Yorba Linda Bicycle Accident Attorney

There are many injury accidents involving bicyclists in Yorba Linda each year. It is common for these incidents to involve negligent car drivers or reckless cyclists. There are some accidents, however, that do not result from poor decisions on the part of a car motorist or bicyclist. Some accidents occur as the result of a bicycle defect.

In such cases, an experienced Yorba Linda bicycle accident attorney who has successfully handled product liability cases on behalf of injured victims and their families can help hold the bike manufacturer or the maker of the defective product accountable for the crash.

Bike Accidents Involving Bicycle Defects

Manufacturers can be held accountable for a crash if:

• The bicycle was defectively designed. This means that the design of the bicycle was inherently flawed. This means that something about the design made it prone to an accident. In these types of cases, it is common for every bicycle built with the defective design to pose a risk for riders.
• The bicycle was improperly manufactured. This is when the design of the bicycle is sound, but it was poorly assembled. In these types of cases, only a selection of the bicycles may be potentially dangerous. It is common for bicycle companies to issue a safety recall on a portion of the bikes made at a certain factory over a specific period of time. Perhaps they used the wrong parts or the workers were not properly trained.
• Bicycle parts manufacturers can be held liable if a specific part fails and causes the accident and resulting injuries.

Examples of Bicycle Defects

One way to understand the way a bicycle can be considered defective is to review recent recalls. A bicycle or bicycle part will only be recalled after it is determined that it poses a clear risk to riders. The following list of recalled bicycles were listed in a press release by the CPSC on May 15, 2012:

• Defective chains: 91,000 Bridgeway Bicycles were recalled for a bicycle chain that was prone to breaking. The recall was issued after 11 reports were made involving nine injuries to bicyclists who were unable to retain control after their chain broke.
• Defective seat clamp: 27,000 Trek 2012 FX and District bicycles were recalled after it was determined that they had a bolt that secured the seat saddle clamp to the seat post that could break. At the time of the release, there were four reports of incidents including one injury.
• Defective bicycle frame: 10,500 Fuji Saratoga Women's Bicycles were recalled for having a frame that could break in the center. There were at least 12 reports of bicycle frames breaking resulting in at least two injuries.
• Defective pedals: 4,100 Public Bikes 2010 through 2012 model year bicycles were recalled for pedals that cracked and broke posing a falling hazard.
• Defective brakes: Specialized had to recall 460 bicycles from model year 2012 that had brake component housed within the bicycle's carbon fork that disengaged.
• Defective trailer hitch: 44,000 chariot bicycle trailers were recalled for having mechanisms that can crack and break.
• Defective brake cables: 9,700 Gore Bicycle Brake Cables for Road Bikes were recalled for detaching from Campagnolo style brake levers, resulting in a falling hazard.

If you have been injured because of a bicycle defect or because of someone elses negliegence, please do not hesitate to contact an experienced Yorba Linda bike accident lawyer at our law firm. It is important to preserve the bicycle unaltered so that an expert can thoroughly examine it for defects, malfunctions and other evidence.

Please call us for a free confidential case evaluation.