Ventura County has some of the most beautiful bike-riding paths in the state, but making the area more accessible for cyclists means more bikes sharing the road with vehicles and a subsequent increase in the number of bicycle accidents. Ventura County has some of the highest rates of bicycle accidents in the state.

Have you or someone you love sustained severe injury or financial loss after a bicycle accident in Oxnard? Was this accident caused by a negligent motorist or pedestrian? If so, you may be entitled to compensation for your injuries through a personal injury claim or lawsuit. Call the helpful Oxnard personal injury attorneys at OnderLaw today to schedule a free consultation, and let us help you get the fair compensation you deserve. Don’t let a bicycle accident determine the course of your life. Call today.

Why Do I Need a Lawyer for My Bicycle Accident?

Hiring an attorney can give you an advantage in pursuing compensation for your injuries.

Compensation is obtained either by filing a personal injury claim against the responsible party’s insurance or by filing a personal injury lawsuit against the responsible party directly. In either case, a lawyer can help make the process less challenging and time-consuming for you.

Your attorney will explain the claims process and help you build a case supported by evidence and based on fact. We will conduct a full investigation into your accident to determine who was at fault, gather necessary documentation, such as medical records or accident reports, and interview witnesses to support your recollection of events.

The majority of bicycle accidents claims are resolved with a settlement, which is a cash amount intended to compensate you for your losses and induce you to drop any claim you have against the responsible party. Your attorney will take the lead in negotiating a fair settlement that covers your losses and restores your peace of mind. Hiring an attorney to assist with this step is crucial for a few reasons.

First, insurance companies will do whatever they can to deny your claim or reduce the payout, including using underhanded tactics designed to take advantage of inexperienced claimants. They may try to convince you not to hire a lawyer or explain in detail how the settlement offer they’re providing is more than enough to cover your losses. The reality is that they want you to accept the lowest offer possible and sign a form releasing their customer from liability. Your attorney will be familiar with these methods and know how to deal with them.

Second, reputation is vital in injury claims. Insurance adjusters will respond differently to a solo claimant than they will to a claimant’s qualified attorney.

Third, your lawyer can help you accurately determine how much compensation to demand. We will use our experience and knowledge of previous case law to help you reach a number that corresponds to your injuries and doesn’t just cover your losses but restores your well-being.

An attorney isn’t absolutely necessary for your bicycle accident, but when difficulties with your claim arise, you’ll be glad to have a knowledgeable advocate in your corner.

Why Hire OnderLaw to Represent Me?

We’ve been helping accident victims get fair compensation for their losses for almost twenty years, and we have a record of success to show for it. We aren’t bashful about saying that we’ve successfully obtained over $4 billion in settlements and awards for our clients since 2002.

That number is compelling, but numbers don’t tell the whole story. If you head to our Testimonials page to hear from some of our past clients, you won’t read many figures, but you will see words and phrases like helpful, down-to-earth, personable, honest, dedicated, and professional. Our clients come to us because we get the results they need, but they come back because we offer a level of service that you won’t find in any other firm in California. We genuinely care about our clients and getting them the help they need.

Our mission to help those around us doesn’t end with our clients. We regularly provide donations of time and money to charitable causes, such as Toys for Tots, Lupus Foundation of America, and MADD.

We also understand that not everyone can afford a lawyer. We don’t want finances to be a barrier to those who need quality legal representation, so we operate on contingency at OnderLaw. This means that we must successfully get you compensation before we receive payment for our services. If we can’t do that, we don’t get paid. There are no up-front costs to our clients.

Bicycle Laws in Oxnard

Here are some laws and statutes regarding cycling in Oxnard and elsewhere in California:

  • Bikes riding slower than traffic must keep to the right-hand side of the road.
  • Cyclists riding at night must have a white lamp facing forward and a red rear reflector.
  • Bicycle handlebars must be lower than the rider’s shoulders.
  • Riders under 18 must wear a bicycle helmet at all times.
  • Motorists must keep at least three feet between their vehicles and bicycles.

Causes of Bicycle Accidents

Bike accidents differ from car accidents in several ways, including their root causes. Some of the frequent causes of bicycle accidents in Oxnard include the following:

  • Dooring accidents
  • Failure to yield
  • Speeding
  • Inadequate surveillance
  • Unsafe lane changes
  • Unsafe left or right turns
  • Impaired driving
  • Distracted driving
  • Unsafe road conditions
  • Inclement weather
  • Road construction
  • Failure to stop at traffic signals
  • Vehicles blocking bike lanes
  • Striking stationary objects

Common Injuries Suffered in Bike Accidents

Bike accident injuries tend to be more serious than injuries from car or truck accidents because bicycles provide no safety protection for their riders. A cyclist is also likely to suffer two impacts rather than one: the initial impact with a vehicle, pedestrian, or object and the secondary impact of striking the ground.

Bicycles are smaller and more difficult to see than vehicles, especially at night, in bad weather, or low light conditions. Cyclists are situated higher than most cars, so a cyclist struck by a vehicle may sustain serious injury to their hips, knees, or ankles.

Some frequent injuries attributed to bicycle accidents include:

  • Broken bones
  • Sprains and strains
  • Abrasions
  • Road rash
  • Lacerations
  • Spinal cord injury
  • Hip and knee injuries
  • Soft tissue injuries
  • Internal injuries
  • Organ damage
  • Traumatic brain injury
  • Head and neck injuries
  • Whiplash
  • Concussion
  • Crushing injuries
  • Coma
  • Death

Compensation for Bicycle Accident Injuries

The amount of compensation you may obtain depends upon the severity of the accident and the injuries sustained. The general rule of thumb is the more severe the accident, the more compensation you should demand.

It’s virtually impossible to estimate a compensation amount for your claim without a full review of your accident and losses. We can determine the amount to demand from the insurance company by examining all the losses attributed to the accident. These losses, or damages, vary widely and may come in several different categories, such as:

  • Lost wages
  • Pain and suffering
  • Medical bills
  • Lost opportunity
  • Mental anguish
  • Emotional distress

You’ll note that some damages are monetary in nature, such as medical bills, and some are not, such as mental anguish. Financial losses are called economic damages, and non-monetary losses are called noneconomic damages. The goal of obtaining compensation is to restore you to the state you were in before the accident, which means restoring your mental, physical, and financial health.

California also allows exemplary damages in some cases. Exemplary damages are not compensatory. They are intended to penalize the responsible party and prevent them from ever acting in such a negligent manner again. Exemplary damages require a higher burden of proof than economic or noneconomic damages, can only be awarded by a judge or jury, and are only allowed in cases of extreme malice, fraud, or oppression. Talk to your attorney to see if exemplary damages may be available in your case.

California Bicycle Accident Statistics

Here are some statistics on bicycle injuries and fatalities in California and elsewhere:

  • There were eight cyclists killed in Ventura county between 2015 and 2019.
  • There were just over 1,100 bicycle collisions in Ventura county between 2015 and 2019.
  • Fatal bicycle accidents in California declined by almost 20 percent from 2018 to 2019.
  • There was an average of 162 bicycle accidents with fatalities or injuries in California from 2016 to 2018.
  • Oxnard ranked 15th out of 59 in the number of bicycle fatalities and injuries compared to other cities in California of similar size.

Call OnderLaw Today

If a negligent driver injured you or someone you love in a bike accident in Oxnard, don’t delay any longer. OnderLaw is standing by to take your call. California has a two-year statute of limitations on personal injury lawsuits, so it’s important to act quickly to pursue compensation. Call today for a free, no-obligation consultation, and let us help you get back on the road after a bicycle accident. Call OnderLaw today.