On September 17, 2015, a 22-year-old motorcyclist rammed into a Ford pickup truck as the truck was making a U-turn on Loop 1604 in San Antonio. The young man flew off the motorcycle, slammed into the Sea World 151 sign and severed both of his legs. He was flown to the hospital. Fault has yet to be determined, but preliminary details released by the police department indicate that the truck may have made an unsafe lane change and cut in front of the motorcyclist. The motorcyclist, who is still in critical condition, is lucky to have survived the crash.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, motorcyclists are about eighteen times more likely to die in a motorcycle accident and about three times more likely to be injured than an auto occupant. The Texas Department of Transportation’s latest report, shows there are 448,399 motorcycled owned in Texas and there were approximately 10,000 motorcycle crash injuries in 2014. There were 500 deaths and over 2000 incapacitating injuries. Although the motorcycle crash rate is down nationwide, the numbers are booming in Texas.
Many motorcycle wrecks are caused by a negligent driver who fails to look out for the motorcyclist including when drivers:
• do not look in their blind spots;
• suddenly stop or cut in front of motorcyclists; or
• open their car door in front of the motorcyclist.
If you or someone you know has recently been injured in a motorcycle wreck caused by a careless driver, contact an attorney at Abraham, Watkins, Nichols, Agosto, Aziz & Stogner by calling (713) 222-7211 or toll free at 713-222-7211.