Rental Scooter vs. Bicycle Accidents in Downtown Nashville: Who Is Responsible?
Electric scooters and bicycles are commonly seen in downtown Nashville, allowing tourists to quickly get around the city. Although you may enjoy the freedom of the open road, you lack the protection of an enclosed vehicle, making you susceptible to serious injuries. At Raybin & Weissman, our Tennessee personal injury lawyers believe that no legal battle is complete until you receive adequate compensation. If you have been injured while riding a rental scooter or bicycle in Nashville, our legal team would like to speak with you.
Both Accident Claims Revolve Around Who Acted Negligently
Negligence claims center around which party used less than reasonable care, resulting in harm to another. In a rental scooter or bicycle accident claim, this will involve establishing the following:
Duty of Care
Motorists, scooter riders, and bicyclists have a duty to follow traffic rules and regulations. Rental companies and manufacturers have a duty to ensure that a scooter or bicycle is in a safe riding condition. Alternatively, city or county governments must maintain reasonable road conditions, filling potholes and clearing snow and ice off roadways during the winter months.
Breach of Duty
In a rental scooter or bicycle accident, one or several parties may violate the duty of care owed to the injured person. For example, a scooterist may crash due to hitting a pothole while also riding a scooter with a sticky throttle (causing unintended acceleration). In this case, liability may be found with both the city or county government and the manufacturer. Under TN Code §29-11-107(a), when multiple defendants are found liable, each will pay damages based on the percentage of fault attributed to them. No one defendant will be held jointly liable.
Causation
The defendant’s actions must be the direct cause of your injuries. In both types of claims, you must show that the defendant is the actual and legal cause of your injuries. Actual cause means that the defendant set into motion a chain of events that caused the incident. For example, if you are riding a bike and a motorist runs a red light and hits you (causing you to fly off the bicycle), the motorist is the actual cause of your injuries. The motorist would also be the legal cause of your injuries, since legal cause questions whether an accident is foreseeable given the defendant’s actions. In the case of the motorist running a red light and hitting your bike, the harm you sustained is foreseeable. Generally, both actual and legal cause must be present for successful recovery.
Damages
Neither a rental scooter nor a bicycle accident claim is valid unless you suffered measurable losses. In the law, these are referred to as damages. Even if you can prove that the motorist or other entity acted carelessly, recovery is not possible unless you suffered physical, emotional, or financial damages.
In either a rental scooter or bicycle accident claim, potential damages may entail:
- Lost wages
- Loss of future earnings
- Ambulance ride
- Hospitalizations
- Surgeries and/or procedures
- Home modifications
- Pain and suffering
- Emotional distress
- Scarring and/or disfigurement
- Permanent disability
Comparative Fault
If the insurance company or a jury determines that you contributed to your own injuries, your recovery will be reduced based on your percentage of fault. So, if you file a bodily injury claim for $15,000 (comprising lost wages and medical bills), but you are deemed 25% responsible, you will only receive $11,250 of your original claim.
Under Tennessee law, you must be less than 50 percent at fault to remain eligible for compensation. Being assigned a 50 percent or greater fault will cause you to be barred from recovery. The insurance company is likely to assign you greater fault than warranted, so it is important that you speak with our Tennessee personal injury team to protect your rights.
Reach Out to Our Tennessee Personal Injury Lawyers At Your Earliest Opportunity
At Raybin & Weissman, we know that being the victim of a rental scooter or bicycle accident can leave you with exorbitant medical bills and physical pain. The insurance company is not interested in protecting your interests, but we are. Even if you are assigned partial fault, you still deserve a fair settlement or award.
Our Tennessee personal injury attorneys have secured six-figure settlements and awards for accident victims and are ready to put their knowledge to work for you. To arrange your free, no-risk consultation, contact our office online or by calling (615) 256-6666 at your earliest opportunity.