A Kalamazoo woman was sentenced to ten days in jail for her involvement in a Michigan motorcycle accident that killed two bikers back on January 15, 2009.  The accident occurred in Allegan County and was caused when 25 year old Brooke Fahnddrich allegedely pulled in front of a motorcycle driven by Randy Ray of Ludington, Michigan.  His wife Linda Ray was also on the bike.  Both died in the accident.

Ms. Fahndrich was charged with the misdemeanor of attempted negligent homicide and pled to the offense.  In addition to the criminal charges, she may also face a civil lawsuit brought by family members of the bikers.  This would be a Michigan Wrongful Death lawsuit arising from the motorcycle accident.  Hopefully, Ms. Fahndrich had insurance on her vehicle so that the family can recover some compensation for their tragic loss.

For more information on Michigan motorcycle accidents, request our FREE BOOK “The Ultimate Michigan Motorcycle Accident Handbook” or call us at (800) 606-1717.

A Montana motorcycle accident lawsuit was filed alleging that a defective Dunlop motorcycle tire caused the death of a motorcycle club member and seriously injured his wife in a 2007 motorcycle accident.  The lawsuit alleges that the tire suddenly deflated, causing the biker to lost control of his motorcycle and ejecting both the driver and his passenger wife.  Both were active members of the local Harley Davidson club and the driver was recognized as a biking safety advocate and expert.

Survivor Loss Benefits refer to the benefits that are available to family members of someone who is killed in an accident through their Michigan No Fault insurance policy. No Fault insurance benefits are available when a biker has been injured or killed in an accident involving a car, truck, SUV, or other motor vehicle.

Survivor loss benefits are paid to the spouse or a relative of the motorcyclist who dies in an accident. They typically include a portion of the funeral expenses as well as payments for loss of financial support and loss of household services. The payment for the funeral expenses is disbursed as a one-time payment while the other payments are paid out over a period of time for up to three years. The amount that is paid out changes from year to year due to inflation.

A survivor loss claim requires the family to submit a copy of the death certificate, funeral bill, and proof of loss of financial support and household services. These things should be submitted as quickly as possible after the accident since the No Fault Act and insurance companies have strict deadlines and use people’s failure to meet deadlines as an excuse to deny their claims and save money for their own shareholders. I strongly recommend you consult with an attorney immediately after a fatal accident or any accident to ensure you are submitting all the proper documents and making all the claims you should to get the full amount of benefits you are entitled to.

If you would like more information about your rights after a Michigan motorcycle accident, you can order our FREE book, “The Ultimate Michigan Motorcycle Accident Handbook” by calling our office. We will send it along with other important information.

For more information about Michigan motorcycle accident cases, visit our law firm web site at www.BuckfireLaw.com. If you would like to speak with one of our Michigan Motorcycle accident attorneys about your case, feel free to call us anytime at (800) 606-1717 or simply submit this contact form and we will get back to you quickly.

The increase in motorcycle accident is alarming. Nearly 4000 motorcyclists die in accidents each year, and the number of people injured in motorcycle accidents is close to 67,000. In Michigan, the number of motorcycles involved in crashes between 2006 (3386) and 2007 (3821) has increased by 12.8%.  The mortality rate during that same time rose by 9.1%, while the number of motorcyclists injured rose by 11.8%.  In the last decade, the number of Michigan motorcycle accidents shot up by 45%. The number of accidents that resulted in death in Michigan grew by an alarming 98%.

Unfortunately, motorcycle accidents are too often blamed on motorcyclists not following traffic rules, being inexperienced or disobeying the rules of the road. The truth is that motorcycle accidents are very frequently the result of a mistake made by another motorist, which can injure, maim, or kill even the most experienced motorcyclists.

Because the motorcycle accident victim may be seriously injured after the incident, the biker’s account or version of the accident may never be heard.  The police agency investigating the accident may wrongly blame the biker for the accident.   As a result, a seriously injured biker may go uncompensated for an accident caused by someone else.

My firm understands this problem and we take quick and prompt action to prove that the biker was not at fault in the accident.  When we are hired to represent an injured biker, we immediately obtain all eyewitness statements and have our investigator canvas the area for additional witnesses.  We then take our own statements, which are often different than what the police put in their reports.  We also take extensive photographs of the accident scene and the vehicles involved in the accident.  It is important to take photographs before vehicles are repaired or sent to the salvage yard.

To further determine the actual cause of the accident, we hire the country’s best accident reconstruction experts to recreate the accident.  Measurements of roadways, skid marks, and other pertinent markers are taken.  We even have a specialist that can download the data on the “Black Box” in many newer vehicles to prove the speed of the negligent motorists both before impact and at the time of impact.

As you can see, it is important to find an experienced Michigan motorycle accident lawyer to handle your case immediately after your accident.  The attorney that you choose for your case is often the difference between a great settlement or no settlement at all.  A delay in hiring a lawyer often means lost evidence and lost witnesses, which can prevent the truth from ever making it to the courthouse.  For more information on our firm, visit www.BuckfireLaw.com or call us at (800) 606-1717.