Motorcycle Accident with Other Vehicles
In New Jersey, as a general rule if you are injured while occupying or driving a motorcycle, moped, commercial vehicle, taxi cab, chauffeured rentals or bus you will not be able to seek PIP no-fault benefits for payment of your medical bills. That’s right if you have private health insurance your medical bills may be covered as long as your policy does not contain any specific exclusions for treatment you receive as a result of an accident while driving for example a motorcycle.
While it appears counterintuitive, in New Jersey the individual at-fault driver’s insurance company in a motor vehicle accident is not responsible to pay for the injured’s medical bills related to treatment for injuries sustained in the motor vehicle accident. Instead, it is the injured person’s own auto insurance, their resident relatives’ auto insurance or the owner of the vehicle’s insurance company that would be responsible to pay for the medical bills through the PIP, personal injury protection benefits portion of the respective policy. Unfortunately, this rule changes if you are injured in the above types of vehicles since they have been deemed to have not met the “automobile” requirement of the PIP No-fault type medical expense benefits and therefore you will usually be excluded from coverage.
THAT’S RIGHT if you are injured while on a motorcycle or in a cab ride or on a bus or in a commercial vehicle, your medical bills will not be paid by available insurance. Thus, it becomes even more important to make sure that you retain a motorcycle accident injury attorney who is proficient in New Jersey motorcycle accident law, truck accident law or taxi-related motor vehicle injury law. This is because your attorney will seek compensation for your pain and suffering and for your outstanding medical bills from the at-fault driver. This area of law has become very complex and requires counsel that has extensive experience in representing persons injured in truck accidents, motorcycle accidents, taxi cab accidents, and bus accidents. This is particularly true in the case of victims of serious injuries because their mounting current and future medical debts with traumatic brain injury (TBI) or spinal cord injuries (SCI) could leave a family in life-altering financial ruins.
My clients are oftentimes totally shocked when I explain to them the reality of the PIP laws in New Jersey. They often ask how is this possible that I was riding in a taxi and the driver was in a major accident and his insurance company is not responsible for payment of my injury-related medical bills? I tell them to thank the powerful insurance lobby who has done an amazing job blaming the “trial lawyers” like myself for your exorbitant insurance rates while netting BILLIONS in record profits and shielding themselves by succeeding in having the New Jersey legislature pass laws exempting them from payment to their insured’s or insured’s immediate family member’s medical providers where medical claims have become exempt from coverage.
Preventing Motorcycle Accidents: Safety Tips
Motorcycles have a notorious reputation for being a dangerous form of transportation. However, they can be safe when riders and other drivers exercise good driving habits. At Grossman Law Firm, our motorcycle accident attorneys in Monmouth County work to keep our clients informed on the measures they should take to prevent any sort of collision, accident, or injury. The following guidelines are imperative in preventing injuries:
- Proper safety equipment
- Being an experienced motorcyclist
- Being aware of your size
- Leaving plenty of room between you and other vehicles
- Slow/No driving in adverse weather conditions
Safety Equipment
Wearing the proper safety equipment helps to prevent injury if you are involved in an accident. Wearing a helmet can significantly reduce the risk of severe head or neck injuries and even death. Proper outerwear can also reduce injury to the arms and legs.
Riding Experience
Having significant riding experience can help prevent an accident from occurring. Beginner motorcycle riders are more likely to be involved in an accident because they have little to no experience. Being properly licensed and trained not only protects you, but others on the road.
Be Aware of Your Size
Many motorcycle accidents are caused when the drivers of other, larger vehicles fail to see a motorcyclist before it is too late. Although it is convenient to have a smaller vehicle that can weave through traffic, it is imperative that riders be aware of their surroundings and whether other drivers are aware of their presence. Use hand signals, light signals, and give yourself plenty of room between other vehicles to ensure your safety and the safety of others.
Give Yourself Plenty of Room
Suddenly having to stop on a motorcycle is much more dangerous than when in an enclosed vehicle. In a car, there are safety restraints; drivers and passengers are seated in a way that helps prevent a body from being thrown from the vehicle in a sudden stop or collision. A motorcyclist, if having to stop suddenly, is at the risk for being thrown from their vehicle. Give yourself more space between vehicles than you would in a car, and always be aware of the traffic around you.
Weather Conditions
Because a motorcycle is a two-wheeled vehicle, inclement weather conditions increase the risk of collision. If you are driving on wet, icy, or snowy roads, your risk of skidding, sliding, or falling over is much greater than when in a four-wheeled vehicle. It is advised that drivers use a car or truck instead of a motorcycle in bad weather conditions. If a motorcycle is the only option, driving slowly and keeping space between the bike and other vehicles is the best way to prevent any crash or injury.
Our Monmouth County car accident attorneys have the skill and experience to represent victims of motorcycle accidents. If you or a loved one have recently been involved in an accident, contact our offices and we will set you up for a case review with one of our experienced attorneys.
Motorcycle Helmet Laws in NJ
Maybe. But should that really be the right question when it comes to the safety of motorcycle riders? In New Jersey, state law mandates that all those who ride motorcycles must wear a DOT-approved helmet. Each year in the Garden State, 2500 motorcycles are involved in accidents, resulting in at least 50 fatalities.
But recently in Michigan, the group called American Bikers Aiming Toward Education (ABATE) authored a bill which was introduced to the State House which would allow motorcyclists to forego wearing a helmet when they ride as long as riders pay a $100 fee, are at least 21 years old, are licensed to operate a motorcycle for at least two years, have completed a motorcycle safety course and have insurance or security of $20,000 for first-party medical benefits in the event of an accident.
ABATE believes that wearing a helmet infringes on individual freedom of choice and the right to privacy. While that may be arguably true, if you look at the other states that have repealed mandatory helmet laws, Florida, Kentucky, and Louisiana, and you see the exponential rise in injuries and deaths to motorcyclists following the repeal of their helmet laws, you’d have to agree that the interest in keeping the public safe, with something so easy as wearing a helmet is extremely compelling.
In a recent article in Insurance Journal about the Michigan law, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration found that in the three years after Florida’s repeal of its mandatory helmet law in 2000, 933 motorcyclists were killed, an 81 percent increase.
Another study found that fatalities grew by more than 50 percent in Kentucky and 100 percent in Louisiana after those states struck down mandatory helmet laws.
About Grossman Law
For over 25 years, Personal Injury Attorney Scott Grossman has been fighting for the rights of the injured throughout New Jersey. He has helped thousands obtain their fair and just monetary compensation to pay for medical treatment, pain and suffering, and more. Mr. Grossman and his legal team truly care about their clients and provide each with devoted and individual personal attention. Whether you have been the victim of an NJ motor vehicle accident, trucking accident, dog bite, brain injury, construction accident, pharmacy error, wrongful death, workplace injury or any other type of injury, we are here to help you recover the fair and just compensation you truly deserve.
Our 5 Locations In New Jersey: Freehold, NJ, Clifton, NJ, Old Bridge, NJ, Matawan, NJ, and Sayreville, NJ
