Unfortunately, many motorcycle accidents in Lexington are caused by drivers who pull out in front of motorcyclists which they neglected to see. If this happened to you or a loved one, contact us right away for a free consultation. We’ve handled many motorcycle accident cases and know how insurers try to take advantage of bikers. Call us for a free consultation after any motorcycle wreck.
Failure to Yield
When a motorcycle is involved in an accident with another vehicle, it’s usually a result of that other vehicle failing to yield the right-of way to the motorcyclist. Two-thirds of the time, that happens when the other driver makes a left turn in front of the motorcyclist who is traveling straight ahead through an intersection. Those were just two of the findings of the Hurt Report that was published in 1981. To date, the Hurt Report remains the most comprehensive motorcycle accident study in the United States. Research for the report was performed at the University of Southern California. It was primarily authored by Professor Harry Hurt for the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
Confirmation
The major findings contained in the Hurt report were confirmed 32 years later in a study performed at the University of South Florida Center for Urban Transportation Research. Its motorcycle safety study concluded that in motorcycle accidents involving other vehicles, the drivers of those vehicles were at fault 60 percent of the time. Most of those crashes involved the drivers making left turns in front of motorcycles. What the University of South Florida study didn’t take into consideration was the number of times motorcycle crashes were classified as single vehicle crashes after motorcyclists crashed when avoiding a vehicle turning in front of them. Hurt considered those in his findings and statistics.
Other Hurt Report Data
Professor Hurt concluded that a motorcyclist has about 2 seconds to react to a vehicle that fails to yield the right-of way. Upon braking, the average motorcycle impact speed was 21.5 mph. Glare from sunlight and lights of other vehicles along with obstructed vision due to traffic on the roadway contributed to about 50 percent of all of such crashes.
Why Do Other Drivers Cause Left Turn Accidents?
Motorcycles present smaller and narrower profiles than other vehicles in traffic. Professor Hurt noted that drivers who caused left turn accidents said that they either never saw the motorcycle approaching, or they didn’t see it until it was too late. In 2018, it’s highly likely that distracted driving due to cell phone and infotainment center use are major contributors to not seeing motorcycles.
Injury Patterns
About half of all documented injuries to motorcyclists in left turn collisions referenced by the Hurt Report involved the foot, ankle, lower leg and thigh. Groin injuries were suffered by 13 percent of the riders. Fatal injuries overwhelmingly involved the head, neck and chest. Here are some other nonfatal injuries commonly suffered by motorcyclists in accidents caused by other drivers turning left:
- Facial fractures.
- Organ damage.
- Dental injuries.
- Muscle, ligament, tendon and cartilage damage.
- Biker’s arm involving nerve damage after motorcycle riders put their arms up to protect themselves.
- Road rash with infection.
Of course, helmeted motorcycle riders had a lower rate of head and neck injuries. When head and neck injuries were suffered, levels of severity were also reduced.
Contact a Lexington Kentucky Motorcycle Accident Lawyer
When a driver turns left in front of a motorcyclist and causes a crash, serious injuries are going to warrant serious compensation. If you suffered serious injuries in a motorcycle crash that was caused by a negligent driver, or if you lost a family member in such a crash in or around Lexington, don’t give the opposing insurance company any type of a statement. The law doesn’t require you to do that, and it will only try to use your own words against you in the future. Contact us right away, and we’ll arrange for a free consultation and case review with a Lexington motorcycle accident lawyer from our office. We’re going to listen to you carefully and answer your questions. After that, we’ll advise you on your full range of legal options.