A woman thrown from a Harley Davidson motorcycle when her husband suddenly stopped the bike in traffic sued the company to recover monies for her injuries and expenses from the CA motorcycle accident. The woman received traumatic brain injuries in the accident and now has a prosthetic skull.
Her husband claimed at the time of the accident that his anti-lock brakes malfunctioned. This leads us to a major issue in the case. It turns out that the man’s bike did not actually have an anti-lock brake system (ABS). But the Harley icon on the bike’s tachometer indicated that the bike did possess ABS. And the couple claim that the Harley salesman that sold them the bike said that the bike had ABS.
But what the salesman did or did not say is not a central issue. The bike in question never had an ABS, even though the icon embedded in the bike indicated that it did have an ABS.
Harley Davidson admits that the motorcycle in question never had ABS. Its answer to the couple’s claim is that having two different assembly lines and processes for the bikes with and without ABS would cost too much, and that bike owners should realize (despite the icon) that their bikes don’t have ABS when the icon doesn’t “light up” as they on turn the motorcycles.
I don’t know about you, but if I had a bike that the manufacturer had clearly marked with an icon stating that it had ABS, I would assume that the bike had ABS whether or not the icon lit up. And the salesman that sold the couple the bike might well have believed the same thing.
Broken lights and light switches aren’t unknown in Harley Davidson motorcycles or in other vehicles. Indeed, in October 2011, Harley recalled over 300,000 of its bikes because of a problem in the rear brake light switch.
And Harley openly admits to other problems in its bikes (though it also points to similar problems with other manufacturers’ bikes). For instance, it admits the existence of the problem Harley aficionados call “Harley wobble.” But Harley Davidson points to the same problem in other manufacturers’ vehicles.
The CA TBI case might show Harley Davidson in a bad light with regard to customer care and compassion. But other vehicle manufacturers of all types also tend to put profits ahead of safety.
If a bike wreck has injured you, download our Galveston bike wreck lawyers’ free e-book on the essential elements of a successful motorcycle accident claim. Learn the facts, and get the financial compensation you deserve for your injury.