Motorcycle Accident Lawyers in Pennsylvania: The Bias You Will Be Fighting

Limited tort does not bind you

This surprises almost every rider who calls. Pennsylvania’s limited tort election applies to private passenger vehicles. A person injured while riding a motorcycle is generally not subject to the limited tort restriction, even if their own auto policy carries it.

The practical effect is large: pain and suffering is on the table without having to clear the serious impairment threshold first. Insurers do not volunteer this.

Helmets, and what the law actually says

Pennsylvania repealed its universal helmet requirement. Riders aged 21 and over may ride without a helmet if they have either two years of riding experience or have completed an approved safety course. Under 21, a helmet is required.

So an adult rider not wearing a helmet was, in most cases, doing something lawful. Expect the carrier to raise it anyway, and to argue that head injuries would have been reduced. That is an argument about damages, not about fault, and it does not apply at all to the broken leg, the road rash or the shoulder.

The bias is real, so the evidence has to be better

Adjusters and juries carry assumptions about riders: speed, weaving, risk taking. The defense will lean on it whether or not the facts support it.

The answer is physical evidence rather than argument. Scene photographs, skid and gouge marks, the position of debris, the damage pattern on both vehicles, and where necessary a reconstruction expert. The most common real cause in these cases is a driver turning left across a rider’s path or changing lanes into one, and the physical evidence usually shows it plainly.

Why the injuries are worse and the policy is often too small

There is no cage. The same impact that dents a car door breaks bones and degloves skin, and hospital costs escalate quickly. Pennsylvania’s minimum liability limits are low, so the at-fault driver’s policy is frequently exhausted before the surgeries are finished.

Which makes your own coverage the important question. Underinsured motorist coverage on your motorcycle policy, stacking across vehicles you own, and medical benefits coverage are usually where the recovery actually comes from. Send us the declarations pages for every policy in the household.

Before you repair the bike

The motorcycle is evidence. Photograph it thoroughly from all sides before any repair, and keep the damaged parts and your gear, including the helmet if you were wearing one. Riders often have the bike fixed quickly because they want to ride again, and that instinct costs cases.