Emerging Trends in Motorcycle Accident Litigation in Texas - Laredo Attorneys

Motorcyclists often face unfair assumptions after accidents. Many drivers perceive riders as risk-takers, and a defense team may exploit this bias to shift blame to the motorcyclist. However, that perception simply doesn’t match reality. In Laredo, Texas, motorcycle crashes are increasingly caused by errors in passenger vehicle driver behavior, not rider behavior. And the consequences can be severe. In 2023, nearly 600 Texas motorcyclists were killed. This number represents a rise from previous years, despite an overall decrease in traffic fatalities.

When the stakes are so high, a chosen attorney must understand how litigation around motorcycle accidents is evolving and could affect your legal strategy. The expert Laredo lawyers at Carabin Shaw have over three decades of experience representing wrongfully injured motorcyclists and will fight hard on your behalf. Call 800-862-1260 to schedule your free consultation as soon as possible following an accident to ensure you get the damages you deserve.

Experienced lawyers bring their knowledge of legal precedent, or past decisions in and out of court. For motorcycle accidents, a few notable patterns are increasingly affecting case outcomes.

Video technology plays a major role in modern claims. Dash cams, business surveillance cameras, and even helmet cameras help your lawyer show exactly what happened in a crash. These tools can:

• Show real-time rider behavior and traffic conditions
• Help establish fault with visual evidence
• Counter inaccurate witness statements or resolve conflicting accounts

In a personal injury or wrongful death case, a motorcycle crash attorney uses video evidence to reduce uncertainty and correct misconceptions about the motorcyclist’s fault.

Driver error remains the most common cause of motorcycle crashes in South Texas. In the most typical collision, where a motorcyclist’s right of way is violated in an intersection, a driver either fails to register the motorcycle or doesn’t perceive how quickly it’s moving.

Knowing this, a motorcycle injury lawyer in Laredo might go about proving fault by:

• Analyzing intersection design and sight lines
• Reviewing traffic camera footage
• Bringing in an expert witness to explain perception errors

As an injured motorcyclist, the knee-jerk assumption that you’ve caused the accident can add insult to injury. You deserve an unbiased legal team that’s aware of the dangers motorcyclists face through no fault of their own.

Motorcycle riders experience injury eight times more often than drivers in other vehicles, and these injuries tend to be serious. That means the personal and emotional costs of motorcycle accidents are frequently staggering.

Today’s lawsuits place greater emphasis on noneconomic damages, which include:

• Chronic pain and permanent disability
• PTSD and emotional trauma
• Loss of enjoyment of life
• Grief, depression, or family strain in wrongful death cases

To illustrate these damages, your Texas motorcycle accident lawyer may rely on therapy records, personal narratives from loved ones, and personal effects (such as journals or artwork) that depict life before and after the crash. All of this helps communicate just how much was lost.

Motorcycle accidents in Texas are subject to the modified comparative fault system. In other words, drivers can share fault for an accident, but a rider can’t recover damages if they’re more than half at fault. This rule makes it especially crucial to challenge inaccurate assumptions about motorcyclist behavior.

For instance, your failure to wear a helmet could contribute to a narrative of reckless pre-accident conduct, even though riders 21 and older aren’t usually required to wear one. Therefore, this fact alone shouldn’t be treated as an admission of guilt. And even if you do share some responsibility, the Laredo TX motorcycle accident attorneys at Carabin Shaw ensure you receive the partial compensation that you deserve.

Call Carabin Shaw toll-free at 800-862-1260, where a representative will be available to support you 24/7 in either Spanish or English. After the dangers you’ve faced in your motorcycle accident, you don’t need to take on more financial risk with us: our attorneys offer our services on a contingency-fee basis. That means you owe us no money unless your case is won.

For additional reassurance, please read our client reviews. But there’s also no reason to delay scheduling your completely free consultation—reach out today.

For more information:

• NCBI/
• Science Direct
• TX DoT