How Much Will a Bicycle Accident Cost You?

While health and lifestyle are the most important factors to pay attention to after a bicycle accident, it is fair to be concerned with the monetary costs, too. We touch on each of them in the sections below. Another thing to note is that no matter how expensive your collision is, you might not have to pay for it alone. Exploring that option is best done with a lawyer, which is another topic we’ll address later in this article.

Property

The first expense is perhaps the most obvious of them. It is your property. If you’re a cyclist, then that is your bike and whatever other gear gets damaged in the crash. If you’re a driver, that will be the damage your car takes. As you might imagine, bikers generally experience much more property damage, as their form of transportation is much smaller and lighter. Ultimately, the total of this cost will come down to how expensive your property is and how much damage the collision causes.

Initial Medical Expenses

The best possible result of any collision is nobody being hurt. Unfortunately, this is often not the case when dealing with bicycle injuries. The reason is that bikes have no protection against the heavy and fast projectile that is an automobile. What usually takes place is the biker being thrown to the ground and needing emergency medical assistance. Some typical examples of these costs include ambulances, emergency room service, and doctors visits.

Future Medical Expenses

Once your immediate health is no longer in danger, you may still need a long-term strategy for recovery. What this process often entails is further doctor’s visits, medication, surgery, physical therapy, or any other health intervention. Each of them comes with a cost, and considering the state of the medical industry, that expense is usually significant. The type and length of your future treatment will depend on the nature of your injuries and the opinion of the medical professionals that you see.

Missing Work

The precise amount of money you’ll lose from missing work will depend on a variety of factors. First is the extent of your injuries. Minor damages might not cause you to miss any work at all, while more severe ones could keep you out for months. Second is the terms of your employment. An hourly worker might see their income stop entirely, while someone on salary may be able to use sick days and vacation time to not lose anything.

Stagnant Career

Though these are fringe cases, a bicycle injury could significantly impact the progression of your career. A few examples of this effect include someone becoming disabled, losing out on a promotion due to an extended absence, or being terminated instead of accommodated following an injury. Each of these injustices can slow down or derail your career, which constitutes an indirect cost.

Lawyer’s Fees

There are two fundamental ways that a bicycle accident attorney might collect fees. The first is through a conventional hourly rate, which is easy to understand. The second is by taking a percentage of your final settlement, which is typical for a lawyer representing injured parties. No matter which you choose, enlisting an attorney is always a good idea, as they pay for themselves by getting you a much better deal.

If you are a bicycle rider, don’t think that these costs are so insurmountable that you should stop riding. Instead, do two things. First, make sure you are as safe as possible at all times. That means paying attention, following traffic laws, wearing a helmet, and more. Next, make sure you hire a lawyer in the event of a crash. Doing so will give you an excellent shot at getting all of your expenses paid for. Also please note that if you are a driver, these two tips both stand. Actively trying to be safe and obtaining legal representation are both fantastic decisions no matter which side of the equation you’re on.

This article does not necessarily reflect the opinions of the editors or management of EconoTimes