Clarifications On Can Bicycling Cause Serious Injuries In Daytona Beach?
Bicycling is fun and a great form of exercise, but it’s not as safe as traveling by car. While vehicles have numerous safety features to protect the driver and occupants in case of an accident, bicyclists only have a helmet for protection.
In Florida, bicycle accidents are usually not the cyclist’s fault, but it’s the cyclists who suffer the most serious injuries, some impacting them for the rest of their lives.
The most common injuries that bicyclists will suffer in Daytona Beach accidents include:
- Head trauma. More than 70 percent of all bicycle accidents result in head injuries. Even when wearing a helmet, the impact with the ground can cause bicyclists to suffer temporary problems like concussions, headaches or amnesia to more serious mental impairment, traumatic brain injury or permanent loss of motility.
- Paralysis. If head injuries don’t cause paralysis, landing on the back or neck after a bicycle accident may still result in quadriplegia or paraplegia if the spinal cord is damaged.
- Limb loss. If a bicyclist is caught between objects or run over by a vehicle, the damage may result in amputation. Legs are the most common, but cyclists have also lost fingers, arms and hands as a result of crushing injuries and blood loss.
- Internal damage. Cyclists may walk away from a accident only to discover a few days later that the impact caused internal damage, including internal bleeding or damage to organs.
- Facial injuries. Skin making contact with pavement at high speeds often causes broken bones, abrasions and road rash. With a helmet only protecting a cyclist’s face, accidents can cause a broken nose, facial scarring or lost teeth.
- Death. Hit-and-run collisions involving bicyclists are becoming more and more common. Some drivers think they can get away with hitting a cyclist because they’re not in a car.
As experienced Daytona Beach personal injury attorneys, we have seen far too little respect given to bicyclists on the road. Bicyclists should not suffer painful injuries and endure expensive medical treatments due to someone else’s mistakes.
For more on bicycle safety, see the library of articles by Daytona Beach car accident attorney.
