Various institutional studies indicate that motorcycle accidents have been rising over the years. Most of these accidents are because of recklessness, negligence, and manufacturer fault. You’ll need an experienced lawyer in such accidents. Yet, before you hire a motorcycle accident attorney, it would be best to understand the elements of a personal injury claim. These elements include the following.
Proof of Duty of Care
Duty of care is a principle that obligates an individual to avoid acts or omissions that could potentially harm or injure other parties. In this case, our focus is on road users, where a driver, manufacturer, employer, or mechanic can be held liable to a duty of care.
A personal injury claim requires you to establish that the defendant owed you a duty of care. In this instance, you will need to show that the harm caused was significantly foreseeable, meaning that the defendant must have taken the necessary precautionary measures. Remember, this duty must be directly linked to the defendant.
There are three principles of duty of care: foreseeability, proximity, and reasonability. Foreseeability is about whether the damage was predictable. Proximity is about the notional responsibility to class, while reasonability is whether it is fair to impose the duty.
Breach of Duty of Care
Upon establishing a duty of care, you will need to prove a breach. It is the only way to put the blame on the defendant. For instance, if the defendant failed to obey traffic lights, they breached their duty of care. You can only say it is a breach if the defendant could not show reasonable consideration for other individuals, including workers and road users.
The jury decides whether the defendant breaches their duty of care. In this instance, they will consider the matter a question of fact. Ideally, this element seeks to prove how careless the defendant was. Any slight negligence points to their inability to extend a reasonable duty of care to the plaintiff.
For example, a car manufacturer has the duty of making a safe vehicle for its clients. Yet, suppose the car does not meet industry standards, causing an injury. In that case, the manufacturer will have breached their duty of care. All a personal injury attorney will need to do is prove that the manufacturer overlooked a safety element during the car’s production.
Injury and Damages
A claimant must prove that the accident or incident caused direct injuries to them. These injuries range from physical and emotional to property and financial damage. An excellent lawyer will help establish the direct relationship between the defendant’s negligence and harm.
Various steps go into establishing supporting evidence. That is because this lawsuit cannot suffice if there are no injuries. In most cases, you will need supporting evidence from various witnesses, including expert witnesses. You might also need a medical expert and a report to show that you sustained bodily, mental, and emotional injuries from the accident.
You could claim additional damages, including lost income, pain, suffering, disability, and medical expenses. This will be an effortless task as long as you have supporting evidence.
Causation
Causation seeks to establish the connection between negligence and injury. It shows that the defendant failed to exercise reasonable care, resulting in the damage sustained. In addition, even if their recklessness was not solely to blame, it significantly contributed to the injury. The claimant’s fault, in this case, must be way below 50 percent.
In summary, a personal injury claim is built on four critical pillars. The claim must meet or establish the connection between the injury sustained and each of these pillars. With the insights above, this should be easy.
