Life-Changing Motorcycle Accident Injuries
Ever since you saw the coverage of the Rolling Thunder 9/11 tribute of two million bikers parading past the Capitol Building, you’ve been yearning to buy a motorcycle so you can join the next ride. Unfortunately, your wife has been adamantly against you buying one, due to safety concerns.
Since you haven’t been able to find an organized ride since Rolling Thunder, you’ve let her arguments persuade you to hold off. However, you just found out that America’s 9/11 Foundation is sponsoring another ride downtown this September, and you really want to participate. So now you have to convince her that even if you were to get into an accident, you’d probably be fine.
Seriously, what’s the big deal? As long as you follow safety protocols, and know how to handle the bike, you should be fine … right?
What’s The Worst That Can Happen?
Motorcycles have become increasingly popular as a form of transportation throughout the United States. The freedom and overall experience of riding a motorcycle is incomparable to anything else. This is why, as of 2013, an estimated eight million motorcycles were registered in the U.S. — 8,000 of them in D.C. alone — representing an increase of nearly 27% since 2007. This increase, although good for dealerships, sadly reflects why within the last 10 years, motorcycle injuries and deaths have increased by over 55 percent, according to the Centers for Disease Control. That organization estimates that 5,000 people a year die and over 200,000 are severely injured as a result of serious motorcycle accidents.
Although some injuries are minor (if you’re extraordinarily lucky), many of them are catastrophic, life-altering, and potentially fatal. These include:
- Amputations. When motorcycles fall on and pulp a limb or a collision throws a rider from his bike, the body’s extremities can become crushed, severed, or mangled to the point where they need to be amputated.
- Eye damage and blindness. Flying debris, facial road rash and head injuries can cause eyes to become impaled, scraped, crushed, or removed from the socket.
- Brain damage. Head injuries are some of the most common injuries sustained by motorcyclists. They can range from minor concussions to hemorrhaging, brain bleeds, and partial to complete cognitive loss, leaving the rider in a persistent vegetative state.
- Spinal cord injuries. A motorcycle offers very little protection to its rider or passengers. A collision from behind or an accident that throws the rider onto his back can leave the spine crushed, severed, twisted or broken. Short-term or permanent paralysis (partial or total) is a common result.
- Death. Over 1,000 motorcyclists a year are mortally wounded during accidents, while another 4,000 wind up succumbing to their injuries within a week after their accidents.
Living With The Consequences
If you’re lucky enough to survive a severe motorcycle accident injury, you may still wind up having to spend the rest of your life in pain, trying to recover, to afford your rehabilitation bills, and to live with the consequences.
Don’t allow someone else’s mistake to haunt you the rest of your life. If you’ve been seriously injured in a motorcycle accident, contact us today to explore your settlement options. We’re here to help make sure you get the justice and compensation you deserve and get your life back on track. What are you waiting for? Call now!
With the increased presence of motorcycles on our roads, the need for understanding bike safety is more important than ever. Show your support by helping us reach out to our motorcycle community and help them realize their potential risks — and help passenger vehicle drivers respect the rights of bikers to use the road. Simply click the social media icons on this page to instantly share this page on Facebook, Twitter, and Google Plus.