Motorcycle accidents in Texas often result in injuries to the lower leg, including fractures, sprains, and severe tissue damage. Because a rider’s legs are largely exposed, they are particularly vulnerable in a crash. Understanding why lower-leg injuries are so common can help motorcyclists take precautions and recognize their seriousness. If you’ve been hurt or injured in a motorcycle accident in Texas, contact Road Justice to speak with a trusted attorney today.
Why Are Lower Leg Injuries Common In Motorcycle Accidents?
Motorcycle accidents happen in an instant, but the consequences can be long-lasting or even permanent. Lower leg injuries are the most common motorcycle injuries, occurring in 56% of non-fatal crashes. Lower-leg injuries occur in motorcycle accidents due to the following:
- Motorcyclists often “lay down” their motorcycle, tipping it onto its side while riding, to avoid a collision that might cause more severe injuries from impact with a vehicle or obstacle, or to avoid being thrown over the handlebars.
- The lower limbs absorb the impact of T-bone collisions
- The legs often become trapped between the motorcycle and the road during an accident
- When a motorcycle becomes unstable, such as during a sudden swerve to avoid an accident, the rider may instinctively extend a leg to the road to stabilize their motorcycle, causing injuries to the lower leg
Bone fractures of the tibia and fibula in the lower leg make up about a third of all motorcycle accident fractures.
Common Lower Leg Injuries In Motorcycle Accidents
Broken tibia and fibula injuries are the most common lower leg injuries in motorcycle accidents, but motorcyclists experience a wide array of lower limb injuries in crashes, including the following:
- Ankle fractures and other ankle injuries, such as sprains and dislocations
- Broken bones in the foot
- Road rash (severe abrasions and friction burns from high-speed scraping on the road surface)
- Lower leg injuries, including torn ACL and MCL (knee ligaments), broken kneecaps, and dislocations
- Contusions and lacerations
- Crush injuries
- Traumatic amputations
Lower leg injuries from motorcycle accidents can cause temporary or permanent disability, depending on the type and severity of the injury. If you’ve suffered a lower leg injury in a crash, contact Road Justice to speak with a top-rated Texas motorcycle accident lower leg injury attorney about your legal options.
Liability In Motorcycle Lower Leg Injury Accident Claims
In fault-based accident states like Texas, motorcycle accident victims with lower leg injuries can recover compensation for their accident-related damages by filing a claim against the at-fault party’s insurance—typically a careless or reckless driver. A successful claim requires evidence of the other party’s negligence. Evidence includes the police report, medical report, and often an attorney’s findings from examining the evidence, interviewing eyewitnesses, and consulting with accident reconstruction specialists and medical experts. It takes clear evidence of an at-fault party’s negligence and an injury victim’s damages to make a compelling claim.
Recovering Damages From Motorcycle Accident Lower Limb Injuries
Motorcycle accident injuries are more than just painful; they also require expensive medical treatment and often cause temporary mobility problems that interfere with the ability to work. Severe road rash injuries can cause permanent scarring and discoloration. Catastrophic lower leg injuries like crush injuries and traumatic amputations cause permanent disability. These are the damages in a motorcycle accident claim made against an at-fault driver or other responsible party. A successful claim recovers common motorcycle accident injury damages like past and future medical expenses related to the injury, lost earnings, reduced earning ability due to disability, and compensation for pain and suffering. Additional compensation may be recovered for catastrophic injuries, such as loss of limb. Call an experienced motorcycle lower leg injury attorney in Texas at Road Justice today for a free consultation.