Were You in an Electric Scooter Crash?
Scooter rental companies are going into business across the United States, with more than a hundred cities participating in scooter ridesharing. In active locales, people can download an app that allows them to rent a scooter, leaving it when they reach their destinations. While this is an affordable and convenient way to get around, Nashville is proof that the new wave of rented electric scooters brings a high risk of severe accidents and injuries.
Fatal Scooter Crash Leads to Ban
In mid-May, a 26-year-old man was riding a rented Bird scooter when an SUV collided with him. He died of his life-threatening injuries a few days later, and authorities later determined that the scooter operator had over twice the legal limit of alcohol in his blood at the time of the crash.
Nashville officials had already shown concern regarding how to safely regulate scooter rentals and operation. There was already talk of limiting or shutting down scooter rentals if companies could not comply with safety rules during the summer months. However, in the wake of the most recent scooter-related death, Nashville mayor David Briley announced that all electric scooters that are publicly accessible to rent will be banned from the city.
While the ban seeks to prevent future scooter accidents and injuries, many people already sustained injuries or lost loved ones due to electric scooter accidents. Scooter accidents will also continue to occur outside of the Nashville area. If your life has been affected by a scooter accident, you should discuss your legal options with an experienced personal injury law firm.
Who is Liable for Scooter Accidents?
If you already incurred losses due to a scooter accident in Nashville or anywhere in the state of Tennessee, it is important to identify who was responsible for the accident. If another party was negligent and caused your injuries, that party should be liable for your medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering, and any other losses.
Different parties can cause scooter-related injuries, including:
- Drivers – When drivers share the road with people walking, on bikes, or on electric scooters, they can fail to pay attention, fail to yield, or make other mistakes that can lead them to hit someone.
- Scooter operators – Scooter operators may also cause a crash – whether they crash into a pedestrian, bicyclist, or a motor vehicle. For example, in the fatal accident above, the intoxicated scooter renter drove into the path of the SUV that hit the scooter. Even though the scooter was the smaller vehicle, the operator can still be to blame.
- Scooter companies – Manufacturers may have sold defective and malfunctioning scooters, or rental companies may have failed to maintain scooters before renting them, lead to problems and crashes.
Contact a Nashville Personal Injury Lawyer as Soon as Possible
At Bednarz Law, we want everyone to remain safe no matter what type of transportation mode you choose. If you sustained injuries and losses in an electric scooter crash or another type of accident in or around Nashville, our personal injury attorneys are ready to help. Call 615-256-0100 or contact us online for a free consultation.