Things to Know about Motorcycle Accident Law in Iowa

On the 4th of May, 2015, the Mason City Globe Gazette reported that forty seven year old Victor Rivera had been sentenced to a total of twenty five years in prison. This is after he resulted in the death of a motorcyclist and further seriously injured the passenger on the same motorcyclist. Under the law in Iowa, the accused in motorcycle accidents have to serve seventy percent of the sentence time before being eligible for parole. This has been reported as merely one of the many motorcycle accidents that are reported in Iowa. According to the Iowa Clinton Herald, a total of 46% of all the accidents that are reported involve a motorcycle. In addition to this, the numbers of deaths that have been direct or indirect results of motorcycle accidents have risen by 57% over the last two years.

Statutory Bodies concerned with Motorcycles

The National Transportation Safety Board is on record in recent news for asking the State of Iowa to enforce a helmet law that is to be mandatory. This has been credited to the astonishing accident statistics that have been doing rounds in recent news outlets. The Mason City Globe contends that the number of fatalities from motorcycle accidents surpasses that in the marine and aviation industries. The most common injuries that result from motorcycle accidents according to the Road Users Association in Iowa involve are related to head trauma and other brain injuries. The most extreme situations lead to the death of the cyclist, the passenger or both as well as other third party road users.

The Iowa Department of Transportation on the 5th of May reported that there were a total of four hundred and twelve traffic accident deaths. Further to these, over twenty six thousand cases involved serious injuries. This number has been projected to keep rising is preventive measures are not taken to ensure that road users and especially road users are educated on the steps for road safety.

Motorcycle Safety Awareness Month

Motorcycle accidents in Iowa have been given the attention they deserve by acknowledging May as the Motorcycle Safety Awareness Month. This has been credited to the fact that at this time the roads are usually clearer following the start of the warm summer weather and this leads to increased motorcyclists on the road. The aim of the awareness is dual. On the one hand, the months seeks to educate all motorcyclists safe and proper road use techniques, while on the other hand to warn other road users of the motorcyclists on the road.

The current position in Iowa affords the motorcycle users the choice of whether to wear a helmet or not to. This is due to the absence of a motorcycle helmet law. The Iowa Auto Accident unit asserted that most of the motorcycle accidents are preventable. This is because the majority of the accidents are usually caused by the negligent and careless acts or omissions of the parties involved at all times.

Recent Cases Reported Involving Motorcycle Accidents

Several news outlets have been reporting on the prevalence that has been overseen concerning motorcycle accidents. In the Dubuque region, a high school pedestrian was killed while crossing the street. The parents have subsequently filed for a wrongful death lawsuit against the motorcyclist who was involved. In another case, a priest was killed on the I-80 just next to Milford. The Iowa motorcycle accident crash that was involved is still under investigations. Further to this, an Iowa motorcycle rider was reported to be seriously injured after a car crossed the double yellow line and hit his bike in a head on collision. This accident is still under investigations by the relevant authorities.

Legal Provisions

The State of Iowa has enacted a number of provisions in a bid to ensure that the individuals responsible for the accidents face the law and that the injured parties are fully compensated for the injuries that are suffered. Further to this, the law seeks to ensure that in the event that in case of death, the families of the deceased parties are adequately compensated for the loss that of their loved ones.

Black Hawk and Delaware Counties have the highest number of motorcycle accidents on a comparative basis in the state of Iowa. While this has often been credited to the comparatively poor state of the roads in the region as compared to the other counties, the precedents that have been taken by the courts of law indicate that negligence on the part of the road users has a big part to play. For instance, the Atlantic News Telegraph has been carrying out an editorial in the last week documenting on the trends that are being witnessed in road usage particularly with a focus on the motorcycles in the State.

Increased community involvement

Part of the solution to tackling the problem of motorcycle accidents is in first acknowledging the problem that is present. To this end, there needs to be increased community involvement in the maintenance of road safety in addition to reporting all cases of road negligence to the relevant authorities for proper action. Part of addressing the problem lies in first laying strategies that are tailor made for the state as opposed to borrowing from other parts of the country. As noted by an editor of the Ames Tribune, the challenge in tackling motorcycle accidents lies in ensuring that there is involvement of all stakeholders as opposed to delegating the mandate to the law enforcing officer and their agencies. Iowa being a state that takes pride in road safety, while lauding the efforts that have so far been undertaken, a lot still needs to be done. This can be cited in the legal inadequacies such as affording the motorcyclists the discretion of choosing whether to have a helmet on or not. This puts the life of the motorcyclist and that of other road users at serious risk in case they are involved in a motorcycle accident.