Riding a motorcycle through Steamboat Springs and the surrounding mountain roads offers unparalleled freedom and stunning scenery. But it also exposes riders to serious risks when other drivers fail to see motorcycles, make dangerous maneuvers, or drive negligently. When these accidents happen, injured riders face not only severe injuries but also insurance companies that are quick to blame motorcyclists for accidents that weren’t their fault.
At Eddington Law, we’ve been fighting for injured Colorado motorcyclists for over 35 years. We understand the prejudice riders face from insurance adjusters and juries, and we know how to combat these unfair biases. Our Steamboat Springs office means we’re familiar with the roads where you ride and the unique challenges of mountain motorcycling. When you’ve been injured by a negligent driver, we’re ready to fight for the compensation you deserve.
If you’ve been hurt in a motorcycle accident in Steamboat Springs, Highway 40, Rabbit Ears Pass, or anywhere in Routt County, don’t let insurance companies minimize your claim or blame you for someone else’s negligence. Contact Eddington Law today.
The Reality of Motorcycle Accidents in Steamboat Springs
Steamboat Springs and Northwest Colorado present unique conditions for motorcyclists—both opportunities and hazards.
Mountain Highway Riding Challenges
Highway 40 through Steamboat and over Rabbit Ears Pass offers some of Colorado’s most scenic riding. But mountain highways also present serious hazards: steep grades, sharp curves, dramatic elevation changes, unpredictable weather, wildlife crossings, and gravel on roadways.
Experienced riders understand these challenges and adjust their riding accordingly. But even the most careful riders can’t protect themselves from negligent drivers who fail to see motorcycles, turn left across riders’ paths, or follow too closely.
Tourist Traffic and Unfamiliar Drivers
Steamboat Springs sees heavy tourist traffic during ski season and summer months. Many visitors from out of state are unfamiliar with mountain driving, don’t watch for motorcycles, and make dangerous maneuvers without checking blind spots or signaling properly.
Rental vehicles, distracted tourists taking photos, and drivers unaccustomed to sharing roads with motorcycles create constant hazards for riders. When these drivers cause accidents, they’re liable for the resulting injuries.
Seasonal Riding Considerations
Colorado’s riding season typically runs from late spring through early fall, with mountain passes like Rabbit Ears often not fully clearing until May or June. During riding season, motorcyclists share roads with increased recreational traffic, construction zones, and varying weather conditions.
Early season and late season riding present additional challenges: lingering snow melt, debris on roads, and sudden weather changes. Riders who venture out during marginal conditions must be especially vigilant, but even careful riding can’t prevent accidents caused by negligent drivers.
The Severity of Motorcycle Accident Injuries
Motorcyclists lack the protection of enclosed vehicles. Even riders wearing full safety gear suffer serious injuries in collisions: road rash, broken bones, head trauma, spinal cord injuries, and often multiple injuries requiring extensive treatment.
The physics of motorcycle accidents are unforgiving. When a 4,000-pound vehicle strikes a 700-pound motorcycle and its rider, the motorcyclist bears the brunt of the impact. Minor accidents that would result in fender benders between cars become life-threatening emergencies for motorcyclists.
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Common Causes of Steamboat Springs Motorcycle Accidents
Understanding how motorcycle accidents happen is essential to proving liability and recovering compensation.
Failure to See Motorcycles
The most common cause of motorcycle accidents is drivers who claim they “didn’t see” the motorcycle. Whether changing lanes, turning left across traffic, pulling out from side streets, or merging onto highways, drivers who fail to check blind spots or look carefully for motorcycles cause devastating collisions.
Motorcycles have the same right to roadway space as cars. Drivers have a legal duty to watch for motorcycles and yield appropriately. “I didn’t see them” is not a defense—it’s an admission of negligence.
Left-Turn Accidents
When drivers turn left across the path of oncoming motorcycles, they often misjudge the motorcycle’s speed or distance, or simply fail to see the rider. These accidents typically occur at intersections when drivers turn left in front of motorcycles that have the right of way.
Left-turn accidents often result in severe injuries because the motorcycle has no time to brake or evade. The turning driver is almost always at fault for failing to yield.
Lane Changes and Merging
Drivers who change lanes or merge without checking blind spots strike motorcycles riding alongside them. Motorcycles can disappear in vehicle blind spots, but drivers have a responsibility to check carefully before changing lanes.
Highway 40’s heavy traffic during tourist season creates frequent lane change accidents. Drivers focused on GPS directions, scenery, or conversations fail to see motorcycles and sideswipe them during lane changes.
Following Too Closely
Motorcycles can stop more quickly than cars in many situations. Drivers who follow motorcycles too closely (“tailgating”) can’t react when riders brake for hazards. Rear-end collisions often throw riders from their bikes, causing serious injuries.
Mountain highways with heavy tourist traffic see frequent tailgating accidents. Drivers impatient with slower-moving vehicles follow too closely, then can’t stop when the motorcycle ahead brakes for curves, wildlife, or other hazards.
Road Hazards
Gravel, oil, potholes, uneven pavement, and debris that pose minor inconveniences to cars can be deadly for motorcyclists. When road authorities fail to maintain roads properly or when spilled cargo creates hazards, motorcyclists face heightened risks.
While riders must watch for hazards, government entities responsible for road maintenance can be held liable when poor road conditions cause accidents. Trucks that spill cargo or leak fluids can also be held responsible.
Impaired and Distracted Driving
Drunk and drugged drivers pose serious threats to all road users, but motorcyclists are particularly vulnerable. Impaired drivers have slower reaction times, impaired judgment, and may not see motorcycles until it’s too late.
Distracted drivers texting, adjusting GPS devices, eating, or otherwise not paying attention cause accidents by failing to see motorcycles or misjudging traffic situations. Colorado law prohibits texting while driving, but violations are common.
Speeding and Reckless Driving
Drivers who speed, drive aggressively, or operate recklessly endanger everyone, especially motorcyclists. On mountain highways where curves, grades, and traffic conditions require careful attention, aggressive driving causes serious accidents.
Tourists unfamiliar with mountain roads may drive too fast for conditions, lose control in curves, or misjudge stopping distances. When their recklessness injures motorcyclists, they must be held accountable.
Dooring Accidents
In Steamboat Springs’ downtown area, parked car occupants who open doors into traffic without checking mirrors can strike passing motorcyclists. These “dooring” accidents throw riders from their bikes and cause serious injuries.
Colorado law requires vehicle occupants to check for traffic before opening doors. Drivers and passengers who door motorcyclists are liable for resulting injuries.
Types of Motorcycle Accident Injuries
Motorcycle accidents typically result in serious, often life-changing injuries.
Road Rash
When riders slide across pavement during accidents, friction burns away skin and tissue. Road rash ranges from minor abrasions to deep wounds requiring skin grafts. Even with proper riding gear, high-speed slides can cause serious road rash.
Severe road rash requires painful debridement (removal of damaged tissue), multiple surgeries, skin grafts, and lengthy healing. Permanent scarring is common.
Fractures and Broken Bones
The impact of motorcycle collisions frequently causes multiple fractures: arms, legs, wrists, ankles, ribs, collarbone, pelvis. Complex fractures may require surgical insertion of plates, rods, or screws, followed by months of physical therapy.
Some fractures result in permanent disability: limited range of motion, chronic pain, arthritis, inability to return to previous employment. The costs of treating serious fractures and their long-term effects can be substantial.
Head and Brain Injuries
Despite helmet use (required in Colorado for riders under 18), motorcycle accidents cause traumatic brain injuries. Concussions, skull fractures, brain bleeding, and permanent brain damage occur when heads strike pavement, vehicles, or other objects.
Brain injuries can cause cognitive impairments, personality changes, memory loss, and disabilities requiring lifetime care. Even “mild” traumatic brain injuries can have lasting effects on quality of life and earning capacity.
Spinal Cord Injuries
The force of motorcycle crashes can damage the spinal cord, causing partial or complete paralysis. Paraplegia (lower body paralysis) or quadriplegia (paralysis of all four limbs) requires extensive medical care, home modifications, mobility equipment, and lifetime attendant care.
Spinal cord injuries are catastrophic, permanently altering every aspect of victims’ lives. The lifetime costs can reach millions of dollars.
Limb Amputations
Severe crush injuries in motorcycle accidents may require amputation of arms or legs. Amputees face enormous challenges: prosthetics, rehabilitation, home and vehicle modifications, lost earning capacity, and profound lifestyle changes.
Internal Injuries
Blunt force trauma can damage internal organs: liver lacerations, ruptured spleens, kidney damage, internal bleeding. These life-threatening injuries require emergency surgery and extended hospitalization.
Psychological Trauma
Beyond physical injuries, motorcycle accident victims often suffer psychological trauma: PTSD, anxiety, depression, fear of riding. These psychological injuries require treatment and can affect quality of life long after physical injuries heal.
The Insurance Company Bias Against Motorcyclists
One of the biggest challenges motorcycle accident victims face is insurance company prejudice against riders.
Stereotypes and Assumptions
Insurance adjusters and defense lawyers often harbor negative stereotypes about motorcyclists: reckless, aggressive, risk-takers who cause their own accidents. These biases affect how claims are evaluated and what settlements are offered.
Even riders with perfect driving records who were clearly not at fault face this prejudice. Insurance companies exploit societal biases to minimize payouts to injured motorcyclists.
Victim Blaming Tactics
Insurance companies eagerly blame motorcyclists for accidents, arguing riders were speeding, not paying attention, driving recklessly, or contributed to their injuries. They scrutinize every aspect of riders’ behavior while minimizing their own insured’s negligence.
These tactics are designed to reduce settlement values by arguing comparative fault. Even when evidence clearly shows the other driver caused the accident, insurance companies manufacture arguments that riders share blame.
Minimizing Injuries
Insurance adjusters commonly claim motorcycle accident injuries aren’t as serious as medical records indicate or argue that injuries were pre-existing. They pressure injured riders to accept lowball settlements before the full extent of injuries becomes clear.
Riders who handle claims without attorneys are particularly vulnerable to these tactics. Insurance companies count on injured riders not understanding their rights or the true value of their claims.
Why You Need an Attorney Who Fights for Riders
At Eddington Law, we combat insurance company bias head-on. We present evidence of the other driver’s negligence, document the full extent of your injuries, and fight against unfair attempts to blame you for accidents you didn’t cause.
We understand the prejudice riders face, and we know how to overcome it. Our track record of success in motorcycle accident cases demonstrates our commitment to protecting riders’ rights.
Colorado Motorcycle Laws and Regulations
Understanding Colorado’s motorcycle laws is important for protecting your rights after an accident.
Helmet Requirements
Colorado requires helmets for riders under 18 years old. Riders 18 and over may choose whether to wear helmets. However, choosing not to wear a helmet does not bar you from recovering compensation if you’re injured by a negligent driver.
Insurance companies often argue that riders without helmets contributed to their injuries. While this argument has some validity for head injuries, it doesn’t affect liability for the accident itself or compensation for other injuries.
Lane Splitting
Lane splitting (riding between lanes of traffic) is illegal in Colorado. Riders who lane split and are injured may face comparative fault arguments reducing their compensation.
However, even if lane splitting contributed to an accident, you can still recover compensation as long as your fault is less than 50%.
Licensing Requirements
Colorado requires motorcycle-specific licenses or endorsements. Riding without proper licensing can affect your ability to recover compensation, though it doesn’t eliminate your rights if another driver’s negligence caused your accident.
Insurance Requirements
Colorado requires minimum liability insurance coverage for all motor vehicles, including motorcycles. However, minimum coverage is often inadequate for serious motorcycle accident injuries.
Many riders carry uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage to protect themselves when at-fault drivers lack adequate insurance. This coverage is essential for protecting yourself financially.
Compensation Available in Motorcycle Accident Cases
Motorcycle accident victims can recover various types of compensation for their injuries and losses.
Economic Damages
Medical Expenses: All costs of treating your injuries: emergency care, hospitalization, surgeries, medications, physical therapy, medical equipment, and future medical care. Motorcycle accident injuries often generate substantial medical bills.
Lost Wages: Compensation for income lost during recovery, including past lost earnings and future lost earning capacity if injuries prevent you from returning to previous employment.
Property Damage: Repair or replacement value of your motorcycle, riding gear, and any other damaged property.
Non-Economic Damages
Pain and Suffering: Compensation for physical pain, emotional distress, and reduced quality of life resulting from your injuries.
Loss of Enjoyment of Life: When injuries prevent you from riding, participating in outdoor activities, or enjoying hobbies, you deserve compensation for these losses.
Disfigurement and Scarring: Permanent scars from road rash or surgical incisions affect your appearance and self-image.
Emotional Distress: PTSD, anxiety, depression, and fear of riding are compensable injuries.
Punitive Damages
In cases involving particularly egregious negligence—such as drunk driving or extreme recklessness—Colorado law allows punitive damages designed to punish wrongdoers and deter similar conduct.
How Eddington Law Handles Motorcycle Accident Cases
Our approach to motorcycle cases is comprehensive, aggressive, and focused on overcoming insurance company bias.
Immediate Investigation
We begin investigating immediately. Our team photographs the accident scene, your motorcycle, and your injuries. We identify and interview witnesses. We obtain police reports and all available evidence before it disappears.
Combating Anti-Rider Bias
We present evidence demonstrating you were riding responsibly, following traffic laws, and doing everything possible to avoid the accident. We challenge insurance company stereotypes with facts.
Documenting Injuries Thoroughly
We work with medical experts who document the full extent of your injuries, explain your treatment and prognosis, and calculate your future medical needs. We ensure your claim includes all injury-related damages.
Establishing Clear Liability
We gather evidence proving the other driver’s negligence: witness statements, accident reconstruction, traffic camera footage, vehicle damage analysis, and expert testimony. We build cases so strong that insurance companies cannot credibly argue you caused the accident.
Calculating Full Damages
We work with economic experts to calculate your total losses: medical expenses, lost income, future care needs, lost earning capacity, and non-economic damages. We ensure your claim reflects the true impact of your injuries.
Aggressive Negotiation and Trial Preparation
We negotiate aggressively for fair settlements but prepare every case for trial. Insurance companies know we’re willing to try cases, which motivates them to offer reasonable settlements rather than risk jury verdicts.
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Why Choose Eddington Law for Your Motorcycle Accident Case
When you’re facing serious injuries and insurance company bias, choosing the right attorney matters.
35+ Years of Colorado Experience
We’ve been fighting for injured Coloradans since 1988. Our decades of experience handling motorcycle accident cases means we understand the challenges riders face and know how to overcome them.
Local Steamboat Springs Office
We’re part of the Steamboat Springs community. We know Highway 40, Rabbit Ears Pass, and the mountain roads where you ride. We understand the unique challenges of mountain motorcycling.
We Fight for Riders’ Rights
We’re passionate about protecting motorcyclists from unfair insurance company tactics. We believe riders deserve the same respect and full compensation as any other accident victim. We fight against prejudice and stereotypes.
Track Record of Success
We’ve recovered substantial compensation for injured motorcyclists throughout Colorado. Our results demonstrate our skill, dedication, and commitment to our clients.
No Fees Unless We Win
We handle motorcycle accident cases on a contingency fee basis. You pay no attorney fees unless we recover compensation for you. You can afford experienced representation without upfront costs.
Personalized Attention
We limit our caseload to provide personalized attention. You’ll work directly with experienced attorneys who care about your recovery and your case. You’re not just a file number.
Frequently Asked Questions
What should I do immediately after a motorcycle accident?
Seek medical attention immediately, even if you don’t feel seriously injured. Adrenaline masks pain, and some injuries aren’t immediately apparent. Call 911 to report the accident. If possible, photograph the scene, vehicles, and your injuries. Get contact information from witnesses. Do not give detailed statements to insurance adjusters before consulting an attorney.
What if I wasn’t wearing a helmet?
If you’re 18 or over, Colorado law doesn’t require helmet use. Not wearing a helmet doesn’t bar you from recovering compensation, though insurance companies may argue it contributed to head injuries. You can still recover full compensation for injuries unaffected by helmet use and partial compensation for head injuries.
What if the other driver’s insurance company says I was at fault?
Insurance companies often blame motorcyclists for accidents caused by their insureds. Don’t accept their fault determination—contact an attorney who will investigate and establish the true facts. Even if you bear some fault, Colorado’s comparative negligence law allows recovery as long as your fault is less than 50%.
How long do I have to file a lawsuit?
Colorado’s statute of limitations for personal injury cases is generally three years from the accident date. However, don’t wait—evidence disappears quickly, and prompt action leads to stronger cases and faster results.
What if I was lane splitting?
Lane splitting is illegal in Colorado, and doing so may constitute comparative fault. However, even if lane splitting contributed to your accident, you can still recover compensation as long as your fault is less than 50%. Your compensation would be reduced by your percentage of fault.
How much is my case worth?
Case value depends on injury severity, medical expenses, lost income, permanent disability, pain and suffering, and other factors. Motorcycle accident cases often involve substantial compensation due to serious injuries. We provide honest case evaluations after reviewing your specific circumstances.
Will my case go to trial?
Most cases settle before trial when insurance companies offer fair compensation. However, we prepare every case for trial, which motivates insurers to settle reasonably. If they won’t, we’re ready to fight for you in court.
Speak With a Motorcycle Injury Attorney Now
Contact Our Steamboat Springs Motorcycle Accident Attorneys Today
If you’ve been injured in a motorcycle accident in Steamboat Springs or anywhere in Northwest Colorado, don’t face insurance company bias alone. You need experienced advocates who fight for riders’ rights and know how to overcome prejudice against motorcyclists.
At Eddington Law, we’ve spent over 35 years fighting for injured Colorado riders. We understand the challenges you face, and we’re ready to fight for the compensation you deserve.
Call us today for your free consultation. No fees unless we win your case.
Don’t let insurance companies blame you for accidents you didn’t cause. Don’t accept lowball settlements that don’t cover your injuries. Contact Eddington Law immediately and let us start fighting for you.
Your recovery is our priority. Your rights are our mission. We’re ready to fight for you.