Bicyclists struck by SUVs endure significantly more severe injuries — particularly head trauma — compared to when smaller vehicles strike them. This is according to a new study conducted by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), which looked into a sample of bicycle versus vehicle collisions. This data reportedly contained significantly more detail compared to the average U.S. crash report and helped researchers understand precisely what happens to the average bicyclist’s body when they are struck by a large vehicle, according to Streetsblog.
What the Study Shows
An Abbreviated Injury Scale, which is a medical coding system that grades the severity of harm caused to the body after a trauma, estimates that bicyclists hit by SUVs sustain injuries that are 55% worse than those struck by smaller vehicles. In this scale, injuries coded between zero and one are minor injuries such as superficial skin laceration. Those that are at the top of the scale are the most severe such as a severed aorta.
Bicyclists also endured 63% worse head injuries, which researchers said were due to the fact that SUV crashes were more than twice as likely to cause ground impact injuries. This means bicyclists are more likely to be knocked to the ground and hit their head on the pavement. SUVs were the only vehicles in the sample that actually ran bicyclists over while sedans almost always pushed bicyclists up onto the vehicle’s hood or roof.
That critical difference, researchers say, has to do with the size and shape of the SUV’s front end, which is more likely to strike a vulnerable road user near their center of gravity. This research explains why SUVs are overrepresented in the nation’s crash statistics, even after accounting for the fact that SUVs comprised 57% of new car sales last year and make up a significantly higher percentage of registered vehicles in many states. One recent study showed that SUVs were the striking vehicle in 15% of U.S. crashes with pedestrians and bicyclists since 2009, but were involved in 25% of fatalities.
Seeking Compensation
Injured victims of pedestrian accidents and bicycle accidents can seek compensation from at-fault parties for damages including, but not limited to, medical expenses, lost wages and benefits, hospitalization, rehabilitation, permanent injuries, disabilities, past and future pain and suffering, etc. Families that have lost loved ones in pedestrian accidents can seek compensation for damages such as lost future income, medical and funeral costs, pain and suffering, etc.
Pedestrian accident victims and their families should also remember that they can seek compensation for injuries or losses in collisions even if the victim was not walking in a marked crosswalk and even if the driver involved in collision was not charged. Our law firm recovered the full one million dollar insurance policy for a girl who was not in the crosswalk when a motor vehicle hit her.
Contacting an Experienced Lawyer
If you or a loved one has been injured in a pedestrian accident or bicycle accident, or if you have lost a loved one in an auto accident caused by a negligent (careless) driver, the experienced New York personal injury attorneys at the Law Offices of Kenneth A. Wilhelm can help you better understand your legal rights and options, and also fight hard to recover just compensation for you. s
For over 51 years, our skilled attorneys have established a proven track record of helping injured victims. Our law firm recently recovered $5,600,000 for a bicyclist who was hit by a van, and $2,550,000 for another victim of a truck accident, and $3,000,000 for a pedestrian who was hit by a car, and $2,000,000 in a hit-and-run accident, and the full $1,000,000 insurance policy for a pedestrian who was hit by a truck, and $4,625,000 for a driver who was in a car and was hit by a van, and $2,500,000 for a man who fell through an improperly secured hole.
We also obtained $295,000 out of a $300,000 insurance policy in compensation for the victim of a bicycle dooring accident (where a car door opens into the path of a bicyclist). Also, one of our clients obtained a verdict for $43,940,000 and another of our clients got a verdict for $23,500,000, both in medical malpractice cases.
Please contact us TOLL FREE 24 hours a day, 7 days a week at 1-800-WORK-4-YOU (1-800-967-5496). WE CAN EVEN COME TO YOU. There is no attorneys’ fee unless we recover money for you. We can also help with personal injury, lead poisoning and medical malpractice cases including, brachial plexus palsy (Erb’s palsy) and cerebral palsy cases in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, or Florida. If you have been seriously injured in any of the 50 U.S. states, please call us and we will try to help you with your case.
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1-800-RADIO-LAW, 1-888-WYPADEK, OR 1-800-LAS-LEYES
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Source: https://usa.streetsblog.org/2023/04/13/study-suv-drivers-cause-55-more-injuries-to-bicyclists-they-hit/