MARYLAND MOTORCYCLE ACCIDENT LAWYERS
The attorneys at Miller & Zois handle personal injury cases involving motorcycles accidents. Many people are surprised to learn that most motorcycle accidents are usually caused by the negligence of a motor vehicle. In fact, there are studies that maintain that over 80% of multi-vehicle accidents involving motorcycles are caused by the negligence of the driver of an automobile. Often, this occurs because motorcycles can stop much faster than cars and are thus more likely be rear-ended by a negligent driver following too closely. Many motorcycle accidents also occur when the
driver of an automobile fails to yield the right of way. Regrettably, motorcycle accident victims are 21 times more likely to die than personal injury victims in a passenger car or truck. In human terms, this leads to catastrophic results. In an average year, 166,000 Americans will be hospitalized as a result of a motorcycle accident of which 4,700 will die. Per registered vehicle, the fatality rate for motorcyclists in 2004 was 4.1 times the fatality rate for passenger car occupants. The trends are not encouraging. In 1997, about 5 percent of the total number of traffic fatalities involved motorcycles; in the 2004 motorcycles accidents accounted for about 9 percent of the 42,800 traffic fatalities. The motorcycle accident attorneys at Miller & Zois have unfortunately dealt with many of these fatal motorcycle accident wrongful death cases in Maryland. While obviously many of the issues attorneys deal with in motorcycle accident cases also apply in auto accident and truck accident cases, Maryland law does treat motorcycle accident victims different in many respects. For example, under Section 19-505(c)(2) of the Maryland Insurance Code, Personal Injury Protection coverage you have on your automobile insurance policy does not apply under most insurance companies to motorcycle accidents. Yet, paradoxically, you are covered if are standing next to your bike and someone knocks the bike over on you. If the Maryland law on PIP coverage in motorcycle accidents sounds ridiculous to you, it is. But, regrettably, it is consistent with the legislative intent to protect insurance companies from the risks associated with motorcycle accidents.
It is also important to remember that uninsured motorist issues in Maryland is often more dicey in motorcycle accident cases. If you are driving someone else’s motorcycle and suffer an accident, uninsured motorist benefits are typically available for you under your own insurance policy in the event of an accident with an uninsured or underinsured driver. But if you own a motorcycle and a car on the same policy (or, most likely, even on different policies although the law is unsettled), the policy limit on your motorcycle is going to be applied to an accident in Maryland on your motorcycle even if you have higher uninsured benefits on another vehicle. The lesson, as always, is to have high coverage limits – including uninsured motorist coverage - on any vehicle that you are driving.
Our Maryland motorcycle accident lawyers have the experience to sort through these complicated issues and stand up to the insurance companies to fight for fair compensation for the victims of motorcycle accidents. If you or someone you know has been injured in a motorcycle accident, select here or call 1-800-553-8082 to speak to a Maryland lawyer experienced in handling auto accident claims. Please click on the link provided below for a free evaluation of your claim by an experienced attorney.
