Las Vegas motorcycle accident lawyer.

The bias riders face

Adjusters and sometimes jurors start with assumptions about motorcyclists: that they speed, weave, and take risks. Those assumptions show up in early low offers and in arguments that the rider should have seen the danger coming. The answer is evidence, not argument.

Helpful evidence includes intersection and business camera footage, the other driver's phone records where distraction is suspected, witness statements, the damage pattern on both vehicles, and in serious cases a reconstruction of speeds and sight lines. Preserving the motorcycle, the helmet, and riding gear in their post-crash condition also matters, because they can show how the impact happened.

How the helmet argument works

Nevada is a universal helmet state. NRS 486.231 requires motorcycle operators and passengers to wear securely fastened protective headgear that meets state standards. If a rider was not wearing one, the insurer will raise it.

A missing helmet usually does not explain why the crash happened. A driver who turned left into a rider's path is still the cause of the collision. Where the helmet argument has force is in the damages, and mainly for head and facial injuries: the defense may argue some of those injuries would have been less severe with a helmet, and try to fold that into the comparative fault analysis under NRS 41.141.

How far that argument goes depends on the injuries and the medical evidence. A broken leg or a spinal injury may have nothing to do with headgear. Riders who were not wearing a helmet should not assume they have no claim; the question is how the defense will use it and what the medicine actually shows.

Lane splitting is illegal in Nevada

Some states allow riders to move between lanes of slow or stopped traffic. Nevada does not. NRS 486.351 prohibits driving a motorcycle between vehicles in adjacent lanes, whether moving or stopped, and generally prohibits passing another vehicle within the same lane.

If a rider was splitting lanes at the time of a crash, the insurer will treat it as a violation of law and argue the rider's share of fault is high. That does not automatically end the claim. The other driver's conduct still counts, and fault is compared under NRS 41.141. But it is a serious issue that needs to be addressed honestly from the start rather than discovered later.

Left-turn crashes

The classic motorcycle crash is a driver turning left across an oncoming rider. The driver often says they never saw the motorcycle. Under NRS 484B.253, a driver turning left at an intersection must yield to oncoming vehicles that are in the intersection or close enough to be an immediate hazard. Not seeing a rider who was there to be seen is generally not a defense.

The insurer's usual response is to argue the rider was speeding. That is why speed evidence, from video, scene measurements, or vehicle data, often decides these cases.

Uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage

Nevada's minimum liability coverage is $25,000 per person, which can be exhausted quickly by a serious motorcycle injury. NRS 687B.145 requires insurers to offer uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage, and many riders carry it on their motorcycle policy, their auto policy, or both.

Whether a rider's auto policy covers them while on a motorcycle depends on the policy language, and some policies limit recovery when more than one policy applies. Reviewing every policy in the household is part of the first conversation in a serious case.

How uninsured motorist coverage works in Nevada →

The injuries and what they cost

Motorcycle crashes commonly cause road rash and degloving injuries, fractures of the legs, arms, wrists, and pelvis, traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord injuries, and in the worst cases amputation. Many require multiple surgeries, skin grafts, and long rehabilitation. Damages can include medical care past and future, lost income and earning capacity, pain and suffering, and the cost of the motorcycle and gear.