Motorcycle Accident Lawyer | Kern County, CA
Lost a Loved One in a Motorcycle Crash? Talk with a Kern County Lawyer
Colvin Accident Lawyers represents families in Bakersfield and throughout Kern County after a fatal motorcycle collision. Your first consultation is free, confidential, and comes with no obligation to continue.
By Donald Norman Colvin · Published October 22, 2026
A fatal motorcycle crash can leave a family dealing with grief, funeral bills, and hard questions all at once. California law lets certain family members and the estate bring a wrongful death claim when someone else’s negligence causes a death. This guide explains who can file, what a claim can cover, the deadlines that matter, and what happens after you reach out. It is written for families looking for a fatal motorcycle crash lawyer in Kern County.
What a Wrongful Death Claim Is After a Motorcycle Crash
A wrongful death claim is brought because a person died as a result of another party’s negligence or wrongful conduct. In a motorcycle case, the at-fault party might be a driver who turns in front of a rider, a commercial truck driver, a bus operator, or a government agency responsible for a dangerous road condition.
Fatal crashes in Kern County can involve any of these parties. Roads in the county carry passenger vehicles, commercial trucks, and buses. Each case turns on its own facts.
Colvin Accident Lawyers handles wrongful death cases that arise from motorcycle crashes. The firm is based in Bakersfield, and its work covers Kern County and nearby communities, including Delano, Tehachapi, Lancaster, and Palmdale. Donald Norman Colvin is the lawyer responsible for this page. Our team supports families through each step.
If your family lost someone in a motorcycle crash, you don't have to sort out the next steps alone. Contact our Bakersfield team to talk through what comes next. Talk it through with our team — the first consultation is free, confidential, and carries no obligation.
Who Can File a Wrongful Death Claim in California
California law generally lets a surviving spouse or registered domestic partner, the decedent’s children, and their issue file the claim. If there is no surviving issue, the people who would inherit the decedent’s property under state law can file. See the wrongful death standing rules.
Other people who depended on the decedent can also qualify. Among those who may qualify as dependents are a putative spouse (the surviving spouse of a void or voidable marriage who is found by the court to have believed in good faith that the marriage to the decedent was valid), stepchildren, children of the putative spouse, parents, and legal guardians if the parents have died, each if dependent on the decedent. A minor can qualify if the minor lived in the decedent’s household for the previous 180 days and depended on the decedent for at least half of their support.
The estate’s claim works differently. Wrongful death claims may be asserted by the listed family members or by the decedent’s personal representative on their behalf; a survival claim passing to a successor in interest is governed by a different rule. The personal representative (the person who handles the estate) can bring it. If there is none, the successor in interest can bring it. Anyone filing this way must sign a sworn affidavit and attach a certified death certificate under the successor in interest affidavit rules.
See this California comparative fault case. How helmet use affects a claim depends on the facts of each crash.
What a Fatal Motorcycle Crash Claim Can Cover
A survival action covers the losses the decedent suffered before death, including penalties or punitive damages, but does not include damages for pain, suffering, or disfigurement unless a narrow statutory exception applies. As written, that exception covers only actions granted a preference before January 1, 2022, or filed on or after January 1, 2022, and before January 1, 2026, so a survival action filed on or after January 1, 2026 would not qualify for it.
Economic losses are objectively verifiable money losses. Under the economic damages definition, these include medical expenses, loss of earnings, and burial costs. Examples include hospital bills from injuries before death, funeral costs, and income the decedent would have earned for the family.
Non-economic losses are subjective. They include loss of society and companionship, which covers the everyday bond a family loses.
Survival damages are narrower. Under survival action limits, damages generally cover losses the decedent sustained before death. They do not include pain, suffering, or disfigurement. Under Code of Civil Procedure section 377.34(a), damages in a decedent’s survival action are limited to the loss or damage the decedent sustained or incurred before death and do not include damages for pain, suffering, or disfigurement. Subdivision (b) allows those damages only for an action granted a preference under Section 36 before January 1, 2022, or filed on or after January 1, 2022, and before January 1, 2026.
Under several liability for non-economic damages, in a personal injury, property damage, or wrongful death action based on principles of comparative fault, each defendant is liable only for the non-economic damages allocated to that defendant in direct proportion to its percentage of fault.
Deadlines That Can Affect a Kern County Family
A wrongful death lawsuit generally must be brought within two years under California’s two-year injury deadline.
If a public agency is involved, the deadline is much shorter. For a death claim, that claim must be presented not later than six months after the cause of action accrues, under the government claim deadline.
Families may not know early whether a road agency was involved. That is one more reason to act quickly.
Early evidence matters. Keep the motorcycle, damaged gear, the helmet, and phone records. Request the police collision report and any traffic camera or dashcam footage. Caltrans publishes annual collision data for California highways, including fatal crashes. Contacting us early gives more time to review deadlines and evidence while the facts are still fresh.
How the Process Works After You Contact Our Firm
A case usually moves through five stages.
- Free, confidential first consultation. The first consultation is free, confidential, and carries no obligation to continue. You share the crash details, and we review the basic facts.
- Investigation. We collect the police collision report, witness information, death and medical records, vehicle damage records, and insurance information. If the estate is involved, we help gather the death certificate and required sworn filing.
- Identifying responsible parties. This may include the at-fault driver, a vehicle owner, a commercial carrier, or a property or government entity.
- Claim and negotiation. We present the claim to insurers and negotiate. We keep the family informed at each stage.
- Lawsuit if needed. If a fair resolution cannot be reached through negotiation, we can file a lawsuit. The timeline varies with the court, the parties, and the complexity of the case.
Why Families Choose Colvin Accident Lawyers
Colvin Accident Lawyers is a fatal motorcycle crash lawyer in Kern County. Our team handles car, truck, motorcycle, bicycle, pedestrian, bus, train, dog bite, premises liability, catastrophic injury, and wrongful death cases for accident victims and their families.
The firm is based in Bakersfield, California. It represents clients in Kern County and nearby communities such as Delano, Tehachapi, Lancaster, and Palmdale.
Donald Norman Colvin is the lawyer responsible for this page. Our team explains each legal step in plain language, so families know what comes next and why.
Not sure what your next step is?
Talk it through with our team — the first consultation is free, confidential, and carries no obligation.
Common Questions About Fatal Motorcycle Crash Claims
The police report is one source of evidence in either matter.
Can a family file if the rider wasn’t wearing a helmet?
California requires helmets, and how helmet use affects a claim depends on the facts of each crash.
Can a family still pursue a claim if the rider was partly at fault?
Yes. California’s comparative fault rule reduces recovery by the rider’s share of fault rather than barring it.
What changes when a commercial truck or bus is involved?
These crashes can involve more parties and more records. We review them during the investigation.
How soon should we act?
Deadlines can be short and evidence can disappear. Earlier contact leaves more time to act.
Talk With Colvin Accident Lawyers About Your Family’s Loss
A family that has lost a loved one in a motorcycle crash faces a funeral, bills, and deadlines at the same time. If that is your situation in Kern County, you don’t have to work through it alone. Call Colvin Accident Lawyers or send us a message through our contact form to schedule a first consultation with our Bakersfield team.
Colvin Accident Lawyers, Bakersfield, California — responsible for this site.
How Colvin Accident Lawyers Supports Your Family
A Direct Conversation
We listen to what happened and answer your questions about the legal process in plain language.
Careful Review of the Facts
We look at the crash report, medical records, and other evidence that may bear on how the collision occurred.
Attention to Your Whole Family
We understand that a sudden death affects everyone at home, and we keep the family informed at every stage.
Rooted in Kern County
Our team serves Bakersfield, Kern County, and nearby communities including Fresno, Visalia, Lancaster, Palmdale, Delano, and Tehachapi.
Before You Speak with an Insurance Company
Insurance representatives may contact your family soon after a fatal crash. Before you give a recorded statement or sign any document, consider speaking with a lawyer about what you are being asked to say.
Common Concerns After a Fatal Motorcycle Crash
Questions About Fault
Motorcycle crashes are often investigated from conflicting accounts. We help families understand how fault may be examined under California law and how the facts of their case apply.
Medical and Funeral Costs
Families may face hospital bills, funeral expenses, and lost income at the same time. We discuss which of these losses may be part of a claim based on the specific facts of your case.
Helmet and Riding Questions
Insurers often ask about protective gear and riding conduct. How these issues affect a claim depends on the facts of each crash, and we review them with you directly.
Gathering Evidence
Scene photos, witness contact information, vehicle damage records, and police reports can change quickly. We help families think about what to preserve and whom to contact.