Motorcycle Accident Lawyer Baldwin County, AL | Whit A. Thomas, Attorney at Law

For motorcycle riders, taking the open road on their bikes can be a great thrill. However, each year, many people in Alabama are hurt in preventable motorcycle wrecks. If you or someone close to you has been involved in this type of accident, it is important to seek legal guidance from a knowledgeable injury attorney. Whit A. Thomas is a Foley motorcycle accident lawyer who has represented many victims against the people whose careless actions have harmed them. He can vigorously advocate for your right to the compensation that you deserve.

Establishing Liability for a Motorcycle Accident

Statistics from the Alabama Department of Transportation reveal that in 2012, for example, there were 1,912 crashes that involved motorcycles in the state. Many of these resulted from carelessness by drivers who failed to take the proper precautions in the vicinity of a motorcyclist. If a motorcycle accident was not your fault, you may be able to file a negligence claim against the at-fault party. Negligence is a failure to exercise reasonable care on the road. Reasonable care is defined as how a prudent person would act in the same or similar circumstances. For example, a prudent driver probably would check blind spots before changing lanes, yield to motorcycles when they have the right of way, and obey laws designed to protect the safety of people on the road.

To establish negligence, a plaintiff must show the following four elements:

The defendant owed the plaintiff a duty to exercise reasonable care;
The defendant breached his or her duty;
The defendant’s breach caused the motorcycle accident; and
The victim suffered quantifiable damages as a direct result of the defendant’s breach.

Alabama, like other states, has a time limit within which a personal injury claim must be filed, known as the statute of limitations. A victim in Alabama must file his or her lawsuit within two years from the date of the accident.

After a motorcycle accident, a victim may be left to deal with substantial financial burdens and ongoing medical problems. This is why Alabama law allows injured people to pursue a broad range of damages that may account for both economic and non-economic forms of harm. Some typical examples include medical expenses, rehabilitation costs, lost income and benefits, lost earning capacity, property damage, pain and suffering, and loss of enjoyment of life. There is no cap on the total amount of money that a plaintiff may receive in a personal injury case against a private individual, except with regard to punitive damages. These may be awarded in addition to compensatory damages when a defendant acted especially egregiously.

Consult a Motorcycle Accident Lawyer in the Foley Area

As a knowledgeable Foley motorcycle accident attorney, Whit A. Thomas is dedicated to holding negligent parties accountable for the harm that they cause. With years of experience, he is familiar with virtually all aspects of personal injury law. He can represent victims and their families in many areas of Alabama, including Fairhope, Daphne, Gulf Shores, Mobile, Altmore, Monroeville, and other communities throughout Baldwin, Mobile, Escambia, and Monroe Counties. Call us or contact us online to arrange a free consultation with a car accident attorney.