Bird & Lime Scooter Injury Lawsuits

Shared electric scooter programs have been growing in popularity as a greener form of transportation in cities suffering from traffic and air pollution. Electric scooters from companies like Bird and Lime can be found in many cities across the country, with users able to unlock and rent them using a smartphone app.

While it may be appealing to just hop on a rental Bird scooter or Lime scooter for a ride, riders must consider their safety. It is no surprise that these scooters have also been the subject of a number of personal injury lawsuits. There have even been class action lawsuits against Bird and Lime over scooter safety failures.

Users have complained of being injured after losing control of the scooter, being hit by a car, or colliding with another object. Riders can suffer broken bones, concussions, contusions, road rash, sprains, and more. Chicago is no exception.

Chicago’s New Shared E-Scooter Program

Recently, City Hall voted to implement a permanent shared e-scooter program that will allow companies to rent out up to 6,000 e-scooters to the public. Two of the most popular during the pilot programs were Bird and Lime, and they are expected to enter the permanent program as well. So seeing a Bird scooter or a Lime scooter on the side of the road in Chicago will be a common sight.

Riders are legally required to operate electric scooters, including a Bird scooter or Lime scooter, on the road alongside full size automobiles. Naturally, the number of injuries on e-scooters has increased as electric scooter ridership has increased.

In the past four years, electric scooter accidents have caused 190,000 emergency room visits and at least 71 deaths. Experts say these numbers are likely underreported and will continue to rise as this novel method of transportation increases in popularity.

If you have been injured while using a Bird or Lime scooter, you may be entitled to compensation for your medical costs, lost income, and pain and suffering. Our experienced personal injury attorneys can help you understand your legal rights and options when you call for a free case evaluation. You may also use our live chat or email form to find out if you have a valid claim.

An Experienced Lawyer is Ready to Help

With such an increase in electric scooters sharing the road and the subsequent rise in electric scooter accidents comes the need to consider legal options for electric scooter accident victims. An experienced personal injury lawyer can help e-scooter accident victims seek the compensation they need after suffering potentially severe injuries from being struck by another vehicle on the road.

They can also provide help if electric scooter companies themselves share responsibility for an accident. A skilled personal injury attorney can help put forward a Bird scooter injury lawsuit, for example, or even a class action lawsuit if it turns out that a significant flaw in the scooter program or the scooters themselves have caused accidents on a broader scale.

An electric scooter accident lawyer from our law firm is ready to help. Contact The Kryder Law Group, LLC today for a free consultation.

This article discusses e-scooter ridership and accident statistics and what you can do if you are injured while riding an electric scooter.

Are e-scooters safe?

During the summer 2019 pilot, riders took a total of 821,615 trips on shared electric scooters from scooter companies like Bird, Lime, and others. During the cooler fall/winter 2020 pilot, riders took 540,035 e-scooter trips.

According to the city of Chicago’s 2019 and 2020 e-scooter pilot evaluations, the rate of injury on e-scooters remained relatively the same at about 0.2 injuries per 100,000 trips. In 2019, there were 192 injuries that required emergency room treatment, and in 2020, there were 171 injuries that required emergency room treatment.

Fortunately, serious scooter injuries from riding a scooter are rare, but over the past four years, there have been approximately 71 e-scooter related deaths throughout the country, and one university study indicates that 80% of e-scooter fatalities involved automobile collisions.

How do I prove if I was injured by an automobile while operating a shared e-scooter?

In Illinois, you must prove that an automobile driver was negligent in order to recover compensation from the driver’s insurance company.

To prove negligence, plaintiffs must show:

1. the defendant owed a duty of care,
2. the defendant breached that duty of care,
3. the defendant caused injuries, and
4. the plaintiff suffered damages.

Electric scooter riders are required by law to operate on the roads alongside automobiles, so it comes as no surprise that an inattentive or distracted driver might strike a rider. In fact, the majority of fatalities involving scooter-automobile collisions involve vehicles striking the rider from behind.

What can I recover if an automobile negligently struck me while I was operating a shared e-scooter?

Compensation from scooter accident claims are not limited to just financial redress for your medical expenses and property damage. Jurors and insurance companies also account for the pain and suffering you experienced, your loss of the simple pleasures in your life, wages for missed work, and emotional suffering.

Recoverable Damages From a Personal Injury Lawsuit

Medical Bills: Reasonable and necessary medical expenses that are related to the injuries suffered in an accident are compensable. If you are receiving ongoing treatment, you may be compensated for any future medical care as well.

Lost Wages: If you miss work as a result of an accident, you may be compensated for any lost income.

Pain and suffering: The physical discomfort and anguish associated with your injuries.

Loss of a normal life: Also known as hedonic damages, these damages attempt to compensate you for the intangible loss of your enjoyment of the things in life you are unable to do now. For example, if you enjoyed jogging as a hobby but can no longer jog due to a broken leg, you may be compensated because you are no longer able to due to one of your hobbies.

Mental suffering: The emotional toll and anguish associated with your injuries.

How much is my e-scooter injury worth?

Each case is different and depends on the specific circumstances of the accident, the at-fault party, and the severity of the injuries. Some electric scooter accident cases settle for thousands of dollars, while other cases have settled for several million dollars.

Insurance companies evaluate the nature of your injury along with your income, age, and likelihood of prevailing at trial when determining the settlement value.

Factors That Affect Settlement Value

Nature of the Injury: The nature of any injury is a major factor when determining settlement value. Serious injuries such as traumatic brain injuries, paralysis, amputations, and death tend to command high case values.

Medical Expenses: Since medical bills are compensable, cases involving large medical bills have higher values.

Income: High income earners that have missed work may be compensated for their lost wages. Jurors may award future lost wages if claimants are permanently disabled or unable to work for protracted lengths of time.

Age: If a young person is injured and suffered permanent injuries that they must live with for the rest of their life, they may be entitled to higher verdict awards at trial.

Liability: Additionally, a defendant’s insurance company will also consider the likelihood that a jury will rule in favor of the plaintiff before agreeing to settle. If there is clear evidence that their defendant is at fault, they will be much more likely to agree to a larger settlement.

No Limit to Damages

Although some states limit what can be recovered in a wrongful death case, there is no cap on compensatory or punitive damages in Illinois. A jury is only instructed to award damages based on what they believe is reasonable compensation for the injuries suffered. Although unusual, a jury is even free to award more than what a plaintiff might ask for in the lawsuit at trial.

The Kryder Law Group, LLC, Has Many Satisfied Clients

The Kryder Law Group, LLC has many happy and satisfied clients. We have successfully represented people who have been seriously injured in motor vehicle accidents. Our goal is always to obtain the best possible result for our clients including people injured while riding Bird or Lime e-scooters.

We are proud of our results. Some of our past case results include:

• $2.2 million recovered for a person seriously injured in a car wreck
• $2 million recovered for a man struck by a speeding car
• $1.3 million for a truck driver rear-ended and seriously injured

Chicago Scooter Injury Lawyers

If you were injured while operating a Bird or Lime e-scooter, you need to contact an experienced e-scooter injury attorney. The Chicago scooter injury lawyers of The Kryder Law Group, LLC have represented many seriously injured accident victims. Our law firm understands the complex issues involved in these accident cases involving Bird and Lime scooters and we will fight to get you the compensation you deserve.

You could be eligible for compensation in your injury case when you have been injured by someone else’s negligence while riding Bird or Lime scooters.

Call us today for a free case evaluation. We will review your case and answer any questions you have about injury law. If you decide to hire us, we will work on a contingency fee basis, which means we will not get paid unless we recover compensation for you.

Free Consultation

For a free consultation about your Bird or Lime rental e-scooter accident, contact The Kryder Law Group, LLC immediately. One of our professional personal injury lawyers from our firm can evaluate your claim at no cost to you and determine how we can help you receive the greatest compensation possible for the particular circumstances of your Lime or Bird crash.

We will let you know if you are eligible to participate in any pending class action lawsuits involving scooters supplied by Bird or Lime. Put our experience in personal injury law to good use for you and call or use our live chat today.