
Common Causes of Bike Accidents
Driver negligence is often to blame for bicycle accidents. This negligence can take a variety of forms, including:
- Distracted driving - Even a momentary lapse in concentration can cause a driver to fail to see a bicycle on the road around them. Unfortunately, drivers can be distracted by talking or texting on a cell phone, adjusting a car’s radio or navigation system, talking to passengers, or eating and drinking. Taking one’s attention off the road is a dangerous form of driver negligence that can lead to serious injuries for a bicyclist.
- Drunk driving - Driving while intoxicated by alcohol or drugs is a crime, and it can drastically impair a driver’s ability to operate their vehicle safely. Alcohol use affects a person’s coordination, reaction time, and judgment, and it is likely to cause a driver to be unable to avoid striking a bicycle.
- Aggressive or reckless driving - Some drivers do not like to share the road with bicycles, and they may drive too close to bicycles or fail to respect their right of way. In addition, bicycle accidents often occur when a driver proceeds through an intersection without looking or changes lanes or makes a turn without checking their blind spots. Drivers may be held responsible if they injure bicyclists due to their failure to follow the rules of the road.
- Dooring - Bicyclists can be seriously injured if a driver or passenger of a parked car opens their door into the bicycle’s path. This can occur when a bike is in a lane of traffic or a bike lane, and it can cause serious injuries if a cyclist is thrown from their bicycle.
Contact an Inverness Personal Injury Attorney
About the Author: Attorney Ken Apicella is a founding partner of DGAA focusing in the areas of personal injury, employment, insurance coverage disputes, and civil litigation. Ken earned his J.D. from DePaul University College of Law in 1999. He has been named a SuperLawyers Rising Star and a Forty Illinois Attorneys Under Forty to Watch. Ken has written and lectured for the Illinois Institute for Continuing Legal Education and regularly serves as a moderator at Northwest Suburban Bar Association's Continuing Legal Education seminars.
Sources:
https://www.nhtsa.gov/road-safety/bicycle-safety