Tag Archives: BicycleSafety

Who Could Be Liable in a Bicycle Accident?

Posted on May 28, 2018 by Dudek Law Firm

Statistics published by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) show that more than 818 people died in bicycle accidents involving motor vehicles during 2015. Bicycle accidents can involve passenger cars, buses or trucks. While motor vehicles are a common cause of bicycle accidents, there are other parties who could be responsible. In addition to motor vehicles, the other parties responsible for a bicycle accident may include: Bicycle repair shops. These businesses may repair, modify or sometimes sell bicycles. However, they could make mistakes while performing repairs or they could sell a defective bicycle. For instance, you could be involved in an accident if a repair shop improperly repaired your brakes. Bicycle manufacturers. Like other products, bicycles may contain safety defects that raise the risk of an accident. Bicycle manufacturers may be liable for accidents caused by design or manufacturing defects. In this case, a cyclist or their loved ones…
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Dooring Accident Kills Burbank Cyclist

Posted on April 30, 2018 by Dudek Law Firm

Police are investigating a dooring accident that killed a 51-year-old cyclist in Burbank. Two weeks ago, the cyclist was riding his bicycle in a designated bike lane when a car door opened in front of his path. After colliding with the car door, the cyclist was thrown into traffic and hit by an oncoming pickup truck. Emergency personnel rushed the cyclist to a hospital, but he later died from his injuries. This type of accident can occur even in designated bike lanes. Unfortunately, many bike lanes are next to rows of parked cars. You are also more likely to be in a dooring accident while biking in urban or residential areas. The following steps may help you reduce the risk of a dooring accident. Do not ride in the dooring zone. Ride farther to the left when passing parked vehicles. If the bike lane is too close to parked vehicles,…
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What Are Vulnerable Road Users?

Posted on April 23, 2018 by Dudek Law Firm

We recently published a blog discussing how fatal accidents increased for pedestrians, cyclists and motorcyclists in recent years. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) published the most recent statistics on these traffic accidents. All three groups are known as “vulnerable road users” or “vulnerable users”. This is a catch-all term to describe people who are not using motor vehicles. Other examples of vulnerable users include people on skateboards, mopeds, farm vehicles or in wheelchairs. Pedestrians, cyclists, motorcyclists and other vulnerable road users have little to no protection when they are involved in accidents. Some states have laws that help protect vulnerable users from harm. California does have some laws that take vulnerable users into account, but there is always room for improvement. The League of American Bicyclists has three recommendations states can use while crafting vulnerable user laws. These recommendations include: Creating a “vulnerable user law”. This law would…
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