Bicycle accidents kill nearly 1,000 people in the United States each year and injure over 50,000 each year. Unfortunately, Florida leads the nation in the number of annual bicyclist deaths. The majority of these deaths and bicycle injuries are caused by bike-car collisions. Often after these bike-car collisions, there is a dispute of what the bicycle operator was doing and whether they were negligent and caused the crash. More and more bicyclists are fighting back with small video cameras running as they are riding.
Recently, the New York Times posted an article of a bicyclist how used a camera to record a vehicle striking him. At the time of the crash, the bicyclist could not record the license plate number of the vehicle, but the small video camera on his helmet did. Later, the driver was arrested for failure to stop of an accident.
The new cameras were originally marketed for shooting video and photos while skiing, surfing and doing other sports. However, they are now being used to protect bicyclist in legal actions after a bicycle/car accident. GoPro and Contour make popular models. The idea is catching on as GoPro says sales through bike retailers have nearly doubled so far this year from the same period last year.
Ride safely, but watch out for those who don't drive safely. Protect yourself and your rights after a bicycle accident by using one of these cameras. The best thing that can happen is that the camera never documents an accident, but does show the beauty a cyclist can enjoy on the road.
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Personal Injury Attorney Matthew Noyes represents those injured in bicycle accidents caused by the negligence of car drivers. Attorney Noyes also represents those injured in automobile accident, motorcycle accidents, pedestrian accidents and other types of accidents. His Clearwater personal injury law firm -- Perenich Caulfield Avril Noyes -- has been caring for clients since 1955. As one of the oldest personal injury law firms in Tampa Bay, Mr. Noyes and his office can assist you in your legal needs. Call Attorney Noyes at 727-796-8282 or click here to schedule a free case consultation.
