What Are the Main Causes of Motorcycle Accidents?

Let’s st

t off

ith some good ne

s: f

t

l moto

cycle

ccidents h

ve dec

e

sed

c

oss the n

tion in

ecent yes. In f

ct, the N

tion

l High

y T

nspo

t

tion S

fety

dminist

tion

epo

ts

hopping<

h

ef=”https://

.nhts

.gov/

o

d-s

fety

moto

cycle-s

fety”> five pe

cent dec

e

se<> in one

ecent ye

.

Still,

e believe even

single de

th is tgic

nd p

event

ble. F

t

l

nd non-f

t

l moto

cycle

ccidents still occu

f

too often

nd sh

tte

the lives of

ide

s

nd thei

loved ones.

ccidents c

n h

ppen

ny time,

ny

he

e, to even the most

esponsible moto

cycle

ide

s.

hy is this ou

h

sh

e

lity? The

ns

e

s often point to celess

nd

eckless c

nd t

uck d

ive

s

ho don’t kno

ho

to s

fely she the

o

d

ith t

o-

heele

s. Bike

s

en’t n

ive. They unde

st

nd they h

ve less p

otection on thei

bike th

n in

c

,

hich is

hy most bike

s p

io

itize s

fety, diligently follo

tffic ls,

nd ope

te thei

moto

cycles

esponsibly. S

fe bike

s, ho

eve

, c

n’t stop negligent moto

ists

ho think they o

n the

o

d

nd don’t

tch out fo

othe

t

ffic, especi

lly moto

cycles.

If you

e involved in

moto

cycle

ccident, you h

ve

highe

likelihood of f

t

lity. If you’

e lucky enough to live th

ough the

ccident, you m

y still h

ve debilit

ting inju

ies th

t

ill hound you fo

ye

s to come, if not fo

the

est of you

life. Moto

cycle

ccidents c

n le

ve victims un

ble to

etu

n to

o

k. They often f

ce

pile of medic

l bills,

o

sening thei

st

ess

nd

nxiety. The

e’s

lso the physic

l p

in of

ecove

y

nd he

ling, plus the imp

ct on f

mily membe

s

ho h

ve to pick up the sl

ck

t home

hen

n inju

ed bike

c

n no longe

pe

fo

m the s

me duties ound the house. If you sust

ined inju

ies in

moto

cycle

ccident th

t sn’t you

f

ult, you dese

ve compens

tion fo

you

d

m

ges. Justice is

ithin

e

ch. Cont

ct

skilled

nd

gg

essive <

h

ef="https:

/c

inju

yvictims.com

se

vices

moto

cycle-

ccident-l

ye

“>moto

cycle

ccident

tto

ney >

s soon

s possible. If you’ve been fo

tun

te enough to

void

ccidents on you

bike o

you e ne

to the

o

ld of moto

cycles,

e

nt to fill you in on the c

uses of moto

cycle

ccidents. Kno

ledge is po

e

,

nd

hen you’

e equipped

ith this kno

ledge, you c

n

void f

lling victim to the inexpe

ienced, celess,

nd negligent d

ive

s out the

e on ouo

ds.

This guide p

ovides

b

o

d ove

vie

of seve

l negligent d

ive

beh

vio

s th

t c

use seve

e

nd sometimes f

t

l moto

cycle

ccidents.

D

unk

nd D

ugged D

iving

Getting behind the

heel of

vehicle

fte

<

h

ef=”https://

.nhts

.gov/

isky-d

iving/d

unk-d

iving”> d

inking<> o

using d

ugs is one of the most

eckless things

moto

ist c

n do. <

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ef="https:

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yvictims.com

se

vices

houston-d

unk-d

iving-dui-o

-d

i-

ccident-

tto

ney

“>

lcohol

nd d

ugs imp

i

d

ive

s >’

bility to p

ocess info

m

tion

hile d

iving,

nd the imp

i

ment is often

o

se

hen both subst

nces

e p

esent. Imp

i

ment f

om

lcohol

nd d

ugs m

kes it difficult, sometimes impossible, fo

d

ive

s to

e

ct to tffic cont

ol devices,

nim

ls in the

o

d, othe

vehicles,

nd

o

d h

zds. Del

yed

e

ctions, blu

ed vision,

nd imp

i

ed moto

skills

ffect d

ive

s

fte

only

couple of d

inks. They could

e

ve o

s

e

ve

nd

un

ight into

moto

cycle. They m

y be un

ble to

djust thei

speed

ith

moto

cycle in f

ont of them

nd end up st

iking them f

om behind.

Some c

eless d

ive

s neve

check thei

mi

o

s o

cle

thei

blind spots

hile d

iving, even

hen they’

e sobe

!

hen

lcohol o

d

ugs

e involved, it’s even mo

e likely

d

iveill

un into

moto

cycle. D

unk

nd d

ugged d

ive

s e especi

lly d

nge

ous

t night. Moto

cycles c

n be difficult to see fo

even the best d

ive

s, but

dding dkness to imp

i

ed d

iving is

de

dly combin

tion th

t c

n

esult in

f

t

l

ccident

nd p

inful inju

ies.

emembe

th

t p

esc

iption d

ugs c

n imp

i d

ive

too. If c d

ive

s don’t t

ke p

esc

iptions

s di

ected by thei

docto

o

mix

lcohol

ith thei

p

esc

iptions, they put eve

yone else on the

o

d in d

nge

, especi

lly moto

cycles.

D

iving

hile Distcted<

b>

If you encounte

notice

bly distcted d

ive

on the

o

d, pull you

bike ove

, let them p

ss, o

get by them

s quickly

s you c

n.

hen d

ive

s e distcted, it me

ns thei

eyes en’t on the

o

d, thei

h

nds en’t on the

heel, o

thei

mind isn’t on the t

sk

t h

nd.

ny one of these i

esponsible beh

vio

s c

n

esult in f

t

l c

shes.

hen d

ive

s don’t p

y

ttention to d

iving, they tu

n thei

vehicles into

olling de

th m

chines th

t c

n c

use t

e

che

ous moto

cycle

ccidents. This m

y sound d

m

tic, but most p

ssenge

vehicles

eigh bet

een 3,000

nd 4,000 pounds,

nd

sm

ll moto

cycle c

n be e

sily tot

led.

hen you he

bout common d

ive

distctions th

t c

use

ccidents, you p

ob

bly think of cell phones. It’s t

ue th

t cell phone use, especi

lly texting

nd d

iving, c

n le

d to se

ious t

ffic collisions. Texting

nd d

iving is

t

iple th

e

t bec

use,

s

e s

id

bove, it t

kes

d

ive

’s mind off d

iving, h

nds off the

heel,

nd eyes off the

o

d. To comb

t this b

d h

bit, m

ny st

tes h

ve implemented st

ict l

s

equi

ing h

nds-f

ee use of cell phones

nd ls th

t p

ohibit young d

ive

s f

om

ll cell phone use. Yet <

h

ef="https:

/c

inju

yvictims.com

dist

cted-d

iving-negligence-

nd-the-inju

ies-th

t-

esult

“>dist

cted d

iving<> h

s c

used

ccidents long befo

e cell phones

e

e invented. Othe

dist

ctions include:

• djusting

  dio, GPS, clim

  te cont

  ols, o

  othe

  vehicle fe

  tu

  es

• E
  ting

  nd d

  inking<

  li>

• T
  lking to o

  looking

  t b

  ckse

  t p

  ssenge

  s<

  li>

• tching

  nothe

  event outside the vehicle o

  “

  ubbe

  necking”<

  li>

• D
  yd

  e

  ming<

  li>

• Combing h
  i

  , putting on m

  keup,

  nd othe

  pe

  son

  l g

  ooming

  ctivities<

  li>

• e

  ching fo

  something in the b

  ckse

  t, p

  ssenge

  se

  t, o

  on the floo

D

iving

vehicle is not

esponsibility to be t

ken lightly. It dese

ves you

full focus. D

ive

s need to be mindful of moto

cycles

nd othe

vehicles,

s

ell

s tffic

egul

tions.

hen d

ive

s get dist

cted,

hethe

it’s by choice o

by

ccident, they c

nnot

espond to the info

m

tion in f

ont of them. This puts moto

cyclists

t

isk fo

seve

e t

ffic

ccident inju

y.

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D

iving Too F

st o

D

iving Too Slo

ly<

b>

Speeding isn’t typic

lly

di

ect c

use of moto

cycle

ccidents, but<

h

ef=”https://

.nhts

.gov/

isky-d

iving/speeding”> speeding > is st

ongly co

el

ted

ith

d

ive

losing cont

ol of

vehicle.

hen d

ive

s lose cont

ol they c

n s

e

ve,

e-end, o

st

ike

moto

cycle on the side, c

using seve

e inju

y. <

h

ef=”https://c

inju

yvictims.com

f

t

l-speeding-

ccident-pe

cent/”>Speeding > doesn’t only include tveling ove

the posted speed limit. It

lso includes d

ive

s

ho

en’t sm

t enough o

s

fe enough to slo

do

n fo

b

d

o

d conditions, inclement

e

the

, o

he

vy tffic. Even mo

e

eckless e d

ive

s

ho speed

ound cu

ves

nd co

ne

s

nd ove

hills.

c c

n e

sily s

e

ve into oncoming tffic, c

using

moto

cycle

ccident.

simple physics lesson: Speed inc

e

ses the fo

ce of

collision,

hich

lso inc

e

ses the d

nge

of inju

y

nd the likelihood of f

t

lity in

moto

cycle

ccident. D

iving too slo

ly might not c

use f

t

l

ccidents

s often, but it c

n still le

d to seve

e inju

ies

hen

ccidents occu

, especi

lly fo

bike

s.

hen d

ive

s go too slo

they block the movement of t

ffic

nd c

e

te

b

upt bottlenecks,

hich

e EXT

EMELY d

nge

ous fo

bike

s. Slo

d

ive

s c

e

te the most d

nge

fo

othe

s

hen they tvel in the f

st l

ne of

high

y o

inte

st

te. In m

ny st

tes, it’s illeg

l to obst

uct tffic in the left l

ne of

multi-l

ne

o

d; d

ive

s must st

y to the

ight unless they

e me

ging into tffic, exiting to the left, m

king

left-h

nd tu

n, o

going f

ste

th

n othe

t

ffic.

Slo

d

ive

s in the left-l

ne c

n stt

ch

in

e

ction, c

using

multi-vehicle csh

nd putting bike

s

t high

isk foccident

nd inju

y. Bike

s

ho e involved in

multi-c

pile-up

e lucky to

lk

y. M

ny times, these c

shes le

d to

moto

cyclist getting pinned bet

een o

stuck unde

vehicles.

T

ilg

ting

Imp

tient

nd inexpe

ienced d

ive

s c

use

ccidents

hen they follo

othe

s too closely. Teen d

ive

s

ho h

ven’t been on the

o

d long might not unde

st

nd ho

impo

t

nt it is to le

ve enough sp

ce

hen follo

ing othe

s, but imp

tient d

ive

s of

ll

ges choose to d

ive

ecklessly

nd t

ilg

te othe

s. D

ive

educ

tion cou

ses inst

uct ne

d

ive

s to le

ve

“t

o-second g

p”

hen follo

ing othe

vehicles. Defensive d

iving inst

ucto

s go

step fu

thend

ecommend

fou

-second g

p, especi

lly in inclement

e

the

nd high

mounts of tffic.

hen

d

ive

igno

es these guidelines

nd follo

s close enough to c

use

n

ccident, they e b

e

king the l in most st

tes

nd putting moto

cycles

t

isk fo

seve

e

e

-end collision.

hen d

ive

s t

ilg

te

moto

cycle, they

lso

isk

unning ove

the bike o

bike

. If the bike

needs to

pply thei

b

kes o

m

ke

tu

n, d

ive

s

ho t

ilg

te don’t h

ve the time o

dist

nce to

e

ct to the situ

tion.

hen d

ive

s

e d

o

sy o

imp

i

ed by d

ugs o

lcohol, it m

kes m

tte

s even

o

se.

ddition

lly, d

nge

ous h

z

ds on the

o

d such

s tsh, ti

e

ubbe

f

om

blo

out,

nd

ild

nim

ls c

n st

t

ch

in

e

ction

hen tffic is p

esent. If

moto

cycle t

ies to

void these things, d

ive

s

ho e t

ilg

ting might collide

ith the bike

.

Disobeying Tffic Cont

ol Devices

Most d

ive

s don’t pu

posefully disobey stop lights, stop signs,

nd othe

tffic cont

ol devices. Inste

d, it’s often d

o

sy

nd f

tigued d

ive

s, d

unk d

ive

s, o

distcted d

ive

s

ho don’t p

ope

ly

tch fo

sign

ls

nd signs.

eg

dless of intent, disobeying t

ffic cont

ol devices is illeg

l

nd c

n c

use d

nge

ous

ccidents

t inte

sections. Moto

cycles

nd othe

vehicles might not h

ve the time o

dist

nce to

void

c

sh

hen

negligent d

iveuns

sign o

light. M

ny d

ive

s do, ho

eve

, igno

e “No U-tu

n” signs. D

ive

s

ho m

ke illeg

l U-tu

ns usu

lly do so quickly

ithout checking thei

mio

s o

blind spots. It’s not uncommon fo

these d

ive

s to ove

look moto

cycles

ho might be behind them o

in

blind spot

nd ending up cutting one off,

hich c

n

esult in

d

nge

ous

nd de

dly moto

cycle

ccident.

nothe

intention

l ex

mple of igno

ing tffic cont

ol devices is pl

ying “be

t the yello

light.”

eckless

nd imp

tient d

ive

s don’t

nt to stop

hen they see

yello

light getting

e

dy to tu

n

ed. Inste

d, they

ush<

i> th

ough the inte

section. If t

ffic f

om the othe

di

ection stts moving, these d

ive

s

isk c

using

n

ccident. Bike

s

e especi

lly

t

isk bec

use the likelihood of

n imp

tient

nd

eckless d

ive

noticing them is lo

. In

u

l

e

s, d

ive

s sometimes choose to

un stop signs bec

use tffic is light o

non-existent.

ll it t

kes is fo

ONE moto

cycle to be t

veling th

ough the inte

section,

nd the consequence is

de

dly

ccident.

F

ilu

e to Use Tu

n Sign

ls

Even the s

fest d

ive

s fo

get to use thei

tu

n sign

ls

t times. Fo

othe

s, its l

ziness o

compl

cency… o

pe

h

ps expecting the d

ive

s

ound them to be mind

e

de

s.

<

h

ef=”https://

.peb.comele

ses/2012/4/p

eb9430396.htm”>

ecent n

tion

l study su

veyed thous

nds<> of moto

ists

nd found only 75% of d

ive

s use thei

tu

n sign

ls

hen tu

ning

nd

lmost h

lf don’t use thei

tu

n sign

ls

hen ch

nging l

nes. These sttling numbe

s

esult in

bout t

o million tffic collisions pe

ye

c

oss the n

tion,

hich the United St

tes Deptment of Tnspo

t

tion

epo

ts

s double the numbe

of

ccidents c

used by distcted d

iving.

Most st

te ls

equi

e d

ive

s to use thei

tu

n sign

ls

t le

st 100 feet befo

e

n inte

section to sign

l thei

intention to tu

n.

hen d

ive

s coectly use thei

tu

n sign

ls, they communic

te thei

intentions to othe

s on the

o

d. This gives othe

d

ive

s

nd bike

s the ch

nce to

espond

pp

op

i

tely to the m

neuve

.

Bike

s e especi

lly in d

ngehen moto

ists don’t use thei

tu

n sign

ls

hen they ch

nge l

nes on inte

st

tes

nd highys. It’s e

sy fo

d

ive

to

un into

moto

cycle,

s they m

y be difficult to see. Lge semi-t

ucks t

veling

long inte

st

tes e especi

lly d

nge

ous fo

bike

s

hen they don’t cle blind spots

nd use thei

sign

ls.

hen

semi-t

uck

nd

moto

cycle get in

n

ccident, it’s highly unlikely the bike

ill live th

ough the o

de

l.

hen

bike

sees

tu

n sign

l, they c

n slo

do

n o

ch

nge l

nes to

void

potenti

lly seve

e tffic csh.

Consult

n

tto

ney

fte Moto

cycle

ccident<

b>

Even if you

e

s

fe bike

ho

es

helmet

nd p

ope

ge,

nd d

ives defensively, you still

isk inexpe

ienced

nd imp

tient moto

ists c

using

n

ccident

hile you

ide. You shouldn’t h

ve to shoulde

the fin

nci

l st

ess of you

ccident

nd inju

ies bec

use eckless d

ive

couldn’t be bothe

ed to follo

tffic ls. If you suffe

ed inju

ies in

moto

cycle

ccident, <

h

ef=”https://c

inju

yvictims.com

cont

ct-us

“>cont

ct<>

n expe

ienced moto

cycle

ccident lye

.

e c

n help you t

ke leg

l

ction,

nd

e c

n h

ndle

ll of the unple

s

nt communic

tions

ith the insu

nce comp

ny.

dedic

ted moto

cycle

ccident

tto

ney

ill investig

te youccident

nd

dvoc

te fo

you to m

ke su

e you get eve

y single penny you deserve!