Bike Safety & What To Do If Hit

With many Las Vegas residents working from home or being out of work, we have seen an increase in people getting outdoors to enjoy some fresh air. Often, this includes walking the dogs or riding bikes around the neighborhood. While there are nowhere near as many cars on the roads during this time, with multiple bikes joining the road warrior ranks, the chances of being hit by a vehicle while you are riding is increased. It is always important to practice bike safety, and to know what to do if you are hit.

Contact Emergency Services

The very first thing you should do when you have been hit is to contact emergency services. Request an officer to come to the scene in order to file an accident report and to mediate any possible conflicts with others who were involved. Also request medical attention immediately. Denying medical assistance on scene can potentially be used against you later in your case, and your health and safety should always take priority.

Tell Your Story

When the authorities arrive, make a complete report of what happened prior to, during, and after the accident. However, ensure that they are the only ones you talk to. Casual chatter with the others involved, or those who witnessed the accident, can cause your words to be taken out of context and can hurt your case in the long run. Talk to the officers and the medical professionals so you can be taken care of appropriately. Be sure to give the officers your full name, address, and other contact details, and request a copy of the official accident report as well.

Survey & Photograph the Scene

If you are injured, this may be hard to do, but you can ask someone else at the scene to look everything over, as well as take photographs of everything and everyone involved in the accident. This includes the positioning of vehicle and bicycle before they are moved, the license plate of the car involved, the state of the vehicle and the bicycle after the collision, and more. Taking photos of everything while on the scene can help progress your case should you choose to file one.

Get Witness Information

Immediately after giving your report to the authorities, or while you are waiting for them to arrive, either you or someone with you should talk to the witnesses of the accident. Without getting into details of your side of the story, gather their unbiased accounts, as well as contact information. This could be extremely useful later on if the others involved in the accident give differing opinions on how it happened.

Verify Info & Gather Report

Once you have given your statement, passed along the witness information, and received medical treatment on scene, ask the officer if you can review the report. Ensure that everything they have made a note of is correct, and that they have all your current contact information should there be any follow up needed. Also ask if it is possible to obtain a copy of the accident report. This official report will be extremely useful should you decide to file a case against the driver, as it proves your claims, as well as the fact that authorities were involved and medical treatment was given.

Get an Attorney

Last, but certainly not least, you should contact an attorney should you decide to file a case. The attorney will have more working knowledge of the current bicycle and vehicle accident laws, and will know what to do with the information that you have gathered. If you have been involved in a bicycle accident and need an attorney to represent you, contact our experts today.