Motorcycle Accident Lawyer in Hickory Hills, IL

The exhilaration you feel when riding a motorcycle can be canceled out by the harm reckless drivers can do to you when they do not respect your safety. If you were injured in a motorcycle accident in Hickory Hills, IL, call the motorcycle accident lawyers of Burger Law today at (312) 500-HURT or contact us online for a complimentary case evaluation.

If you were injured in a motorcycle accident in Hickory Hills, or anywhere in Illinois, find out how much your claim may be worth by using our free personal injury calculator.

Motorcycles are a great way to enjoy the road and relax. There is a sense of freedom that is not possible in an enclosed vehicle. Regrettably, negligent drivers can turn that feeling into catastrophic injuries. Because motorcycles do not protect riders as well as enclosed vehicles, motorcycle accidents can cause serious injuries. When that happens to you, there are immediate financial, physical and mental consequences and you need someone to fight for you. You need to find a lawyer with a proven track record of winning motorcycle crash lawsuits in Hickory Hills, IL.

Our team has more than seven decades of combined experience winning cases in negotiations and in the court room. Our motorcycle accident lawyers will tenaciously pursue every legal avenue to make sure justice is served. Do not talk to your insurance or the other side’s insurance without speaking to an attorney first. The insurance adjuster is out to limit your compensation. We know how to fight insurance companies and ensure that they treat our Hickory Hills, IL clients fairly.

To learn more about what we can do for you, speak to our team at (312) 500-HURT to go over your motorcycle accident claim for free.

How Common Are Motorcycle Accidents in Hickory Hills, IL?

Despite the fact that motorcycles make up less than one percent of total traffic miles traveled in the United States, they made up four percent of all injuries and 14 percent of all deaths in traffic-related accidents in 2020, according to the National Safety Council. In the entire country, in 2020 82,000 people were injured and 5,579 died in motorcycle crashes. In Illinois, there were 3,077 motorcycle crashes which resulted in 2,404 injuries and 152 fatalities, according to the Illinois 2020 Crash Facts and Statistics. Sadly, over half of those happened when a passenger car or truck collided with a motorcycle when the biker was driving in a straight line, which leads us to believe that the accidents were often due to a car or truck driver was not looking out for bikers. Wrecks happen most frequently in urban areas, especially major city streets.

According to findings from the Motorcycle Legal Foundation, Illinois is eighth in the nation in terms of both registered motorcycles and motorcycle crash fatalities.

Nearly 50 percent of deadly motorcycle accidents occur in the between June and September, and half happen on the weekends.

What to Do After a Motorcycle Accident in Hickory Hills, IL

There are a number things you should do, both in the immediate wake of an accident and in the days and weeks that follow, to ensure both your health and the chances of a successful claim.

Immediately After The Accident

While any collision can be surprising and scary, it is important to keep a clear head. Immediately after the crash, you should:

• Get to safety — If you are physically able, get to the side of the road and away from oncoming traffic. Leave the bike. We know it is a treasure for you, but trying to carry it could put you at risk of further harm. If you believe your injuries may be catastrophic, stay still and wait for EMTs to arrive.
• Do not remove your protective gear — Taking off your helmet or other gear could also make serious injuries even worse. Because of adrenaline, a serious injury may not always hurt as much at first.
• Call 911 — As the injuries caused in a motorcycle wreck can be catastrophic, it may be best to be looked over at the scene instead of trying to seek medical attention at urgent care or a doctors’ appointment. Police are trained to determine fault in an accident, and will make a police report.
• Gather evidence — Talk to any other motorists involved and get their insurance information. Take photographs of the accident, including damage to all vehicles involved and the surrounding areas. Take as many pictures as possible. Something that may seem unimportant at first may help a motorcycle accident lawyer in Hickory Hills, IL prove who is responsible for your injuries in the future. Get the contact info of any eyewitnesses to the accident.

Finally, receive medical attention if you did not already do so.

What to Do in the Days, Weeks and Months Afterwards

After you first seek medical care, notify both your insurance company and the other driver’s. Then, speak to a motorcycle accident lawyer in Hickory Hills, IL about your case. If your injuries are significant, you will likely need one to get full compensation. While communicating with your attorney, it is important to:

• Continue Medical Treatment — This is obviously the best thing for your health, but is also key to making sure you get full compensation. In order to prove your damages, you need to complete copies of medical medical records which detail all of the costs and treatments directly associated with the accident. The more medical expenses you have, the higher your ultimate compensation will be as well. Make sure you attend every every treatment and use all of the equipment and medication your doctor orders for you.
• Keep Detailed Records — You are also entitled to reimbursement for lost wages from time your injuries caused you to miss out from work, and any out-of-pocket expenses that were necessary, such as parking or gas money for going to medical appointments or hiring someone to help take care of your kids. Manage a file with detailed receipts and notes about why you needed to pay those expenses. It may also be a good idea to write down your every day experiences detailing how your injuries have affected you physically and emotionally for a record of your pain and suffering.
• Leave the Insurance Company up to Your Attorney — Once you have filed your claim and enlisted the services of a motorcycle accident lawyer, your attorney will handle all communication with the insurance. Insurance adjusters try to employ a lot of ploys to devalue claims, and it is better to leave communication up to a lawyer who knows how to deal with them.
• Do Not Post on Social Media — In this day and age, many of us want to share details about our life with others. However, posting too much on social media can do damage to your case. If you tell the insurance company that your injuries prevent you from working, and the insurance finds out you have been going out on the weekends, they they can say your injuries are not actually that severe.

From the moment you hire us, we will keep you completely in the loop until you get the maximum compensation you are owed. Let us deal with the legal aspect of your case so you can spend your energy on on your medical treatment.

Do I Need a Motorcycle Accident Lawyer in Hickory Hills, IL For My Claim?

For minor and clear-cut accidents, where fault is clearly established and your medical bills only include an appointment with your primary care physician, a lawyer may not be able to add much value to your claim. Give the insurance company your records and expenses, and ask for a little more for inconvenience. In a a settlement for a relatively small sum of money where their policyholder is clearly liable, the insurance company is not going to want to waste their time.

However, more likely than not hiring a motorcycle accident lawyer will be the only way to get fair compensation in your injury claim. While it would be nice if insurance companies fulfilled their obligations when someone is injured under their coverage, it usually takes a fair amount of fighting to get them to do it. You will almost certainly need a motorcycle accident lawyer in Hickory Hills, IL if:

• Your injuries require ongoing treatment — The more your medical expenses and lost wages, the more the insurance company will be resistant to reimbursing you for it. If your injuries result in permanent disability, you will always need an attorney to hold the insurance adjuster accountable for all of your damages.
• The insurance company is not being fair — If your damages are starting to creep up into the tens of thousands, and the insurance adjuster is only offering a few thousand, they are trying convince you that you do not know how much you are owed. If you enlist the services of a lawyer, the insurance company will know that you mean business. In a recent case, Burger Law was able to turn a $3,900 offer into a $100,000 settlement.
• There is more than party at fault — With some cases, especially multi-vehicle accidents, there may be more than one liable party. For example, a driver may cut your off while not looking for you, causing you to take defensive action and hit a road hazard that a governmental agency should have fixed. An aggressive Hickory Hills, IL motorcycle accident lawyer will be able to investigate the accident and assign a portion of the damages to each liable party. Identifying everyone who is liable is key if you are owed more compensation than the at-fault driver’s policy limits.
• The insurance adjuster is trying to blame you for your injuries — Blaming you for your injuries is a frequent tactic insurance adjusters use to minimize your claim. If the insurance company say your injuries are your own doing, an attorney use their investigate skills and network of experts to conclusively demonstrate that is not the case. If you were indeed responsible for a portion of the accident, you can still make a recovery under Missouri’s comparative negligence rule. However, you will need an attorney to apply the rule of law and get you that compensation.

Your Hickory Hills, IL motorcycle accident lawyer at Burger Law knows how to fight back against dishonest ploys insurance adjusters use. We have been doing it for over 30 years. Our consultations are free, so speak to an attorney today at (312) 500-HURT to see if we can add value to your claim. We start working from the moment you hire us, and do not let up until you get every bit of compensation you deserve.

Recent Burger Law Hickory Hills, IL Motorcycle Accident Victories

You need a lawyer who has shown they can get maximum compensation in your type of claim before. Any motorcycle accident lawyer can say they will fight for you, but a lawyer with client testimonials and results to prove it is another thing. Here are several of our most recent victories as well as client testimonials:

• $495,000 Uninsured Motorcycle Accident Verdict
• $327,000 Motorcycle Accident Settlement
• $250,000 Policy Limits Settlement
• $100,000 Motorcycle Liability Claim
• Maximum Recovery Obtained for Motorcycle Accident

Do I Have a Motorcycle Accident Claim in Hickory Hills, IL?

In order to have a successful claim in Hickory Hills, IL, you must have been injured by someone else’s negligence. There are five elements to proving negligence in a personal injury claim:

1. Duty of care — Did the other person have a responsibility to protect you from unreasonable harm? 625 ILCS 5/11-1003.1 states that “every driver of a vehicle shall exercise due care,” so anyone else on the road automatically owes you that duty.
2. Breach of duty — Did they fail in that duty and cause an accident? Was another driver speeding, texting and driving, drunk driving or otherwise not following the rules of the road?
3. Cause in fact — Were your injuries the direct result of the accident?
4. Proximate cause — Whose negligence caused the accident? If the other driver’s brakes were malfunctioning, the person who needs to compensate you may be a manufacturer and not another motorist?.
5. Damages — Did your injuries lead to losses, such as lost wages and emotional distress? If your accident resulted in some bruises or scrapes, but you did not need any medical treatment, it would be hard for you to file a claim.

Any time somebody else’s carelessness or recklessness injures you, you have an injury claim. Speak to a motorcycle accident attorney today at (312) 500-HURT if you have any doubts about the validity of your claim.

How Much is My Hickory Hills, IL Motorcycle Accident Claim Worth?

Your compensation will be a combination of:

• Economic damages, such as money you lost out on from time off work recovering, medical bills and out-of-pocket expenses
• Non-economic damages, such as mental anguish, scarring and pain and suffering
• In some rare cases, you can be awarded punitive damages if the liable party’s behavior was especially egregious, such as if they were drunk driving

Factors that determine how much you will recover include:

• The severity of your injuries; more significant injuries usually lead to higher economic and noneconomic damages
• Whether or not you were partially to blame for your injuries
• If you sustained permanent disfigurement or disability
• The impact the injuries have had on your ability to enjoy life

At Burger Law, our injury attorneys are experts at calculating the full value of someone’s injury claim and insisting the insurance company pay all of it. If your injuries lead to future economic damages like lost earning capacity or future surgeries, that will also be part of your settlement or verdict, including adjusting for inflation.

How Long Do I Have to File a Motorcycle Accident Claim in Hickory Hills, IL?

According to 735 ILCS 5/13-202, the statute of limitations for motorcycle accident injuries in Hickory Hills, IL is two years. That means the clock starts ticking on the date of the accident to file a claim. Illinois has three exceptions:

• If you or your loved one was a minor when the injuries occurred, they have until two years after their 18th birthday
• If you or a loved one was under a legal disability at the time of accident, they have until two years after the disability ended
• If the person responsible for your injuries is outside of the state of Illinois for a time, that period does not account against the two years

While two years does not sound like it should give you a sense of urgency, investigating and developing a legal strategy for your claim takes time. Do not hesitate to contact a motorcycle accident lawyer after you were hurt in a motorcycle accident in Hickory Hills, IL. Call us now at (312) 500-HURT.

What Are Common Causes of Motorcycle Accidents in Hickory Hills, IL?

Motorcycles are harder for passenger car drivers to see, being smaller. Because of something referred to as “inattentional blindness,” drivers are less likely to see a motorcycle — even if they are doing their due diligence. This is because most drivers have programmed their brains to look for other cars, but not for motorcycles. Inattentional blindness contributes to many motorcycle accidents in Hickory Hills, IL.

The most common causes of motorcycles accidents are:

• Left-hand turns — According to the Motorcycle Legal Foundation, over 40 percent of all fatal motorcycle crashes involve a car turning left while the motorcycle was going straight. These crashes can be due to a motorist’s intoxication, speeding or simple inattention.
• Other collisions — Head on collisions also occur frequently between motorcycles and passenger cars. It is also common for a car to fail to see a motorcyclist when turning in front of them. Motorcycles also have the highest rate of collisions with fixed objects, which is not always the motorcyclist’s fault.
• Road hazards — Uneven pavement, potholes, dead animals, slick surfaces or other debris on our streets usually do not affect a car or truck very much. However, motorcycles do not have the same level of stability and these hazards can cause a motorcyclist to fall.
• Defective parts — Manufacturers and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration recall dozens of motorcycles annually. When dangerous bikes and components are not recalled, it can cause motorcycle accidents.

Who is Liable for My Motorcycle Accident Injuries in Hickory Hills, IL?

More than nine out of 10 motor vehicle accidents are caused by driver error. So, most of the time another driver is responsible for your injuries. However, other parties that may be held liable include:

• A governmental body or contracting company for road hazards
• A motorcycle designer, manufacturer or vendor in a product liability claim
• A employer if someone they hired injured you while driving, for example in a commercial truck accident

Can I Sue For My Hickory Hills, IL Motorcycle Accident if it Did Not Involve Another Vehicle?

States and municipalities are supposed to keep their roadways safe for use by everyone on the roads, and when there are road hazards that cause an accident, the agency responsible for the neglect can be held liable for the motorcycle accident. However, suing a government entity in Illinois has added complications. Our motorcycle accident lawyers in Hickory Hills, IL can pick up your claim and guide you through the complexities of local and state laws to get you a full financial recovery.

A Loved One Was Killed in a Motorcycle Crash in Hickory Hills, IL. What Are My Legal Options?

The dangers of motorcycles mean that bikers have a higher death rate than people in enclosed vehicles. If you were touched by tragedy and a family member died in a motorcycle crash, you can make a wrongful death claim. While no settlement or verdict can fill the whole that is left, it can help provide some sense closure and ease some of the difficulties associated with their passing. 740 ILCS 180/, the Illinois Wrongful Death Act, details the laws surrounding wrongful death claims:

• You can make a wrongful death claim for negligence, just as your loved one would have made an injury claim if they were injured.
• The Illinois statute of limitations for wrongful death claims is two years from the date of your loved one’s death, not the date of the accident.
• There are three categories of people who can file a wrongful death claim in Illinois. In order of priority, they are:
  1. Members of the nuclear family, such as a spouse, children, grandchildren and grandparents
  2. If there are no immediate family members, siblings and nieces and nephews can bring a suit
  3. If there are no family members, the court can designate a plaintiff ad litem to file a claim
• Your compensation will include:
  • Under 755 ILCS 5/27-6, the Illinois Survival Act, the personal injury damages incurred by the deceased before their death, for example their medical bills, lost wages and pain and suffering
  • Funeral expenses
  • Loss of financial support from your loved one, including any work-related benefits
  • Loss of consortium
  • Loss of instruction, guidance and moral training the deceased would have provided
  • Survivors’ grief, sorrow and mental suffering

Burger Law’s Hickory Hills, IL wrongful death attorneys are not just tremendous at securing full compensation. We are empathetic and have helped many families navigate the sorrow, anger and confusion that accompanies a fatal auto accident.

In addition to motorcycle accidents, other injury cases we we have had great success with in Hickory Hills, IL include:

• Truck Crash Lawyers in Illinois
• Wrongful Death Lawyers in Illinois
• Semi-Truck Accident Lawyer in Illinois
• Car Accident Attorney in Illinois

HIRE BURGER LAW

Speak to a Motorcycle Accident Lawyer Hickory Hills, IL Today

Our Hickory Hills, IL motorcycle accident lawyers will not stop fighting until there is nothing left to fight; that is our guarantee. You deserve to be financially compensated for your motorcycle accident. You do not have to pay for someone else’s mistakes. To learn more about how our Hickory Hills, IL personal injury law firm will fight for your rights, call our team at (312) 500-HURT or contact us online for a free case review.