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The Law Offices of Asher Hoffman represents riders injured in motorcycle accidents in Santa Monica and throughout the Westside. A motorcycle crash can leave a rider facing emergency care, surgery, hardware placement, road rash, missed work, a damaged bike, and an insurance company that tries to blame the rider before the evidence is reviewed.
Santa Monica motorcycle cases need fast investigation. Traffic, tourism, beach access, delivery vehicles, rideshare pickups, buses, cyclists, scooters, pedestrians, and tight parking conditions all shape how crashes happen here. Video from nearby businesses, hotels, apartment buildings, buses, parking structures, and traffic cameras may be overwritten quickly. The sooner that evidence is preserved, the stronger the claim can be.
If you were injured in a Santa Monica motorcycle accident, the first consultation is free. There is no fee unless we recover compensation for you.
Santa Monica has a dense mix of local drivers, commuters, tourists, commercial fleets, delivery vans, rideshare vehicles, beach traffic, cyclists, pedestrians, and scooter riders. Riders often move through corridors where traffic changes quickly, including Lincoln Boulevard, Wilshire Boulevard, Santa Monica Boulevard, Pico Boulevard, Olympic Boulevard, Ocean Avenue, Main Street, Montana Avenue, Pacific Coast Highway, and the I-10 ramps.
Drivers often say they did not see the rider. That explanation does not make the crash unavoidable. Many motorcycle cases involve unsafe left turns, sudden lane changes, opening car doors, distracted driving, speeding, tailgating, unsafe merges, failure to yield, rideshare drop-offs, delivery drivers stopping suddenly, or drivers turning across a rider’s path near retail, hotel, restaurant, and parking zones.
Motorcycle claims also attract unfair bias. Adjusters may assume the rider was speeding, lane splitting unsafely, or taking an unnecessary risk. We push back with physical evidence, witness statements, vehicle damage, helmet and gear evidence, roadway layout, medical records, and the rules that applied to the driver who caused the crash.
Every crash depends on the facts, but Santa Monica motorcycle accident claims often involve these local patterns:
Location matters because it can point to cameras, witnesses, business records, traffic signal timing, roadway conditions, and public entities that may need notice within a short deadline.
Our firm handles motorcycle cases involving left-turn collisions, lane-change crashes, rear-end impacts, dooring, sideswipes, hit-and-run drivers, uninsured drivers, rideshare vehicles, delivery vans, box trucks, buses, unsafe road conditions, parking lot crashes, driveway exits, and fatal motorcycle accidents. We represent riders, passengers, and families who lost a loved one in a preventable crash.
Common injuries include traumatic brain injuries, concussions, fractures, spinal injuries, disc herniations, shoulder and knee injuries, ligament tears, nerve damage, internal injuries, burns, road rash, infection, scarring, dental injuries, psychological trauma, chronic pain, and the need for surgery or future medical care.
California allows lane splitting under Vehicle Code section 21658.1. That does not mean every lane-splitting crash is the rider’s fault. The key questions are what the vehicles were doing, how fast traffic was moving, whether the rider was visible, whether a driver changed lanes or opened a door unsafely, and whether the driver checked mirrors and blind spots before moving.
California follows pure comparative negligence under Civil Code section 1714. An injured rider can still recover compensation even if the defense argues the rider was partly at fault, but the recovery can be reduced by the percentage of fault assigned. Because motorcycle insurers often lean hard on rider-blame arguments, evidence preservation and a careful liability analysis matter.
Other California traffic laws may also matter, including rules on safe lane changes, following distance, unsafe turns, yielding, speed, dooring, distracted driving, and driving under the influence. A driver who says a motorcycle “came out of nowhere” may still have violated the duty to keep a proper lookout and move only when safe.
Motorcycle accident evidence can disappear quickly. We work to preserve and obtain:
Preservation letters can be important when a delivery company, rideshare platform, hotel, apartment building, public entity, or commercial fleet has data or video that may prove how the crash happened.
Riders injured in Santa Monica may receive emergency or specialty care at Providence Saint John’s Health Center, UCLA Santa Monica Medical Center, Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, or nearby orthopedic, neurology, plastic surgery, pain management, imaging, and rehabilitation providers. Serious motorcycle injuries can require months of treatment and may affect work, family life, mobility, sleep, and independence.
Recoverable damages may include ambulance bills, emergency care, hospitalization, surgery, diagnostic imaging, injections, physical therapy, future medical care, medication, scar treatment, motorcycle repair or replacement, helmet and gear damage, lost income, reduced earning capacity, out-of-pocket expenses, pain, suffering, emotional distress, and loss of enjoyment of life. In fatal cases, surviving family members may have a wrongful death claim.
The usual statute of limitations for a California personal injury case is two years from the date of injury. A shorter six-month government claim deadline may apply if a public entity contributed to the crash. That can include a City of Santa Monica vehicle, Big Blue Bus, Metro, Caltrans, a dangerous roadway condition, unsafe signal timing, missing signage, poor street maintenance, or hazardous public property.
Deadline analysis should happen early. Waiting can make it harder to recover video, inspect the roadway, identify witnesses, and preserve claims against all responsible parties.
We begin by investigating liability and identifying every available insurance policy. Depending on the facts, a motorcycle crash may involve a negligent driver, employer, rideshare company, delivery company, vehicle owner, public entity, property owner, maintenance contractor, or uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage.
We then connect the liability proof to the medical story. Adjusters may point to prior symptoms, treatment gaps, helmet use, lane splitting, or assumptions about riders. We work to show how the crash happened, why the defendant is responsible, what injuries were caused or aggravated, what treatment was necessary, and what future losses must be included in settlement negotiations or litigation.
Our firm handles motorcycle and serious injury cases throughout Los Angeles County. Depending on where the crash happened or who was involved, these related pages may help: Santa Monica Personal Injury Lawyer, Santa Monica Car Accident Lawyer, Santa Monica Truck Accident Lawyer, Los Angeles Motorcycle Accident Lawyer, Beverly Hills Motorcycle Accident Lawyer, and Culver City Personal Injury Lawyer.
There is no upfront fee. Our firm handles motorcycle accident cases on a contingency fee, which means we are paid only if we recover compensation for you.
That does not end the case. Drivers must keep a proper lookout, check mirrors and blind spots, yield when required, and move only when safe. We test that defense against the physical evidence, witness statements, roadway layout, vehicle damage, and available video.
Possibly. Lane splitting is legal in California, but the facts matter. The defense may argue comparative fault, yet a driver can still be responsible for an unsafe lane change, sudden turn, dooring incident, or failure to check for a visible rider.
We look for every coverage source, including the driver’s policy, employer or commercial coverage, rideshare or delivery coverage, vehicle owner coverage, and your own uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage if available.
Most California personal injury claims have a two-year statute of limitations, but a six-month government claim deadline may apply if a public vehicle, public property, or dangerous roadway condition contributed to the crash. Get deadline advice early.
If you or someone you love was injured in a Santa Monica motorcycle accident, contact the Law Offices of Asher Hoffman for a free consultation. We investigate quickly, preserve the evidence, push back against rider-blame tactics, and pursue the full compensation available under California law. There is no fee unless we win.
Many Santa Monica crash investigations involve overlapping pedestrian, motorcycle, rideshare, delivery, bus, bicycle, and scooter issues. If the injured person was walking, see our Santa Monica Pedestrian Accident Lawyer page for pedestrian-specific evidence and liability guidance.
I can’t say enough about how grateful I am for the team that helped me after my motorcycle accident. From day one, they treated me with respect and compassion, while also fighting aggressively on my behalf. The process of dealing with insurance companies and medical bills was overwhelming, but they walked me through every step, […]
My boyfriend and I were getting the runaround from an at-fault driver and their insurance after my very first car accident in Los Angeles back in February, so I decided to find a lawyer to help us out with the process. Working with Asher Hoffman made all the difference. He was communicative, patient, and always […]
Asher is absolutely amazing! After my car accident, I was overwhelmed and didn’t know what to do, but he made the whole process so much easier. He’s very attentive, caring, and really goes above and beyond for his clients. I always felt supported and confident knowing he was handling my case. He not only got […]
I hope you never need a lawyer due to a car accident, but if you do, Asher Hoffman is the best! I had never been in a car accident this serious before and was rattled, stressed, and scared to say the least, suffering injuries and the total loss of my car. From our first meeting […]
I am so grateful to have had Asher Hoffman as my accident attorney. From the very beginning, he was professional, compassionate, and dedicated to my case. Asher always took the time to explain every step of the process in a way that was easy to understand, and he made sure I felt supported throughout. His […]
