Arkansas Bird Scooter Accident Attorneys
While it’s true that renting a scooter to ride around the city is fun, if you are involved in an accident, the fun can turn into serious injuries. At the Law Office of Jason M. Hatfield, we understand your concerns about how to pay the medical bills and other expenses arising out of a scooter crash. We’re here to help you navigate your personal injury accident claim.
Scooters were first introduced into the U.S. more than a century ago, not within recent years. In 1817, Baron Karl von Drais De Sauerbrun debuted a two-wheeled, human-powered vehicle in 1817. dubbed the velocipede, the forerunner of the monowheel, bicycle, tricycle, and scooter. From the original models, the industry grew to produce many of the newer makes and models now available in numerous U.S. cities, and globally.
Although wildly popular, scooter accidents can be the cause of broken shoulders, shattered jaws and teeth, facial lacerations, multiple concussions, nasal fractures, traumatic brain injuries, blunt head trauma, broken bones, broken noses, and fractures, not to mention other injuries of a concerning nature.
Electric Scooter Accident Statistics Nationwide
The widespread reporting across the nation relating to serious injuries sustained in e-scooter accidents was the major reason the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) launched a study in Austin, Texas, in 2019 – a study with conclusions applicable across the nation.
The study found that 98 percent of e-scooter accident injuries happen to riders not wearing helmets. Virtually 50 percent of riders in accidents had a blood alcohol level (BAC) over the legal limit, and 52 percent tested positive for an illicit substance. E-scooter accidents happen at all hours of the day and rarely involve another vehicle.
More studies are focusing on the safety of e-scooters, including one done in 2019 by Consumer Reports indicating there were at least 1,500 e-scooter injuries nationwide in 2018 – 2019.
It is also important to know that electric scooter rideshare companies can be held responsible for serious injuries due to safety failures, poor manufacturing, poor maintenance, and inadequate operating instructions.
This is referred to as negligence, and if it can be proven that a BIRD scooter you were riding on malfunctioned, was not safe, not properly maintained, did not provide a helmet for safety, and did not come with clear instructions for use, you may be able to file a personal injury lawsuit seeking compensation for your injuries.
Common Causes of E-Scooter Injuries
No question that riding an e-scooter can be dangerous to one’s health. There are many reasons for that, including:
- BIRD e-scooters, and those from other companies, are typically left in awkward, unsafe locations, like the middle of the sidewalk or in front of entrances. This is a tripping hazard for pedestrians and other e-scooter riders.
- BIRD e-scooters may not have been properly maintained and regularly inspected, resulting in issues such as sticking accelerators or brake failure. Such malfunctions are quite common in e-scooters.
- According to the CDC study on e-scooter accidents, while relatively rare, being hit by a car or hitting a vehicle can happen while out riding.
- Due to the continuous evolution of e-scooters, their rate of speed and complexity has increased, and along with it, the chance of more serious injuries if they are involved in a crash.
- E-scooter safety has not kept pace with the vehicles rapidly changing abilities or capability to move faster.
- Despite the admonitions to only have one rider on an e-scooter, second riders, and even children, have climbed onto the scooter.
- E-scooter riders rarely wear helmets, and many do not know the local laws outlining where scooters may be ridden or not ridden.
- Currently, there is very little in the way of industry regulation for a scooter-sharing service or put another way, e-scooters are an accident looking for a place to happen.
- Dicey road conditions can play a role in causing an e-scooter accident.
- E-scooter renters do not need any experience riding them, and in some instances, they do not even need a license to operate one.
Why The CDC Study Findings Applicable Nationwide
The study took place over 34 months, ending in February 2020. Its main focus was to evaluate the number and severity of injuries sustained in e-scooter accidents. The study took a look at injuries, diagnosis, surgical resolutions, and E.R. Re-admissions.
During the study, 3,331 e-scooter riders with injuries showed up at a hospital E.R. seeking treatment. The study found a 6-fold hike in such accidents, up from an average of 26.9 injuries per month before the introduction of shared e-scooter services in 2018 to 152.6 injuries each month after the e-scooters hit the streets. The figures work out to approximately 3.27 injuries every day from Monday to Friday during the afternoon.
The most common accidents documented were a rider falling off the e-scooter – 79.1 percent – resulting in 2,637 orthopedic injuries, with 599, or 22.7 percent presenting with fractures. In this group, 296 injured e-scooter riders were admitted to the hospital, with 462 surgeries performed within a week of being admitted.
It was clear to the CDC researchers that once e-scooters were introduced there was a significant increase in injuries sustained in an accident involving them. Furthermore, it indicated that using an e-scooter presented the underestimated risk of extremely serious injuries that impacted Emergency Departments and surgical teams.
Most Common Types of E-Scooter Injuries
The most common injury sustained in the wake of an e-scooter accident is a head injury, according to the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) National Library of Medicine.
- Head Injuries – Virtually 30 percent of e-scooter riders injured while riding are diagnosed with neck and head trauma, including fractures of the neck, skull, and face. Also present were soft tissue injuries, serious dental trauma, concussions, and intracranial hemorrhage. Approximately 8-10 percent of all patients presenting to an E.R. after a crash were diagnosed with major head trauma. A factor often present in these crashes was the high intoxication rate of the injured parties.
- Injured Extremities – Extremity injuries are common and come a close second in patients sustaining scooter-related trauma. Injuries include soft tissue trauma, dislocations, and fractures. Roughly 20–60 percent of those involved in e-scooter crashes have upper or lower extremity dislocations or fractures. Severe injuries require admittance and surgery for hip fractures and open fractures.
- Polytrauma – multiple body traumas are frequent in high-energy impact cases involving e-scooters. They must be assessed for pelvic fracture, solid organ injury, spinal fractures/injuries, rib fractures, and torso trauma.
Injuries sustained in an e-scooter accident can be profoundly serious and life-altering. They often take months or years to heal. We understand your concerns about medical bills and being able to carry on with your life. We understand the anxiety over further surgeries and how they may affect you. At the Law Office of Jason M. Hatfield, we answer all of your questions and outline your legal rights and all options available to you.
Contact the Law Office of Jason M. Hatfield Today
If you were involved in a BIRD e-scooter accident, call the Law Office of Jason M. Hatfield by calling 479-888-4789. Our dedicated team of BIRD e-scooter accident attorneys is here to help.
Call us today for a free initial consultation and to find out what you can expect should you file a personal injury lawsuit. We know you have questions, and we can answer them for you. The Law Office of Jason M. Hatfield is just one quick call away: 479-888-4789.