Protecting Your Rights After A Motorcycle Accident
Posted on: 13 November 2017
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A lot can happen in the moments before, during, and after an accident. Split second decisions can save your life, but split second mistakes by others may have lead to the accident in the first place. In many situations, it can be difficult to prove who made the first mistake, and the argument comes down to who was following the law independently to figure out who had the best chance to avert the crisis. To give yourself more legal support, consider a few ways to promote your side of the argument and to make sure any future incidents have much better, safer forms of evidence.
Local Area Evidence Searching
It's your word versus theirs in many cases, and finding witnesses can be hard. Especially in areas with lots of tourist or cross-continental traffic, the people who saw your accident may not be in the area anymore. The future of faster computers and social media--despite a few annoying features--can come in handy here.
Your goal is to figure out who may have seen the accident, and to gather as much actual evidence as possible. Word of mouth from people who can't be personally or professionally linked to you before the accident is good, but picture or video evidence would be better.
Mobile devices such as smartphones and tablet computers are everywhere, and there's a chance that someone could have been recording during or directly after the accident. Dash cams are mounted in more vehicles these days, which can record for days and deliver the evidence needed.
In both cases, you need to act fast. People may be harder to reach as days go by, and information can be deleted. Reach out to social media with details of the accident area, descriptions of the vehicles involved, the approximate time, and ways to contact you and your legal representation.
Local businesses and government buildings may have recorded the incident as well. Check the accident area for any security cameras, traffic cameras, or other surveillance systems within line of sight, and be ready to copy the evidence on anything from recordable CDs and DVDs to SD (secure digital) cards and USB drives.
Dash Cameras Make Legal Defense Easier
Instead of relying on others to record your evidence, this could be a good chance to get a dash camera of your own. Dash cams are fairly affordable if you want just one, and the increasing prices should only happen if you need to increase their power in meaningful ways.
A basic, modern dash cam will record video in 720p, record audio, and save information in an easy to access way. 720p is the lowest resolution for high definition (which, as far as the media industry goes, is the new normal), and SD cards are the same chips used to store information in cameras and smartphones.
With a dashcam, you have a better chance to record your surroundings and get the best view of what happened during an accident. For motorcycles, these cameras can be mounted safely behind the visor, against certain dash compartments, or other areas that aren't likely to be knocked away in most accidents. It's easier in a car or truck, but motorcycle dash cam mounts can be adjusted to last during an accident.
Contact a motorcycle accident attorney to discuss ways to gather evidence, and get their information into your phone for fast evidence sharing.