Philadelphia Bicycle Accident Lawyer
- 30+ Years of Experience Helping Victims Across Pennsylvania
- We Will Never Stop Fighting For You
This page has been written and edited by a team of experienced legal writers . This page was approved by Managing Partner, Michael Saile who has more than 20 years of legal experience as a personal injury attorney.
This page has been written and edited by a team of experienced legal writers . This page was approved by Managing Partner, Michael Saile who has more than 20 years of legal experience as a personal injury attorney.
- Last Modified:
- September 28, 2024
- How Cordisco & Saile’s Bicycle Accident Attorneys Can Help You
- How Driver Negligence Contributes to Bicycle Accidents
- Navigating Insurance for Philadelphia Bicycle Accidents
- Damages Available for Your Bicycle Injury Claim
- Common Bicycle Accident Injuries
- How Long Do I Have To File My Bicycle Accident Claim?
- How Much Does an Attorney Cost?
- Get Help With Your Philadelphia Bicycle Accident Case Today
How Cordisco & Saile's Bicycle Accident Attorneys Can Help You
How can you be sure what caused your bicycle accident? Who’s at fault? Is it just one person, or did multiple parties contribute to the wreck? Does insurance cover your injuries? What happens if someone tries to blame you for the collision?
These are all important questions, but not ones you should have to figure out yourself. Your primary focus should be recovering from the physical injuries and psychological trauma of your bike accident. Insurance companies may try to exploit your vulnerability to minimize liability and avoid paying you what you need to put your life back together. You need a loyal advocate to fight back against these tactics. That’s where we come in.
Our Philadelphia personal injury lawyers are ready to take on the challenges of your bicycle accident claim and fight to get you the money you deserve. We’ll take on the insurance company, negligent parties, and anyone who tries to stand between you and the compensation you deserve. With our help, you stand the best chance at compensation to cover your medical bills, make up for a sudden loss of income, and make you whole for the pain and emotional distress you’ve endured.
We’re ready to fight for you. Take the first step towards getting the compensation you deserve.
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Experience You Can Count On
Cordisco & Saile LLC is a nationally recognized team of bike accident lawyers with over 30 years of experience standing up for the injured. People come first at our law firm, and we never stop fighting for what’s right. Our passion for helping clients means we’ll do whatever it takes to get you the best possible outcome for your case. This approach has garnered numerous awards and accolades, including recognition from the National Institute of Trial Advocacy and a “Top 100 Lawyers” designation from the American Trial Lawyers Association.
Our bicycle accident attorneys are Pennsylvania locals who take it personally when negligent drivers put others at risk. Our clients are like family, and we channel that sense of community into our legal advocacy. We know the people and the roads in this area, which gives us an edge when building a strong case for your bicycle accident claim.
How Driver Negligence Contributes to Bicycle Accidents
Motor vehicle drivers are legally obligated to share the road with bicyclists and operate their vehicles safely. Unfortunately, many drivers fail to uphold this responsibility, leading to serious and even fatal accidents for cyclists.
Drivers put bicyclists at risk when they do the following:
- Fail to yield the right of way at intersections
- Ignore stop signs or red lights
- Follow too closely behind a cyclist
- Do not check for oncoming bicyclists before opening car doors
- Drive under the influence of drugs or alcohol
- Drive while distracted
Establishing Negligence in Bicycle Accident Cases
Our Philadelphia bicycle accident attorneys must show that someone else was negligent before we can recover compensation for you. To prove your case, you must establish the following elements:
- The at-fault party owed you a duty of care.
- The at-fault party breached that duty through their actions or inactions.
- That breach caused your accident.
- The accident resulted in your injuries and losses.
Various bicycle accident scenarios can result from negligence, such as a side-swipe collision, a rear-end collision, or a dooring accident. A side-swipe collision may have happened because the driver failed to yield or give enough space to the cyclist, while a dooring accident typically occurs when a driver fails to check for oncoming cyclists before opening their car door.
What If I'm Partly Responsible for the Accident?
You can still recover compensation even if you are partly responsible for a bike accident in Philadelphia. Pennsylvania has adopted a modified comparative fault rule. Under that rule, if you are more than 50 percent at fault for the accident, you are barred from recovering any compensation. However, if you share less than 51 percent of the blame for your bicycle accident, you can recover compensation. In that case, your damages will be adjusted in proportion to your fault for the accident.
For example, suppose you are injured in a bicycle accident at a Philadelphia intersection and suffer damages valued at $100,000. If you shared 10 percent of the responsibility for the accident, you can recover up to $90,000.
Navigating Insurance for Philadelphia Bicycle Accidents
Pennsylvania is a no-fault insurance state, meaning you must first seek benefits from your own insurance company after a bicycle accident in Philadelphia. That’s right—your car insurance policy covers you as a bicyclist if you’re hurt in a car accident in Philadelphia.
If the costs of your bicycle accident injuries exceed the limits of your car insurance policy, you can file a claim with the responsible party’s insurer and sue the responsible party for your remaining damages.
In many cases, a full-blown lawsuit is unnecessary, as the insurance company may not contest liability. In fact, most bicycle accident cases in Pennsylvania are settled without court involvement.
You can also seek both economic and non-economic damages, even if you have a limited tort policy. In 2004, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court held that pedestrians are exempt from limited tort rules. Bicyclists are considered pedestrians rather than motorists under the law; thus, there are no restrictions on the types of damages recoverable in a bike accident lawsuit.
Protecting Yourself Against Insurance Companies' Tactics
Although insurance companies often agree to settle bicycle accident claims out of court, they may use various tactics to reduce the amount they pay. Our attorneys know the insurers’ strategies and will fight for maximum compensation on your behalf.
Our assistance can make all the difference in receiving the compensation you need to cover your damages, but there are a few things you can do to protect yourself and strengthen your case:
- Document as much as you can at the scene of the accident. Take photos, get witness information, and write down your memory of what happened.
- Keep records of your damages related to the accident, including medical bills and receipts.
- Avoid giving a recorded statement to the insurance company without consulting an attorney first. Don’t sign any documents or accept a settlement offer before getting your attorney’s go-ahead.
Damages Available for Your Bicycle Injury Claim
You can generally recover both economic and non-economic damages after a bicycle accident in Philadelphia.
Economic damages cover the monetary losses stemming from a bicycle accident and resulting injuries. Examples include:
- Medical bills
- Future medical expenses
- Physical therapy
- Occupational therapy
- Vocational rehabilitation
- Disability
- Lost wages
- Lost work benefits
- Property damage
Non-economic damages compensate for the more difficult-to-value consequences of a bicycle accident. You might be able to recover money for the following:
- Pain and suffering
- Emotional distress
- Disfigurement
- Reduced quality of life
- Embarrassment
- Loss of consortium
- Depression and anxiety
A Philadelphia jury might also determine that punitive damages are appropriate if there is evidence that you intentionally hurt or the defendant displayed a conscious disregard for your safety.
Our bicycle accident lawyers in Philadelphia will work hard to ensure that all your damages are valued appropriately.
Common Bicycle Accident Injuries
While wearing a helmet can prevent a traumatic brain injury and save a rider’s life, many cyclists still suffer catastrophic injuries in Philadelphia bike accidents.
At Cordisco & Saile LLC, our attorneys represent bike riders who have sustained:
- Broken bones and fractures
- Spinal cord injury
- Neck injury
- Back injury
- Burns
- Road rash
- Crushing injury
- Amputation
- Eye injury
- Vision or hearing loss
- Sprains, strains, and other types of soft tissue injury
- Nerve damage
- Wrongful death of a family member after a fatal Philadelphia bicycle accident
Get to the closest hospital in Philadelphia or seek emergency medical treatment immediately after your bike accident. It can take a while for signs and symptoms of internal injuries to appear. Prompt medical care can help ensure that all your injuries are fully diagnosed right away.
Once your condition is stable, our experienced legal team in Philadelphia will be ready to discuss your legal rights and options.
“What sets us apart from other lawyers is the way we present the injury. We know the injuries. We know the effects of the injuries, and we will fight for the best outcome for you and your case.”
How Long Do I Have To File My Bicycle Accident Claim?
Pennsylvania’s two-year statute of limitations for personal injuries applies to most bicycle accident lawsuits in Philadelphia. The two-year clock typically begins to run on the accident date.
There are some limited exceptions to this rule. For instance, children who are injured while riding their bikes in Philadelphia will have until their 20th birthday to initiate a legal claim for damages, as long as a parent or guardian has not already done so.
On the other hand, cases involving government negligence, which might occur if there was a problem with road conditions or bicycle infrastructure, have an accelerated timetable.
Don’t let the deadline come and go before you file a claim. Once the statute of limitation expires, so does your right to recover the compensation you need and deserve.
How Much Does an Attorney Cost?
There is no upfront cost to hire one of our bicycle accident attorneys in Philadelphia. We work on contingency, meaning we don’t get paid unless and until we win your bicycle accident case.
We are so confident we will win that we’ll front the litigation costs and assume all financial risks. When we win, our law firm receives a predetermined percentage of your financial award.
You can focus all your resources on yourself and trust that we will do our best to win your personal injury case at no out-of-pocket cost to you.
“When people hire Cordisco and Saile, they're expecting the best. They're expecting you to fight for them from the minute they walk in that office into the minute their case is resolved and that's what we do here.”
Get Help With Your Philadelphia Bicycle Accident Case Today
If you have recently suffered injuries in a bicycle accident in Philadelphia, contact Cordisco & Saile LLC at 215-642-2335 for immediate assistance with your personal injury case.
Our trusted Philadelphia bicycle accident attorneys are ready to help you fight to get the money you deserve. We offer a free case evaluation and are standing by to take your call today.
Please fill out the quick contact form below for a fast and free case consultation. We will
contact you within 24 hours!
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