If you have concerns about your child becoming involved in a bicycle accident, you should review the risk factors associated with these collisions as well as the potential consequences of a crash. Additionally, you should look at data on bike accidents involving young cyclists in order to understand the prevalence of injuries and fatalities.
Children find themselves involved in bike accidents for a wide variety of reasons, including the negligence of drivers, inclement weather and dangerous sections of the road. Tragically, these accidents turn the lives of many young cyclists and their family members upside down.
Young bicyclists, injuries and deaths
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reports that over the course of 2019, 7,000 cyclists aged 14 and younger suffered injuries in bicycle accidents. Moreover, 8,000 bicyclists between the ages of 15 and 20 suffered injuries in accidents over the course of 2019.
On top of serious injuries, many children lost their lives in bike accidents. 2019 saw 40 deaths involving cyclists 14 and younger, and 46 fatalities involving cyclists between 15 and 20.
Bicycle accident risk factors affecting children
When it comes to bike accidents, children face many risks. Bicycle accidents involving young cyclists caused more males to suffer injuries and lose their lives in comparison to females. Deadly bike accidents occur more often in urban areas than rural places. Young children can have difficulty identifying hazards and taking precautionary measures to avoid an accident, and drivers can have an especially difficult time seeing some young cyclists on the road.
If a driver’s negligence caused your child to suffer injuries in a bike accident, you need to hold them answerable.