Articles Tagged with motorcycle accident

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A motorcyclist who was thrown backward onto the hood of a car driven by a motorist who failed to stop in time for a red light was not entitled to underinsured motorist coverage from the vehicle driver’s insurer.

It was an interesting argument made by the plaintiff in the case, as uninsured/ underinsured motorist coverage is typically paid by an insurer to its own insured and/ or occupants of that vehicle. It can also be paid to bicyclists or pedestrians by the insurer of the car that struck them because they are not required to have insurance to use the road. In this case before the Alaska Supreme Court, plaintiff alleged he should be entitled to the driver’s UIM coverage as an “insured occupant” because he landed on the car after impact. The liability limits of the vehicle driver’s insurance did not cover the full extent of his damages, essentially rendering the car driver uninsured.

The vehicle driver’s insurer then sued the injured motorcyclist for a declaratory judgment, arguing UIM coverage was not available to him.

The motorcyclist responded, arguing the issue wasn’t ripe for the insurer’s declaratory judgment and thus the court didn’t have any subject matter jurisdiction. He filed a counterclaim seeking his own declaratory judgment in his favor that would assert the coverage was available to him. The trial court found that it did have subject matter jurisdiction, granted both summary judgment and declaratory judgment in favor of the insurer and dismissed the motorcyclist’s third-party claim.  Continue reading →

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The Daytona Beach Journal offered up some great news last month when it reported the number of bicycle deaths during the 76th annual Daytona Bike Week had fallen to historic lows this year. Officials told news reporters this had to do with a number of factors, including lower attendance, beefed up law enforcement patrols and increased awareness among industry groups. 

Still, it wasn’t all positive. Two people still died and three were injured in separate accidents. But when you look at the fact nearly 500 people died in motorcycle accidents in Flagler and Volusia Counties between 2005 and 2015 and that almost a third of those happened at one of the region’s two major biking events – Bike Week and Biketoberfest – this year’s two deaths is far fewer than we’re used to seeing. It’s still two too many.

What’s more, Florida is nowhere near rid of its motorcycle accident risks. As The Orlando Sentinel reported, a recent study by AAA indicated that Florida once again leads the nation in motorcycle accident deaths.  Worse, there were 606 motorcyclists killed in this state in 2015, which marks a stunning 30 percent increase in just a single year – from 2014.  Continue reading →

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