A “dooring accident” occurs when the door of a vehicle is suddenly opened in front of an unsuspecting pedestrian or bicyclist. Although some people are agile enough to avoid being hit by the suddenly appearing door, other people aren’t so lucky and sustain injuries upon impact. In these cases, the accident victim might have fallen down or flipped over as the result of the dooring accident. In this blog, we explain some of the ways you can avoid a dooring accident. Although you won’t always be able to avoid a dooring incident, keeping the following in mind can help keep you safe

Watch Out For the Door Zone

If you are riding a bike, you should keep enough distance from other vehicles so that if a door were to open, it would not be able to hit you. Bike lanes are usually next to parking areas, this means the entire lane is in the door zone. You might have to ride in the roadway to avoid hitting an open door. If you are riding by parked cars, you can legally use the roadway to avoid an accident.

Slow Down & Look for Movement

It’s easier to spot potential danger if you are riding slowly. A slower riding pace can help you identify dangerous obstacles that need to be quickly avoided. Look out for pedestrians and for people moving inside of their cars. Proceed with caution around such obstacles because they might suddenly open a door right in your path.

Wear Colors That Increase Your Visibility

Many dooring accident are the result of poor visibility conditions. Wearing bright colors can help you stand out and possibly catch the attention of distracted or unaware people in the door zone.

Do you have more questions regarding dooring accidents? Call (925) 275-5592, or contact our team of Walnut Creek personal injury attorneysto get started on your free consultation today.