At Clark Frost Zucchi, we understand the plight of motorcyclists who have suffered serious injuries due to the negligence of car and truck drivers. That is why we provide aggressive legal representation to motorcycle riders in the Rockford area and throughout Northern Illinois. Let our team of personal injury lawyers handle the legal and insurance matters while you focus on healing.
For a free consultation, contact our firm today. We can answer your questions, explain your options and help you get the compensation you need and deserve. Call us in Rockford to speak with an experienced personal injury attorney.
Even as we strive to educate drivers of cars and trucks about the critical importance of seeing motorcyclists, the risk of an accident remains high for motorcycle riders on Illinois roads. In many cases, negligent drivers and their insurance companies try to shift blame for crashes onto riders, even when it is clear that the car or truck driver was at fault.
Insurance companies and their attorneys know we mean business when it comes to motor vehicle accidents. Our law firm has secured more than $110 million for injury victims in the past 10 years alone. We fight to hold negligent drivers accountable, and we want to help you, too.
If you or a loved one was injured in a motorcycle accident, you can rest assured that our skilled accident attorneys will fight to help you get the compensation you need for medical expenses, lost wages, reduced earning capacity, pain, suffering, and any other costs resulting from the crash.
We know how to assess the full cost of an injury, and how to fight for full and fair compensation that covers your needs now and in the future. Fractures, head injuries, road rash, and internal injuries are unfortunately common in motorcycle accidents. Tell us about your case, and we can work to help you put your life back together.
Motorcycle accidents often happen in the Rockford area because other drivers fail to see or respect motorcyclists on the road. A small moment of inattention can lead to catastrophic consequences, particularly for motorcyclists, as bikes lack the same protection that cars and trucks do.
Some of the common causes of motorcycle accidents include:
Identifying the cause of the accident provides critical information for holding the at-fault party accountable. Our motorcycle accident attorneys will launch an immediate investigation to determine how the accident happened and who might bear responsibility.
Understanding what Illinois law requires of riders matters, because insurers sometimes try to use a rider’s choices against them. Here is what the law says:
Knowing these rules helps you understand what an insurer can and cannot legitimately raise when disputing your claim. The sections below explain how these issues play out in practice.
Because Illinois has no helmet law, choosing to ride without one is entirely lawful. Insurers occasionally argue that a head or facial injury would have been less severe if the rider had been wearing a helmet and try to reduce the compensation they owe for face and head injuries. However, Illinois courts have held that failure to wear a motorcycle helmet is not admissible to establish comparative negligence or to reduce damages.
Motorcycle accident claims can be more complicated than a car collision claim. Some of the unique challenges motorcyclists face when pursuing compensation after an accident include:
Motorcycle accidents frequently result in severe, life-altering injuries and significant medical bills, not to mention substantial repair costs. Compensation in these cases can account for all of these losses. Your attorney will likely seek compensation for the following on your behalf:
In cases where a motorcycle accident results in a fatality, surviving family members may also have a wrongful death claim.
No. Illinois does not have a mandatory helmet law for motorcycle riders of any age. Riding without a helmet is entirely lawful under Illinois law. Eye protection, however, is required by statute (625 ILCS 5/11-1404) unless your motorcycle has a windscreen that extends above eye level.
No. Lane splitting is not permitted in Illinois. State law requires motorcycles to occupy a full lane of traffic and prohibits a rider from passing another vehicle while sharing the same lane. (See 625 ILCS 5/11-703.) If you were riding lawfully in your lane when the crash occurred, lane splitting is not a factor in your case.
Riding without a helmet does not establish that you caused the crash, and because helmets are not required by Illinois law, that choice cannot be used to argue you violated any statute. An insurer may, in some cases, argue that a head or facial injury would have been less severe with a helmet. However, failure to wear a helmet cannot be used to reduce damages.
In most Illinois personal injury cases, the statute of limitations gives you two years from the date of the accident to file a lawsuit. Missing that deadline can bar your claim entirely, regardless of how strong it is. Certain circumstances, such as claims involving a government entity or cases where the injured person is a minor, can affect that timeline.
Illinois follows a modified comparative negligence rule, which means you can still recover compensation even if you were partially at fault for the accident, as long as your share of fault does not exceed 50 percent. Your total recovery would be reduced in proportion to your percentage of fault. Insurers routinely try to assign more blame to motorcyclists than the evidence supports, which is one reason having an attorney on your side matters.
Contact us for a free consultation. If your injuries prevent you from visiting our law office, we can come to you. Our law firm represents injured motorcycle drivers and passengers in Rockford, Loves Park, Machesney Park, Roscoe, Belvidere, Cherry Valley, Freeport, Winnebago County, and throughout Northern Illinois. Hablamos Español.
