If you ride a motorcycle in Minnesota, you know a thrill and a joy that people in passenger cars can never experience. At the same time, you face a level of risk that is also not shared by people in other vehicles. Sadly, many of these risks are due to the negligence of other drivers. Sometimes a motorcyclist is not seen by a car and other times the driver of a vehicle may disregard a motorcycle due to its smaller size. Whatever the reason, the biker can be very vulnerable to serious injuries or even death when colliding with another vehicle.
In looking at records from theĀ National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, a steady trend of many motorcyclist fatalities is seen each year. Between 2011 and 2013, significant increases in the number of bikers killed were seen starting with 42 in 2011 and then increasing to 55 and 61 in 2012 and 2013, respectively. The following year saw a dip down to 46 yet 2015's fatality county in motorcycle crashes spiked back up to 61.
While many people believe that these crashes are often caused by the recklessness of young bikers, the statistics tell a different story. Over those same five years, it was riders in their 50s who represented the majority of those killed. A total of 82 bikers in that age group died. That compares to 48 riders in their 40s, 46 in their 30s and over the age of 60 and 40 riders in their 20s.
This information is not intended to provide legal advice but is instead meant to give Minnesota residents an overview of how many people die in motorcycle crashes around the state and the relative ages of those who die in these accidents.