5 Things You Should Do When You Got Injured While Riding Your Bike

April 05, 2021

A lot of people choose bicycles as their primary way of commuting to work or doing errands, and for good reasons. Bicycles are environmentally friendly, safer than other vehicles, and provide you with a healthy workout.

5 Things You Should Do When You Got Injured While Riding Your Bike

If you get injured while riding your bicycle in public, it can be an overwhelming experience, depending on the injury and psychological damage you may have incurred.

To help you manage such an emergency if it ever comes up, we have created a brief guide that should be easy to follow.

First Aid

Right after the crash, and before doing anything else, you need to carefully inspect your body to see if there are any injuries.

Are you able to feel all your limbs, see protruding bones, or is there any bleeding? This check has to be manual because you might not be feeling pain due to the adrenaline pumping in your veins, so it is important to make sure of the type of injury you have before you attempt to move.

You should never risk moving if you feel that your injury is serious. You can seek help by calling out to bystanders or by calling the police.

Assessing the state of your helmet is a pretty helpful way to know if your head was hit; if it is cracked or bent, there is a chance of having a concussion.

Seek Help

If you have been involved in a crash in New York, where you have been subjected to any type of danger, then it is wise to seek professional help to claim your legal rights.

Injury laws often change from one state to another, therefore, it is essential to seek professional help from seasoned lawyers in your state. After seeking help from a personal injury lawyer in New York, they will help you get the compensation you deserve by telling you what needs to be done.

This compensation is not only to cover medical bills but also to compensate for any physical losses and mental turmoil you may have suffered.

Move to a Safe Place

Whenever you are involved in a bike accident or a crash, it is axiomatic to focus on your safety and health first before anything. If there were no major injuries and you are capable of moving independently, it is better to remove yourself and your bike out of the way to a safe place.

This rule is specifically important for road accidents where ongoing traffic is an issue. To prevent any further damage, moving out of the way will ensure your wellbeing.

Informing the Police and Gathering Evidence

For insurance and legal purposes, both parties involved in the accident should inform the police of the details of the accident by providing a statement. If you are able to, it is wise to gather the information that can help you later in a claim.

You should always have the contact information of the eyewitnesses that were on the scene, in addition to the license plate if it was a car.

Taking photos of the accident can be used as evidence in the case of a claim or a lawsuit, so take a few pictures of your bike, clothes, helmet, and even injury after the accident. Try to write down the exact time the accident took place at.

If the police didn’t come to the scene for any reason, it is vital to go to the police station and make a statement if you can. It is always better to provide the details to the police when they are still fresh in your memory.

Some insurance companies will use that police report as evidence either with or against you, so make sure you nail down as many details as possible. Avoid giving or receiving cash settlements with the other party because that will only hinder the legal process.

Checking the Bike

Wheels are often the most obvious thing to check first after a bike crash. They are relatively easy to diagnose and you can tell if it is possible to use them again right after the crash or not.

Make sure that the tires hold air, no spokes out, and that the brakes are still operational. Before you move on with your bike, ensure that the brake levers and shifters are operational; they are often easy to fix by pushing them back into place.

You may need to check the frame for cracks or bends if it is a carbon frame because it can give out during pedaling.

bike and helmet

Accidents happen, no matter how safe you think you are. Knowing what to do after going through an accident is very important information that you should make sure you have got down to details just in case.

There is no need to panic after getting in a crash as long as you know what you need to do.

_________________________________________________________________________