Managing Partner Steven F. Fairlie is a long-time, avid motorcyclist himself. Steve owns several motorcycles and enjoys motorcycle riding in Montgomery and Bucks Counties. He is personally aware of the dangers presented by aggressive and careless motorists. We at Fairlie & Lippy, P.C., understand the risk factors of riding motorcycles, the body mechanics of how injuries are incurred, the unique characteristics of motorcycle accidents, and the best way to pursue a fair and full recovery.
The joys of riding a motorcycle are plentiful, but unfortunately, so too are the risks and consequences of an accident. Compared to passenger vehicle accidents, motorcycle accidents are more deadly. Injuries tend to be more serious. Recovery is less likely, rehabilitation takes longer, medical costs are higher, and pain is more significant. A number of factors contribute to motorcycle accidents, but the single greatest is negligent driving by other motorists.
Statistics of Motorcycle Accidents
The good news is that according to the Governor’s Highway Safety Association, motorcycle crash fatalities fell approximately 10% from 2008 to 2009, from 5,290 down to 4,762. 2008 was a record high year since the United States Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) began collecting data in 1975. However other findings of the NHTSA include:
- Motorcycle crash fatalities have increased every year for the 11 years leading up to 2009.
- Motorcyclists were 37 times more likely than passenger car occupants to die in a crash per vehicle mile traveled. They are nine times more likely to suffer injury.
- The fatality rate per registered vehicle for motorcyclists was 6 times the fatality rate for passenger car occupants.
NHTSA Study
In 2006, NHTSA sponsored a study called “Motorcycle Accident Cause Factors and Identification of Countermeasures”. The study included the following conclusions:
Causes
- Approximately 3/4 of motorcycle accidents involved collision with another vehicle, which was usually a passenger automobile.
- Vehicle failure accounted for less than 3% of motorcycle accidents.
- In multiple-vehicle accidents, the driver of the other vehicle violated the motorcycle’s right-of-way and caused the accident in 2/3 of accidents.
- The failure of motorists to detect and recognize motorcycles in traffic is the predominating cause of motorcycle accidents. The driver of the other vehicle involved did not see the motorcycle in time, before collision was unavoidable.
- The view of the motorcycle or the other vehicle involved in the accident is limited by glare or obstructed by other vehicles in almost half of multiple vehicle accidents.
- Conspicuity of the motorcycle is a critical factor in multiple vehicle accidents. Accident involvement is significantly reduced by the use of motorcycle headlamps (on in daylight) and the wearing of high visibility yellow, orange or bright red jackets.
- Fuel system leaks and spills are present in 62% of the motorcycle accidents in the post-crash phase.
Places
- The most frequent accident configuration is a motorcycle proceeding straight while an automobile makes a left turn in front of the oncoming motorcycle.
- Intersections are the most likely place for a motorcycle accident. The other vehicle more often violates the motorcycle’s right-of-way, and often violates traffic controls.
- Most motorcycle accidents involve a short trip associated with shopping, errands, friends, entertainment or recreation, and the accident is likely to happen in a very short span of time with relationship to the trip origin.
Speed
- The median pre-crash speed is 29.8 mph. The median crash speed is 21.5 mph. The one-in-a-thousand crash speed is approximately 86 mph.
- The typical motorcycle accident allows the motorcyclist just less than 2 seconds to complete all collision avoidance action.
Severity
- Large-displacement motorcycles are under-represented in accidents but they are associated with higher injury severity when involved in accidents.
- The likelihood of injury is extremely high in motorcycle accidents. 98% of multiple vehicle collisions and 96% of single vehicle accidents resulted in some kind of injury to the motorcycle rider; 45% resulted in more than a minor injury.
Risk Factors of Riding a Motorcycle
As the statistics indicate, there are a number of risk factors which motorcycle riders are particularly susceptible to. These include, for example:
- Negligent drivers Aggressive, inattentive, careless, or reckless driving habits of other drivers.
- Limited visibility – Intersections, buildings, trucks, buses, automobiles, parked vehicles, trees, shrubbery, signs, etc.
- Invisibility of motorcyclists – The smaller profile of motorcycles makes it easier for other motorists to detect them. The relative size differential between motorcycles and trucks is even greater, and trucks have greater blind spots than passenger vehicles. Therefore, it is even easier to fail to see motorcycles in such blind spots.
- Road hazards – Potholes, oil slicks, cracks, puddles, debris, wet leaves, loose gravel, and uneven pavement.
- Motorcycle defects – Fuel system leaks, which present an increased risk of fire in the post-crash phase.
- Weather – Heavy rain, snow, hail, etc. can lead to decreased visibility and hazardous driving conditions.
- Handling when facing danger – It’s often difficult or impossible for a motorcyclist to avoid an accident by braking or steering. By the time a dangerous situation presents itself, it is often too late.
These dangers are present for all vehicles on the road, but are higher with respect to motorcycles. More than one of them may contribute simultaneously to an accident. Most importantly, other motorists all-too-often neglect to pay attention to and heed these risk factors.
Motorcycle Accidents compared to Car and Truck Accidents
Motorcycle riders are also particularly susceptible to greater injury from a given impact than a comparable passenger vehicle occupant. A motorcycle rider is more exposed to begin with, and has less buffering layers to absorb an impact. Since a motorcycle rider is not contained within the cabin of a vehicle, he/she often suffers from multiple sources of trauma.
The occupant of a passenger vehicle may suffer the force of the initial impact, and then the secondary impact of the body meeting the internal cabin. On the other hand, a motorcycle rider suffers from a more direct and exposed initial impact, and the substantial forces of secondary or tertiary collisions with either another vehicle or object, and almost always the road itself. In the meantime, the contortions a motorcycle rider’s body experiences throughout the series of impacts affects the injuries that occur, as awkward and exposed positioning enhances the likelihood of severe harm to the brain, spinal cord, and vital organs.
The sciences of physics and anatomy are central to understanding the how the magnitude and angles of the forces of impact on specific locations on the body contribute to resulting injuries and long-term recovery potential.
Contact Us for your Motorcycle Accident Case
When seeking recovery following a motorcycle accident, it is important to understand the mechanics of what contributed to it, and the medical minutiae of the short-term and long-term effects. It is crucial to pay attention to the elements that are unique to motorcycle accidents with respect to accidents in general. It is only by focusing on these pivotal details that we can reconstruct the contributing factors of the accident, fully account for all of the injuries, and formulate an accurate and vigorous claim. In doing so, it is important for an attorney to have the experience and knowledge to isolate the evidence which will result in successful recovery.