Any motor vehicle accident will cause physical trauma, emotional distress and mechanical damage but motorcycle accidents routinely cause true suffering and long-term damage to their victims and should not be underestimated. Motorcyclists ride without barriers between their bodies and the ground; fixed objects and other moving of motor vehicles surrounding them and when something goes awry serious injuries are almost guaranteed to be sustained. The human body is simply not designed to withstand impact at speeds above what we are able to attain on our own without automotive assistance.

Race car drivers can walk away unscathed from devastating collisions, thanks to complex and elaborate safety harnesses and airbag systems that exceed even those present in everyday automobiles. Passengers in cars and trucks are at risk in catastrophic collisions are generally uninjured in minor fender-benders, thanks to seat belts, air bags and the structure of the car surrounding them. Motorcyclists have little to no protection, and when involved in an accident can be permanently injured, severely handicapped or even suffer a fatality from even the most minor, slow-moving mishap.

This is not to say that those injured in other sorts of motor vehicle accidents have not suffered, but merely to illustrate how very devastating an accident can be for motorcycle rider.

Because of their severity, motorcycle accidents generally necessitate more complex litigation and insurance negotiations. The expenses of the accident are typically quite high and include: property damage to the motorcycle, medical costs arising from emergency medical services to the rider, the cost of wages lost as the injured motorcyclist recovers and the expense of long-term rehabilitation, future wages lost and in some cases, permanent assistance for riders who come away from an accident with a disability. If the motorcyclist suffered a brain injury then these expenses can exceed $100,000 in the first year, and nearly that amount in the years following the accident.

Beyond the practical expenses accumulated from a motorcycle collision, there are damages caused by what is legally termed "pain and suffering" and which refer to the loss of life enjoyment, lowered quality of life and emotional and mental distress created by an accident. Although these damages are not as easy to assess, they are recognized by law as a reality in some cases and can be a reimbursed, when appropriate, with the help of a skilled lawyer.

Because of the complexity and scope of the damages caused after suffering a motorcycle accident, legal assistance from a professional motorcycle accident attorney is sure to be necessary after any serious motorcycle collision. An accident lawyer is the only professional flexible enough to negotiate effectively with insurance companies, to realistically and pragmatically total a fair sum for compensation and to amass expert witnesses to support the accident claim legally.