Bicycles have always been popular not only for physical activity but also as a method of transportation. In cities like San Diego, it is common to see people of all ages riding their bicycles everywhere. Bicyclists ride on sidewalks with pedestrians and on the road with motorized vehicles. Unfortunately, bicycle accidents are a common occurrence in San Diego. Let us delve into the reason why.
San Diego, California has a population of about 1.39 million people. A large portion of this population is employed and must get to their work somehow. About 75% of the population drives alone to work. Another nearly 8% of the population carpools do work. About 4.5% of the population uses public transportation to arrive at their workplace. Other less popular methods of transportation include motorcycles and taxis. Combined, about 89% of the population in San Diego uses a motorized vehicle to get to work. The other, less popular, methods of transportation include walking and bicycling. Only about 0.7% of the populations ride a bicycle to work. However, this minuscule portion of the city’s population keeps being victimized in bicycle accidents involving a vehicle.
If someone is injured in a bicycle accident involving a vehicle, besides needing medical attention, he or she will need immediate legal assistance. Someone who suffered injuries in a bicycle accident has rights to sue the parties involved in the accident. California has laws that apply both bicyclists and drivers that would ideally prevent accidents and protect the bicyclists. Unfortunately, many bicyclists are not aware of the California laws that apply to them. Even more unfortunate, many bicyclists do not know that they have the right to sue after a bicycle accident. Why would the bicycling community be uninformed about bicycling? The answer to this question lays in the community members and the language they speak.
California is the home of slightly more than 4.3 million Hispanics. In the city of San Diego, there are more than 425,000 Hispanics; that is close to half of the city’s population. In San Diego, more than 40% of the population speaks a language other than English. Based on the number of Hispanics living in the city, it is no surprise that Spanish has become the second most prominent language, behind English. More than 20% of the population consists of native Spanish speakers. What does language have to do with bicycle accidents? San Diego, along with most cities in the United States, legislates in English. Therefore, Spanish speakers might be unfamiliar with specific laws until someone who can speak Spanish explains the law to them. Bicycling is not as heavily regulated as driving a vehicle. Drivers must take a written test showing their knowledge of the rules of the road, and then they take a driving exam to get licensed. Although bicyclists must follow the same rules of the road, there is no equivalent to written and driven exams. When these uninformed bicyclists are involved in an accident with another vehicle, they do not exercise their legal right to sue.
Legal representation is widely available in San Diego; however, this legal representation is often only available in English. Language is a barrier that prevents the Spanish speaking community from getting legal assistance. Legal terminology can be difficult to understand even for English speakers, so how likely is it that a Spanish speaker would effectively receive legal information coming from an English speaking attorney? Normandie Law Firm is a Spanish law firm that knows that the only way for the Spanish speaking community to receive effective legal representation is to provide all legal information in Spanish. Spanish attorneys might have been difficult to find in the past; however, Normandie Law Firm is working to change that. If you are looking for a Spanish speaking lawyer in San Diego, you will find one at Normandie Law Firm. A Spanish speaker involved in bicycle accidents needs a lawyer that speaks Spanish to get all the information necessary to begin a lawsuit against the responsible parties.
In the following sections, you will find some general information of importance to bicycle accidents. This information is not designed to substitute a consultation with an experienced attorney. A consultation with a Spanish speaking bicycle accident lawyer in San Diego will allow you to ask specific questions related to your situation and your case.
California Law for Bicyclists
The most common question bicyclists ask themselves is can I ride my bicycle on the sidewalk or do I need to ride on the road? Without a doubt, riding a bicycle on sidewalks is safer than riding on roads with traffic. However, it is not legal to ride a bicycle on every sidewalk you might come across. In San Diego, riding on sidewalks is allowed except in business districts. In nearby cities—like Carlsbad, El Cajon, Vista, and Poway—riding on sidewalks is forbidden at all times. Although cities decide whether to allow bicyclists to ride on sidewalks, the state regulates the laws to which bicyclists are subjected. Sections 21200 through 21212 of California’s Vehicle Code outline the state’s bicycle laws. The laws are summarized below for your convenience:
- Bicyclists have all the rights and are subject to all requirements pertinent to drivers of vehicles.
- Bicyclists cannot ride under the influence of drugs or alcohol.
- Bicycles must be equipped with brakes, leveled handlebars, lights, reflectors, and seats.
- Bicyclists must ride as close to the curb as possible when riding at speeds slower than traffic. Exceptions are made when the bicyclists are passing, turning, or avoiding hazards on the road.
- Bicyclists cannot carry packages that do not allow at least one hand from being on the handlebars.
- Bicyclists cannot park their bicycles anywhere where pedestrian access might be blocked.
For more information or a more thorough explanation of California’s bicycle laws, contact a San Diego bike accident attorney that speaks Spanish. Besides having to follow these laws, bicyclists must exercise a duty of care to prevent accidents. The following section provides information on the duty of care of bicyclists and drivers.
Duty of Care—Drivers and Bicyclists
Many bicyclists believe that they can drive recklessly because it is every driver’s responsibility to be alert and avoid accidents. Likewise, many drivers believe that they should drive with no added care when bicyclists are present because bicyclists should be cautious while sharing the road with other vehicles. Who is correct? Neither bicyclists nor drivers have the sole responsibility of preventing harm. In fact, there is a shared responsibility—or duty of care. Duty of care is a legal obligation that requires a party take reasonable care while doing anything that might cause harm to another party.
Drivers have a duty of care to everyone on the road—other drivers, pedestrians, and bicyclists. Drivers must operate their vehicles in a manner in which other parties are not in danger. In the case of bicyclists, drivers must keep a distance of at least three feet while passing, must yield to bicyclists during turns, and must not obstruct the bike lane. In general, drivers must exercise safe driving to prevent an accident and injury to bicyclists. Bicyclists must also exercise safe riding to prevent accidents and injuries. Just like vehicle drivers, bicyclists must follow all the rules of the road. Additionally, bicyclists must signal before turning, have at least one hand on the handlebar at all times, and have the proper reflective gear on the bicycle.
Why is driver and bicyclist duty of care important? In cases where the bicyclist is exercising his or her duty of care, and the driver is not, the driver is found liable for the accident. In cases where the driver was exercising the proper duty of care, but the bicyclist was not, the bicyclist is found liable. Can both parties be liable? If a driver is breaching the duty of care by speeding and a bicyclist is breaching the duty of care by ignoring traffic signals, both parties have some liability for the accident.
Establishing duty of care is the first aspect of negligence. Negligence consists of four elements: duty, breach, cause, and harm. Since both parties have a duty of care to follow, drivers and bicyclists can be found negligent. To establish negligence, a breach of duty must have directly caused the accident which resulted in the injuries. If the bicyclists who suffered injuries have liability in the accident, he or she is not eligible to receive full compensation. If a lawsuit is filed, both the driver and the bicyclist would be determined to carry a percentage of negligence. The compensation received will depend on these percentages.
For more information on the duty of care and how negligence affects compensation, contact a San Diego attorney that speaks Spanish with experience in bicycle accident lawsuits.
Normandie Law Firm Speaks Spanish
The Spanish speaking community of San Diego needs a Spanish lawyer who can sue for injuries resulting from bicycle accidents. Normandie Law Firm understands the importance of having a San Diego attorney speaking Spanish helping you with your case. After being involved in an accident, the community needs bicycle accident attorneys who speak Spanish. Contact Normandie Law Firm today; our Spanish speaking attorneys have the experience necessary to handle your case.
Normandie Law Firm’s dedication to the community can be seen through our Spanish legal assistance. However, that is not all we do to ensure our clients have the best legal service available. Our law firm offers free consultations and free second opinions. You simply have to call our law firm to schedule an appointment. Most of our staff speaks your language so do not worry about a language barrier. In your free consultation, expect all of your questions to be answered thoroughly by our expert Spanish speaking attorneys. If you already have an attorney, you might benefit from a free second opinion. If you are currently looking for additional information even after speaking with your attorney, you might have an incompetent lawyer that did not relay all the necessary information to you during a consultation. Do not let this incompetence decide the outcome of your case. You must contact Normandie Law Firm as soon as possible for a free second opinion from an experienced attorney who will get your case back on the right track.
Normandie Law Firm offers clients a Zero-Fee guarantee. You will never have to worry about paying any upfront fees. Our law firm is based on contingency; therefore, you will not pay anything until our Spanish speaking lawyers win your case. Contact Normandie Law Firm as soon as possible.
