A motorcycle accident creates instant chaos and confusion. You know you need help, and you know you have rights under New York law. A Queens motorcycle accident lawyer protects those rights and fights the unfair biases riders often face from insurance companies.
Your focus should be on healing from your injuries. Let an experienced attorney handle the legal complexities and fight for the fair outcome you need. For a clear path forward, call the Law Offices of Jason B. Kessler at (914) 220-1088 today.
Table of Contents
- Why Choose Us for Your Queens Motorcycle Accident Case
- How a Queens Motorcycle Crash Attorney Helps You
- Potential Compensation in a Queens Motorcycle Wreck
- Common Causes of Motorcycle Crashes in Queens
- FAQ for Queens Motorcycle Accident Lawyer
- Your Fight Is Our Fight
Why Choose Us for Your Queens Motorcycle Accident Case
Selecting the right legal team makes a significant difference in the outcome of your claim. The attorney you choose is your partner and advocate through a challenging time. You need a firm that knows both the law and Queens.
We Know Queens Roads and Riders
We know the unique dangers riders face on the borough's busiest and most complex roads. We’ve handled cases involving crashes on the Grand Central Parkway, the Long Island Expressway, and the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway.
We know the accident hotspots, from the stop-and-go traffic on Queens Boulevard to the high speeds on the Whitestone Expressway.
Our local knowledge of neighborhoods like Rego Park, Elmhurst, Jackson Heights, and Corona gives us an edge when investigating your crash and building your case.
We Fight Biases Against Motorcyclists
Insurance adjusters often try to paint motorcyclists as reckless thrill-seekers. They use this unfair stereotype to reduce the value of a claim or deny it altogether. We know the truth, and don't let them get away with these tactics.
Our Queens motorcycle accident lawyers challenge these biases head-on. We use police reports, witness statements, and accident reconstruction data to prove what really happened. We present you as a person, not a stereotype, who was wrongfully injured by another's negligence.
A Direct Line to Your Attorney
You get personalized attention and direct communication with the attorney handling your case. We believe you deserve to be kept informed and have your questions answered promptly. This dedicated approach gives you peace of mind and confidence in your legal representation.
The Law Offices of Jason B. Kessler provides the local, dedicated, and aggressive representation you need. Call us now at (914) 220-1088 to discuss your case for free.
How a Queens Motorcycle Crash Attorney Helps You
You have enough to deal with after a wreck. Your lawyer takes the legal burdens off your shoulders, managing every aspect of your claim so you can focus on getting better.
Handling All Communication with Insurance Companies
The other driver's insurance adjuster will probably contact you shortly after your accident. Their job is to protect their company's profits by paying as little as possible. They may ask for a recorded statement or try to get you to accept a quick, lowball offer.
Your Queens motorcycle injury lawyer handles all of these communications for you. We prevent you from saying something that could be used against you later. We make sure the insurance company has the information it needs without compromising your rights.
Investigating Your Crash
A successful motorcycle accident claim is built on strong evidence. While you recover, your legal team gets to work immediately. We conduct a thorough investigation into the circumstances of your Queens crash.
Our investigation includes a range of activities to build a powerful case. We gather and analyze all available evidence to establish who was at fault for your injuries.
- Official Reports: We obtain and review the official police accident report for details, witness information, and any citations issued at the scene.
- Scene Evidence: We may visit the crash location in Queens to photograph road conditions, traffic signals, and any other relevant factors.
- Witness Interviews: We contact and interview anyone who saw the accident to get their account of the events.
- Video Footage: We search for and secure surveillance footage from nearby businesses, traffic cameras, or even doorbell cameras that may have captured the crash.
Calculating the Full Value of Your Claim
It's impossible to know the true value of your claim in the days following a crash. The costs of your injuries go far beyond the first emergency room bill. You may need ongoing physical therapy, future surgeries, or prescription medications.
Your Queens motorcycle accident lawyer works with medical and financial professionals to calculate the total extent of your losses. We account for all current and future medical expenses, lost income from being unable to work, and the impact on your future earning capacity.
We also assess your non-economic damages, like pain and suffering, to arrive at a complete and fair valuation of your claim.
Potential Compensation in a Queens Motorcycle Wreck
A successful legal claim helps you recover compensation for the financial and personal losses you've suffered. This compensation, also known as damages, is divided into two main categories. A knowledgeable Queens motorcycle wreck lawyer pursues all available damages on your behalf.
Economic Damages: Covering Your Financial Losses
Economic damages are the measurable financial costs resulting from your accident and injuries. These tangible expenses have a clear dollar value attached to them. The goal is to make you financially whole again. Your attorney compiles all bills, receipts, and wage statements to prove these losses.
Common examples of economic damages include:
- Medical Bills: This covers all your current and future medical care, including emergency services, hospital stays, surgery, and medications.
- Rehabilitation Costs: You can seek compensation for future treatments like physical and occupational therapy to help you recover.
- Lost Wages: This includes the paychecks you missed while you were out of work healing from your injuries.
- Future Lost Income: Your attorney calculates the impact on your long-term earning capacity if your injuries prevent you from returning to your previous job.
- Property Damage: This covers the cost to repair or replace your damaged motorcycle and any other personal property, like your helmet or riding gear.
Non-Economic Damages: The Human Cost
Non-economic damages compensate you for the intangible, personal losses that don't have a specific price tag. These damages acknowledge the impact the accident has had on your quality of life.
While harder to calculate, these damages are a just and necessary part of your compensation. They address the very real human cost of a serious motorcycle crash. An experienced motorcycle accident attorney knows how to build a case demonstrating these harms' extent.
These losses include:
- Pain and Suffering: This compensates you for the physical pain and emotional distress you have experienced due to your injuries.
- Loss of Enjoyment of Life: You may seek compensation if your injuries prevent you from participating in hobbies and activities you once enjoyed.
- Permanent Scarring or Disfigurement: This accounts for the long-term physical reminders of the accident.
Common Causes of Motorcycle Crashes in Queens
Most motorcycle accidents aren’t accidents at all; they result from another person's carelessness. Drivers of cars and trucks often fail to share the road safely with motorcyclists.
Distracted Driving
A distracted driver is a threat to everyone on the road, but especially to motorcyclists. When someone behind the wheel is texting, adjusting their radio, or eating, their focus isn’t on driving. This brief moment of inattention is all it takes for them to overlook a motorcycle.
In the dense traffic of Queens, these distractions are even more dangerous. A driver looking at their GPS instead of the road might not see you slowing down. Distractions lead to devastating rear-end collisions, unsafe lane changes on highways like the LIE, and other preventable accidents.
Aggressive and Reckless Driving
Some drivers treat Queens' roadways like their personal racetrack. Speeding, tailgating, and weaving in and out of traffic dramatically increase the chances of a serious collision.
These aggressive behaviors leave no room for error, and motorcyclists often pay the price for this recklessness. Actions like running red lights at busy intersections or ignoring stop signs in neighborhoods like Astoria and Long Island City put riders in impossible situations.
Driving While Impaired
A person who drives under the influence of alcohol or drugs has no place on the road. Impairment slows reaction times, blurs vision, and severely affects judgment. For a motorcyclist sharing the road with an impaired driver, the consequences are often catastrophic.
An intoxicated driver might not process a motorcycle’s presence until it's too late to avoid a crash. They’re more likely to drift out of their lane or misjudge distances, turning their vehicle into an uncontrollable weapon. We fight to hold these drivers fully accountable for the harm they cause.
Failure To Yield the Right-of-Way
One of the most common causes of motorcycle accidents involves a driver failing to yield. This frequently occurs when a car makes a left turn at an intersection, cutting directly into the path of an oncoming motorcycle.
Negligent drivers often claim they "didn't see" the rider, but that isn’t an excuse for causing a collision. This dangerous failure also happens when drivers pull out of driveways, side streets, or parking lots, like those near the Queens Center Mall, without looking carefully.
FAQ for Queens Motorcycle Accident Lawyer
What Should I Do After a Motorcycle Accident in Queens?
Follow all instructions from your doctors and attend every follow-up appointment. Not only is this beneficial to your physical recovery, insurers may point to missed appointments as a way to “prove” your injuries aren’t very severe.
Gather any paperwork you have from the crash, including the police report number and the other driver's information. Take pictures of your injuries as they heal and of the damage to your motorcycle and riding gear.
Don’t give a recorded statement to the other driver's insurance company before contacting a Queens motorcycle accident lawyer.
How Is Fault Determined in a New York Motorcycle Accident?
Evidence like police reports, witness testimony, video footage, and traffic laws play a role in determining fault. New York follows a comparative negligence rule. This means that fault can be shared between the parties involved in an accident.
Your lawyer conducts an investigation to determine each person’srole in the accident.
How Long Do I Have To File a Motorcycle Accident Claim in New York?
In New York, you generally have three years from the accident to file a personal injury lawsuit. This is known as the statute of limitations. There are some exceptions, and the deadline might be much shorter if a government entity is involved.
Waiting too long to take action risks losing your right to seek compensation forever, so speak with an attorney promptly.
What if the Other Driver Blames Me for the Crash?
Don’t panic if the other driver blames you. It's a common tactic used to avoid responsibility. Your motorcycle accident lawyer will build a case based on evidence, not the other driver's claims. We’ll use the facts to show what really happened and protect you from false accusations.
Why Do I Need a Queens Motorcycle Accident Lawyer for My Claim?
You need a Queens motorcycle accident lawyer because insurance companies aren’t on your side and look for any reason to pay as little as possible. An experienced lawyer levels the playing field, protects your rights, and fights unfair biases against riders.
A skilled legal advocate maximizes your chances of receiving fair compensation for injuries and losses.
Your Fight Is Our Fight
You don't have to navigate the complex road to recovery alone. You can hold the negligent party accountable and secure the resources you need for your future.
At the Law Offices of Jason B. Kessler, we dedicate our full attention and resources to your case. For a free, no-obligation consultation, call (914) 220-1088.