Motorcycle Accident Claims: Evidence Used to Prove Liability
Discover the evidence that can be used to prove liability in a motorcycle accident claim, including police reports, CCTV footage, witness evidence and criminal convictions.
- Motorcycle Accident Claims: Evidence Used to Prove Liability
Is Motorcycle Accident Evidence Different to Other Road Accidents?
No – the evidence you can rely on to show how your motorcycle accident occurred is largely the same no matter the type of motor vehicle that is involved in the collision.
Complications With Motorcycle Accident Claims
Your motorcycle accident claim will often be more involved than other types of road accidents.
The facts of how the accident occurred may not be so clear. There may be different versions of events and your claim may be disputed.
Why Are Motorcycle Accident Claims Often Disputed?
Unfortunately, a motorcycle accident claim is often not as straight forward as a car accident claim.
Motorbikes Are Less Visible
Your motorbike is not as visible as other larger vehicles. Your presence on the road may have been missed until it was too late or until after the collision had occurred.
Motorcycle Accidents Often Cause Serious Injuries
You may well have suffered severe injuries, including some form of head injury. Head injuries will understandably make your recollection of the accident events a little hazy
Motor Insurers Are More Likely To Dispute A Motorbike Claim
Motor insurers do not like paying out large compensation sums.
Therefore, when your injuries are more significant – third party insurers will often dispute your motorcycle accident claim.
They may argue both who was at fault and how much the your claim is worth).
Conflicting Accounts of the Accident
This can often lead to a difference between your description of the accident and that of the other driver involved.
It is even possible neither of you can describe exactly what happened. Alternatively, the other driver may be deliberately hiding the truth to avoid a liability for your claim.
Determining Liability
Before you can determine who is responsible for your motorcycle accident claim you need to know ways to show how your RTA happened.
What Evidence Can Be Used to Prove a Motorcycle Accident Claim?
There are a number of useful ways that you can show what happened on the day of your road accident, some examples include:
Police Report
The police should attend at motorcycle accident scene (if you have suffered personal injury). They will expect the scene, talk to witnesses and produce a police report containing full details of the events.
The police report will typically include:
- Photos of the scene (including relevant skid marks).
- Details of vehicle damage.
- Witness statements.
Obtaining The Police Report
The police will provide your solicitor with a copy of the police report for a small fee. It will normally have enough information to show how your accident happened.
Criminal Convictions Following the Collision
The police may decide that your motorcycle accident was so bad that a driving offence may have occurred.
You can rely on a conviction of another driver to help show:
- How your accident happened.
- Proof that the person convicted was responsible for causing your accident.
Inspection of the Accident Scene
You can inspect the accident scene yourself if no police accident report was made. Alternatively, you may feel something was missed in the police report.
Notice At The Accident Scene
Put a notice up at the accident scene appealing for witnesses to come forward. The information you gather will assist you in showing how your accident happened.
Accident Reconstruction Reports
An accident reconstruction expert report is rarely something your solicitor can obtain on your behalf, but it useful that you know what it is.
An expert engineer or crash expert can inspect the scene, consider the witness evidence, police report and inspect the vehicle damage. Based upon this information the expert can give an opinion on how the accident happen. This opinion can be used to support your motorcycle accident claim. Both how it happened and who was responsible for it.
CCTV and Dashcam Footage
If there was a CCTV camera close to the crash scene – act quickly. Get a copy of the footage from the council before it is destroyed. If your crash was recorded – this will provide all the information you need.
Alternatively – you may have had a dashcam on your motorcycle or another driver may have caught the accident on their dashcam.
Try to both secure and preserve this evidence as the earliest opportunity. It will no doubt prove vital to help prove liability should it a dispute arise.
Other Evidence Supporting Your Claim
This could include many things depending on the other vehicle concerned.
For example, if a lorry is involved in an accident – it should have a tachograph fitted. The tachograph will record the lorry’s speed throughout the day, including at the time of your collision.
Summary: Proving a Motorcycle Accident Claim
In summary, motorcycle accident claims are frequently disputed because there can be conflicting descriptions of how the collision occurred. Nevertheless, the right evidence can often establish liability. Police reports, witness evidence, CCTV footage, accident scene inspections and expert reports can all play an important role in proving how the accident happened and supporting your claim.
Free Initial Consultation with a Specialist Solicitor
We offer specialist solicitor free telephone or online initial consultations. You can not only ask your own question, but also call a solicitor direct to have your motorcycle accident claim assessed.
