What is the law as it applies to cyclists?
Almost all states include bicycles in their definition of a vehicle.
Cyclists, therefore, have all the rights and responsibilities of automobile drivers. Therefore, a cyclist, like every other driver on the road, is required to act as a reasonable person and has a duty to use due care under the facts that he or she perceives or should have perceived. Similarly, a bicyclist, like a driver, having the right-of-way at an intersection, has the duty to exercise the degree of care which a reasonably prudent person would use under the circumstances.
A violation of a California state statute does not necessarily mean the bicyclist acted negligently. For example, we have had cases where our client was unable to ride on the shoulder or in a designated bicycle lane and still obtained a recovery because of blocked cars, lane surface debris, etc. We have also argued cases where the cyclist is negligent for failing to obey the right side of the road rule. Most of the times, the reasonableness of a cyclist’s action is left to the jury.
a. Non-Proper Lights
We have repeatedly dealt with the issues of non-proper lights when a driver hits a cyclist from behind at night and improperly functioning headlights on the bike would have or would not have prevented the crash.
We know the issues of when a cyclist does not have appropriate lighting, the cyclist isn’t wearing a helmet, fails to stop or come to a complete stop at a stop or light, or the cyclist is in some portion of the road which the police do not believe is sufficiently far to the right. We have shown repeatedly that the case comes down to competing facts and that our clients’ cyclist facts should prevail.
If you have a cycling case, contact one of our cyclist lawyers at the Law Offices of Nadrich and Cohen immediately. We represent bicyclists throughout California and nationwide.
« Previous Article | Back To Articles | Next Article »
Click Here To Get Started
We are available 7 days a week and will respond
to your inquiry within 24 hours.
