Rappaport, Glass, Greene and Levine has years of experience in representing motorcycle riders. We know that anyone who rides a motorcycle puts a premium on safety, and they expect other drivers on the roads and highways to do the same. An accident involving a motorcycle is twice as likely to result in a severe injury, and we’ve helped many victims of motorcycle accidents secure compensation for lifelong injuries such as head trauma, neck injuries, spinal cord injuries, severe road rash and scarring, fractured limbs and paralysis.
Motorcycle Awareness: Every New York Driver’s Duty
New York State Governor George Pataki declared last May to be “Motorcycle Awareness and You Month”, using the month to put the spotlight on motorcyclist safety in New York. Some of the Governor’s efforts included public service announcements, and promoting safety courses through New York’s DMV and the Motorcycle Safety Foundation.
Recent statistics show that the Governor’s call for more motorcycle awareness is warranted. In terms of per miles traveled, insurance estimates show that motorcyclists face 27 times the chance of serious injury or death on the road than regular drivers. Many of these accidents are the clear fault of other drivers on the road, with New York drivers of cars, trucks and other vehicles often failing to take the simple, easy steps that can save lives. In New York, the most common circumstances of motorcycle accidents involve:
- motorcycles being run off the road;
- motorcycle or other vehicle running traffic control;
- head on collisions;
- car steered in front of cycle;
- motorcycle going down in roadway
Only about 7 per cent of motorcycle wrecks occur without the involvement of another vehicle. More than 90 per cent of motorcycle accidents involve other vehicles.
Despite the heightened dangers motorcyclists face, it’s a safe bet that motorcycle use isn’t on the decline in New York. In fact, with fuel prices going through the roof and the daily commute becoming a job in itself, motorcycles are gradually becoming a more practical choice for the way many New Yorkers get around our region. Already the 6th leading state in the nation in terms of registered motorcyclists, the daily use of motorcycles, mopeds, scooters and other two-wheeled vehicles on New York streets and highways continues to grow.
As a law firm that often helps those injured in traffic accidents, Rappaport, Glass, Greene & Levine is a firm believer in promoting motorcycle safety on the road. Many of our past clients have been motorcyclists, and we’ve helped them obtain the compensation they’ve needed to endure lifelong injuries such as head trauma, neck injuries, spinal cord injuries, severe road rash and scarring, fractured limbs and paralysis. When motorcycle accidents end in fatalities, we are also there to help loved ones of the deceased obtain what they need to survive.
Motorcycle Fatalities on the Rise
Today, the rate of motorcycle fatalities is as high as it has been since the late 1980s. At least part of this increase is due to changing policies in federal oversight over state helmet laws. Beginning in 1989, the federal government began withholding as much as 3 per cent of federal highway funding to states that didn’t enforce adequate helmet laws. In 1995, many of those conditions were repealed, and states in turn digressed to looser helmet law enforcement. Today, in many states, only minors (or those under the age of 20) are required to wear helmets. Only 20 states and the District of Columbia require helmet use from all riders. Not surprisingly, New York is among those 20 states.
The New York accident lawyers of Rappaport, Glass, Greene & Levine support the rights of motorcyclists to share our roads, and we are there for injured motorcyclists and their families when those rights have been violated by unsafe or improper driving. If you or someone you love needs legal help in the aftermath of a motorcycle accident involving injury, contact our law firm today.
Web Resources for Motorcycle Accidents:
- Accident Lawyers Online
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