorcycle wreck.
Examples include:
- Medical bills
- Physical therapy
- Property damage
- Nursing assistance
- Out-of-pocket expenses
- Lost wages
- Lost job benefits
- Disability
Non-economic damages are awarded to make up for the trauma and suffering you’ve experienced as the victim of a motorcycle crash.
Examples include:
- Chronic physical pain
- Scarring
- Reduced quality of life
- Mental anguish
- Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
- Embarrassment
In some Texas motorcycle accident cases, punitive damages can also be awarded. However, a jury must be able to find clear and convincing evidence that the person responsible for your accident acted intentionally or with gross negligence.
It can be difficult to project the future value of monetary losses and calculate things like pain and suffering. That’s why our team will collaborate with trusted and respected experts in specialists throughout the valuation process. We will work hard to ensure that you get every cent you deserve after your devastating motorcycle accident in San Antonio.
What’s the Statute of Limitations on Texas Motorcycle Accident Lawsuits?
Unless there are exceptional circumstances, you will typically have until the second anniversary of your San Antonio motorcycle accident to seek compensation.
Your personal injury or wrongful death lawsuit must be filed before the two-year statute of limitations expires.
Two years might seem like a lot of time, but it’ll go by in the blink of an eye. You will lose the opportunity to assert your rights and recover compensation once time runs out.
Take one simple step to protect yourself. Call George Salinas Injury Lawyers as soon as possible after your motorcycle accident in San Antonio.
Contact A San Antonio Motorcycle Accident Attorney Today
Don’t let those responsible for your San Antonio motorcycle accident off the hook without making up for the harm they’ve caused. Call George Salinas Injury Lawyers for immediate legal assistance. Our San Antonio motorcycle accident lawyers are ready to help you demand full accountability for the injuries, suffering, and costs you endured.
We’ll back your case with decades of combined experience and resources needed to achieve top results.
We offer a free consultation, so connect with a member of our team by calling our San Antonio law office today at (210)-225-0909.