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In Chicago, bicycling is a popular mode of transportation and recreation. With a vibrant cityscape and an extensive network of bike lanes, many residents and visitors rely on bicycles to navigate the city. However, the increasing number of cyclists also means a higher risk of accidents.
A crash with a car, a bus, or a swinging door can happen in the time it takes a driver to glance at a phone, and it can leave you wondering how you will pay rent, walk your kids to school, or simply get through the day without pain.
At D&W Law Group, we built our practice on standing between injured Chicagoans and the insurance companies that would rather you settle fast and settle low. We know the harm that a bicycle accident can cause, and we want to help you obtain fair and full compensation for your injuries.
Our founding attorneys, Lance Dale and Scott Wolfman, have been licensed to practice in Illinois since 1990 and 1993, and the firm carries an A+ BBB rating.
Chicago is home to thousands of cyclists, and the city continues to expand its biking infrastructure. Chicagoans took a record 12.9 million trips on shared bikes and scooters in 2025, and Divvy alone logged 6.8 million of those rides, its best year on record.
Despite this increase in cyclists, most drivers are still not mindful of the need to watch out for people on the road. One of the most frequent causes of a crash is a motorist failing to yield the right of way to a cyclist at an intersection, a crosswalk, or while turning. Drivers who fail to respect bike lanes commonly cause “dooring” injuries, where a driver opens a car door in front of a cyclist. Other causes include poor road conditions, distracted driving, and poor weather.
As the city adds new Divvy stations and protected lanes into neighborhoods on the South, Southwest, and Northwest Sides, ridership is spreading into corridors where drivers are still adjusting to sharing the road, which is exactly where many dooring and right-of-way cases originate.
Illinois law does not leave a cyclist’s right of way to guesswork. Under the state’s vehicle door statute (625 ILCS 5/11-1407), a driver or passenger cannot open a car door into traffic unless it is safe to do so, and cannot leave that door open longer than it takes to load or unload passengers.
That single rule covers the dooring crashes that put so many Chicago cyclists into the emergency room along Milwaukee Avenue, Clark Street, and other corridors lined with parked cars. When a driver breaks that rule and a cyclist gets hurt, the violation itself is strong evidence of fault. We build dooring and right-of-way claims around the police report, the physical evidence at the scene, and witness accounts of exactly how the door opened and where the bike was positioned.
We also look at whether the at-fault party was a private driver, a rideshare passenger, or someone exiting a delivery truck, because each scenario can point to a different insurance policy.
Cyclists have much less protection in an accident than someone in a vehicle. As a result, cyclists commonly suffer catastrophic injuries, including:
These and other injuries can cause a victim to experience a lifetime of complications, and our goal as your legal representation is to help you maximize the compensation you receive while minimizing the time it takes to resolve your claim.
While every bicycle accident case turns on its own facts, our results in other Chicago vehicle collision claims show the range of compensation available when a driver’s or a transit agency’s negligence causes a serious injury.
| Outcome | Case Type |
| $3.6 million | CTA bus accident, fractured pelvis |
| $2 million | Pedestrian struck by bus, wrongful death |
| $1.25 million | Car accident, disc herniation |
Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.
Cyclists do not carry auto insurance the way drivers do, so compensation usually comes from someone else’s policy: the at-fault driver’s liability coverage, a rideshare company’s commercial policy if the door belonged to an Uber or Lyft passenger, or your own uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage if the driver who hit you had no insurance or fled the scene.
Insurance adjusters often argue that you share some of the blame for lane position, visibility, or how you were riding. Under Illinois’s modified comparative negligence rule (735 ILCS 5/2-1116), an injured cyclist can still recover damages as long as they are not more than 50% at fault, though every percentage point assigned to you reduces your payout.
That is exactly the kind of argument Mark Curran III, whose background pairs a law degree with a finance degree, is positioned to push back on when insurers try to minimize future medical costs and lost earning capacity.
If a Chicago Transit Authority bus, a Chicago Park District vehicle, or another city-owned vehicle was involved, the deadline to act can be far shorter than for a claim against a private driver, and formal written notice may be due within months, not years. We evaluate that timeline the day you call.
At D&W Law Group, our Illinois personal injury lawyers understand the devastating impact a serious accident can have on your life. Our track record of success is based on more than 75 years of combined attorney experience, and we represent individuals against insurance companies so they are not taken advantage of during negotiations or litigation. When you choose our firm, our attorneys work directly with you and provide the personalized attention you need. We also offer our services in English and Spanish.
Co-founder Lance Dale earned his law degree from Chicago-Kent College of Law, and co-founder Scott Wolfman is a graduate of DePaul University College of Law. Both attorneys are members of the American Association for Justice and the Illinois Trial Lawyers Association.
If you are involved in a bicycle accident, taking the right steps can protect your health and strengthen your legal case. If possible:
Illinois law gives most injured cyclists a firm two-year filing deadline (735 ILCS 5/13-202) that starts running on the date of the crash. Miss it, and a court can throw out even a well-documented case, no matter how serious the injury.
That two-year clock is an outer limit, not a reason to wait. Evidence at a Chicago intersection can disappear within days, and witnesses move on. We open an investigation right after you call, sending preservation letters for surveillance footage, photographing the crash site, and locking in witness statements while memories are fresh.
If a government vehicle such as a CTA bus was involved, a much shorter notice deadline may apply, so contact us as soon as possible.
Most Chicago bicycle injury lawsuits against a private driver are filed in the Law Division of the Circuit Court of Cook County, housed in the Richard J. Daley Center at 50 West Washington Street in downtown Chicago.
The Law Division hears civil claims for money damages arising from negligence, including the car, truck, and bus collisions that injure cyclists throughout the city.
Yes. Even when fault looks obvious, the insurance company still controls how much it offers, and adjusters routinely argue that a cyclist contributed to the crash to reduce a payout. Speaking with a lawyer before you give a recorded statement protects your claim from that tactic.
Often, yes. Under Illinois’s modified comparative negligence rule, you can recover damages as long as you are not more than 50% at fault. Your award is reduced by your share of the blame, which is exactly why insurers work so hard to shift fault onto the cyclist.
You may still recover through the uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage on your own auto policy, which applies even when you were injured on a bicycle. A hit-and-run is treated as an uninsured-driver claim, so a police report documenting the crash is important.
It depends on the severity of your injuries, your current and future medical costs, lost income, and how clearly the evidence shows the other party was at fault. We evaluate each of these and account for future costs, not just the bills already in hand.
We handle bicycle accident cases on a contingency-fee basis, which means there is no fee unless we recover compensation for you, and your initial consultation is free.
The sooner you reach out after a crash, the more evidence we can preserve and the harder it is for an insurer to shift blame onto you. Contact D&W Law Group today to schedule your free consultation.
I was in a accident and D&W Law group took very grate care of me and I would recommend this law group to any one if you were in a car accident please call this law group there are great.
I come from the "Service" industry with a predominantly Hispanic customer base and I am very particular as too whom I refer my customers to when they need assistance. D&W has pulled thru every time taking care of my customers as I would. Thank you for all you do!
After what seemed like an impossible search, I was referred to D and W Law Group. I was met with a very knowledgeable staff who exceeded my expectations. All of my questions and concerns were answered in a timely manner.
I just have a question ik it's been a while since I had my accident. I just wanted to know if I'm still having complications do to my injury what do you suggest I do can you all give me a call or can I call to talk more details…
Pros 100% Font bother going anywhere else. They actually care about doing good and put the thier clients best interest 1st. I hope I never need help in this way again but if I did I wouldn’t go anywhere else.
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