Traumatic Brain Injuries and Austin Bicycle Accidents

Because you have neither the frame of a motor vehicle nor safety devices like seatbelts or airbags protecting you during a bike ride, your body may absorb the full force of any collision with a car. Unfortunately, this means bicycle wrecks caused by negligent drivers tend to result in severe injuries with long-lasting consequences, such as traumatic brain injuries.

The link between traumatic brain injuries and Austin bicycle accidents is well-established in both medical and legal circles, and recovery in both contexts can be a long and complex process. The compassionate bike crash attorneys at Felix Gonzalez Law can help you maximize the available compensation and obtain the best possible outcome from a lawsuit or settlement demand.

Traumatic Brain Injuries Commonly Resulting From Bike Accidents

The severity of a traumatic brain injury can vary dramatically from case to case and even from person to person, since two people who suffer the same type of trauma to the brain may experience different symptoms. However, most serious head injuries caused by bike accidents in Austin resemble concussions. In these cases, the brain is jostled against the interior of the skull, and its surface is bruised.

More severe impacts may cause more complex trauma, such as the hemorrhaging of blood vessels inside the brain, or diffuse axonal injuries where the brain’s connective nerve fibers are twisted or torn apart. Also possible are hypoxic or anoxic injuries to the brain caused by a lack of oxygenated blood. Because of how immediate and life-threatening these injuries can be, the first priority for anyone who suffers a blow to the head in a bike crash should always be to seek emergency medical attention.

Why Are Bike Helmets Important?

Wearing a safety helmet is one of the simplest and most effective measures that Austin bicycle riders can take to reduce their risk of suffering a traumatic brain injury in a wreck. While state law does not currently require helmet use for bicyclists of any age, wearing one can substantially reduce a rider’s risk of permanent brain injury, as well as give them a better chance of achieving fair financial recovery after a crash.

Court precedent holds that an injured person’s failure to wear a bicycle helmet can result in a judgment of comparative fault. This is where the injured person is deemed partly to blame for their own losses because they suffered a brain injury that helmet use likely could have prevented. As a skilled lawyer can further explain, comparative fault can lead to a court denying some or even all of the compensation the injured person would have been entitled to, in accordance with Texas Civil Practice & Remedies Code §§ 33.001-33.017.

Ask an Austin Attorney About Biking Accidents and Head Trauma

A traumatic brain injury is among the most serious types of harm you can experience from a bike wreck, as even mild cases can interfere with your daily life for weeks or months. Even worse, traumatic brain injuries and Austin bicycle accidents that cause damage often result from the negligence of someone other than the bicyclist who suffered harm.

Fortunately, Felix Gonzalez Law is here to help you identify the people at fault for your injury and hold them accountable for every form of harm they have caused you. Call today to discuss your legal options.