​Lakeland Motorcycle Accident Lawyers

Motorcycle accidents often leave victims with substantial injuries and a long road to recovery. In a perfect world, those motorcycle accident victims would quickly receive the compensation they deserve for their injuries to pay their bills and move forward with their lives. Unfortunately, motorcycle accident victims often find themselves fighting with insurance companies that suffer a high degree of intrinsic bias against them. Did you suffer injuries in a motorcycle accident in Lakeland? A Lakeland motorcycle accident lawyer can help you learn more about your rights and how you can best pursue compensation. Contact Dolman Law Group Accident Injury Lawyers, PA to discuss your right to compensation.

Dolman Law Group Accident Injury Lawyers, PA: The Help You Need for Your Lakeland Motorcycle Accident Claim

At Dolman Law Group Accident Injury Lawyers, PA, we believe in offering supportive, personalized legal support to our clients. We know how frustrating it can feel to struggle to get in touch with a lawyer or to fight to get your claim noticed, and we aim to help our clients reduce and eliminate that frustration as much as possible. Our story starts when, as a young man, founding partner Matthew Dolman saw his father deal with the impact of a serious Lakeland car accident and a Lakeland personal injury law firm that would not work with him or provide him with that support. Now, we have a firm dedicated to removing those challenges for our clients, ensuring that they get the full range of support they deserve.

We have a strong history of results.

Look at our past claims and the results we have helped our clients obtain.

• $1.4 million after a motorcycle accident resulted in multiple serious injuries
• $1 million when a motorcycle accident resulted in a TBI
• $750,000 when a motorcycle accident resulted in a subdural hematoma and a rotator cuff injury
• $415,000 was awarded when a motorcycle accident resulted in the need for a cervical fusion.

While past results cannot guarantee the results of your injury claim, we work with our clients to increase the odds that they will recover the full compensation they deserve.

We provide a highly personalized experience.

At Dolman Law Group Accident Injury Lawyers, PA, when we take on Lakeland motorcycle accident victims as clients, we focus on providing a highly personalized experience that our clients can count on. You need to know that you will get an answer when you call your lawyer. We ensure our clients receive the full support they need at each stage of their claims.

We have the resources needed to take on big-name insurance companies as we fight for you.

Dealing with big-name insurance providers following a motorcycle accident in Lakeland can prove incredibly frustrating. Have you fought State Farm, Geico, or Allstate as you deal with your claim? Has a Progressive insurance agent stonewalled you, making you feel you might never get the full compensation you deserve? At Dolman Law Group Accident Injury Lawyers, PA, we have the resources you may need to even the scales and make fighting against those insurance providers easier. If you suffered injuries in a Lakeland motorcycle accident, Dolman Law Group Accident Injury Lawyers, PA aims to make it as easy as possible for you to get in touch with us. Not only do we have offices on both Florida coasts, which means you can get in to see us easily, we offer virtual consultations for clients who cannot come into the office for any reason. Ready to get started? Contact Dolman Law Group Accident Injury Lawyers, PA to learn more about your rights after a Lakeland motorcycle accident.

The Compensation You Can Claim After a Lakeland Motorcycle Accident

A Lakeland motorcycle accident can mean high bills, a long road to recovery, and serious hits to your income. Just how much compensation can you claim for those injuries? At Dolman Law Group Accident Injury Lawyers, PA, we cannot guarantee the compensation you will recover as part of your motorcycle accident claim. We can, however, help you break down the financial elements of the losses you may have faced, which can provide you with a better look at the compensation you may deserve for your injuries. We also help our clients evaluate the many elements that may contribute to how much compensation they can recover as part of a motorcycle accident claim.

• Who caused your accident, and what insurance policy does the liable party carry? That insurance policy can substantially affect the compensation you may have the right to recover for your injuries.
• What injuries did you sustain in your motorcycle accident? A motorcycle accident victim with severe injuries and, therefore, multiple long-term limitations related to the accident may have the right to recover more compensation than a victim who sustained more minor injuries.
• Do you have a lawyer on your side? At Dolman Law Group Accident Injury Lawyers, PA, working with a motorcycle accident attorney often makes it much easier for our clients to recover the compensation they deserve for their injuries.

While we cannot guarantee the compensation you will recover, we can help you take a deeper look at the losses you sustained and the compensation you may deserve.

Evaluating Your Medical Costs

Many motorcycle accident victims do not realize that Florida's PIP insurance requirement does not include motorcycles. As a result, you may need to pursue compensation for the full value of your medical bills following a Florida motorcycle accident. Did you pursue treatment at Lakeland Regional Health Medical Center, or did you have to leave the Lakeland area to get treatment for the injuries caused by your motorcycle accident? In either case, you may have severe injuries requiring long-term care following your Lakeland motorcycle accident. Talk to your attorney at Dolman Law Group Accident Injury Lawyers, PA about all the medical expenses you faced after your motorcycle accident, from the cost of emergency medical care right after the accident to the long-term cost of physical or occupational therapy. In addition, you may want to make sure that your claim includes compensation for any future anticipated medical bills associated with the accident.

Including Wages Lost

In many cases, a motorcycle accident can significantly affect your overall income. You may discover that your injuries prevent you from safely returning to work, or you may find out that your employer does not want you to return to work until you have a chance to recover from your accident and injuries. In either case, you will not have your usual funds coming in after your motorcycle accident. Talk to your lawyer about all the time you missed at work due to your Lakeland motorcycle accident and the compensation you likely deserve. Your lawyer may ask about the time you missed due to follow-up appointments after your accident, the additional time you may have lost due to your inability to work a full-time schedule, and the wages you lost after your accident.

Calculating Pain and Suffering

Your motorcycle accident likely caused several financial losses. However, many motorcycle accident victims find that non-financial losses pose even more problems than monetary ones. You may end up losing the ability to participate in many of the activities you enjoyed before your accident, or you may have difficulty dealing with the lost independence that may accompany severe injuries. Furthermore, your motorcycle accident injuries can change your relationship with many friends and loved ones, whether you cannot return to the hobbies you shared with those friends before your accident or rely on your spouse more heavily than you did prior to the accident. Talk to your lawyer about those impacts and how to include them in your injury claim.

What You Need to Know About Lakeland Motorcycle Accidents

More than 8,600 motorcycle crashes occur across Florida every year. Around 620 of those accidents result in fatalities. Florida may have a higher rate of fatalities than other states due to Florida's lack of helmet laws for adult drivers. If you suffer injuries in a Lakeland motorcycle accident, you may have up to four years after the accident to file an injury claim. However, you may want to move forward with your injury claim as soon as possible to maximize the odds that you will recover the compensation you deserve. Lakeland motorcycle accidents may occur because of:

• Dangerous intersections and roads can increase the risk of a Lakeland motorcycle accident. For example, U.S. 98 may pose a higher level of danger to many riders due to the greater traffic that travels over it daily.
• Blind spot accidents or failure to look for motorcycles can pose a substantial danger to motorcycle riders.
• Distracted driving can cause substantial injuries at the best of times. For motorcycle riders, distracted driving can prove even more dangerous.
• Dangerous weather conditions, including the heavy storms that sometimes strike the Lakeland area, can pose a significant danger to motorcycle riders.

Because they offer so little protection to their riders, motorcycle accidents may result in more severe accidents than other types of car crashes. Motorcycle accident victims may suffer brain injury, back and neck injuries, multiple broken bones, or severe road rash.

Fighting the Insurance Company After a Lakeland Motorcycle Accident

Filing an injury claim after a Lakeland motorcycle accident can prove incredibly frustrating. While you may know that you deserve compensation for your injuries, the insurance company may not offer it as readily as you might hope. You may struggle to get the insurance company to acknowledge the full extent of your injuries and the damages you sustained because of your accident. Insurance companies may try to pressure you to accept some of the responsibility for the accident or try to convince you to accept a settlement offer that does not contain the full damages you suffered in the accident. You may find yourself fighting to prove the full extent of your injuries. At Dolman Law Group Accident Injury Lawyers, PA, we have the resources to contend with Lakeland car insurance companies, from Nationwide to USAA. We help our clients fight to have their injuries recognized to recover the compensation they deserve.

Your Next Steps After a Lakeland Motorcycle Accident

You suffered injuries in a Lakeland motorcycle accident. Now what? Even before leaving the hospital, you may need to take essential steps to help protect yourself and your right to compensation.

• Contact Dolman Law Group Accident Injury Lawyers, PA to discuss your right to compensation and better understand how to manage your claim.
• Review your motorcycle accident claim report with us. We can ensure that it accurately reflects exactly where and when your accident occurred since that information may make your claim progress more smoothly.
• Keep documentation of your medical bills for the accident. Ensure you include copay, and deductible amounts to show everything you have spent on medical care easily.
• Follow your care provider's instructions. You may need to show that you have done your part to recover as fully as possible from your injuries.
• Keep a journal documenting your recovery, including the mental and emotional challenges you may have faced along the way.

At Dolman Law Group Accident Injury Lawyers, PA, we help our clients at each stage of the claim process, including helping them deal with the challenges the insurance company may throw their way.

Lakeland Motorcycle Accident FAQ

You may have more questions than answers if you suffered devastating injuries in a motorcycle accident in Lakeland. We'll try to answer a few of them here. Contact a Lakeland motorcycle accident attorney at Dolman Law Group Accident Injury Lawyers, PA to discuss your right to compensation and the steps you may need to take next to secure that compensation.

If I did not have on a helmet at the time of my Lakeland motorcycle accident, and suffered a traumatic brain injury, can I still pursue compensation?

According to Florida law, motorcycle riders do not necessarily have to wear helmets when they take to the road. Riders over 21 with adequate coverage under a medical insurance policy can go without a helmet. Legally, riders under 21 or riders who cannot show proof of health insurance should always wear a motorcycle helmet. Wearing a helmet, however, can substantially decrease your risk of suffering injuries to the head and neck in a motorcycle accident. Helmet use dramatically decreases the rate of traumatic brain injury in motorcycle accident victims. Furthermore, wearing a helmet may decrease the risk of a traffic fatality in a motorcycle accident. When you ride your motorcycle, you should always wear a helmet. Lack of helmet use, however, does not change your right to file an injury claim following a Lakeland motorcycle accident. You can pursue compensation against the driver or other entity that caused your accident regardless of whether you had a helmet on at the time of the incident. However, the insurance company may argue that your decision not to wear a helmet contributed to your injuries. Working with a lawyer may help you better establish the full compensation you deserve for injuries sustained in a motorcycle accident.

Do motorcycle riders in Florida have PIP coverage?

Unlike drivers of passenger vehicles, motorcycle riders in Florida do not have to carry PIP coverage. Personal injury protection coverage can provide a great deal of assistance following any auto accident; however, Florida insurance providers may not offer PIP coverage to motorcycle riders in the area. As a result, you may have the right to pursue compensation for the full damages you sustained in the accident as part of your Florida motorcycle accident claim.

If I file a motorcycle accident claim in Lakeland, does the party that caused my accident have to pay for my medical bills?

A motorcycle accident claim helps provide much-needed compensation for many of the financial challenges that may result from your motorcycle accident. However, that does not mean that a motorcycle accident claim will require the liable party to pay your medical bills directly. Instead, as the injured party, you will need to work with your care providers to make payment arrangements. Most motorcycle accident victims start by using their medical insurance coverage to cover the initial cost of treatment. Medical insurance can help stand in the gap and provide much-needed financial assistance with many medical bills, which may otherwise seem to increase substantially. Next, you can use the funds from a motorcycle accident claim to cover the cost of medical treatment for your injuries. However, you may need to work with your care providers and let them know that you intend to pay once the funds from your claim arrive. Your lawyer can issue a letter of intent that will establish when you plan to pay your medical bills and that you need to wait for those much-needed funds to come in before you can cover the cost of your medical treatment. A lawyer can also provide you with further insights that make it easier for you to get the medical treatment you need immediately.

What should I do if the insurance company that covers the driver that caused my Lakeland motorcycle accident offers me a settlement?

In some cases, the insurance company that covers the liable driver may try to get ahead of the claim. You may even get a settlement offer for your motorcycle accident before leaving the hospital. That settlement offer might, on the surface, serve as the answer to your financial problems and challenges after the accident. After all, with a settlement in hand, you can cover the cost of the bills that may continue to add up after your accident and the cost of much-needed medical treatment. That settlement offer, however, may not reflect the full extent of the damages you suffered in the accident and, as a result, may miss much of the compensation you deserve for your injuries. You may end up without the funds you need to cover the cost of medical treatment for your injuries or the funds you need to help rebuild your life after the accident. Instead of accepting a settlement offer that does not reflect your needs, talk to your lawyer about the offer. A lawyer can help go over the insurance policy's terms and evaluate the losses you have faced to come to a more reasonable idea of the compensation you should expect. Then, a lawyer can issue a counter-offer that includes a demand for the full compensation you should reasonably expect, based on the insurance policy's terms and the damages you sustained because of the accident.

The insurance company insists that I caused the motorcycle accident. What should I do?

Many insurance companies, unfortunately, have an intrinsic bias against motorcycle riders. They may insist that, in an accident involving a motorcycle rider and the driver of a passenger vehicle, the motorcycle rider must have committed some error that led to the accident. The insurance company may even take the word of the other driver over your word, based entirely on that driver's vehicle of choice. If you struggle to get the insurance company to acknowledge liability for your motorcycle accident, start by talking to a lawyer. Your lawyer can help go over the accident and the conditions that led to it and give you a better, more effective look at all the factors that likely led to the accident and what you may need to do to prove that the other driver did cause the accident.

Witness Accounts

Often, witness accounts can prove incredibly valuable to your motorcycle accident claim. Witnesses may have a complete view of all the factors that may have contributed to the accident and provide a better look at what likely led to the accident. Furthermore, witnesses may provide an unbiased report of what led to the accident, which may help you more clearly establish the other driver's liability.

Video Footage

If any video footage exists of the accident scene, that video footage can provide more information about exactly what led to your Lakeland motorcycle accident. Traffic cameras, security cameras, or dash cams can all provide a look at how the accident occurred. In many cases, they can serve as evidence of what led to the accident, so you can more easily establish liability.

Expert Recreation

In some cases, you may struggle to clearly establish liability for your Lakeland motorcycle accident, and you may need additional help clearly laying out the full causes of the accident. An expert recreation of the accident scene can prove essential in indicating exactly what led to the accident. Experts can look over the scene of the accident, the damage to the two vehicles, and any accounts of the accident to arrive at a more comprehensive view of the accident scene, which may help you establish that the other driver caused your accident.

How long does it take to file a motorcycle accident claim in Lakeland?

As the victim of a Lakeland motorcycle accident, you may hope that your motorcycle accident claim will settle quickly. You have medical bills adding up and a host of complications that can increase your expenses during your recovery. Unfortunately, you cannot expect a motorcycle accident claim in Lakeland to settle quickly. In many cases, it can take months to receive the settlement you deserve for your injuries, despite the fact that you have done everything in your power to move smoothly through the claim process.

Your Recovery

You may assume that the claim can proceed without you while you recover from your injuries. However, your medical costs and your recovery serve as an essential part of your Lakeland motorcycle accident claim. You need your motorcycle accident claim to include the full cost of recovery from your injuries. Unfortunately, if you have not fully recovered from your injuries, you may not know what those medical costs will ultimately look like. You may have complications on your road to recovery. Some procedures may prove more extensive than anticipated. You may spend longer in therapy than your doctor initially thought. As a result, you may have higher medical bills than you calculated at the beginning of your claim. If you file your injury claim before you have reached that point in your recovery, you may exclude some of those costs from your claim, which may decrease the compensation you can ultimately recover and leave you without the funds you need to pay your medical bills.

The Investigation

Following your accident, your lawyer and the insurance company that covers the liable driver will both need time to investigate your accident and the challenges you faced on your road to recovery. That investigation can prove long and complicated, depending on whether multiple elements may have contributed to your motorcycle accident. The insurance company that covers the liable driver may also want to look into your recovery: whether you have followed your care provider's instructions, what you can still do despite your injuries, and how your injuries have impacted your ability to work, for example. That investigation process can take more time than anticipated.

Negotiation

Often, the negotiation over a motorcycle accident settlement can take much longer than anticipated. You may find yourself fighting with the insurance company to have the full extent of your injuries acknowledged, or you may end up struggling to clearly lay out the compensation you really deserve for your medical costs and other losses related to your claim. The negotiation process can extend for weeks or months, depending on how hard the insurance company fights to minimize the compensation you can recover.

I did not see a doctor immediately after my Lakeland motorcycle accident, since I thought I had emerged without serious injuries. Later, I discovered very serious injuries. Can I file a claim?

You have the right to file a claim any time you suffer injuries in a motorcycle accident, even if you did not necessarily seek medical attention immediately after the accident. However, keep in mind that failing to seek medical attention immediately may make your claim more complicated. You may have to negotiate harder to get the compensation you deserve, and you may undergo a longer investigation period, since the liable party may try to establish that your injuries occurred during a different incident. If you do discover serious injuries well after a motorcycle accident, talk to a lawyer as soon as you realize the extent of those injuries. A lawyer can help you protect your right to compensation as you decide what to do next.

Will I have to go to court to settle a Lakeland motorcycle accident claim?

Most of the time, insurance companies do not want to have to go to court to settle any type of claim, including a motorcycle accident claim. Going to court means more legal expenses and a greater overall struggle to reach a reasonable resolution, and ultimately, the insurance company will likely not avoid paying out the settlement you deserve. However, some motorcycle accident claims do end up in court. By working with a motorcycle accident lawyer in Lakeland, you can handle the challenge of taking your claim to court more effectively, including having someone to represent you, your interests, and your claim.

Contact a Lakeland Motorcycle Accident Lawyer Today

When you sustain serious injuries in a Lakeland motorcycle accident, do not try to handle your claim on your own. You need a motorcycle accident lawyer on your side who can help you fight for the compensation you deserve. Contact Dolman Law Group Accident Injury Lawyers, PA today at (833) 552-7274 (833-55-CRASH) to learn more about how to move forward with a motorcycle accident claim.