Bike Accident Lawyer Baldwin County, AL | Whit A. Thomas, Attorney at Law

While cycling can be a relaxing activity and a great way to work out, it is not without its risks. Each year, a number of people in Alabama and throughout the United States are hurt in bicycle accidents. These collisions can be a traumatic experience and often have long-term consequences for the victims. Whit A. Thomas, an experienced Foley bicycle accident attorney, can help you determine your legal options in these situations. With over three decades of experience as an injury lawyer, he knows what it takes to advocate for the rights of victims in settlement negotiations or at trial.

Holding a Negligent Driver Accountable for a Bicycle Accident

Since bicycles lack the structural protections of a motor vehicle, their riders are particularly vulnerable to suffering serious injuries if they are struck by a car or truck. In some cases, drivers fail to respect the right of bicyclists to use the road or simply may fail to see them because of their narrow profiles. If your bicycle accident was caused by someone else’s carelessness, you may be able to recover compensation for your harm by filing a negligence claim against the at-fault party.

To succeed in this type of case, a victim must establish four main elements. First, he or she must have been owed a duty of care by the defendant. This is usually straightforward to establish because everyone who gets behind the wheel is expected to take reasonable precautions to avoid creating foreseeable risks for other people on the road. Next, the defendant must have done something that fell short of this standard of care, such as cutting across a bicycle lane without signaling to make a turn or failing to give a bicycle the right of way when appropriate.

The third and fourth elements of a negligence claim are known as causation and damages. Causation means that the accident likely would not have happened if the defendant had used the appropriate level of care. Damages consist of any costs and losses that resulted directly from the defendant’s breach. These may range from hospital bills, the costs of future treatment, and lost income and earning capacity to more subjective items like pain and suffering.

In some cases, a defendant may argue that a victim’s negligence at least partly caused the accident. Alabama uses a strict rule known as contributory negligence, which means that someone who is even slightly responsible for causing his or her own injuries may not receive any damages from someone who is also partly responsible. This makes it especially important to consult a skilled attorney who can fight back against any argument that you shared some of the fault for the accident.

Explore Your Options with a Foley Attorney After a Bicycle Accident

Whit A. Thomas is committed to using every tool at his disposal to pursue the compensation that his clients deserve for their harm. He can meticulously analyze the facts of your case and provide you with an honest assessment of your options. Foley bicycle accident lawyer Whit A. Thomas can represent Alabama victims and their families in Fairhope, Daphne, Gulf Shores, Mobile, Altmore, Monroeville, and other areas of Baldwin, Mobile, Escambia, and Monroe Counties. Call us or contact us online to arrange a free consultation with a knowledgeable car accident attorney.