Prince George’s County Motorcycle Helmet Laws
In Maryland, anyone riding a motorcycle in the state is required to wear a helmet when they are riding their motorcycle. The reason for this is that it can protect riders on motorcycles from sustaining serious, catastrophic, or even fatal injuries.
With these laws in mind, the following is information on how not wearing a helmet can impact your injury case and what a Prince George’s County motorcycle accident lawyer can do to help. To learn more or discuss the specifics of your accident call and schedule a free consultation today.
Benefits of Wearing a Helmet
Wearing a helmet during a motorcycle collision would at least lessen the extent of the injuries to the head, skull or brain. A helmet can prevent a fractured skull or damage to your brain, face, or head. Head injuries following a motor cycle collision can have serious and lasting consequences, particularly traumatic brain injuries, slurred speech, impaired cognitive functioning, loss of vision, blurred vision, and seizures. A whole host of problems can be avoided if someone is wearing a motorcycle helmet.
How Wearing a Helmet Can Help Your Case
One of the things that can be used against you if you are claiming you suffered a head, neck, brain injury or loss of functioning is that you did not protect yourself by wearing a helmet. So the defendant can attempt to put the blame on you for your injuries and potentially get the case dismissed.
At the very least they can say you chose not to protect yourself to the fullest extent possible and thus failed to minimize your injuries, because those injuries would have been preventable had you worn a helmet.
How Contributory Negligence Applies to Helmets
Contributory negligence means that if an injured person caused as little as 1% of their accident then they cannot recover for their injuries. It is an antiquated statute that is only followed by four or five states, three of which happen to be Maryland, D.C., and Virginia.
In this instance, because you did not wear your helmet and you suffered injuries to your head, brain or skull, at worst you can be precluded from winning your case based on the argument that you could have prevented your injuries by wearing a helmet. You are in violation of law by not wearing a helmet. At the very least they can argue that your damages should be reduced because your injuries could be prevented, preclude those injuries from your case, and say that you can only collect on injuries from other parts of your body. You will not be able to collect on the injuries to your head because those could have been prevented by wearing a helmet.