Why Summertime Might Involve A Serious Child-Related Bicycle Accident Injury
Children will be getting out of school for the summer in the next few months. When they do get out, they typically want to start enjoying their summer vacation right away. For many kids this means enjoying the freedom to ride bikes. Whether they are riding their bicycles to the park or around their neighborhood, children like how freeing it is to feel the sun beating down on their backs and the wind in their hair.
While riding bikes during the warm weather of summer vacation may sound harmless to parents and to children alike, bicycle accidents in Florida are the reason many kids are sent to the hospital with injuries over the summer. In fact, bicycle accidents during summertime increase as more people are riding their bicycles.
Although riding a bicycle can be a healthy activity for a child to participate in, it can also be very dangerous due to moving motor vehicles. Unfortunately, drivers of cars sometimes fail to look out for cyclists —especially smaller children on bicycles. Some reasons drivers fail to see bicycles or yield to cyclists include:
- Driving distracted
- Speeding
- Driving drunk
- Failing to abide by the laws and road rules
- Temporarily blinded by the sunshine
In any event, if a driver fails to see a bicycle or fails to yield to a cyclist, a serious bicycle crash can occur. About 300,000 children visit emergency rooms every year due to bike accidents, and about 10,000 kids need to be hospitalized for their serious injuries. Some of the serious injuries that young bicyclists can suffer from include:
- Broken bones
- Internal injuries
- Facial trauma
- Head trauma
- Traumatic brain injury
- Paralysis
- Spinal cord injury
Because a child on a bicycle can easily be thrown off of the bike when hit by a car, this type of accident can be very serious. While some children may suffer from road rash and fractures that can heal over time, others are affected for life—suffering permanent disabilities.
If your child has suffered any type of injury as a result of a South Florida bicycle accident with a negligent driver, you need to learn about your rights to receiving compensation for your child’s medical expenses, physical therapy, pain and suffering, and other damages. In addition, parents often have to take off time from work to be with their children as they heal. You can also make a financial recovery for your time off work. To find out more call the Law Office of David Benenfeld at 954-677-0155 for a free consultation with a Broward County personal injury lawyer.
