While motorcycle helmet use and awareness have steadily increased over recent years, thousands of motorcyclists are still seriously injured or killed in motorcycle accidents each year. The fact is, even when a rider is wearing a helmet, he or she is still exposed to the full force of the road and colliding vehicles.

At the law firm of Icaza, Burgess and Grossman, we represent motorcyclists who have suffered serious injuries or become disabled in a motorcycle accident. Our attorneys also provide compassionate legal help for families coping with the wrongful death of a loved one after a fatal motorcycle crash in New Jersey or New York.

Riders of motorcycles, dirt bikes, and recreational vehicles are frequently perceived as thrill-seekers. Therefore, when an accident occurs, the motorcyclist is usually believed to have been at fault — even before a thorough investigation has been conducted. However, our personal injury lawyers have handled enough serious motorcycle accident cases to know that this common perception is not only inaccurate, it causes many motorcycle accident victims to forget that they have rights when they are injured in an accident.

When a client comes to us about a motorcycle crash, we listen. However, because the severity of motorcycle accidents often leaves the accident victim in a coma, suffering from brain damage, or worse, we rely on the experience of qualified experts and accident reconstructionist to tell us how the motorcycle accident transpired and who is to blame. More often than not, it is the negligence and inattentiveness of other drivers on the road that contributes to serious and fatal motorcycle crashes:

• Drivers making a sharp turn, cutting off the motorcyclist
• Drivers failing to yield to a motorcyclist’s right of way
• Drivers causing a motorcycle to swerve into a ditch or oncoming traffic
• Drivers following too closely behind a motorcyclist

Factors beyond driver negligence can also lead to motorcycle accidents, such as loose gravel or tire defects that cause the tires to slip and spin out, dangerous weather conditions, poorly engineered roads that do not allow for proper cornering by a motorcyclist, bends in the highway that do not contain adequate lighting or guardrails, and many other factors. When these types of issues are relevant, we investigate the potential for additional liability claims, such as a product liability claim against the manufacturer of the brakes or tires, or a claim against the municipality for the dangerous roads.