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Santa Barbara Bicycle Accident Lawyer’s Top Ten Things You Want to Have on Your Bike if You are About to Have a Bicycle Accident

1. A first aid kit.

 

2. Cell phone.

 

3. Christmas tree lights with a battery.

 

4. A spotlight.

 

5. A large warning sign that reads, "Do Not Hit Me Or I’ll Sue You."

 

6. A cruise ship horn.

 

7. A megaphone.

 

8. Thirty-two inch speakers and a radio.

 

9. A 360 horsepower engine to get away fast.

 

10. Our phone number.

 

Here are ten useful tips of advice from a bicycle accident lawyer to follow if you have been in an accident. You can also learn more about how to handle a bicycle accident in Santa Barbara, or any city, by calling the Law Offices of R. Sebastian Gibson at any of the numbers which can be found on our website at http://www.SebastianGibsonLaw.com  and learning how we can assist you.

 

Obviously, if you have had an accident, and you are reading all of this advice, it may have been a few hours since the accident. However, if you ever have another accident, or if it’s only been a few hours since you were hurt, here’s what you should do from the start.

 

First, take a look around and determine if you or anyone, are hurt. If so, taking steps like trying to prevent further injury or loss of blood are the most important thing you can do. Even if some other driver caused you to be injured, it’s just good manners to help the other driver if they are hurt. They may even be so thankful that they admit their fault to you. The worst thing you can do is get angry or start a fight.

 

Second, make sure everyone is safe from being injured further. If you are in the middle of traffic, and you are dizzy, sit down away from traffic. If your vehicle is a traffic hazard and you have accident warning devices like flares or triangles, put them out on the road to warn other drivers and get away from the car. Let the police an other emergency personnel investigate the scene with the vehicles in place and move them more safely at a later point.

 

Third, call the police. Accident reports are extremely helpful if the police will do such a report. Let the police know you are injured immediately. Answer the police questions honestly. But if you are dazed or confused, let them know you need medical treatment and answer only what you feel sure about. Remember, your statements can and will be used against you if you admit fault, and it will be too late and too fishy to later say you didn’t know what you were saying at the scene. Police know that your best recollection is immediately after an accident.

 

Fourth, get the other driver’s information including their names, addresses, driver’s license numbers, make and model of their vehicles, license plate numbers, and their insurance company name and policy number. If there are witnesses, get their names, addresses and telephone numbers as well. If the other driver makes any admissions of fault, write those down as well.

 

Fifth, if you have a camera on your cell phone or in the car and you aren’t too injured, take some photos of the vehicles and the scene. If you can’t do it right away, do it after you are released from the hospital.

Sixth, if you are hurt, obtain medical treatment. Don’t decline the ambulance or hospital examination to save your insurance company money or to be stoic. Take your valuables out of your car if you can and get checked out at the hospital. If you are not hurt, don’t get treatment you don’t need. However, remember, after an accident, you may feel a rush of adrenaline that causes you to only start feeling symptoms of pain a few hours later. If you have a health plan that requires you to obtain permission first, call them and find out where you are allowed to seek treatment.

 

Seventh, call a good bicycle accident lawyer as soon as you have had your initial treatment, so the attorney can gather other important evidence and prevent the insurance company from taking advantage of you and obtaining such things as recorded statements that you feel fine, when many of your symptoms have yet to manifest themselves. A good bicycle accident lawyer can save you from making a great deal of mistakes and can shoulder much of the hassle of knowing what to do about car repairs, car rentals, medical treatment, witness statements and the like. If you think you will save money by not having an attorney, think again. A good bicycle accident lawyer can almost always obtain much higher settlements, obtain reductions of medical bills and insurance liens and prevent you from making costly mistakes. Also, most bicycle accident attorneys advance costs of obtaining police reports, medical records and the like and are paid and reimbursed for these costs only out of any settlement.

 

Eight, you will need to report the accident to your insurance company, but since they will want to take a recorded statement from you, just like any other driver’s insurance company, it’s good advice to retain an attorney first. And if the other driver did not have insurance, remember that it is your own insurance company that will be your adversary. You will also need to report the accident to the Department of Motor Vehicles and your lawyer can give you the form for this.

 

Ninth, do not agree to settle your claim privately with the person at fault for the accident. This almost never works out to your advantage. Don’t agree not to call the police. Police reports that determine the fault for an accident are golden. Your agreement to not involve the police only affords an opportunity for the other driver to change his story and blame you when the police will no longer investigate the accident.

 

Tenth, don’t pay a traffic ticket without a fight if you weren’t at fault or agree to accept a small payment for your vehicle repairs without knowing that the amount will in fact cover the cost of all the repairs.

 

If you’ve had a bicycle accident in Santa Barbara, Long Beach, Santa Monica, Ventura, Oxnard, Carson, Torrance, Camarillo, Manhattan Beach, Cambria or San Luis Obispo, or anywhere in Southern California, we have the knowledge and resources to be your Santa Barbara Bicycle Accident Lawyer and your Santa Maria Bicycle Accident Attorney. Be sure to hire a California law firm with auto, motorcycle, truck, bicycle, pedestrian, car, bus, train, boat and airplane accident experience, wrongful death experience and insurance law expertise who can ensure you are properly represented and get the compensation you deserve.

 

If you have a personal injury legal matter, a dog bite or if you’ve lost a loved one in a wrongful death accident, call the Law Offices of R. Sebastian Gibson, or visit our website at http://www.SebastianGibsonLaw.com  and learn how we can assist you.

About the Author

The Sebastian Gibson Law Firm serves auto accident victims in Santa Barbara, and motorcycle and truck accident clients in Long Beach, Santa Monica, Ventura, Oxnard, Cambria, Camarillo, Torrance, Manhattan Beach, and San Luis Obispo. We also provide excellent representation to bicycle, pedestrian and car accident clients in Orange County, Newport Beach, Anaheim, Irvine, Huntington Beach, Corona del Mar, Laguna Beach, Santa Ana, Orange, Fullerton, Costa Mesa, Westminster, and Buena Park. We also have the knowledge and experience to represent clients from Palm Springs and Palm Desert to Indio, from San Diego to Carlsbad, from Newport Beach to Anaheim, Ontario and Rancho Cucamonga, from Palmdale to Victorville, and all of Southern California.

Visit our website at http://www.sebastiangibsonlaw.com if you have a personal injury legal matter of any kind. We have the knowledge and resources to represent you as your Santa Barbara Bicycle Accident Lawyer and Santa Maria Bicycle Accident Attorney or your attorney in and around the cities of Oceanside, La Jolla, Del Mar, Chula Vista, El Cajon and Escondido. We also serve Corona, Temecula, Murrieta, Riverside, San Bernardino, Moreno Valley, Fontana, Vista, San Marcos, Solana Beach, Encinitas, Carson, and Hermosa Beach.

Car Santa

Can my 2003 Hyundai Santa Fe frame be 100% safe & good to go, after it was rear-ended in a car accident?

I WAS REAR-ENDED, HE WAS GOING ABOUT 20-25 I WAS AT A COMPLETE STOP. THE OTHER CAR WAS A CHEVEY WORKING TRUCK, PLUMBING COMPANY TRUCK. MY CAR HAS BEEN IN THE SHOP FOR 5 WEEKS NOW. WHEN I FIRST CALLED TO CHECK ON IT, THEY SAID THEY WERE HAVING TROUBLE STRAIGHTEN OUT THE FRAME, HE WAS THINKING HE WAS GOING TO HAVE TO APPLY SOME HEAT TO BEND IT. HE SAID IF THAT DIDN'T WORK HE WOULD HAVE TO CUT IT AWAY & GET A NEW PART & MELT THEM TOGETHER.

WHAT WOULD BE THE SIGNS THAT THE FRAME IS NOT STRAIGHT & NOT 100% FIXED.

I AM AFRAID I AM GOING TO GET BACK A FIXED, BROKEN CAR & AFTER THIS THE VAVLUE OF MY CAR GOES DOWN BECAUSE SOMEONE HIT ME AND CAUSED FRAME DAMAGE.

To verify that the car is "straight" again, inspect the door, hood and trunk seams looking for an even distance along the length of the gap. For the doors, it might be useful to check the gap one side against the other. Additionally, and most critically, the car should track straight ahead for a bit with your hands off the steering wheel. The car shouldn't make any unusual sounds. If you have the resources, you could hang a plumb bob on a string from each axle center and make a corresponding mark on the ground with chalk etc. Then measure the distance diagonally between the left front and right rear in relation to the distance between the right front and left rear tires. The distances should be exactly the same. That will tell you if the frame is reasonably straight. Given the choice between getting the car fixed or the cash equivalent of its fair market value, I would take the cash without a doubt. But it is possible to repair the car after an impact such as you experienced to a safe and acceptable level of service.