Flickinger Legal Group
Our personal injury law firm helps people who have been injured due to the negligence of others. We will do everything we can to help injury victims get better in all aspects of your lives.
Columbus Failure To Yield Accident Lawyer
When other motorists fail to yield the right-of-way to motorcycle riders, the result can be catastrophic. Motorcycle collisions frequently leave riders with severe or even fatal injuries, significant medical bills, and an inability to work. While riders can seek compensation for their injuries and losses through auto insurance claims and personal injury lawsuits, they need a skilled attorney with experience handling failure-to-yield cases.
If you were injured in a motorcycle crash caused by another driver’s failure to yield, contact Flickinger Legal Group for a free consultation with a member of our legal team. We’ll meet with you in person or over Zoom to discuss the details of your case, explain your options for seeking compensation, and answer any questions you have.
What Is Failure to Yield?
Failure to yield is when a motorist ignores another vehicle’s, pedestrian’s, or cyclist’s right-of-way, often leading to a collision. In motorcycle accident cases, this typically means a larger vehicle, like a car or truck, cuts in front of a motorcycle rider, causing a crash because the rider isn’t able to react in time.
Right-of-way refers to one party’s right to the road. When a motorcycle has the right-of-way, other vehicles should yield and allow it to pass before entering the lane the motorcycle occupies.
Motorcycle Crash Statistics
Over the past five years, the Ohio State Highway Patrol has handled more than 20,000 motorcycle crashes. There are approximately 4,000 crashes per year, with over 1,000 resulting in injury and over 200 resulting in death.
Additionally, a researcher affiliated with the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) found that other vehicles failing to yield the right-of-way to motorcycle riders when turning left accounted for 26 percent of fatal two-vehicle motorcycle accidents, making it the leading cause of these collisions.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) also examined the causes of two-vehicle fatal motorcycle crashes and found a stark difference between motorcyclists and other motorists who failed to yield the right-of-way. While only 3.6 percent of crashes caused by motorcycle riders involved them failing to yield, 35.2 percent of crashes caused by passenger vehicles involved them failing to yield.
Based on this data, it’s clear how dangerous it is when larger vehicles fail to yield the right-of-way to motorcycles.
Ohio’s Right-of-Way Laws
Ohio has three primary right-of-way laws that your lawyer can use to establish that the other driver involved in the crash failed to yield when they were supposed to.
Right-of-Way at Intersections
When two or more vehicles arrive at an intersection from different streets simultaneously, the vehicle on the left must yield the right-of-way to the vehicle on the right. Aggressive drivers may fail to do this, resulting in a collision with a motorcycle rider who had the right-of-way.
Right-of-Way When Turning Left
When a vehicle is turning left at an intersection, it must yield the right-of-way to any other vehicles approaching the intersection from the opposite direction. Drivers often misjudge the distance and speed of oncoming motorcycles and believe they can execute the turn before the rider reaches the intersection, leading to collisions.
Right-of-Way at Through Highways, Stop Signs, and Yield Signs
When approaching a through highway, stop sign, or yield sign, motorists must yield the right-of-way to vehicles on the through highway or those that do not have a stop or yield sign. Many motorcycle collisions result from vehicles pulling out of side streets in front of them and claiming that the motorcyclist “came out of nowhere.” In reality, the driver did not properly check for oncoming traffic or yield the right-of-way.
Examples of Motorcycle Collisions Caused by Failure to Yield
One of the most common types of failure-to-yield collisions involving motorcycles is when another vehicle turns left in front of them. While left-turning drivers are often on the lookout for vehicles of the same size, they may not be looking for motorcycles, leading them to turn as a motorcycle approaches the intersection.
Similarly, when drivers turn onto major roads from branch streets, they often check to see if a large vehicle is heading their way but may fail to notice a motorcycle. The driver’s failure to notice the motorcycle does not excuse them from liability for the rider’s injuries. Motorists must make sure no vehicles are coming before turning onto a major road.
Merging onto the highway is another failure-to-yield hotspot. Drivers may not check for motorcycles in their mirrors before merging onto the highway, leading to collisions. When merging onto a highway, the vehicles already on the highway have the right-of-way, and merging vehicles must yield to them.
Proving Fault in a Failure to Yield Motorcycle Accident Case
Proving fault in a motorcycle accident caused by a driver’s failure to yield involves collecting various types of evidence. Some of the most common and effective types of evidence used in these cases are:
- Traffic Camera Footage – Traffic, security, and dashboard camera footage that captures the collision are some of the best evidence you can have because it may clearly show that the other driver failed to yield the right-of-way.
- Accident Scene Photographs – Photographs taken from the accident scene showing the vehicles’ resting places, the skid marks on the road, and relevant traffic signs and signals can help establish fault.
- Witness Statements – Eyewitnesses can corroborate your version of events or provide additional information about how the accident occurred, strengthening your case.
- Expert Testimony – Depending on the circumstances of the crash, your lawyer may hire experts, such as crash reconstruction specialists, to testify about how the accident likely occurred.
- Accident Reports – While police accident reports are typically inadmissible as evidence, your lawyer can use them to identify witnesses and other evidence in your case. The officer who responded to the accident scene and wrote the report can also serve as a witness.
Failure to Yield and Comparative Fault
Ohio’s modified comparative fault law could play a role in your motorcycle accident case. This law states that injured parties cannot seek compensation if they are more than 50 percent at fault for the accident that harmed them. And for every percentage point of fault assigned to the injured party, their damages are reduced accordingly.
Let’s say a car makes a left turn in front of you, and you collide with it. In this case, the driver would likely be primarily at fault due to their failure to yield the right-of-way. But if you were speeding, you may be assigned a portion of the fault, such as 20 percent. That means the other driver is only liable for 80 percent of your damages.
It’s crucial that you work with a skilled motorcycle accident lawyer who can maximize your potential compensation by reducing your liability under the state’s comparative fault law.
Contact Our Ohio Motorcycle Accident Lawyers
Did you suffer injuries in an Ohio motorcycle accident caused by another driver’s failure to yield the right-of-way? Contact Flickinger Legal Group for a free consultation with one of our experienced motorcycle accident lawyers to discuss your case and your options for seeking the compensation you need and deserve.
Our lawyers are avid motorcyclists themselves, attending several biker events throughout the state year-round. We’re committed to fighting for riders’ rights and are prepared to travel to meet with you or discuss your case over Zoom.
Failure to Yield FAQs
Riders hurt in Ohio failure-to-yield motorcycle accidents often find themselves with urgent questions about their legal rights and what they should do next.
As avid motorcyclists ourselves, Flickinger Legal Group is well-positioned to help you understand your options and prepare you for the legal process. Check out these answers to some of the questions we hear most often, then reach out to schedule your free consultation.
Motorcyclists often have little time to react when a driver fails to yield the right-of-way, and high-impact crashes often ensue. These collisions can cause serious, sometimes life-altering injuries. Their severity often depends on the speed and impact angle, as well as whether the rider wore protective gear. Common injuries in failure-to-yield motorcycle accidents include:
- Fractures and broken bones
- Traumatic brain injuries, including concussions
- Spinal cord injuries and paralysis
- Road rash and severe skin abrasions
- Severe bruising and lacerations
- Internal organ damage and internal bleeding
- Facial fractures and dental injuries
- Soft tissue injuries such as sprains, strains, and torn ligaments
Most failure-to-yield claims require you to prove another party’s negligence. Negligence is a legal concept that refers to a person’s failure to use reasonable care that results in harm to someone else. In your claim, you must establish that the driver’s actions met the legal definition of negligence by proving four key elements:
- Duty of Care – The driver had a legal responsibility to operate their vehicle safely and obey traffic laws, including yielding the right-of-way when required.
- Breach of Duty – The driver failed to meet that responsibility by not yielding, which violated traffic rules or reasonable driving standards.
- Causation – The driver’s failure to yield directly caused the collision and your resulting injuries.
- Damages – You suffered measurable harm, such as medical bills, lost income, property damage, or pain and suffering, because of the accident.
Your legal team will gather evidence to show each of these elements and strengthen your claim.
Several different parties will attempt to establish fault in your failure-to-yield motorcycle accident case by looking at the facts of the crash and applying the law to determine who is legally responsible.
In the early stages, law enforcement officers responding to the scene will document their findings in a police report and may issue citations if anyone broke Ohio traffic laws. Insurance companies then conduct their own investigations, referring to the police report along with any other evidence to decide how to assign fault for settlement purposes. If your attorney and the insurance company can’t resolve the case through negotiations, the decision shifts to the court system. In that setting, a judge or jury weighs all of the evidence presented during trial and makes a legal determination about responsibility.
Each of these decision-makers may have different perspectives and priorities, but they’ll all base their conclusions on whether the driver met their legal obligation to yield and whether their failure to do so directly caused the accident and your resulting injuries.
Ohio law requires all motorcycle operators and passengers under age 18, as well as those with a temporary permit, to wear a helmet. If you were not legally required to wear one, failing to do so doesn’t automatically prevent you from pursuing a claim. However, the other side may argue that not wearing a helmet contributed to the severity of your injuries. This can affect how the court evaluates your damages under Ohio’s comparative negligence rules. Even if you didn’t wear a helmet, you may still recover compensation if you can prove the other driver’s failure to yield caused the crash.
Bias against motorcyclists can be a concern in failure-to-yield cases. Some drivers, insurance adjusters, opposing counsel, and even jurors may hold stereotypes that riders are reckless or more likely to take risks. Even when the evidence shows the driver was entirely at fault, these assumptions can influence how different parties determine fault and value your losses.
To counteract this, your legal team must present clear, objective evidence demonstrating your safe riding behavior and highlighting the other driver’s failure to yield. In addition to standard evidence, your attorney may also submit records of your riding history. This can be especially persuasive if you have no prior accidents or citations on record. By emphasizing facts rather than perceptions, you can challenge bias, keep the focus on the driver’s actions, and help ensure your claim is judged on what happened, not on unfair assumptions about motorcyclists.
If the driver who hit you doesn’t have insurance, the good news is that you still have options for pursuing compensation. Many motorcyclists carry uninsured motorist (UM) coverage as part of their own insurance policy, which can pay for medical expenses, lost income, and other losses when the responsible driver cannot.
Start by reaching out to an attorney for support, then promptly notify your insurer. Provide evidence of the other driver’s fault, and show that they lacked the required insurance coverage. Your insurer will then investigate the claim, much like an opposing insurance company would.
If you don’t have UM coverage, you may consider suing the at-fault driver directly, although this option may be limited if the driver lacks sufficient personal assets to cover your losses. Your motorcycle accident attorney can review your coverage, gather necessary documentation, and guide you through the claim process to maximize your chances of recovering fair compensation despite the other driver’s lack of insurance.
The value of a failure-to-yield motorcycle accident claim can vary widely from one case to another. There is no fixed formula, because each accident involves unique circumstances, injuries, and financial losses. The final amount depends on a combination of economic and non-economic factors that reflect the impact of the crash on your life, including:
- The type and severity of your injuries
- Your past, ongoing, and anticipated future medical expenses
- Your lost income, including loss of future earning capacity/potential
- Damage to your motorcycle and other personal property
- The extent and nature of your physical and emotional pain and suffering
- The expected duration of your physical recovery, including whether or not you expect to make a full recovery
- The impact of the accident on your overall quality and enjoyment of life
- The allocation of fault under Ohio’s comparative negligence law
Ohio’s statute of limitations for most motorcycle accident injury claims gives you just two years from the date of the crash to initiate legal action. This means you must file a lawsuit within that time or lose the right to pursue compensation in court. Some situations may have shorter or longer deadlines, such as claims involving a government vehicle or a minor.
While two years may seem like a long time, it’s important to act quickly. Important evidence like witness statements and accident scene details may be difficult or even impossible to access after very little time has passed. Even if you think you have plenty of time, it’s best to get the process started right away to protect your rights and strengthen your case.