For a motorcyclist, the open road represents a unique kind of freedom. But when that freedom is interrupted by an accident, the world can suddenly feel uncertain. If you're reading this, you are likely dealing with the fallout of such an event.
Now, you’re left with a whirlwind of questions and anxieties about your health, your bike, your job, and your future. Your focus should be on one thing: healing. But instead, you are worried about your ability to get the resources you need to truly recover.
Whether your accident was yesterday, last week, or even longer ago, knowing what to do after a motorcycle accident can help protect your well-being and your rights.
Your First and Most Important Priority: Your Health
Nothing matters more than your physical and emotional recovery. The decisions you make about your medical care after a motorcycle accident are not only critical for your health but also form the foundation of any potential injury claim.
Seek a Thorough Medical Evaluation, Even if You Think You’re “Fine”
In the moments following a crash, your body is flooded with adrenaline. This powerful hormone is a survival mechanism that can effectively mask pain and hide the true extent of your injuries. You might have walked away from the scene feeling sore but otherwise okay, only to wake up a day or two later in excruciating pain. This is incredibly common.
Some of the most serious injuries associated with motorcycle accidents have delayed symptoms, including:
- Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBIs) and Concussions: A headache you dismiss as minor could be a sign of a concussion. Other symptoms like dizziness, confusion, nausea, sensitivity to light, or memory issues can appear hours or even days later.
- Internal Bleeding: Damage to internal organs can be life-threatening and may not present immediate, obvious symptoms. Abdominal pain, deep bruising, or dizziness that develops later should be treated as a medical emergency.
- Spinal Cord Injuries: Numbness, tingling, or weakness in your limbs might not be immediately apparent. These can be signs of damage to the vertebrae or spinal cord.
- Soft Tissue Injuries: Whiplash, sprains, and tears in muscles, ligaments, and tendons often worsen over 24-48 hours as inflammation sets in.
The Bottom Line: If you have not yet seen a doctor, make an appointment immediately. If you went to the emergency room, attend all recommended follow-up appointments with your primary care physician or specialists. A comprehensive medical evaluation creates an official record that directly links your injuries to the accident. This documentation is one of the most powerful pieces of evidence you can have.
Follow Your Doctor’s Treatment Plan Religiously
Once you receive a diagnosis and a treatment plan, your job is to follow it to the letter. This may seem obvious, but it’s a point where many injury claims are weakened. Insurance companies will look for any reason to downplay the severity of your injuries.
- Attend every single appointment: This includes all follow-ups, physical therapy sessions, specialist consultations, and imaging appointments.
- Fill all your prescriptions: Keep the receipts for any medications or medical devices (like crutches, a brace, or a sling) you need.
- Adhere to all restrictions: If your doctor tells you not to lift more than 10 pounds, don’t. If you’re ordered to stay off your feet, do it.
If you miss appointments or ignore your doctor's advice, the other driver's insurance company may argue that your injuries weren't as serious as you claim, or worse, that your own actions made your condition worse. Following your treatment plan is not just the best path to recovery; it is also a critical way to protect the validity of your claim.
Preserving the Story: Documenting What Happened
Ideally, in a perfect world, a wealth of evidence would have been collected at the accident scene—photos of the vehicles before they were moved, contact information from every witness, precise measurements from law enforcement. But in the real world, you were likely injured, disoriented, and in no condition to be an accident investigator. Your only job at that moment was to survive.
That does not mean it’s too late to build a strong case. There is still so much you can do now to preserve the crucial details of your accident and its aftermath.
Write Down Everything You Remember
Memories fade and details become fuzzy with time. As soon as you are physically and mentally able, sit down and write or type out everything you can recall about the accident. Don't worry about making it a perfect narrative; just get the facts down. Consider these prompts:
- The Moments Before: Where were you coming from and where were you going? What was your speed? What were the traffic conditions like?
- The Accident Itself: What did you see, hear, and feel? Describe the sequence of events as you remember them. Where was the other vehicle? What was your position on the road?
- The Immediate Aftermath: Do you remember what anyone said? Did the other driver apologize or say something like, "I didn't see you"? Did you talk to any police officers or paramedics?
- The Scene: What was the weather like? Was the sun in your eyes or the other driver’s? Were there any hazards on the road, like gravel or potholes? What did the intersection or stretch of road look like?
Write down even the smallest details. Something that seems insignificant now could become a critical piece of the puzzle later. This personal account will be an invaluable resource for you and any legal professional you may work with.
Gather Your Own Photographic Evidence
Even if you couldn't take photos at the scene, you can still document key elements.
- Your Injuries: Take clear photos of your bruises, cuts, scrapes, and stitches as they progress and heal. This visual record can be much more impactful than a written description in a medical chart.
- Your Damaged Property: Take detailed pictures of your damaged motorcycle from all angles. Don't forget to photograph your helmet (especially if it has cracks or scrapes), your riding jacket, pants, boots, and gloves. This helps establish the violence of the impact.
- The Scene (If Possible): If it is safe to do so, you or a trusted friend or family member can return to the accident scene to take photos. Look for remaining skid marks, broken glass, or damage to guardrails or signs. Also, take wider shots of the intersection, road signs, and any potential visibility obstructions.
Create a Central File for Everything
Get a folder, a binder, or a box and make it the dedicated home for every single piece of paper related to your accident. Staying organized now will save you immense stress later. This file should include:
- The police report (you can typically request a copy from the law enforcement agency that responded).
- The other driver’s information, if you have it.
- All medical bills, explanation of benefits (EOB) from your health insurance, and hospital records.
- Receipts for prescriptions, over-the-counter medications, and any medical equipment you had to buy.
- Any written correspondence you receive from any insurance company.
- Repair estimates for your motorcycle.
- Records of your missed work, including pay stubs showing your typical earnings.
Use Caution When Speaking to Insurance Adjusters
Shortly after your accident, you will almost certainly be contacted by an insurance adjuster from the other driver’s company. It is vital that you understand their role and proceed with extreme caution.
The Insurance Adjuster Is Not on Your Side
Despite a friendly and concerned tone, the adjuster's primary job is to protect their company's bottom line. Their goal is to resolve your claim for the lowest possible amount. They are highly trained negotiators who handle these calls every day. They may try to:
- Get a Recorded Statement: They will ask to record a conversation with you about the accident. You are not obligated to provide one, and it is strongly recommended that you politely decline until you have spoken with an attorney. They can use your words, taken out of context, against you. A simple "I'm feeling a little better today" can be twisted to mean you are fully recovered. An "I'm sorry it happened" can be misconstrued as an admission of fault.
- Get You to Sign Medical Authorizations: They will send you forms that give them broad access to your entire medical history, not just records related to the accident. They will then search for pre-existing conditions they can use to argue that your pain is not from the crash.
- Offer a Quick, Lowball Settlement: If it's clear their driver was at fault, they may quickly offer you a check for a few thousand dollars. This might seem tempting, especially when bills are piling up. However, these initial offers are almost always far less than what your claim is actually worth and are made before the full extent of your injuries and future medical needs are known. Crucially, if you accept a settlement and sign a release, you forever give up your right to ask for more money for this accident, even if you later discover you need surgery or long-term care.
A safe and simple response to any request from the other driver's insurance company is: "I am focusing on my medical treatment right now and am not prepared to discuss the details of the accident or a settlement at this time."
The Unique Challenges of Motorcycle Accidents in Montana
Riding a motorcycle comes with specific challenges, both on the road and in the legal system. Understanding these can help you appreciate why protecting your rights is so important.
The Unfair Bias Against Riders
A pervasive and unfair stereotype exists that motorcyclists are inherent risk-takers and thrill-seekers. Insurance companies know this and often use it to their advantage, attempting to shift blame onto the rider, even when a car driver is clearly at fault. They might argue you were speeding, weaving through traffic, or were otherwise driving aggressively, with little to no evidence. The common driver excuse, "I just didn't see the motorcycle," is not a valid defense. It is an admission of driver inattention.
Montana’s Comparative Negligence Law
It's also important to understand how blame is officially assigned in Montana. Our state uses a "modified comparative negligence" rule. This means that if you are found to be partially at fault for the accident, your final compensation will be reduced by your percentage of fault. For example, if you are awarded $100,000 in damages but are found to be 20% at fault, you would only receive $80,000.
Here is the critical part: if you are found to be 51% or more at fault for the accident, you are barred from recovering any compensation at all. This makes the insurance company's strategy clear: do everything possible to shift more than half the blame onto you, the rider, so they have to pay nothing. This is why fighting back against unfair accusations of fault is absolutely essential.
Rimrock Law: A Montana Motorcycle Accident Lawyer You Can Trust
Recovering from a motorcycle accident is a marathon, not a sprint. Your days are filled with doctor’s appointments, physical therapy, and the simple, exhausting work of healing. The last thing you should have to deal with is the stress of fighting with an insurance company, deciphering complex legal rules, and worrying if you’re being treated fairly. You have a full-time job right now: getting better.
This is where having a dedicated advocate on your side can make all the difference. While you focus on healing, a legal professional can focus on the fight.
At Rimrock Law, we are Montana’s personal injury lawyers. We live here, we work here, and we understand the unique challenges that accident victims face in our state. Our team of attorneys brings decades of combined experience. We have seen firsthand how insurance companies try to take advantage of injured riders, and we don’t let it happen.
You have been through enough. Let us lift the legal burden from your shoulders. If you or a loved one has been injured in a motorcycle accident in Montana, please contact us today at (406) 606-1650 or through our online form for a free, no-obligation case evaluation. We can help you understand your rights and explore all your options. Let us be your advocates, so you can focus on what truly matters: your recovery.