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Wearing a helmet while riding a motorcycle is the law, but occasionally the other side may try to argue that your helmet blocked you from seeing a crash. Don’t fall for the defense’s argument that your helmet might have somehow caused you to be distracted and cause the crash yourself. This argument rests on the premise that a helmet can affect a rider’s vision or hearing, thereby contributing to a Maryland motorcycle accident. Opponents of mandatory helmet laws argued this idea back in the 1990s, but a study showed their premise to be false.
According to the study, riders naturally turn their heads a little extra to compensate for the partial vision obstruction that a full helmet can cause. Helmets do not interfere with riders’ ability to see traffic. As for hearing, riders do experience a slight decrease in hearing ability at greater speeds, but that fact is true whether or not they are wearing helmets.
The latest issue is in regards to riders listening to music while riding. There has been lots of speculation that ear buds block a rider’s ability to hear traffic noises. If you were using ear buds while the accident occurred, then you may have to fight allegations that those contributed to causing the crash. Keep in mind that your hearing ability may be irrelevant if the other driver failed to see you and hit you.
If you’ve been involved in a Maryland motorcycle wreck and the other side is claiming that you somehow contributed to the crash, you need to consult with a motorcycle crash lawyer who can help prove your innocence. For a free consultation, we invite you to call our offices toll-free at 800-875-9700—we’re standing by to help.