North Carolina Open Door Accidents Attorney

Motorcyclists face many dangers on the road, including careless drivers and adverse weather conditions, but one of the more unexpected sources of a potential accident is a suddenly opened car or truck door. Almost 600 cyclists a year injured after being knocked off by open car doors. Particularly in urban areas, open door accidents are unfortunately common. Fortunately, the law grants rights to the injured rider by requiring that any person who opens a door into a travel lane has a legal duty to check first to make sure that no part of their vehicle interferes with the motorcyclist’s legal right to occupy the travel lane. Raleigh motorcycle accident lawyer Carl Nagle understands the importance of aggressive legal advocacy when pursuing compensation for all injuries and costs caused by these types of crashes. As a motorcyclist himself, Mr. Nagle stands ready to explain how an open door or other hazard affects a rider’s ability to travel safely. With years of riding experience, Carl is actively involved in every motorcycle accident case. At Nagle & Associates, we have helped motorcycle accident victims throughout North Carolina, including in Asheville, Wilmington, and Winston-Salem, bring claims for compensation. Before advocating on behalf of injured people, Carl Nagle worked as an insurance claims adjuster and an insurance defense attorney. This experience shapes his approach to insurers that are seeking to lower payments to motorcycle accident victims and contributes to our high success rate, which emerges from the hundreds of millions of dollars that we have obtained for our clients.

Assert Your Rights After an Open Door Accident

Motorcyclists must take care to ride responsibly, but the reality is that many dangers associated with riding cannot be eliminated by taking precautions. One cause of serious accidents is the hazard posed by an open or opening car door. The motorcycle rider may not have time to see or avoid colliding with the door if it opens abruptly. This type of sudden crash may eject the rider from their bike and lead to catastrophic brain trauma, spinal cord damage, broken bones, and other injuries.

Drivers and passengers are required to use reasonable care in exiting their vehicles, avoiding foreseeable harm to others. Before a driver or a passenger opens a car door, they need to inspect their surroundings to the right, left, and behind. Unfortunately, people often fail to do this and strike a passing motorcycle by opening the door as a result.

People who are hurt in an open door motorcycle accident may bring a claim against the party responsible for their injuries. By demonstrating that the defendant failed to exercise reasonable care and opened their door carelessly without checking to make sure that the space was clear, the motorcyclist may be able to show the negligence of this person. The injured victim must also show that opening the door directly led to the collision in which they were hurt.

Following an open door collision, the defendant may try to argue that the motorcyclist was partly responsible for the accident. If the rider was speeding, weaving, or splitting traffic lanes, for example, they may face the legal defense of contributory negligence. This doctrine holds that a plaintiff may not recover damages in a lawsuit if the plaintiff was partly to blame for the accident and the resulting injuries, even to a very small degree. However, there are often strong arguments against applying this doctrine, and an attorney who carefully investigates your situation can craft an appropriate strategy to protect your rights.

After proving liability in a personal injury lawsuit, successful plaintiffs may recover damages from the at-fault party. Damages typically include medical treatment costs, lost income from missed work, property damage, and compensation for emotional pain and suffering. Due to the severity of the injuries that are usually suffered in a motorcycle accident, it is important for the victim to collect compensation for all present and future costs.

Consult a Motorcycle Accident Lawyer in the Raleigh Area

The period following a motorcycle accident may prove devastating for the victim and their family. Raleigh motorcycle accident attorney Carl Nagle understands their suffering and will fight to hold all responsible parties accountable. Our firm seeks a relatively modest legal fee, one-quarter of any settlement accepted by a client. We have seven offices, and we also provide home visits for clients who cannot easily come to our closest location. Nagle & Associates represents people in Winston-Salem, Asheville, Wilmington, Raleigh, Greensboro, Hickory, Charlotte, and other communities throughout Guilford, Wake, Mecklenburg, Forsyth, Catawba, Durham, and New Hanover Counties. We can be reached by calling 800-411-1583 or using our online form if you would be interested in setting up a free consultation with a motor vehicle collision attorney.