Hit By A Car While Riding My Bike: Do I Have A Case?

If you have been hit by a car while riding your bike in Michigan, you may have a case for recovering pain and suffering compensation and excess medical expenses and lost wages from the at-fault, negligent driver. You may also have a case to recover No-Fault benefits from the responsible auto insurance company.

An experienced bicycle accident attorney can help you protect your legal rights, get the medical care you need to heal and rebuild your life and to fight to obtain the best possible settlement for your bicycle accident.  

Pain and suffering compensation after being hit by a car while riding my bike

If you were hit by a car while riding your bike in Michigan, you may be able to recover compensation for pain and suffering damages as well as excess medical expenses and lost wages and other economic damages from the at-fault driver who crashed into you.

A successful pain and suffering compensation claim includes monetary damages for your injuries and for your pain and suffering from your bicycle crash-related injuries.

Excess medical expenses and excess lost wages cover those medical bills and wages whose amounts exceed what is covered under the applicable auto insurance policy and/or what is guaranteed to injured bicyclists under the No-Fault law. 

Injured passengers have three years after the date of a crash to file their claims for pain and suffering compensation. (MCL 600.5805(2))

Settlement after being hit by a car while riding my bike

The amount of your bicycle accident settlement for pain and suffering compensation – as well as excess medical expenses and lost wages –  will depend on how seriously you are injured, the extent of your disability and time missed from work, and on the extent of liability insurance coverage and personal assets that an at-fault driver has. The amount of liability insurance is often referred to as third party auto insurance, and this will include coverage for a driver who crashes into someone who is riding a bicycle.

Generally, Michigan law requires all Michigan drivers to carry liability insurance coverage with minimum limits of $250,000 and $500,000. However, the law does permit drivers to purchase liability insurance with lower coverage limits of $50,000 and $100,000.

If the vehicle being driven by the at-fault driver who injured you while you were riding your bicycle was an Uber or Lyft or a truck or commercial vehicle, then the liability insurance coverage limits may be higher.

Hit by a hit-and-run driver

If a hit-and-run driver crashes into you while you are riding and if you are covered by “uninsured motorist” insurance, then you can recover from the UM insurer the pain and suffering compensation and economic damages that the driver would have been liable for if he or she had not fled the scene.

The extent of your UM coverage will depend on the terms of your policy, which will specify who the “insured person” is, the circumstances under which a hit-and-run vehicle is considered “uninsured” and the timeframes within which you must notify the police and your auto insurance company of your hit-and-run accident. 

To help protect your legal rights and to ensure that you comply with all of your legal duties, we recommend that you hire an experienced hit and run attorney as soon as possible. 

No-Fault benefits after being hit by a car while riding my bike

After you have been hit by a car while riding your bike in Michigan, you can recover No-Fault PIP benefits which will help pay for your medical bills, lost wages (if your injuries have disabled you from working) and transportation costs for traveling to and from doctor appointments.

No-Fault benefits will also cover household replacement services and attendant care services.

To recover No-Fault benefits you must file an application for No-Fault benefits – which is also called a “written notice of injury” – with the responsible auto insurance company within one (1) year after the crash. (MCL 500.3145(1) and (4)) 

If the application is not filed on time, then the auto insurance company will use this against you to deny your claim and forever refuse to pay any and all of the No-Fault benefits you would have otherwise been entitled to.

What auto insurance company pays my No-Fault benefits after I was hit by a car while riding my bike?

You will recover No-Fault benefits – including medical expenses and lost wages – after you were hit by a car while riding your bike in Michigan from the auto insurance company that is the highest in the No-Fault law’s “priority” list: 

• First, an injured bicyclist will seek benefits from his or her own No-Fault auto insurance company which issued the policy for his or her own personal motor vehicle in which the bicyclist is the named insured. (MCL 500.3114(1); 500.3115)
• Second, an injured bicyclist will seek benefits from the No-Fault auto insurance company that issued a policy to the bicyclist’s spouse on his or her own motor vehicle. (MCL 500.3114(1); 500.3115)
• Third, an injured bicyclist will seek benefits from the No-Fault auto insurance company that issued a policy to a resident relative of the bicyclist on his or her own motor vehicle. (MCL 500.3114(1); 500.3115)
• Fourth, if No-Fault coverage is not available through any of the sources above, then an injured bicyclist will seek benefits through the Michigan Assigned Claims Plan. (MCL 500.3115) The Michigan Assigned Claims Plan assigns companies to handle No-Fault claims for people injured in crashes who have no other source of No-Fault coverage.

Were you hit by a car while riding your bike in Michigan? Call for a free consultation with a Michigan Auto Law bicycle accident attorney

If you were injured after being hit by a car while riding your bike in Michigan and have concerns and questions about your legal rights to pain and suffering compensation, economic damages and auto No-Fault insurance benefits, you can call toll free anytime 24/7 at (800) 968-1001 for a free consultation with one of our experienced bicycle accident attorneys. You can also get help from an experienced No-Fault insurance attorney by visiting our contact page or you can use the chat feature on our website.