Bicycle Accidents Category Archives - South Florida Injury Lawyer Blawg Published by Miami Accident Attorneys

Bicycle Commuter Accidents in Florida

Published on: August 23, 2018 | by Law Offices of Robert Dixon

Many people in Florida and across the United States use their bike to get to work. In addition, there are many children and teenagers who ride their bikes to school. Unfortunately, these bicyclists are often overlooked by motorists and others on the road. If you or someone close to you has suffered harm in a bicycle accident caused by someone else’s negligence, you may be entitled to compensation for your harm. At our Law Offices, our Miami bike accident attorneys can help you understand your legal rights and options.

The number of people commuting to work on a bike has significantly increased over the last decade. People are choosing to bike to work due to a number of reasons: it is a good way to exercise, it is cost-effective, and it is an environmentally friendly mode of transportation. Despite the fact that commuters have surged more than 60 percent from 2000 to 2013, nationally, less than one percent of commuters bike to work at least once a week. By comparison, 86 percent of commuters drive to work. According to data from the 2014 American Community Survey, approximately 4.4 percent of people in Gainesville, Florida use their bicycles to commute to work, making it one of the cities in the country with the most bicycle commuters.

Bicyclists are extremely vulnerable to injuries when struck by a car. Many times, bicycle crashes are caused by a motorist’s negligence or inattentiveness while operating his or her vehicle. This at-fault driver – the driver who caused the accident – is likely responsible for compensating you for your injuries. You will be able to recover compensation for your harm if you establish negligence. Negligence occurs when a person’s failure to use reasonable care causes injuries to someone else. Reasonable care refers to the level of care that a prudent person would use in the same or similar circumstances. In order to establish negligence, you must show that the defendant failed to use reasonable care and that the defendant’s failure was a direct cause of the bicycle accident and your resulting harm.

Bike Lane Accidents in South Florida

Published on: September 20, 2017 | by Law Offices of Robert Dixon

Riding a bicycle is a great way to stay active and healthy. It is also an environmentally friendly form of transportation. Unfortunately, even when there are designated bike lanes, a number of people are injured in bicycle accidents in Florida and throughout the United States each year. If you or someone close to you has been injured while riding a bike in a bike lane, you may be entitled to compensation for your harm. At the Law Offices of Robert Dixon, our skilled Miami bicycle accident attorneys are committed to holding negligent parties accountable for the harm that they cause.

Sadly, Florida leads the country in bicycle deaths. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Florida ranks first in the top 10 states for bicycle fatalities with 0.57 deaths per 100,000 people. In 2015, there were 120 people killed on bicycles in Florida, accounting for 16.5 percent of all bike deaths in the nation.

A bike lane is a lane on the road that is specifically marked for bicycle use. Under Florida Statute 316.2065, when there is a designated bike lane, cyclists must ride in that lane except for certain reasons. If there is no bike lane, a bike rider does not necessarily have to use the sidewalk even if there is one present. In Florida, a bicyclist has every right to use the street in Florida. If a bicyclist does decide to use the road, however, he or she must ride as close to the right hand curb or edge of the roadway as possible.

Bicycle Accidents in Florida

Published on: June 10, 2015 | by Law Offices of Robert Dixon

Florida weather lends itself to a lot of outdoor activities throughout the year, including bicycle riding. Unfortunately, many cyclists are injured every year in accidents that could have been prevented. As a bicyclist in Florida, you have rights. If you are a cyclist who was injured due to the carelessness of another, you may be able to seek compensation for your injuries.

Bicycle accidents can take place in a variety of ways. Many times, bicycle accidents are caused a negligent driver who:

Fails to yield to the right of way of cyclists;
Fails to stop at a stop sign or red light;
Fails to look both ways before driving through a light or stop sign;
Ignores cyclists or simply fails to see cyclists;
Carelessly opens the door of a parked vehicle; or
Drives in a lane reserved for bicyclists.

The Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles 2011 Crash Statistics Report, for example, indicates that 4.632 bicyclists were injured and 120 bicycled were fatally injured that year.