Motorcycle accidents often result in devastating injuries for those involved. Additionally, motorcycle accident victims usually have to deal with a range of other types of losses, including property damage expenses, lost income, various household out-of-pocket expenses, as well as pain and suffering damages. Any person injured in a motorcycle crash caused by the careless or negligent actions of another driver should be entitled to compensation. Here, we want to talk about what a motorcyclist needs to prove in order to secure compensation through a favorable insurance settlement or jury verdict.
Perhaps one of the most important aspects of winning a motorcycle accident insurance settlement or lawsuit is proving who caused the incident. We do want to point out that it can be incredibly difficult for a motorcycle crash victim to prove fault on their own. Often, motorcyclists are facing an uphill battle in these cases. That is because the at-fault party will have a well-funded insurance carrier that does not want to pay out any money in a settlement. Additionally, motorcyclists also have to contend with intentional or unintentional negative biases on the part of every party involved, including police officers, insurance carriers, and brave members.
In order to prove liability for a motorcycle accident in Colorado, a victim or their attorney will need to gather all of the evidence necessary to show what happened. In these cases, this can include:
Even if insurance carriers or a jury have unintended biases against motorcyclists, it is difficult to refute hard evidence. That is why motorcycle accident victims (or their attorneys) must work diligently to gather all of the evidence in the case. Sometimes, it becomes necessary to hire motorcycle accident reconstruction experts who have experience handling these cases. An accident reconstruction expert can use the evidence that has been gathered, evaluate the crash scene, and piece together what happened in the form of testimony to insurance carriers or a personal injury jury.
Another critical aspect of winning a motorcycle accident lawsuit in Colorado is proving the losses that the victim has sustained. Essentially, if a motorcycle accident victim cannot prove that they have suffered some form of economic or non-economic loss, they will not be able to recover compensation. In general, motorcycle accident victims will work to recover the following:
Proving economic and non-economic losses can be challenging. When working to show the economic losses in these cases, a motorcycle accident victim and their attorney will gather all of the medical bills, property damage receipts, pay stubs, and more.
In order to prove non-economic losses, accident victims and their legal team will have to dig a little deeper. That is because non-economic losses such as pain and suffering and emotional distress damages are harder to quantify. It may be necessary to hear testimony from psychological experts in these situations. Additionally, testimony from friends and family members is often crucial because these individuals can talk about how the motorcycle accident has changed the victim’s everyday life.
If you or somebody you care about has been injured in a motorcycle accident in Colorado that was caused by the careless or negligent actions of another individual, you need to work with an attorney who has extensive experience handling these lawsuits. An attorney can use their resources to investigate the claim, determine liability, and handle all negotiations in order to recover the compensation a victim needs.
