Over the past 17 years, I’ve settled many Florida bike accident claims.
Below are some of our settlements where a car or truck hit our client while he or she was on a bicycle. These accidents happened in Florida, which is where I’m a bike accident lawyer.
You’ll get inside tips on how I calculated the settlement value in these cases.
After I talk about some of my settlements, I’ll talk about some other attorney’s bike accident settlements.
I also invite you to check out our Florida car accident settlements and Florida truck accident settlements.
$350K Settlement for Bike Rider Hit by Car (2021)
In 2020, Sam (not real name) was riding his bike in South Florida.
At the same time, Joe (not real name) was in his car heading north. Joe was turning to go Eastbound.
While Sam rode his bike westbound in the crosswalk crossing, Joe accidentally hit him with his car.
You can see a crash diagram below:
As a result of the car hitting him, Sam was thrown off his bike.
He broke 3 bones in his ankle.
You can see one of his broken lower leg bones here:
At the hospital, a doctor drilled screws into a plate in Sam’s leg.
You can see a photo that the doctor took during the surgery:
After he left the hospital, Sam searched for a South Florida lawyer who had many bike accident settlements. He found me.
Sam called my office and I gave him a free consultation. Shortly after we spoke, Sam hired me.
I told Sam to take a photo of his incision after the first surgery.
This image shows the raised incision site after surgery:
Below you can see the size of the incision needed for the surgery.
After he left the hospital, Sam searched for a South Florida lawyer who had settled many car accident cases with GEICO. He found me.
Sam called my office and I gave him a free consultation. Shortly after we spoke, Sam hired me.
GEICO insured the driver (and owner) of the car that hit Sam. GEICO assigned adjuster Myrna Rivera to handle the personal injury claim. I asked GECIO to tell me how much insurance was on the driver’s policy. The driver had a $300,000 bodily injury liability policy, and a $1 million dollar umbrella.
My client (and I) were lucky that the GEICO driver had so much coverage. This rarely happens with GEICO. As you will see from my many other GEICO car accident settlements below, many drivers insured with GEICO are underinsured.
We requested the 911 audio call from the county. In the 911 call audio, you can hear Sam at the scene screaming in pain after being hit by GEICO’s insured.
Additionally, in the 911 call the driver (Joe) states that he hit someone on a bike. At some point, I may add the audio from the 911 call here.
Sam went to a few visits with his orthopedic doctor. Due to his complaints of pain and swelling in his ankle, his surgeon decided to remove the plate and screws from his ankle. The doctor did the surgery at the hospital, where Sam spent two days.
You can see the cast that his doctor put on his ankle:
The following photo was taken after Sam’ second surgery.
It again shows the size of the incision and scar.
Sam went to a few more visits to his orthopedic surgeon.
A few months after the 2nd surgery, he went to the hospital complaining of leg swelling.
After the 2nd surgery, the Bike Rider complained of pain in his ankle
Sam still complained of pain in his ankle. His doctor did not know what was causing this pain. He said that the only thing he thought it could be was chronic regional pain syndrome (CRPS). However, the doctor said that he did not have the usual symptoms of CRPS.
Sam’s surgeon stated was not an expert in CRPS. Thus, he referred him to a pain management doctor.
The pain management doctor reviewed a bone scan and said that the results did not show CRPS and his exam was not completely consistent with CRPS. However, Sam showed the doctor photos of his ankle and the doctor said that it was consistent with complex regional pain syndrome.
The pain management doctor referred Sam to doctors who specialized in his CRPS. (I don’t believe that he has since made an appointment with them.)
Sam did not own a car at the time of the accident. He lived with a relative whose PIP insurance paid $10,000.00 to his medical providers.
The total medical billed charges were about $186,000. Most of these billed charges were from the hospital visits. However, this is not that amount that Sam’s Medicaid paid the providers.
Sam had Medicaid, a Medicaid HMO and another temporary assistance program. They paid $5,980 to the hospital and his doctors. And the hospitals and doctors adjusted (reduced) the bills to zero.
In other words, Sam did not owe the hospital or doctors any money. (As you’ll see in a moment, we had to payback Medicaid, Medicaid HMO and the assistance program back from the settlement after I took my lawyer fees and costs.)
GEICO’s First Offer Was Just $100K to Settle the Bike Rider’s Case
GEICO offered $100,000 to settle Sam’s car accident injury claim.
The defense lawyer said that the offer was fair. We told Sam to reject GEICO’s lowball offer.
We negotiated this claim with GEICO. In 2021, GEICO paid us $350,000 to settle Sam’s personal injury claim. Sam wanted to settle it. He did not want to keep his claim open. Whether to settle or not is a client’s choice.
The best part?
Since the settlement, I’ve spoke to Sam a few times and his ankle is doing well.
This chart shows a comparison between GEICO’s first offer and the settlement.
As with most of my serious injury car accident settlements with GEICO, most of the settlement was for pain and suffering.
About 98% of the settlement was for pain and suffering.
This chart that shows the settlement breakdown between medical bills/liens that we had to pay back, and pain and suffering:
The $350,000 settlement was about 59 times the Medicaid lien and other liens that we had to pay back.
Check out the pain and suffering multiplier below:
After my attorney fees and costs, and paying back the Medicaid liens, Sam got $227,196 of the settlement in his pocket.
Take a look:
You can see GEICO’s $300,000 car accident injury settlement check below (redacted):
GEICO also sent us a $50,000 settlement check from the driver’s personal umbrella insurance policy.
You can see the $50,000 GEICO car accident settlement check below (redacted):
An added bonus is that Sam is very happy with the settlement.
Bike Rider Hit By Truck Gets $100K (Face Fracture and Other Injuries)
A 70-year-old woman foreigner (from China) was visiting her daughter in Cooper City. Cooper City is in Broward County, Florida.
The Chinese woman was riding a bicyclist at an intersection in Cooper City.
A pickup truck hit her in the intersection.
You can see the crash diagram here:
USAA insured the pickup truck. She was rushed to the Memorial Regional Hospital in Hollywood, Florida via ambulance. There, doctors surgically put a plate in her face.
After reading good things about my law firm online, the injured woman’s son-in-law contacted my law firm. The injured woman hired us.
GEICO insured her daughter. Since was staying with a relative at the time of the accident, the daughter’s Personal Injury Protection (PIP) paid the hospital $10,000 towards her medical bills.
USAA’s bodily injury insurance limit for the at fault driver was $100,000. USAA paid us the $100,000 very quickly. The at fault driver didn’t have collectible assets.
I got the hospital to agree to reduce its bill from $100,000 to $33,333.33.
Unfortunately, the injured bicyclist’s daughter did not have underinsured (UIM) motorist coverage on her auto insurance policy. Thus, I could not get more money for her.
If the injured woman’s daughter would’ve had undersinsured motorist (UIM) insurance, the settlement would’ve been much bigger.
Unfortunately, if a car hits you while you are on a bike, there is a good chance that the car won’t have insurance. Or it may not have enough insurance to pay for the fair settlement value of your case.
Watch my video on the top 3 ways to lose your bike accident claim:
Now let’s look at another one of my many bicycle accident settlements:
Bicyclist Hit by Car Gets $52,500 for Herniated Disc and Compression Fracture
For a 24-year-old bicycle/bike rider who was cut off by a car that failed to yield the right of way and hit him in Key Biscayne, (Miami-Dade County) Florida. He crashed into the car and landed on his back.
The bike rider had a closed head injury. However, he did not lose consciousness. He also suffered compression fractures from T3-T5.
He also had a small disc protrusion. The bicyclist had uninsured/underinsured motorist (UM/UIM) liability insurance with USAA.
They paid $42,500 to settle the case. A local Miami insurer insured the driver who caused the accident.
Bike Rider Hit By Car Gets $33,000 for Tibial Plateau Fracture
My client, a middle-aged man, was hit by a car while riding his bike. He suffered a tibial plateau fracture. The doctor said that he healed perfectly and did not need any more treatment.
The driver of the car was insured with State Farm Auto Insurance.
You can learn more about State Farm Insurance settlements or lower leg fracture settlements in Florida.
Bicyclist Hit By Car Gets $17,500 for Cuts to Abdomen and Chin
We represented a bicyclist after a car hit her. The diagram is above.
She sustained lacerations to her chin. She received several staples to close up the gash in her skin on her abdominal area.
The police officer did not issue a ticket. He stated that our client (the bike rider) and the other driver were at fault.
Our client was riding her bike on the sidewalk.
State Farm insured the car driver. State Farm said that they believed the bicycle rider was responsible for 30% of the accident.
$10,000 Settlement for Bike Rider Who Was Run Off the Rode (Wrist Fracture)
My client was riding a bicycle on Biscayne Blvd between 119th and 125 street in North Miami, Florida. A driver ran him off the road.
He made a claim against his own uninsured motorist (UM) insurance with GEICO. Following the accident, the bike rider experienced pain in his arm and was confused.
When the pain did not subside, he went to Physician’s Associates, P.A. and saw Dr. Fox who took x-rays. He was examined and evaluated him. He determined that the injured bicyclist was “totally disabled” due to a fracture of his right wrist and fracture of his left elbow.
The claimant then treated with a chiropractor for about 4 visits. The full value of this case was worth much more than the $10,000 UM limits that were available.
This is yet another example of a person injured in an auto accident who could have got more money if he had higher uninsured motorist limits.
$25 Million Verdict for Student Hit and Killed by Truck
This is not my case. 20-year-old Abigail was riding her bike in Gainesville, Florida. A commercial truck hit her.
Abigail’s parents hired a wrongful death lawyer. They sued the truck company.
The truck company (WCA of Florida) blamed the bike rider for causing the accident. WCA also blamed the bicyclist for being on cocaine or alcohol at the time of the accident.
A Gainesville jury awarded $12.5 million to each parent for the death of their 20 year old daughter (Abigail). The $12.5 million was for each parent’s pain and suffering.
The total verdict was for $25 Million. Some of the biggest verdicts (and settlements) are for accidents where a “minor” child is killed. This lawsuit is just one example.
We want to represent you if someone’s carelessness in a Florida accident caused your injury, or if a family member was killed. If you live in Florida but were injured in another state we may also be able to represent you.
Call us now at (888) 594-3577 to Get a Free Consultation. There are No Fees or Costs Unless We Recover Money. Call us 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and 365 days a year.
We speak Spanish. We invite you to learn more about us.