Motorcycle Accidents and the Helmet Defense

California is one of the few states with a universal helmet law. All motorcyclists must wear protective headgear, regardless of age or other circumstances. Many times, criminal law establishes the standard of care in negligence cases. For example, drivers with a BAC level over the legal limit are intoxicated as a matter of law in both civil and criminal court. But the motorcycle helmet law is an exception.

Insurance companies must establish two elements before they can use the motorcycle helmet defense in court. So, an Oceanside personal injury lawyer has two chances to block this defense and obtain maximum compensation for motorcycle accident victims. This compensation usually includes money for economic losses, such as medical bills, and noneconomic losses, such as pain and suffering.

Voluntarily Not Wearing a Helmet

To use the motorcycle helmet defense in court and torpedo a negligence claim, an insurance company lawyer must first prove the victim wasn’t wearing a helmet, and the victim chose not to wear a helmet.

In serious injury cases, EMTs almost always remove crash helmets and other clothing to treat injury victims. So, the insurance company may have a hard time proving the victim wasn’t wearing a helmet at the time of the crash.

Voluntariness is even harder to prove. Many helmets are subject to safety recalls or defective product lawsuits. Recalls and lawsuits often pertain to nonworking buckles and straps. Issues like nonworking straps and buckles cause helmets to pop off during wrecks.

The helmet’s age could be relevant as well. Usually, fasteners are the first parts of any garment to deteriorate. If the victim couldn’t properly buckle the helmet into place, the helmet defense doesn’t hold up in court.

Helmets construction might also be an issue in safety recalls and defective product lawsuits. Wearing a weak helmet is like wearing no helmet at all.

Bare Head Substantially Caused Injury

Before we dive into this point, we should examine the difference between a substantial cause and a contributing cause. Quite simply, the substantial cause is the main cause. Many causes contributed to America’s involvement in World War II. The Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor substantially caused it.

The insurance company must also prove, by a preponderance of the evidence, that the victim’s failure to wear a helmet substantially caused injury. Lawyers cannot simply cite safety statistics and wag their fingers.

Motorcycle helmets reduce the number of blow-to-the-head trauma injuries. But helmets don’t affect the number of motion-related head injuries, which are much more common. Usually, an Oceanside personal injury lawyer partners with a medical specialist who pinpoints the exact nature of a victim’s head injury.

The brain does not fit snugly inside the skull, like a hand in a glove. Instead, the brain is about the size of a coffee mug. So, when crash victims fall and land hard, their brains slam against the insides of their skulls.

This impact causes brain bleeding and swelling that kills brain cells. Dead brain cells do not regenerate. Therefore, crash-related head injuries are permanent. At best, physical therapists can train uninjured areas of a brain to assume some lost functions.

Rely on a Diligent San Diego County Lawyer

Injury victims are entitled to substantial compensation. For a confidential consultation with an experienced personal injury lawyer in Carlsbad, contact the Pursley Law Firm. Virtual, home, and hospital visits are available.

Source:

iihs.org/research-areas/motorcycles/motorcycle-helmet-laws-table