Las Vegas Scooter Accident Attorney
If you have suffered injuries because of a careless scooter driver in the Greater Las Vegas area, contact Benson & Bingham at (702) 382-9797 for a free consultation to discuss the details of your accident and injuries. Our experienced personal injury attorneys can help you learn about the next steps to take to recover compensation for damages related to your accident and injuries. The skilled team of Las Vegas Scooter Accident Lawyers at Benson & Bingham has advocated for injured accident victims for more than 15 years, including some who suffered injuries in scooter accidents.
The firm’s commitment to professional excellence, seeking justice, and case preparation have led to tens of millions of dollars of damages recovered from settlements and verdicts in favor of our clients.
Of course, our track record of success does not guarantee a particular outcome for your scooter accident case, but it does show that our clients can always count on having attorneys on their side who know how to win, and who will pursue the best outcome for their individual circumstances.
Electric Scooters Popularity
The increasing popularity of electric scooter companies, such as Bird, Lime, and JUMP by Uber, placing their scooters on city streets across the nation has led to an alarming amount of scooter accidents.
In summer 2019, Nevada governor Steve Sisolak signed Assembly Bill 485 giving Nevada’s cities the authority to create their own laws concerning the use of scooters in their city limits. Currently, none of the big scooter-sharing companies have presences in Las Vegas, and likely won’t anytime soon. The city made a statement that it would allow businesses to rent scooters from storefronts, but have not licensed companies that allow users to leave scooters anywhere.
So, Las Vegas visitors and residents are safe from the influx of hundreds of scooters and inexperienced riders, for now. Yet, electric scooters are not the only type of scooter that puts people at risk. Gasoline-powered models that resemble small motorcycles are still a popular form of transportation throughout Las Vegas because of its dry and sunny climate. These types of scooters, sometimes referred to as mopeds or small motorcycles, can also be dangerous.
Electric Scooters versus Fuel-operated Scooters
“Scooters” come in two varieties these days, and they are about as different as you could imagine. It is surprising, in fact, that the word “scooter” is used to refer to them both, since one bears virtually no resemblance to the other.
First, there are electric scooters, which are essentially electric-motor driven versions of what otherwise looks like a kids’ foot-powered scooter. Depending on the design and size of its engine, an electric scooter can travel as fast as 20 miles per hour, which is about as fast as an athletic person in top shape can sprint. In Las Vegas, people who ride electric scooters must comply with the same traffic laws as those who ride bicycles.
The second variety of “scooter” is gas-powered. To be clear, this type of “scooter” looks nothing like a kids’ toy. Instead, it is what is otherwise known as a “moped”; in other words, a smaller, less powerful, version of a motorcycle. For all practical purposes, riders of these “scooters” must follow the same laws as motorcyclists. Riders must have a license to operate on public roads, and they must wear helmets. Depending on the size of the engine, a fuel-operated scooter’s maximum speed can range from 30 miles per hour to 80 miles per hour. Under Nevada law, however, mopeds cannot have an engine larger than 50cc or 1500 watts and a maximum speed of more than 30 miles per hour.
Scooter Accidents Can Cause Severe Injuries
Regardless of the type of “scooter” involved, however, an accident on either of these vehicles can result in serious, sometimes fatal injuries. Scooter riders themselves have little protection from the sidewalk or road in a collision. Additionally, the electric variety of scooters, which often operate on sidewalks, pose a risk to pedestrians.
Some of the more common injuries associated with scooter accidents include:
- Fractures and crushed bones, especially in the face;
- Head traumas, especially when scooter riders aren’t wearing a helmet as required by Nevada law, or a pedestrian’s head strikes the pavement after a collision;
- Back and spinal cord injuries resulting in a lifetime of pain and discomfort and potentially paralysis in some or all of the body; and
- Crushed limbs if a pedestrian or scooter rider gets pinned under a vehicle or between vehicles.
Of course, these are just some of the injuries scooter accidents can cause. No matter how a scooter accident injured you, the lawyers and Benson & Bingham are ready to evaluate your case.
Seeking Compensation After a Las Vegas Scooter Accident
If you have been involved in a scooter accident as a rider, motorist, or pedestrian, caused by someone else’s careless or reckless actions, then Nevada law permits you to take legal action seeking money damages for your injuries and losses, which may include:
- Medical treatment costs such as ambulance, emergency room visit, hospital stay, surgery, X-rays, followup care, and prescription medication;
- Future medical expenses for scooter accident injuries requiring ongoing treatment and care, sometimes including long-term nursing care at a facility;
- Rehabilitation costs such as physical therapist and occupational therapist visits as well as assistive devices like wheelchairs, crutches, canes, and prosthetic devices;
- Pain and suffering;
- Mental anguish;
- Loss of quality of life;
- Loss of consortium with a spouse; and
- Other “non-economic” damages which might apply to your case.
Every case is different and, as we said, there are no guarantees of any particular damages in your case. However, the categories of damages above represent what many accident victims typically have the right to recover.
Contact a Las Vegas Scooter Accident Lawyer Today
Coping with a severe injury can add emotional stress and financial struggles to the already difficult task of healing from a painful injury. You do not deserve to suffer because of someone else’s careless or reckless actions. Instead, you deserve justice, accountability, and compensation.
If you were injured in a scooter accident in the Las Vegas area, call the knowledgeable, hard-working legal team of Las Vegas personal injury lawyers at Benson & Bingham today at (702) 382-9797, or reach out to us online, for a free case evaluation.
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