While riding a bicycle can be no doubt be a fun and healthy alternative to driving in St. Catharines, it’s also quite dangerous when all drivers don’t share the road as well as they should. Most cyclists – even kids – are aware of the dangers of riding a bike and take precautions to prevent accidents. Still, nobody really expects to be involved in a serious bicycle accident. If you or a loved one has suffered life changing injuries in a bicycle accident, an experienced St. Catharines bicycle accident lawyer can help you navigate the complex road to recovery after an bicycle accident. Our lawyers are bicycle litigation experts who have served many bicycle accident clients in the St-Catherine’s areas and can help your negotiate a claim with the driver’s insurance company on your behalf. We can evaluate your case to determine whether legal action may be necessary. Having a St. Catharines’ lawyer handle your bicycle accident case offers you the best chance of getting the settlement you deserve after an accident to help fund your recovery and rehabilitation for the extent that you need it.
Technically, Bicycle accidents mostly fall under the elements of Motor Vehicle law – when cyclists are hit by cars, trucks or buses. The plaintiff – or victim – must prove wrongful conduct on the part of the defendant driver that hit and hurt them. Most often, the defendant will be either a driver of a vehicle which caused an accident, or the owner of the defendant vehicle, or both. Wrongful conduct can include such allegations as failing to maintain and service their vehicle, failing to follow the rules of the road, failing to operate the vehicle in a reasonable manner, using an smart phone, texting and driving, drinking and driving, distracted driving, etc. The wrongful conduct of the defendant driver will be determined by looking at whether the defendant owed a duty of care to the victim in the circumstances, and if so, whether there has been a breach of this duty of care.
If you or a loved one suffered life changing injuries in the cycling accident, you will no doubt want to know who is legally responsible for both the accident and your injuries.
From a criminal perspective, drivers can be charged for causing a bicycle accident. It does serve the interest of justice for negligent drivers who injure cyclists to face criminal charges as a result of their conduct, criminal charges do little to help cyclists who are left with lost wages and life-long pain after a bicycle accident. In order to get compensated financially for your or your family’s losses, you must hire a St. Catharines bicycle accident lawyer to initiate legal proceedings against the driver’s insurance company for compensation.
Most bicycle accident lawsuits in St. Catharines include a legal claim for negligence. Negligence is defined as the failure to exercise the care that a reasonably prudent person would exercise in the circumstances. If you (through your lawyers) can establish that a driver’s negligence caused your injuries and other losses, you can secure compensation – in which case the driver’s insurance company will pay you an appropriate amount of money to help compensate you for your financial and personal harms you have suffered. In short, a victim in Ontario must prove, through their lawyers, actual harm or injury as caused by the defendant driver. It is not enough to prove that the defendant committed a wrongful act; the wrongful act must be a cause of injury to the victim. We must prove on your behalf that you suffered a permanent serious impairment of an important physical mental or psychological function.
The compensation that you are entitled to depends on the extent of your injuries. Statistics in Canada have shown that very common bicycle accident injuries were those to wrists, arms and shoulders, followed by serious head trauma then to the lower limbs – most particularly the knee. More specifically, inter-cranial injuries were the most common injury seen in emergency departments throughout 2015, followed by fractures of the shoulder/upper arm. Overall, when considering the overall value of a legal claim, relating to both economic and non-economic damages, your overall outcome depends on a series or factors such as:
The amount is determinant on the extent of your injuries. There is no fixed standard in Ontario for deciding on the value of non-economic damages, however there is a cap on pain and suffering in Canada of approximately $365,000.00.
In our practice we have seen many bicycle accidents happen due to:
There is no doubt that bicycling accidents take a heavy toll on human life. People who walk and cycle on a regular basis – even adults or kids – face a much higher risk of traffic injuries or fatal accidents. Pedestrians and cyclists are more likely to be killed or injured than car and public transit users, in proportion to the number of pedestrians and cyclists on the road. If you or a loved one has suffered serious injuries in a St. Catharines bicycle accident, you will need the services of a St. Catharines bicycle injury lawyer to help formulate a clear, concise, and sensible presentation of your complex cinical requirements and future medical needs in relation to your catastrophic injury or if you suffer from chronic health care needs due to your injuries. With offices in both Hamilton and St. Catharines, our bicycle accident lawyers are able to represent cyclists, pedestrians, and other crash victims throughout the golden horseshoe.
Call us today at 905-333-8888 or fill in a contact form. One of our will endeavor to get to you within 24 hours.
I was a dental hygienist that suffers from really bad scoliosis. My insurance company ignored my doc & cut my benefits off & told me I could do “something”. Matt got me CPP Disability and and LTD settlement – I don’t know what I would have done without him.
My daughter was killed by a drunk driver and it forever changed all of our lives. It seemed that for two years time stopped. This was no an easy journey. Matt let me sit in on the discovery of the driver and boy, he never let up. In the end, our grand-daughter was taken care of and we were compensated for our loss – which we then donated to a cause we believed in.
I call Matt my knight in shining armour. After I was struck by a car while cycling and permanently crippled, he fielded all communications with my especially difficult and downright nasty insurance adjuster. Every step of my care was a battle and I did not have the strength to fight alone.
I lost my leg in a terrible motorcycle accident and Matt help me recover compensation I need because I could not work and the cost of prosthetics and rehab are out of this world. I don’t know what I would have done without him.
My brother ended up paralyzed after a car accident and Lalande did SO MUCH to help get things straight from him getting out of the hospital to all his care for life. We are so grateful for Matt & Heather. I don’t know how my family could have done this without them.
