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Texas Motorcycle Accident Attorneys
A Texas Motorcycle Accident Law Firm
A motorcycle gives you no steel cage and no airbag, only the gear on your back. When a distracted driver turns left across your path, the crash that follows is rarely minor. The Texas motorcycle accident attorneys at Goldberg & Loren fight for riders who were doing everything right and still got hurt by someone who never looked twice.
Legally reviewed by Matthew Kotzen
A former insurance-defense trial attorney, Matthew Kotzen spent the early part of his career representing insurance companies before switching sides to fight for injured people. He earned his J.D. from the Walter F. George School of Law at Mercer University and has represented thousands of injury victims. He is a Lifetime Member of Best Attorneys of America, was named to the Top 100 Civil Plaintiff Attorneys by The National Trial Lawyers, and is admitted to the State Bar of Texas.
“I spent years building cases for insurance companies. Now I use that same playbook to make sure they pay what they actually owe.”
Goldberg & Loren Fights for Maximum Compensation
Pay Nothing, Unless We Win
Texas Injury Law at a Glance
| Deadline to file a lawsuit | Two years from the date of the injury. Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 16.003 |
| Fault rule | Modified comparative responsibility ("51% bar"): you recover only if you are 50% or less at fault, and your award is reduced by your share. §§ 33.001, 33.012 |
| Reporting the crash | Notify police immediately when there is injury, death, or a vehicle that cannot be driven away safely. Tex. Transp. Code § 550.026 |
Riders face a problem car drivers never do. From the first phone call, the other side assumes the biker was speeding, weaving, or asking for it, and that bias shapes how the police, the insurer, and even a jury see the case. To talk it through now, call our firm any time at (512) 254-4424. The consultation is free, and you pay nothing unless we win.
How Texas Motorcycle Accident Attorneys Fight the Bias Against Riders
Every motorcycle case starts with an unfair headwind. Insurers count on the stereotype that riders are reckless and use it to shift blame onto the person who got hurt, quietly shrinking the value of a serious claim. Goldberg & Loren attacks that assumption head-on, replacing a lazy stereotype with hard evidence that shows what actually happened on the road.
How We Rebuild the Truth of the Crash
Facts beat assumptions. Our attorneys pull traffic camera footage, gather independent witnesses, and bring in reconstruction experts who calculate real speeds from skid marks and damage. When the evidence shows a rider was riding lawfully, the stereotype falls apart, and the driver’s fault comes into focus.
Why Drivers Fail to See Motorcycles
Most drivers who hit a rider say the same thing: that they never saw the motorcycle. The problem is real, and it comes from how the human brain scans traffic. Drivers look for cars and trucks, so a narrow motorcycle can slip right through their attention.
That does not excuse the driver. A driver turning left has to judge the speed and distance of oncoming traffic, and because a motorcycle is small, drivers routinely misjudge how close and how fast it is. Reconstructing the seconds before impact often shows the rider had the right of way and no time to react.
How a Police Report Can Get a Motorcycle Crash Wrong
The crash report is often the first document an insurer reads, and it does not always get the story right. An officer who arrives after the fact may rely on the driver’s account while the rider is being treated. That early version can wrongly cast the rider as the cause.
We treat the report as a starting point, not the final word, and when the physical evidence contradicts it, we build the record that sets the story straight.
What Texas Motorcycle Helmet Laws Mean for Your Injury Claim
Few topics cause more confusion for injured riders than the helmet question. People assume that riding without one automatically kills a claim, but Texas law is more nuanced than that, and understanding the rule strips away much of the advantage insurers try to gain from it.
Who Texas Law Requires to Wear a Helmet
Under Texas Transportation Code Chapter 661, motorcycle operators and passengers must wear a helmet. Riders 21 and older can ride without one only if they completed an approved safety course or carry health insurance that covers motorcycle injuries. Anyone under 21 must always wear a helmet, with no exception.
Whether Riding Without a Helmet Hurts Your Case
If you were legally allowed to ride without a helmet, that choice should not be used to gut your claim. A driver who caused the crash is still responsible for the injuries, and a lawful rider does not forfeit the right to recover simply for exercising an exemption the state grants. Adjusters still try to blame a helmetless rider even for a broken leg a helmet could never have prevented, so we tie each injury to the crash itself, not to gear.
How Reconstruction Experts Prove a Rider's Speed
When an insurer claims a rider was flying down the road, math settles the argument. Accident reconstruction experts calculate real speeds from the physical evidence, and those numbers are hard to dispute. The length of a skid, the crush pattern on both vehicles, and the distance a rider was thrown all point to a speed, and more often than not the data lands far below the reckless number the insurer floated.
Why Officers Cannot Stop You Just to Check a Helmet
Texas law bars police from stopping or detaining a rider solely to determine whether the rider is exempt from the helmet requirement (Tex. Transp. Code § 661.003(c-1)). That rule protects riders who are legally allowed to ride without one, and it undercuts any attempt to paint an exempt rider as a lawbreaker after a crash.
Why Texas Motorcycle Crashes Leave Riders Catastrophically Hurt
The math of a motorcycle crash is unforgiving. A rider has nothing between his body and the pavement, so even a moderate speed collision can cause devastating harm, and injuries that a car occupant might avoid entirely can end a rider’s career or life. Because the harm runs so deep, our attorneys document every injury in full. After serious Texas motorcycle wrecks, riders commonly suffer the following.
- Severe road rash that requires skin grafts and leaves permanent scars
- Traumatic brain injuries, even when a helmet was worn
- Spinal cord damage and paralysis
- Broken bones in the legs, wrists, and pelvis
- Internal organ damage from the force of impact
- Amputation of a limb caught in the crash
Each of these injuries carries its own long recovery and its own price, and a fair claim has to account for all of them. Road rash sounds minor and rarely is; when skin meets asphalt at speed the result can be deep wounds that need surgery, grafts, and months of care, leaving permanent scars that Texas law lets riders recover for on top of the medical bills. A hard landing can injure the brain and spine even when a rider follows every rule, stealing memory, mobility, and the ability to work.
Recovery rarely ends when the casts come off; riders often face months of physical therapy and repeat surgeries, and a brain injury can leave someone looking fine within weeks yet unable to hold the job he had before.
Documenting that hidden loss takes medical records, expert testimony, and statements from the people who see the rider every day, because a claim that ignores this long arc leaves a rider paying for the crash for years.
How Texas Motorcycle Accident Attorneys Prove the Driver Was at Fault
Most motorcycle crashes come down to a driver who did not see the rider or did not bother to look. Proving that is the heart of the case, so we build fault on evidence a jury can see and trust.
Evidence That Shows the Driver Never Looked
The single most common motorcycle crash happens when a car turns left in front of an oncoming rider, followed closely by lane change wrecks where a driver merges into a motorcycle in a blind spot. In both, the driver’s duty to yield or check the lane was ignored. Damage angles, resting positions, and the point of impact reveal who entered whose lane, and a nearby dashcam or doorbell camera can capture the driver drifting across the line. We gather that proof quickly, before footage is erased and vehicles are repaired.
Comparative Fault and How Insurers Use It Against Riders
Texas lets an insurer reduce a payout by the injured person’s share of fault, and bar recovery entirely once that share passes 50%. Against riders, insurers push hard to inflate that percentage, because every point of blame they pin on you comes straight out of your recovery. We fight that battle with crash data, witness accounts, and reconstruction, and winning it can be worth as much as proving the injuries themselves.
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What Your Texas Motorcycle Accident Claim Can Recover
Riders often worry that the same bias that blames them will also shortchange them. A well built claim pushes back by proving every category of loss with evidence, so the value grows from what the crash actually cost, not from what an adjuster wants to admit. We pursue the full range of damages Texas law allows.
Under Texas law your claim can cover:
- Medical costs and future care, the emergency care, surgeries, and rehabilitation a serious crash demands, plus the treatment still ahead. A rider facing repeated skin graft procedures has a future cost that belongs in the claim from the start.
- Lost income and earning power, not only time off work but reduced earning capacity when an injury keeps a rider from returning to the same job. A welder who loses fine motor control in a hand has lost far more than a few weeks of pay.
- Scarring and disfigurement, real harms with real value beyond the medical cost of treating them, covering the lasting physical and emotional effect.
- Property damage, the repair or replacement of the bike along with custom gear and equipment damaged in the crash, costs riders often forget until a lawyer includes them.
How Protective Gear Affects Your Texas Claim
Gear saves lives, and it can also become a talking point for the insurer. A rider in full gear who still suffered serious injuries shows just how violent the crash was. A rider in less gear is not barred from recovering, because the driver who caused the crash still caused the harm. When an insurer tries to shift the story to gear, that move usually signals how weak its position on fault really is.
Types of Texas Motorcycle Accident Cases Our Attorneys Handle
Motorcycle crashes come in distinct patterns, and each one calls for a different proof strategy. Our firm handles the full range across Texas roads:
- Left-turn collisions, which turn on the turning driver’s failure to yield. The evidence usually favors the rider once the impact point is mapped, and speed and timing become the battleground where reconstruction experts earn their keep.
- Lane change and blind spot crashes, where a driver who merges into a rider claims he never saw the bike. Proving the rider was lawfully in the lane shifts responsibility back where it belongs.
- Uninsured and underinsured driver claims, where the at-fault driver has little or no coverage and a rider’s own uninsured motorist policy can step in. These claims pit a rider against his own insurer, and having a lawyer keeps that company honest.
- Road hazard and defect claims, where the danger is the road itself, from a deep pothole to debris left in a lane. When a government body or contractor created an unreasonable hazard, that party may share the blame, and these claims come with strict notice deadlines that a lawyer tracks closely.
- Fatal crash claims, where a crash takes a rider’s life and the family can pursue a wrongful death claim for their loss. We handle these with the care the family deserves and the resolve the fight requires.
How Our Attorneys Handle the Insurance Company
The insurer is a business protecting its money, and a friendly first call does not change that. We present every rider’s claim as one built for trial, backed by evidence the company cannot brush aside, and that posture changes how seriously the adjuster treats the demand.
Why the First Offer Comes In Low
The opening number is designed to look helpful while paying far less than the claim is worth. Insurers count on an injured rider taking quick cash before the full injuries are known, and signing that release ends the claim even if surgery follows a month later, which is why a review before you sign matters so much.
Most rider claims settle, but some need the push of a lawsuit, and filing opens the door to sworn testimony and evidence the insurer cannot dodge.
Why Riders Across Texas Choose Goldberg and Loren Motorcycle Accident Attorneys
Choosing the right firm matters most when the deck is stacked against you, and for riders it usually is. Our attorneys bring decades of experience across personal injury and motor vehicle claims, which means we have seen the tactics used against riders and know how to answer them.
We work on a contingency fee, so you owe no attorney fees unless we win, and we advance the cost of building your case. A crash can happen on a Saturday ride or a late night commute, so you can reach our legal team any time, day or night.
Texas Motorcycle Accident Questions Riders Ask an Attorney
Before hiring anyone, riders tend to ask the same questions. Here are the ones our attorneys hear most.
Texas generally gives you two years from the date of the crash to file a personal injury lawsuit, under Section 16.003 of the Civil Practice and Remedies Code. Because evidence fades fast, the safest move is to talk to a lawyer well before the deadline nears.
They will try, but the law limits how far that goes. If you were legally exempt from the helmet requirement, riding without one does not erase the driver's fault, and we keep the focus on who caused the crash rather than on the gear you chose.
It depends on the severity of your injuries, your losses, and the available insurance, so no honest lawyer promises a number early. Because motorcycle injuries tend to be severe, the claims can be substantial, and a free review is the fastest way to understand your range.
Get medical attention right away, because riders often underestimate injuries in the rush of adrenaline. Photograph the scene, your gear, and both vehicles if you can, and get contact details for any witness. Then call a lawyer before giving the insurer a recorded statement, so nothing you say gets turned against you later.
Get medical attention right away, because riders often underestimate injuries in the rush of adrenaline. Photograph the scene, your gear, and both vehicles if you can, and get contact details for any witness. Then call a lawyer before giving the insurer a recorded statement, so nothing you say gets turned against you later.
When the driver who hit you flees, your own uninsured motorist coverage can step in to pay for your injuries. These claims come with their own notice deadlines, and insurers do not always volunteer that the coverage exists, so a lawyer makes sure you use every policy available to you.
We work on a contingency fee, so you pay nothing up front and no fee at all unless we win. The fee is a percentage of the recovery, agreed to in writing before any work begins. That lets any rider afford strong representation.
It depends on the severity of the injuries and how hard the insurer fights. A clear case may resolve in months, while a serious one can take a year or more. Settling before your injuries are fully understood usually costs a rider money.
How Long Do You Have to Report a Crash in Texas?
Reporting a crash and filing a lawsuit are two very different deadlines, and the reporting one is far shorter. Under Texas law, if anyone is injured or killed, or a vehicle is too damaged to be driven away safely, the drivers involved must notify police immediately, by the quickest means available, not days later (Tex. Transp. Code § 550.026). You also have to stop at the scene, give your name, address, and insurance information, and help anyone who is hurt (§§ 550.021–550.023). Leaving the scene of an injury crash is a serious crime in Texas, not a paperwork issue.
The well-known “ten day” crash-report deadline belongs to the investigating police officer, who must send the official report to the Texas Department of Transportation within ten days when a wreck causes injury, death, or at least $1,000 in property damage (§ 550.062). Your job is to report the crash to police right away, then notify your own insurance company promptly. If you are not sure how to get your report, call us at (512) 254-4424.
Call Goldberg and Loren Texas Motorcycle Accident Attorneys for a Free Consultation
You followed the rules of the road and still got hurt by someone who did not, and you should not also have to fight the assumption that it was somehow your fault. Our Texas injury team will investigate the crash, dismantle the bias against you, and pursue every dollar your injuries are worth while you focus on healing.
You pay nothing unless we win, and the conversation is completely free. Every day you wait lets footage vanish and lets the other side harden its version of events, so the sooner you call, the sooner we can protect your claim.
Call Goldberg & Loren any time at (512) 254-4424 or reach our team through our contact page to start your free consultation today.
Legal Sources & References
The Texas laws described on this page are cited to the official statutes published by the Texas Legislature and were last reviewed on July 31, 2026.
- Statute of limitations (2 years), Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 16.003
- Comparative responsibility & reduction, Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code §§ 33.001, 33.012
- Duty to report a crash, Tex. Transp. Code §§ 550.021–550.026, 550.062
- Texas crash data, Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT)
Goldberg & Loren
211 Ranch Rd 620 S, Suite #230
Lakeway, TX 78734
(512) 254-4424
Riders get blamed for their own wrecks before the facts are even in, and insurers count on that bias to pay less. I make sure injured Texas motorcyclists are treated fairly, prove what really happened, and fight for every dollar the crash cost them. Nothing out of pocket unless we win.