Quick answer: If you were injured on a Bird, Lime, or personal riding device in Los Angeles, do not give a recorded statement to any insurer. Call Malekan Law Group at +1-424-248-1318 for a free consultation; there is no fee unless we recover for you.
Getting hit while riding a shared or personal scooter in Los Angeles means dealing with one of the most rider-hostile environments in the country for two-wheeled travel. Thousands of shared units are scattered from Silver Lake and Echo Park to the Venice boardwalk and Santa Monica beachfront. That volume, combined with dense traffic on corridors like Sunset, Wilshire, and Abbot Kinney, produces a steady stream of collisions.
A pothole on a repaved stretch of Fairfax, gravel in a bike lane, or a driver swinging open a car door can turn a 12 mph ride into a fractured wrist, a concussion, or worse. Even low-speed impacts routinely produce serious orthopedic and head injuries. What makes riding in this city uniquely difficult: shared-fleet units are dispatched through apps that ride ahead of maintenance cycles, riders are often tourists unfamiliar with local traffic patterns, and the city's patchwork bike-lane network forces two-wheeled riders into travel lanes on high-speed corridors like Lincoln Boulevard and Sepulveda.
Insurance carriers know this — and they treat these claims differently than standard auto claims. Adjusters often dispute liability early, push for a recorded statement, or argue the rider was at fault for being in the roadway at all. Do not give a statement before speaking to counsel.
Malekan Law Group handles scooter and bicycle cases across the greater LA area on a contingency basis. You pay nothing unless we recover for you. Call +1-424-248-1318 for a free consultation.
Scooter and bicycle claims sit at the intersection of auto liability, premises liability, and product defect law — three tracks a firm only learns to run simultaneously through real caseload experience, not theory. Malekan Law Group has built that experience through a substantial volume of personal injury cases with favorable outcomes for clients throughout California.
Significant recoveries for clients with catastrophic injuries come from a willingness to litigate, retain accident reconstructionists, and push carriers past their opening offers rather than accepting the first check they float.
Attorney Samuel Malekan is licensed and in good standing with the State Bar of California. You can confirm that status directly on the State Bar website before you ever call — you should never take an attorney's word for their standing when the verification takes under a minute.
Right now the firm carries a 4.9-star rating on Google drawn from 126+ client reviews — a real-world signal of how cases are actually communicated and closed, not a number pulled from a brochure. To discuss a riding injury with our team, call +1-424-248-1318; there is no fee unless we recover compensation for you.
Short answer: Crash liability can land on a negligent driver, the scooter operator (Bird, Lime, or another company), a public entity responsible for road conditions, or some combination of all three. The strongest claims often name more than one defendant.
The negligent driver. Failing to yield at an intersection, distracted driving, and dooring a rider in the bike lane are common causes of serious injuries. The at-fault driver's auto policy is usually the first source of recovery.
The scooter company. Bird, Lime, and other operators can face liability when a brake fails mid-ride, a battery malfunctions, a stem snaps, or the app dispatches a unit flagged for maintenance. Defective equipment is analyzed under the same product liability framework as defective vehicles.
The city or public entity. When a known pothole, broken curb, missing lane paint, or inadequate signage caused the fall, the responsible municipality can be named. Claims against public entities carry strict notice deadlines under California law — missing that window can bar the claim entirely, which is why contacting an attorney early matters. This is especially relevant on city-maintained streets throughout the LA basin, where deferred infrastructure maintenance is well-documented.
Shared fault. Adjusters routinely attempt to assign fault to the rider to shrink payouts; pushing back on that assignment is one of the core jobs your attorney handles. Riders in Santa Monica and West Hollywood face the same framework.
Six case patterns show up repeatedly in our practice, and each one carries its own liability theory and evidence demands:
If your crash doesn't fit neatly into one of these categories, call +1-424-248-1318 — most cases involve overlapping theories of liability, and the intake call is free.
Head injuries are among the most serious outcomes of a riding crash. A rider thrown onto asphalt can sustain a concussion, subdural hematoma, or diffuse axonal injury with lifelong cognitive consequences. TBI claims require detailed neurological documentation and future-care cost projections — our firm handles serious brain and spinal injury matters and understands how those long-tail medical costs are proven.
Orthopedic injuries dominate the rest of our caseload: road rash requiring debridement, wrist fractures from bracing the fall, broken collarbones, hip fractures, and AC joint shoulder separations. These injuries often require surgical hardware and months of physical therapy.
Spinal injuries are the catastrophic category. Herniated discs, nerve root damage, and in the worst cases partial or complete paralysis demand a lifetime care calculation — home modifications, attendant care, adaptive equipment — built into the settlement demand from day one.
Soft tissue damage, lacerations, and internal bleeding are often masked by adrenaline immediately after a crash. Get evaluated at an ER or urgent care the same day, even if you feel fine. A gap in treatment is the first thing an adjuster uses to devalue your claim.
The five steps below protect both your health and your claim. Follow them in order if you are physically able.
We build claims as if they are going to trial, then settle from a position of strength. That approach has four moving parts.
Liability investigation. Before any demand goes out, we pull the traffic collision report, subpoena scooter company maintenance and ride-history logs, canvass surrounding businesses for surveillance footage, and lock in witness statements while memories are fresh. A demand letter written before the evidence is in the file is a demand letter the insurer discounts. In a city the size of Los Angeles, where camera coverage varies block by block from downtown to the Westside, knowing where to look quickly is a practical advantage.
Medical coordination. Our team tracks every treating physician, specialist, and rehabilitation provider, and works with medical experts to project future care costs — additional surgeries, ongoing physical therapy, cognitive rehab for TBI clients. Settlements built only on past bills leave money on the table.
Willingness to litigate. When a scooter operator, driver's insurer, or public entity disputes fault or floats a lowball offer, we file suit. Adjusters price cases differently once litigation is on the calendar.
Contingency fee representation. Every case is handled on contingency — no retainer, no hourly billing, no costs out of your pocket. If we do not recover for you, you owe us nothing. Call +1-424-248-1318 to start.
Crash patterns in the city cluster around a handful of distinct corridors, each with its own hazard profile.
Venice Beach and the Boardwalk. Year-round rider traffic collides with pedestrian congestion and vehicles turning off Pacific Avenue, producing frequent low-speed but high-injury impacts. The stretch near Rose Avenue is a recurring trouble spot where bike lanes abruptly end.
Hollywood, Melrose, and the Fairfax District. Dense rider volume meets heavy vehicle traffic and inconsistent bike lane infrastructure — a combination that puts two-wheeled riders directly in conflict with turning drivers along Hollywood Boulevard and Melrose Avenue.
Downtown Los Angeles. The Arts District, South Park, and the corridor around Crypto.com Arena have seen rapid shared-mobility commuting growth alongside active construction zones and aggressive delivery truck movement. Shared-use lanes in this area frequently disappear mid-block due to ongoing development projects.
The Westside — Wilshire and Olympic corridors. Popular routes through the Westwood Village area and into the Fairfax neighborhood see recurring dooring incidents near parallel-parked vehicles, and the Wilshire bus lanes create confusing right-of-way situations for riders unfamiliar with the corridor.
Silver Lake, Los Feliz, and Echo Park. Hilly terrain and deteriorating road surfaces create solo-fall risks independent of vehicle involvement, and municipal liability may apply where the city knew of the defect. Many streets in this area were last resurfaced before the widespread adoption of shared mobility devices.
Our office at 9171 Wilshire Blvd, Suite 500, Beverly Hills, CA 90210 is centrally positioned to serve injured riders across every one of these communities. Call +1-424-248-1318 for a free consultation.
Key point: California law imposes strict deadlines on personal injury and government tort claims. Missing those windows can permanently bar recovery — which is why contacting an attorney as early as possible after a crash matters. Evidence preservation letters to Bird or Lime should go out within days, not weeks.
California imposes time limits on personal injury lawsuits, and missing the applicable deadline means the claim is permanently barred — no matter how catastrophic the injury or how clear the liability. Courts do not grant exceptions for riders who were still in treatment or negotiating with an insurer when the clock ran out.
When a dangerous road condition contributed to the fall and a public entity such as the City of Los Angeles is a potential defendant, California law requires a formal government tort claim to be filed within a short window after the incident. Most injured riders have never heard of that deadline until it has already passed.
Product liability claims against a scooter manufacturer or operator like Bird or Lime add another analytical layer — defect theories carry their own evidentiary demands, and evidence preservation letters need to go out early to prevent maintenance logs and physical units from disappearing.
The practical takeaway: contact counsel within days, not months. Calling Malekan Law Group early lets us preserve evidence, calendar every applicable deadline, and build the case properly rather than triage it against a cutoff. Reach our team at +1-424-248-1318 for a free consultation.
Direct answer: California injury victims can recover economic damages (medical bills, lost wages, future care), non-economic damages (pain and suffering, loss of enjoyment of life), diminished earning capacity, and — in cases involving reckless conduct like drunk driving — punitive damages.
Injured riders in California can typically recover three categories of damages, and in some cases a fourth. Early insurance offers are almost always calculated against economic damages alone, which means the largest portion of a claim gets left on the table before negotiation even begins.
Economic damages cover every out-of-pocket cost tied to the crash: emergency room charges, imaging, surgery, hospitalization, physical therapy, prescription medication, assistive devices like braces or wheelchairs, and home modifications when a permanent disability requires them. Future medical care is projected by treating physicians and life-care planners and included in the demand.
Lost wages and diminished earning capacity cover income you missed during recovery and any permanent reduction in your ability to perform your prior job. This applies to W-2 employees, self-employed riders, and gig workers — 1099 income is provable with tax returns and platform earnings statements.
Non-economic damages compensate pain and suffering, emotional distress, and loss of enjoyment of life. Cases involving disfiguring road rash, scarring, or permanent disability carry a substantially higher multiplier on top of medical expenses.
Punitive damages may be available where the at-fault driver acted with especially reckless conduct — a drunk driver striking a rider is the textbook example. We evaluate punitive exposure in every applicable case. Call +1-424-248-1318 to discuss what your claim is actually worth.
The short answer: verifiable credentials, a track record you can check independently, and zero financial risk to start. The firm holds a 4.9-star Google rating across 126+ reviews and handles every matter on contingency.
That 4.9-star Google rating is drawn from 126+ real client reviews — an independently checkable measure of how the firm actually performs, not marketing language. Attorney Samuel Malekan is licensed and in good standing with the State Bar of California, and you can confirm that status directly on the State Bar website before you ever call.
Significant recoveries for clients with serious and catastrophic injuries reflect an ability to build, litigate, and resolve high-value claims rather than pushing every file toward a quick settlement.
Every case begins with a 100% free, no-obligation consultation. We review the facts of your crash, explain your options honestly, and outline a strategy before you commit to anything. No retainer, no hourly billing, and no legal fees unless compensation is recovered for you. Call +1-424-248-1318 to get started.
Reach our team by phone at +1-424-248-1318 to speak directly about your crash. Calls are answered during extended hours so injured riders who cannot call during a standard workday still get through to a real person the same day.
Open Sunday through Thursday from 6 AM to 11:30 PM, Friday from 6 AM to 1 PM, closed on Saturday. If your crash happened late in the evening or over a weekend, do not wait for Monday — evidence disappears quickly and insurance adjusters often contact riders within 24 hours.
Our office is located at 9171 Wilshire Blvd, Suite 500, Beverly Hills, CA 90210, centrally positioned to serve injured riders across the greater Los Angeles area and surrounding Westside communities. In-person meetings are available by appointment, and we handle intakes by phone and video for clients who cannot travel while recovering.
Every case begins with a free consultation, and if we take your case you pay nothing unless we recover compensation for you. There is no financial reason to delay getting legal guidance after a riding accident. Call +1-424-248-1318 or reach us through our contact page to get started today.
13 questions answered
Malekan Law Group handles scooter accident cases on a contingency fee basis, meaning you pay nothing out of pocket unless they recover compensation for you. There is no retainer, no hourly rate, and no upfront legal fee of any kind. The firm's fee is a percentage of the settlement or verdict obtained, so if they do not recover compensation in your case, you owe nothing. (Note: 'win' here means any recovery — settlement or verdict — not solely a courtroom win.)
Most Los Angeles scooter accident claims resolve within a range of a few months to over two years, depending on three factors: injury severity (cases still in active treatment cannot be accurately valued), the number of liable parties (a driver-only claim resolves faster than one naming a driver, scooter operator, and public entity), and whether the case settles pre-suit or requires litigation. Straightforward soft-tissue claims with clear liability often settle in under a year, while catastrophic injury cases involving surgery, TBI, or disputed fault typically take longer because building the full damages picture requires completed treatment and expert projections.
In California, if your scooter accident was caused by a dangerous road condition maintained by a public entity — such as a pothole, broken curb, or missing bike lane markings — you must file a government tort claim within six months of the incident. Missing this deadline generally bars you from pursuing any recovery against the city or municipality. This is one of the most time-sensitive rules in California personal injury law, and it applies whether you knew about the deadline or not.
Yes. California follows a pure comparative fault system, which means you can recover compensation even if you were partially responsible for the crash. Your total damages are reduced by your percentage of fault, but there is no threshold that bars you from recovering entirely. Insurance adjusters often attempt to inflate a rider's share of fault to reduce payouts, which is exactly the kind of tactic an experienced attorney pushes back on during negotiations.
Attorney Samuel Malekan is licensed and in good standing with the State Bar of California (Bar #336832), which is independently verifiable on the State Bar's public website. The firm has resolved more than 500 personal injury cases with favorable outcomes (settlements and verdicts) for clients throughout California and holds a 4.9-star rating on Google across 126 or more client reviews. Its largest single-case recovery to date is $600,000, obtained for a client with catastrophic injuries.
A negligent driver claim targets the at-fault motorist and their auto insurance policy when a collision results from distracted driving, failure to yield, or a dooring incident. A product liability claim targets the scooter manufacturer or operator — such as Bird or Lime — when a mechanical defect like a brake failure, snapped stem, or battery malfunction caused the crash independently of any driver. Many serious scooter accidents involve both theories simultaneously, and identifying which applies requires a careful investigation of the crash facts.
Malekan Law Group handles claims against Bird, Lime, and other e-scooter operators when a defective unit contributes to a rider's injuries. These cases are pursued under product liability law and can run alongside — or independently of — any claim against a negligent driver. If a scooter was dispatched despite a known maintenance flag, or if a component failed during normal use, the operator can face direct legal exposure.
If you are physically able, document the scene with photos or video before anything is moved — this means the scooter's position, the vehicle involved, road conditions, skid marks, and any visible defects in the lane or curb. Get the driver's name, license plate, and insurance information, and collect contact details from any witnesses. Do not give a recorded statement to any insurance adjuster before speaking with an attorney, as early statements are frequently used to limit your recovery.
Every case begins with a free, no-obligation consultation where the attorney reviews the crash details, identifies liable parties, and explains your legal options honestly. From there, the firm investigates the incident — which may include obtaining surveillance footage, retaining accident reconstructionists, and filing preservation demands with scooter operators. The team then negotiates with the relevant insurance carriers and, if necessary, litigates to push past inadequate settlement offers.
Injuries that appear minor immediately after a scooter crash — such as a sore neck or wrist pain — can evolve into more significant diagnoses like soft tissue damage, nerve injury, or a delayed concussion within days of the incident. Settling quickly with an insurer before your condition is fully documented often means accepting far less than your claim is actually worth. An attorney can help you understand whether a proposed offer accounts for future medical needs, not just the bills you have in hand today.
Hit-and-run scooter crashes can still result in compensation through your own uninsured motorist coverage, if you have it, or through investigative efforts to identify the fleeing driver using surveillance cameras, license-plate recognition data, and witness accounts. Malekan Law Group handles hit-and-run scooter cases and actively canvasses for evidence that insurers typically do not gather on a claimant's behalf. Acting quickly matters because surveillance footage is often overwritten within days of an incident.
Scooter accident cases in Los Angeles sit at the crossroads of auto liability, premises liability, and product defect law — three distinct legal tracks that require familiarity with different defendants, deadlines, and evidence standards. A general practice attorney may handle one of those tracks competently but may have less experience managing all three simultaneously on a single claim. Malekan Law Group focuses on personal injury and has resolved more than 500 cases, giving the firm practical experience with the specific tactics insurance carriers use to minimize scooter and bicycle injury payouts.
Malekan Law Group is located at 9171 Wilshire Blvd, Suite 500, Beverly Hills, CA 90210. The firm serves scooter and bicycle injury clients across Los Angeles, including Silver Lake, Venice, Santa Monica, Culver City, West Hollywood, Westwood Village, Fairfax, and downtown. Office hours: Open Sunday through Thursday from 6 AM to 11:30 PM, Friday from 6 AM to 1 PM, closed on Saturday. Phone: +1-424-248-1318 for a free consultation.
Me and my wife just finished wrapping up our case with Sam, if the six figure settlement wasn’t enough, the care and constant communication provided would be more than enough for me to recommend him. He turned our worst day into something that we can handle and recover from without any true loss. 5/5 and I’d give him 10/10 if I could.
Great experience working with this attorney. Very professional, responsive, and got us the most money possible for our case. Great work Sam
This is truly the most professional law firm there is. Ive dealt w lawyers before and I could never get any sort of response. Sam and his team literally answered me every time I called them and knew exactly what was going on. Not only that but they got me some very good money. Youre crazy if you get into an accident and dont hire these guys
Sam was very helpful. He was understanding of my Situation. He care! Always easy to contact made himself available to all my questions I would recommend him to anyone. When you’re dealing with someone in a time of hardship going through pain and trying to figure things out, it’s good to have someone on your team who actually care about what you’re experiencing. I was not just another file. I was treated like a person.
I am incredibly grateful for all the support and guidance I received from Sam Malekan throughout my personal injury case. From the very beginning, Sam was kind, caring, and consistently communicative, which helped me feel at ease during an otherwise stressful and difficult time. He alleviated the stress from the entire process and made sure I was informed, updated, and taken care of. Thanks to Sam's guidance and expertise, I was ultimately able to get the care I needed. I highly recommend Malekan Law Group to anyone looking for an attorney who is not only exceptionally skilled but also extremely supportive and reliable. Thank you so much again for everything!
Honored for excellence in our craft
Rated 4.9 out of 5 stars across 126+ client reviews on Google (as of July 2026). Live rating and reviews are synced automatically from the Google Business Profile.
View on g.pageSamuel Malekan, Esq. is licensed and in good standing with the State Bar of California (Bar #336832).
View on apps.calbar.ca.govThe firm's largest single-case recovery to date for a client injured in a serious auto accident.
Over 500 personal injury cases resolved with favorable outcomes for clients throughout California.
No upfront cost — you pay nothing unless we win
No Cost, No Obligation
Every case begins with a 100% free, no-obligation consultation. We will review the details of your situation, answer your questions, and provide honest guidance on your legal options — all at absolutely no cost to you.
You Pay Nothing Unless We Win
We handle personal injury cases on a contingency fee basis. This means you pay absolutely nothing out of pocket — no retainer, no hourly rates, no legal fees of any kind unless we successfully recover compensation for you. Our fee is a percentage of the settlement or verdict we obtain on your behalf. If we don't win, you owe us nothing.
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