Cycling Injury

In Road Cyclist v. Minivan (Tuolumne Co. Sup. Ct.), Jeffrey A. Clause recovered $500,000 on behalf of a 26-year-old bicyclist who sustained multiple fractures when he was struck by an oncoming car in a head-on collision. The injured plaintiff was riding his bicycle with three friends on a rural road. As the group began navigating a downhill right turn the defendant’s car came around the corner at an unsafe speed driving on the wrong side of the road. The injured plaintiff, who was the lead cyclist in the group, did not have sufficient time to avoid the collision and crashed into the side of the defendant’s minivan. He was airlifted by helicopter to a regional trauma center. His injuries included a concussion, hand fractures, internal derangement of his knee and severe road rash. Because the defendant motor vehicle operator had inadequate liability insurance coverage, Jeff identified and made claims upon the family primary and excess uninsured motorist policies which covered the cyclist because he was a relative of the named insured (his father), living in his parents’ home. Of the $500,000 recovered, uninsured motorist coverage paid $450,000 of the settlement.