Billings, MontanaBillings Motorcycle Accident
Billings Motorcycle Accident Lawyers: Heights, West End and Beartooth Highway Motorcycle Crashes in Yellowstone County
Boland Aarab PLLP.
If a driver caused your motorcycle crash in Billings or Yellowstone County, you can usually recover from that driver’s insurer, and from your own coverage if theirs is too small. Montana does not require adult riders to wear helmets, allows lane filtering at low speed, and generally gives you 3 years to file. Evidence at the scene disappears first.
Hurt in a motorcycle crash, or lost someone on a ride? Contact Boland Aarab PLLP for a free consultation at (406) 315-3737.
Where do motorcycle crashes happen in and around Billings?
Most serious motorcycle crashes we see are caused by a driver who turned, merged or pulled out without seeing the rider. In Billings, the traffic patterns that set up those crashes are easy to name.
- Main Street in the Heights. The Montana Department of Transportation says the Main Street and Airport Road corridor carries about 63,500 vehicles a day, and it is adding left-turn lanes and a new signal at Aronson Avenue (MDT). Heavy turning traffic across a multi-lane arterial is where “I never saw the motorcycle” crashes happen.
- The West End retail corridors. King Avenue West, Shiloh Road, 24th Street West and Grand Avenue carry shopping-center traffic with frequent driveways and parking-lot exits.
- Up and down the Rims. Zimmerman Trail and Highway 3 climb the Rimrocks with grades and curves. The City closes Zimmerman Trail each year for maintenance that includes removing rock from the roadway (Billings Public Works). Rock, gravel and sand on a curve are a hazard for a rider in a way they are not for a car.
- Interstate 90. Summer touring traffic runs through Billings on I-90, mixed with trucks from the refineries, the rail yards and the I-94 split in Lockwood.
- The road to the Beartooths. Many Billings riders head south through Laurel toward Red Lodge and the Beartooth Highway (U.S. 212), which the Montana Department of Transportation says is generally open from Memorial Day weekend through mid-October, weather permitting (MDT).
Spring brings its own risk. Winter traction sand and gravel stay on Billings streets and shoulders after the snow melts, and a rider who brakes on a sandy corner can go down even at low speed. If a road condition caused or worsened your crash, the government agency responsible for the road may share fault, but special notice rules apply.
What happens after a motorcycle crash in Billings?
The responding agency takes the crash report. Inside city limits that is usually the Billings Police Department. On county roads it is usually the Yellowstone County Sheriff’s Office, and on I-90, I-94 and state highways it is often the Montana Highway Patrol. Get the report number at the scene if you can, and request the full report and any photos.
Seriously injured riders in this region are often taken to one of Billings’ two trauma centers. The Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services lists both Billings Clinic and St. Vincent’s Healthcare in Billings as ACS Level 1 / Comprehensive Trauma Centers (DPHHS).
If the case is filed in state court, a crash in Yellowstone County is heard in the Thirteenth Judicial District Court at the Yellowstone County Courthouse, 217 North 27th Street (§ 3-5-101, MCA). A Beartooth-area crash near Red Lodge is in Carbon County, which belongs to the Twenty-Second Judicial District with Stillwater and Big Horn Counties. When the at-fault driver is from another state, which is common on a touring route, the case can end up in the Billings Division of federal court at the James F. Battin Federal Courthouse, 2601 2nd Avenue North (District of Montana).
What should Billings riders do in the first days?
- Keep the bike as it is. Do not let it be salvaged or repaired before it is inspected. The same goes for your helmet, jacket and boots.
- Save ride data, including helmet-camera video, GPS apps and phone location history.
- Ask nearby businesses for video. Many West End and Heights businesses have exterior cameras, and recordings are often overwritten within days.
- Photograph the road surface, especially gravel, sand or debris, before it is swept.
- Do not give the other driver’s insurer a recorded statement until you have talked with a lawyer.
Montana law that applies
- Helmets are required only for riders and passengers under 18 (§ 61-9-417, MCA). Riding without one does not bar an adult’s claim, though insurers may still argue about it.
- Lane filtering is legal: a two-wheeled motorcycle may pass stopped or slow traffic (10 mph or less) at no more than 20 mph when it is safe (§ 61-8-392, MCA).
- Riders have the same rights as other drivers (§ 61-8-359, MCA).
- Comparative fault: you can recover if your share of fault is not greater than the defendants’ combined, with your damages reduced by your percentage (§ 27-1-702, MCA).
- Deadlines: 3 years for most injury claims (§ 27-2-204, MCA); claims against the State, Yellowstone County or the City of Billings must be presented in writing first (§ 2-9-301, MCA).
Our Montana motorcycle accident page explains the helmet question, rider bias and uninsured-motorist coverage in more detail.
Why hire a Great Falls firm for a Billings case?
Because the work that wins a motorcycle case does not depend on where the lawyer’s office is. It depends on proving what happened and being ready to try the case to a jury that may start out skeptical of riders. We are based in Great Falls and handle cases statewide. Our attorneys travel to Billings for depositions, hearings and trial, and our firm has tried jury trials in Yellowstone County. We do not have a Billings office. We come to you, or meet by phone or video while you recover.
The Boland Aarab Way
- We try cases. More than a dozen jury trials, in Cascade, Phillips, Meagher and Yellowstone Counties, and more than 4,000 hours in the courtroom.
- We protect verdicts. The Montana Supreme Court reinstated a $168,500 jury verdict for our client in a rear-end crash case (Voegel v. Salsbery, 2023 MT 137).
- We are part of the trial bar. Both attorneys are members of the American Association for Justice and the Montana Trial Lawyers Association. Caitlin Boland Aarab is an AAJ Governor and serves on the MTLA Board.
- You work with the lawyers, from the first call to the verdict.
Related Billings pages: brain injury · spinal cord injury · all Billings personal injury cases
Frequently Asked Questions
Who investigates a motorcycle crash on Main Street in the Billings Heights? Usually the Billings Police Department, since Main Street in the Heights is inside city limits. Crashes on I-90 or state highways outside town are often handled by the Montana Highway Patrol.
Where would my Beartooth Highway crash case be filed? A crash near Red Lodge happened in Carbon County, which is in the Twenty-Second Judicial District. If the other driver is from out of state, the case may be heard in the federal court’s Billings Division.
Can I sue if gravel or sand on a Billings street caused my crash? Possibly. A claim against the City of Billings, Yellowstone County or the State must be presented in writing first (§ 2-9-301, MCA), and the facts about maintenance matter. Photograph the road before it is swept.
Do I need a helmet to ride in Billings? Not if you are 18 or older. Montana requires helmets only for operators and passengers under 18 (§ 61-9-417, MCA).
Which hospital will treat a seriously injured rider in Billings? Both Billings Clinic and St. Vincent’s Healthcare are listed by DPHHS as Level 1 / Comprehensive Trauma Centers. Keep every record from the emergency department forward.
Talk to a Billings Motorcycle Accident Lawyer
Contact Boland Aarab PLLP for a free consultation at (406) 315-3737.
Our attorneys: Caitlin Boland Aarab · Samir F. Aarab
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship.
