Kansas City, Missouri and Kansas Biker/Motorcycle Personal Injury Accident Lawyers Prepare For Battle. Tis the Season ...

Motorcycle weather has hit Kansas City and all of Missouri and Kansas, and bikers, motorcyclists, cycle riders, whatever you choose to call them, are getting their motors running and heading out on the highway, looking for adventure and whatever comes their way.

Sometimes that adventure includes a few bumps in the road. The latest NHTSA studies show that more than one hundred thousand motorcyclists crashed in 2006, with almost an equal number of injuries and nearly 5,000 fatalities. This was the highest death rate since 1981.

Kansas City Accident Injury Attorneys's Kansas City based motorcycle personal injury lawyers know that biker injuries are often very serious, with sometimes catastrophic injuries and damages as well as fatalities. They can involve some complicated insurance issues, but determining fault aka negligence aka liability is usually fairly clear and these cases can be settled fairly quickly. In motorcycle accident injury cases, like the majority of the auto, truck and other vehicle personal injury cases we handle, the liability is on our side and the motorcyclist's injuries and damages in the injury claim is where we are able to focus our time, energy and expertise to fully document and prepare the accident case in an effort to maximize compensation and achieve the fairest outcome in the quickest amount of time. The best personal injury lawyers know that the more airtight the case they have worked up, the better the settlement, meaning both higher monetary compensation and a much faster settlement. A fully documented motorcycle injury case backed by an experienced personal injury attorney and law firm can mean the difference between a claim or case in which a lawsuit must be filed and the case must be tried to a jury years down the road and a case that can be settled within weeks after the injured motorcyclist has reached maximum medical improvement (MMI) from his injuries.

Kansas City biker lawyers obtain Kansas City and Missouri and Kansas motorcycle accident injury cases by running advertisements in motorcycle publications. Nationally, these ads are often meaningless and contain no information whatsoever from which to choose the right motorcycle accident injury lawyer. At Kansas City Accident Injury Attorneys, we pride ourselves on providing educational information to the injured biker in Kansas City or Missouri and Kansas. We believe that the best motorcycle lawyers do the same. A seriously injured Missouri or Kansas biker has a legal claim and needs a lawyer, plain and simple, and that injured biker can learn all about our law firm and our experience before he or she ever hires us. We've even written a book, the KC Biker Bible, intended to be THE resource for motorcyclists in Kansas City and throughout Missouri and Kansas. This book is free for Missouri and Kansas residents and they have no excuse for not being fully educated before they ever speak to an attorney or an insurance adjuster. More importantly, they have no excuse for signing any form or giving a recorded statement before they are fully informed and fully educated, which can be the kiss of death to their motorcycle personal injury claim.

Kansas City biker attorneys also get injured bikers from being out in the motorcycle community, riding with bikers, and attending motorcycle events like motorcycle dealership open houses and biker rallies and just meeting other Kansas City and Missouri and Kansas bikers. These social gatherings are great fun, and motorcycle lawyers get questions and are able to provide a lot of answers. They are also an opportunity to get ahold of the KC Motorcycle Bible, which can also be obtained here on our website. The KC Biker Band is a way for bikers to get their live music fix, their KC biker bible, and their KC biker lawyer all in one. Kansas City motorcycle accident injury attorneys don't need to hand out their business cards. They are part of the Kansas City motorcycle community. They are what they do and business flows naturally. Motorcycle injury cases are often referrals, from other bikers who know the lawyer. Kansas City Accident Injury Attorneys also maintains a motorcycle blog with legal matters of interest to the Kansas City and Missouri and Kansas motorcycle community as well as crashes in the area.

Motorcycle hangouts - local biker bars like Knuckleheads Saloon in Kansas City, Missouri - can be a source of locating a Kansas City motorcycle attorney who is part of the Missouri and Kansas biker community. Lawyers who have a respect for and identify with the Kansas City biker community market and other motorcycle communities nationally intentionally make motorcycle accident cases a part of their law practice and market themselves through advertising in local biker publications and by sponsoring


Growing up in Minnesota, I am aware that Minneapolis motorcycle injury attorneys identify with the motorcycle community and can be found at local biker bars like The Joint or Whiskey Junction or maybe across the street at the Cabooze. They get their names out in the Minneapolis motorcycle community and intentionally make motorcycle personal injury cases part of their law practice. They market themselves through advertising in local biker publications and by attending rallies and/or other biker events. In Kansas City, Kansas City Accident Injury Attorneys's KC Biker Band plays biker bars and festivals and other events and goes one step further, using these Missouri and Kansas biker events as a means of supporting their Roswold Foundation For Injured Children, whose mission is to improve the quality of life for injured children in Kansas City Missouri and throughout the nation. We believe that this creates the ultimate win-win situation.

A motorcycle injury claim or case is different from the typical car or truck personal injury case in several important respects, including the unique insurance issues involved. We encourage injured bikers to get our KC Biker Bible in order to educate themselves. For one thing, no-fault insurances such as PIP insurance for bikers in Kansas is not always mandatory. Sadly, many injured bikers do not understand that this motorcycle insurance coverage is even part of the insurance available to them. This is the type of information that is covered in the legal and insurance sections of the KC Biker Bible and certainly an issue that every injured Kansas City biker or injured Missouri or Kansas motorcyclist should be discussing with their motorcycle lawyer at the outset of the representation, in fact even before representation is obtained. Especially for the seriously injured cyclist, there is a lot on the line and education and information is key to protecting yourself and your family.

Particularly when there are inadequate motorcycle insurance coverages, such as the lack of any first party insurance such as personal injury protection (PIP) or medical payments coverage (MPC), the health insurance issues can take an immediate and important center stage. While having and using health insurance to obtain obtain needed medical evaluation and treatment is usually desirable, it brings complex issues such as personal health insurance coverage and healthcare insurance subrogation issues into play. For instance, many health insurance contracts are written so that they provide medical care to an injured motorcyclist regardless of fault but they are also entitled to reimbursement from the injured biker in the event that that individual recovers compensation from a third party who is responsible for his or her injuries. Often that language is not the last word, however. The health insurance carrier's health insurance subrogation rights often involves complicated provisions of federal law and we can often be of great help to the injured biker and his or her family in this area.

Kansas City bikers, and Missouri and Kansas bikers, are smart to read their motorcycle insurance policies very carefully. Likewise, the best motorcycle attorneys in Missouri and Kansas know that it's important to read their client's insurance policies immediately as well as conducting a search for all potentially applicable coverages in a serious motorcycle injury case. This is partly because motorcycle insurance policies can differ from automobile coverages in several important respects. Your client's motorcycle insurance policy may provide more coverage than the minimums required by Missouri and Kansas law, but that is just the beginning of the insurance review for your injured motorcyclist case.

Kansas City motorcycle injury cases, and Missouri and Kansas injured biker cases, are different than other motor vehicle accident cases perhaps primarily because of the severity of the injuries that result to a motorcyclists who has been injured due to the negligence of another. According to the 2006 NHTSA study, motorcyclists are thirty five times more likely than passenger car occupants to be killed in a motorcycle crash and it is 8 times more likely that they will be injured. We encourage the Missouri and Kansas motorcyclist to read the educational and informative motorcycle articles on our website, not just if they have been injured but also to prevent and protect them from injury. The experienced motorcycle attorneys at Kansas City Accident Injury Attorneys are dedicated to not just the representation of the injured motorcyclist but their safety as well, and these articles raise safety awareness for both the motorcyclist and the car and truck drivers who often are the ones who are ultimately responsible for their injuries. As our website will tell you, bikers are hurt more severely when things go wrong because they do not have the protection of the car or truck, and they are relatively miniscule, both in size and weight to the car or truck.

Although there are some classic negative stereotypes about bikers and motorcyclists, the experienced motorcycle lawyers at Kansas City Accident Injury Attorneys find that with careful handling and advocacy rarely does any prejudice by an insurance adjuster or insurance company, a judge or a jury, actually cause harm to the injured biker and his family. With experienced advocacy, the truth can be separated from fiction and justice can be achieved. Most of today's bikers are not yesterday's hellraisers. In fact, many Kansas City and Missouri and Kansas motorcycle riders are just weekend warriers. Lawyers tell encouraging personal injury trial war stories, such as polling the jurors (voir dire) in the case of an injured motorcyclist and finding that most jurors raise a hand when inquiry is made of whether they ride a motorcycle, if they know someone who rides a motorcycle, or if they have thought about riding a motorcycle.

Handled right, most motorcycle injury cases never have to go to trial. Once reason is that fault is often obvious. Another is because insurance companies and their adjusters know that people understand that you have to be careful to watch for bikers. Fortunately, "watch for motorcyclists" and "share the road" educational campaigns have done a lot to raise awareness. Also, motorcyclists are generally good, defensive drivers and are able to explain what conditions were present and what they did in an effort to prevent a motorcycle collision. This results in stronger evidence in the event of a trial. Stronger evidence in the event of a jury trial means less likelihood of having to file suit and go to trial. Undoubtedly, the insurance company will raise any possible argument of comparative fault on the part of the biker, in an effort to minimize and destroy their personal injury claim. Experienced advocacy can usually overcome these attempts.

Finally, helmet use or nonuse can be an attempted defense in crash claims or cases involving motorcycle riders. Missouri law requires the use of helmets whereas Kansas law does not require the use of helmets. Most state laws prohibit the defense from using the nonuse of a helmet as a defense in a motorcycle accident personal injury case. However, that defense may be present, either overtly or as an undertone, in motorcycle crash cases, both in settlement and in the event of litigation and trial.

Motorcycle riding is a popular pastime that is increasing every year. Notwithstanding risk and high injury statistics, motorcycle riders are increasing every single year. Bikers love to ride and that's unlikely to change. In fact, seriously injured bikers are often heard to say when they get over the physical and emotional trauma that they will ride motorcycles again. Like my brother-in-law, once they recover from their serious injuries, they get another bike and they hit the highway again. By the way, that is one real life case in which wearing a helmet versus not wearing one made the difference between resting in peace and living to ride another day.

The experienced motorcycle attorneys at the Kansas City based Kansas City Accident Injury Attorneys encourage everyone to ride safely and car and truck drivers to share the road and watch out for motorcyclists. If you or a loved one has been injured on a motorcycle due to the negligence of another, find answers to your important questions here on our website. For more information, you can also download the KC Biker Bible, a free book intended as THE resource for Missouri and Kansas motorcyclists. For a free consultation with no obligation, contact the biker lawyers at Kansas City Accident Injury Attorneys at 888-348-2616.

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