New Jersey Bicycle Accident Lawyer

Were you injured in a bicycle accident in New Jersey?

At the Law Offices of David A. DiBrigida, we provide recognized bicycle accident representation for injured riders throughout New Jersey, backed by more than 30 years of plaintiff-side experience.

If you were struck while riding a bicycle anywhere in New Jersey, an attorney can pursue the driver’s insurer for your medical costs, lost income, and lasting injuries. Bicycle claims raise questions that car claims do not, including which policy pays the rider’s medical bills and how helmet use affects fault. Our New Jersey bicycle accident lawyer has been admitted in New Jersey and Pennsylvania since 1992 and represents riders from three North Jersey offices. The Law Offices of David A. DiBrigida charges nothing to evaluate a cycling claim, and our fee comes only out of a recovery.

Bicycle Accident Lawyer New Jersey

A bicycle accident case is a personal injury claim brought by a cyclist who was hurt because a driver, a property owner, or another party failed to use reasonable care. A motorist who turns across a bike lane, opens a door into traffic, or passes too closely has breached the duty owed to the rider.

Eighteen bicyclists were killed on New Jersey roads in 2024, according to New Jersey State Police fatal crash records, and NJDOT reports that injury and fatality rates for people who walk and bike along the state’s roadways run well above the national average. A bicycle accident attorney in New Jersey builds the claim around the driver’s failure and the rider’s documented injuries.

Types of Bicycle Accident Cases We Handle in New Jersey

The form a bicycle crash takes determines who is responsible, which insurance applies, and how fault will be argued. We have handled cyclist injury claims across northern New Jersey for more than three decades, and the situations below are the ones a bicycle accident lawyer in New Jersey sees most often.

• Car accidents. Passenger vehicles cause the large majority of bicycle injuries, usually through left turns across a rider’s path, right hooks at intersections, and lane changes into a cyclist’s space.
• Truck accidents. Delivery vans and tractor-trailers have blind spots along their right side that hide a cyclist completely. A commercial policy and an employer are involved.
• Hit-and-run accidents. A driver who leaves an injured cyclist at the roadside does not end the claim. Uninsured motorist coverage on a household auto policy may respond, and we pursue every available source of recovery in a hit-and-run claim.
• Rideshare accidents. Uber and Lyft drivers pulling to and from curbs strike cyclists in bike lanes. The commercial coverage that applies depends on the driver’s status in the app at the moment of impact.
• Dooring accidents. A driver or passenger who opens a car door into a cyclist’s path is responsible for the crash. These incidents cluster on urban streets where parking lanes sit beside bike lanes.
• Intersection crashes. Failure to yield, red-light violations, and drivers rolling through right turns account for a large share of rider injuries at signalized intersections statewide.
• Bike lane accidents. Vehicles parked, stopped, or merging into marked bike lanes force riders into traffic. The driver who blocked the lane bears responsibility for what follows.
• Road hazard crashes. Potholes, uneven pavement, and construction debris can throw a cyclist without any vehicle involved. Claims involving a public roadway require prompt action.
• E-bike accidents. Riders on electric bicycles are owed the same duty of care as any other cyclist, and the classification of the bike affects which insurance coverage applies.
• Wrongful death. When a bicycle crash proves fatal, a claim may be brought through the estate on behalf of the surviving family for the financial losses the death has caused.

New Jersey Bicycle Accident Infographic

Why Choose the Law Offices of David A. DiBrigida as my Bicycle Accident Lawyer in New Jersey?

A Statewide Practice With Three North Jersey Offices

David A. DiBrigida was admitted to practice in New Jersey and Pennsylvania in 1992 and has confined his work to plaintiff personal injury law ever since. From offices in Roseland, Hoboken, and West Orange, our firm represents injured cyclists across Bergen, Essex, Hudson, Morris, Passaic, and Union counties and throughout the state. Over three decades, David has settled thousands of injury claims with New Jersey insurers, and carriers recognize the office as a serious plaintiff’s practice. Our personal injury lawyer in New Jersey takes claims of injured bicyclists seriously and knows how to negotiate with insurance carriers.

Bicycle Claims Handled With the Seriousness They Deserve

Cyclist injuries are frequently treated by adjusters as minor claims to be closed quickly. Our firm evaluates each cyclist injury on its full medical and financial consequences. David handles each case personally from start to finish, the medical picture is developed fully before any demand is made, and our firm has recovered millions of dollars for injured clients on that basis. Every bicycle case is accepted on a contingency basis with no fee unless money is recovered, transportation to our offices is provided for clients who cannot drive, and calls are answered 24 hours a day.

What Is Important to Understand About a Bicycle Accident Case?

Damages, Liability, and Compensation for Bicycle Accident Cases

A bicycle accident claim is governed by the law of negligence. The injured cyclist must establish that the driver owed a duty of reasonable care, breached that duty, and caused the injury. New Jersey’s safe passing rules require drivers to approach and pass cyclists with due caution, and a driver who fails to do so has breached that duty in a way the law specifically recognizes.

New Jersey apportions fault between the parties under N.J.S.A. 2A:15-5.1. A cyclist recovers when the cyclist’s negligence was not greater than the negligence of the party being sued, and the award is reduced by the cyclist’s share. Insurers apply NJ comparative fault arguments to riders aggressively, citing lane position, lighting, and helmet use in NJ bicycle cases as reasons to reduce the payout.

Recoverable damages include:

• Medical expenses, from emergency care through rehabilitation
• Time missed from work and any lasting effect on earning ability
• Pain and suffering, including the physical limitations that follow the injury
• Damage to the bicycle, helmet, and equipment
• Future care for permanent injuries, including brain injury and spinal damage

A cyclist struck by a car in New Jersey may also have no-fault medical benefits available through an auto policy in the household, and identifying that coverage early keeps treatment funded while the liability claim proceeds.

What Are Important Aspects of a Bicycle Accident Case?

The risks of cycling on New Jersey roads are real, and the first days after a crash determine whether the rider’s claim can be proven. Drivers give their account to police at the scene, while riders are often taken to the hospital before they can, so the steps for filing a bicycle claim begin with the records below.

• Report the crash to police and request a copy of the report
• Photograph the vehicle, the bicycle, the roadway, and your injuries before repairs or cleanup
• Preserve the helmet and the bike in their post-crash condition
• Obtain contact information from witnesses, who frequently support the rider’s version
• Seek medical care the same day and follow through with treatment

What Is the Bicycle Accident Case Timeline?

Most bicycle claims resolve with the driver’s insurer without a lawsuit, but the schedule depends on the injury. The NJ statute of limitations under N.J.S.A. 2A:14-2 generally sets a two-year limit for filing suit, running from the date the claim accrued, which in most cases is the date of the injury. Exceptions apply, and claims involving a public entity require notice well before that period ends, so the controlling date is calendared when the file is opened.

• Photographs, witness statements, and the police report collected in the first days
• Notice to the driver’s insurer and to any household auto policy that may provide benefits
• Ongoing treatment while medical records and bills are assembled
• A written demand after the treating physicians have documented what is permanent
• Settlement negotiations with the carrier, which is where most bicycle claims end

What Should You Bring to Your Bicycle Accident Consultation?

The first meeting produces a more useful assessment when the crash and the coverage can be reviewed together.

• The police report or its number and the responding agency
• Photographs from the scene and of your injuries
• The declarations page for any auto insurance policy in your household
• Medical records, discharge instructions, and bills received so far
• Witness names and any camera footage from your bike or a nearby business

Consultations are free and can be held at our Roseland, Hoboken, or West Orange office or by phone. You will leave knowing who appears responsible and which insurance policies may apply.

Most Dangerous Locations for Bicycle Accidents in New Jersey

Cyclist crashes cluster on two kinds of roads: dense urban corridors where bike lanes sit beside parking and turning traffic, and state highways where riders share narrow shoulders with fast-moving traffic. NHTSA bicycle research puts about 85 percent of bicyclist deaths nationally in urban areas.

Streets and urban corridors:

• Kennedy Boulevard and Bergen Avenue in Hudson County. Long commercial corridors through Jersey City with heavy bus, delivery, and double-parked traffic beside cyclists.
• Broad Street and Market Street in Newark. The city’s busiest downtown intersections, with turning buses and delivery vehicles crossing bike traffic.
• Ocean Avenue and Route 71 through the Monmouth County shore towns. Seasonal traffic, angled parking, and beach crowds beside riders.
• Route 27 through Middlesex and Union counties. A four-lane arterial lined with driveways and strip retail, with little room for riders.

Highways and connectors:

• Route 9 through Ocean and Monmouth counties. Commercial driveways, high speeds, and narrow shoulders on a corridor riders use to reach shore communities.
• Route 35 and Route 36 in Monmouth County. Coastal highways with frequent intersections and merging traffic.
• Routes 1&9 through Hudson and Union counties. Truck traffic and interchanges on a road with almost no accommodation for cyclists.
• Route 47 and Route 30 in South Jersey. Two-lane and four-lane highways where riders on the shoulder are struck by drivers drifting right.

Reach Out to the Law Offices of David A. DiBrigida to Schedule a Consultation

Insurers count on injured cyclists accepting the first offer. A consultation with our office is free, no attorney fee is due unless we recover, and our Roseland, Hoboken, and West Orange offices serve riders from every part of the state. Contact us to put your claim in front of a New Jersey bicycle accident attorney.