If you were hit while riding a manual or electric scooter in Miami or anywhere else in South Florida, you need a lawyer.  Trying to get damages out of the driver’s insurance on your own can be difficult, especially if you are unfamiliar with Florida’s car insurance laws.

Our lawyers can help you file claims and negotiate for full damages.  If the drivers and insurance companies refuse to pay, we can take them to court.  We can also help collect evidence, track your medical care and damages, and handle other aspects of your case.

For your free case evaluation, call Graves Injury Law Firm’s scooter accident attorneys today at (305) 614-2767.

What to Do After a Scooter Accident in Miami

After a scooter crash, take these steps:

  • Get yourself to a safe location to avoid being hit by another car
  • Call 911 and report the accident
  • Request an ambulance, and get any treatment you need when the ambulance arrives
  • Go to the hospital
  • If you can stay at the scene of the accident, gather information (driver’s name and contact info, license plate number, make/model/color of the car, witness contact info, etc.)
  • Continue getting any medical care you require
  • Call a lawyer.

Once you get our attorneys on your side, we can take the steps necessary to collect additional evidence, such as finding any security camera footage that might have caught the crash on video.  We can also collect medical records from your treatment, talk to witnesses, and otherwise assemble your case.

How to File a Claim for a Scooter Accident in Miami

There are two general types of claims you may file for your injuries: an insurance claim and a lawsuit.

Insurance Claims

We often start with an insurance claim, because if the insurance company accepts the claim and pays full damages, there is no need to go to trial or even to court at all.  However, this puts the decision of whether or not to pay in the insurance company’s hands, and they often refuse full damages.

We start the claim by contacting the defendant driver’s insurance company and reporting the accident.  Then, they will investigate the case and make a determination.

What Happens Next?

Along the way, you submit things like medical bills and any other proof of damages or evidence of fault that you have.  They will likely return a low-dollar offer to end the case quickly, but you should not accept.

Instead, we will negotiate for a better settlement, and if one cannot be reached, we can turn to a formal lawsuit.

Lawsuits

Once the insurance claim is filed, we can potentially file in court as well.  This puts additional pressure on the insurance company to accept the claim, knowing that if they do not, our scooter accident lawyers will see them in court.

The claim is initially filed by submitting a “complaint” with the court and serving the defendant with a copy.  Their insurance policy then supplies them with a lawyer to defend the case.

What Happens Next?

Our lawyers will negotiate throughout the case while it progresses through the court system.  We will get to the discovery stage, where we can depose witnesses and obtain evidence in the defendant’s control, such as any dash cams or other evidence they might have from their vehicle repairs.

As the case progresses, defendants and their insurance carriers often feel the pressure to settle for a fair value.  If they refuse to offer a fair value, we can take the case all the way to trial.

What Are the Scooter Laws in Florida?

The rules are a bit different depending on the type of scooter.  Which class your vehicle fits into depends on its features, speed, and engine size (or whether it has an engine/motor at all).

Manual/Kick Scooters

Manual scooters you operate by kicking your foot are treated similarly to skateboards and bicycles.  You are typically treated as a pedestrian, unless you are riding on the street like a bicycle, in which case you are treated like a bicycle.  Certain areas might have signs saying you cannot ride these on the sidewalk.

Low-Speed E-Scooters

E-scooters and motor-operated standing scooters limited to 20 mph are typically treated like bicycles, though riders may need to be 16 years or older.  These usually cannot be operated on the sidewalk.  You still need to stop at stop signs and red lights, signal turns, and otherwise follow the rules of the road for bikes and vehicles.

Motor Scooters and Mopeds

Mopeds and similar motor scooters with a seat and a higher max speed may be treated like full-on vehicles, and you need a motorcycle license and registration to ride these.  They must be operated on the streets like any other car or motorcycle would.

FAQs for Scooter Accident Cases in Miami

What Kind of Lawyer Do You Need?

Our lawyers are personal injury attorneys who handle all kinds of cases, including auto accidents.  If you were hit by a car while riding a scooter, we can help.

What Damages Can You Get from a Scooter Accident Case?

The defendant can be made to pay for any damages they caused you, but they typically fall into these areas:

  • Medical bills
  • Lost wages
  • Pain and suffering, along with other “non-economic” damages
  • Any other “economic” damages, such as the scooter damage.

What Evidence Do You Need?

Most cases involve at least your own testimony, the other driver’s testimony, medical bills, medical records, and the defendant’s vehicle repair reports.  This will give us a good idea of what happened, but even better evidence may be available in the form of security video of the crash, dash cam footage, and eyewitness testimony from neutral witnesses.

How Do You Pay for a Lawyer?

Most personal injury lawyers work on a contingency fee basis.  This means that you do not pay us anything unless and until we win your case.  We will not get paid unless we win your case, and then we get paid from a portion of the winnings.

How Long Do You Have to File?

Florida’s statute of limitations for injury cases is 2 years.  If a loved one was killed in a scooter accident, you also have 2 years to file a wrongful death case.

Call Our Scooter Accident Lawyers in Miami Today

For your free case evaluation, call the scooter accident lawyers at Graves Injury Law Firm at (305) 614-2767.