North Carolina Motorcycle Laws

NORTH CAROLINA MOTORCYCLE LAWS*

North Carolina motorcyclists are protected under North Carolina motorcycle law that makes negligent drivers responsible and liable to North Carolina motorcyclists. A biker who is involved in a North Carolina motorcycle accident may obtain compensation for his or her injuries that were caused by the other driver’s negligence. Damages may include payment for pain and suffering, scarring, disfigurement, loss of enjoyment of life, economic loss, and more. What follows are some of the relevant laws involving motorcycles in the State of North Carolina.

If you sustained an injury due to a North Carolina motorcycle accident and you haven’t contacted a lawyer about your North Carolina motorcycle accident, the best thing you can do for yourself is contact us NOW. We’ll listen to you and help you understand your options. If you have a case, we’ll help you find the best motorcycle accident injury attorney or law firm in your area. As an attorney who litigates these cases, I belong to many trial lawyer and motorcycle lawyer groups and have gone out of my way to find the best motorcycle attorneys in each state. Even the phone call is free, and there is no obligation. Don’t wait until it’s too late, make a simple call and talk to attorney Jason Waechter, The Motorcycle Lawyer.             1-877-Biker-Law (1-877-245-3752).

Ø      North Carolina is an at-fault state. This means that the law of negligence governs motor vehicle accidents. The person who is found to be “at fault” for the accident can be held accountable for your injuries and damages in your North Carolina motorcycle accident.

Ø      North Carolina Helmet Law: When riding on or operating a North Carolina motorcycle, you are required by law to wear a helmet.

Ø      North Carolina Eye Protection Law: When riding on or operating a North Carolina motorcycle, you are not required by law to wear eye protection.

N.C.G.S.A. § 20-140.4

§ 20-140.4. Special provisions for motorcycles and mopeds

(a) No person shall operate a motorcycle or moped upon a highway or public vehicular area:

(1) When the number of persons upon such motorcycle or moped, including the operator, shall exceed the number of persons which it was designed to carry.

(2) Unless the operator and all passengers thereon wear safety helmets of a type approved by the Commissioner of Motor Vehicles.

(a) Unless the operator and all passengers thereon wear on their heads, with a retention strap properly secured, safety helmets of a type that complies with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 218.
(b) Violation of any provision of this section shall not be considered negligence per se or contributory negligence per se in any civil action.
 (c) Any person convicted of violating this section shall have committed an infraction and shall be fined according to G.S. 20-135.2A(e) and (f).

Ø      To Drive a North Carolina Motorcycle: The following statute addresses license concerns when you are driving or operating a North Carolina motorcycle.

N.C.G.S.A. § 20-7

§ 20-7. Issuance and renewal of driver’s licenses

(a) License Required. -- To drive a motor vehicle on a highway, a person must be licensed by the Division under this Article or Article 2C of this Chapter to drive the vehicle and must carry the license while driving the vehicle. The Division issues regular drivers licenses under this Article and issues commercial drivers licenses under Article 2C.

(a1) Motorcycles and Mopeds.--To drive a motorcycle, a person shall have:

(1) A full provisional license with a motorcycle learner's permit;

(2) A regular drivers license with a motorcycle learner's permit; or

(3) Either:

a. A full provisional license; or

b. A regular drivers license, with a motorcycle endorsement.

Subsection (a2) of this section sets forth the requirements for a motorcycle learner's permit.

To obtain a motorcycle endorsement, a person shall demonstrate competence to drive a motorcycle by:

(1) Passing a road test;

(2) Passing a written or oral test concerning motorcycles; and

(3) Paying the fee for a motorcycle endorsement.

Neither a drivers license nor a motorcycle endorsement is required to drive a moped.

(a2) Motorcycle Learner's Permit.--The following persons are eligible for a motorcycle learner's permit:

(1) A person who is at least 16 years old but less than 18 years old and has a full provisional license issued by the Division.

(2) A person who is at least 18 years old and has a license issued by the Division.

To obtain a motorcycle learner's permit, an applicant shall pass a vision test, a road sign test, and a written test specified by the Division. A motorcycle learner's permit expires 18 months after it is issued. The holder of a motorcycle learner's permit may not drive a motorcycle with a passenger. The fee for a motorcycle learner's permit is the amount set in G.S. 20-7(l) for a learner's permit.

Ø      North Carolina Motorcycle Minimum Insurance Requirements: The minimum insurance required for your North Carolina motorcycle is compulsory liability insurance.

·        Bodily Injury Liability (1 person): $30,000

·        Bodily Injury Liability (all persons, 1 accident): $60,000

·        Property Damage Liability: $25,000

N.C.G.S.A. § 20-279.21

§ 20-279.21. “Motor vehicle liability policy” defined

(a) A “motor vehicle liability policy” as said term is used in this Article shall mean an owner's or an operator's policy of liability insurance, certified as provided in G.S. 20-279.19 or 20-279.20 as proof of financial responsibility, and issued, except as otherwise provided in G.S. 20-279.20, by an insurance carrier duly authorized to transact business in this State, to or for the benefit of the person named therein as insured.

(b) Such owner's policy of liability insurance:

(1) Shall designate by explicit description or by appropriate reference all motor vehicles with respect to which coverage is thereby to be granted;

(2) Shall insure the person named therein and any other person, as insured, using any such motor vehicle or motor vehicles with the express or implied permission of such named insured, or any other persons in lawful possession, against loss from the liability imposed by law for damages arising out of the ownership, maintenance or use of such motor vehicle or motor vehicles within the United States of America or the Dominion of Canada subject to limits exclusive of interest and costs, with respect to each such motor vehicle, as follows: thirty thousand dollars ($30,000) because of bodily injury to or death of one person in any one accident and, subject to said limit for one person, sixty thousand dollars ($60,000) because of bodily injury to or death of two or more persons in any one accident, and twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000) because of injury to or destruction of property of others in any one accident;

Ø      North Carolina UIM Coverage: UIM coverage is underinsured, or uninsured, motorist coverage. This will protect you if you are injured in a North Carolina motorcycle accident and the at-fault driver does not have sufficient insurance to cover you claims, or is completely uninsured.

·        Underinsured: UIM protects you if the at-fault driver involved in your North Carolina motorcycle accident has inadequate insurance to cover your resulting injuries.

·        Uninsured: UIM protects you if the at-fault driver in your North Carolina motorcycle accident does not have any insurance to cover your resulting injuries.

·        Hit & Run: UIM may also protects you if you are injured in a North Carolina motorcycle accident with an unidentified, or hit & run, at-fault driver.

N.C.G.S.A. § 20-279.21

§ 20-279.21. "Motor vehicle liability policy" defined

(a) A "motor vehicle liability policy" as said term is used in this Article shall mean an owner's or an operator's policy of liability insurance, certified as provided in G.S. 20-279.19 or 20-279.20 as proof of financial responsibility, and issued, except as otherwise provided in G.S. 20-279.20, by an insurance carrier duly authorized to transact business in this State, to or for the benefit of the person named therein as insured.

(3) … The provisions shall include coverage for the protection of persons insured thereunder who are legally entitled to recover damages from owners or operators of uninsured motor vehicles because of injury to or destruction of the property of such insured, with a limit in the aggregate for all insureds in any one accident of up to the limits of property damage liability in the owner's policy of liability insurance, and subject, for each insured, to an exclusion of the first one hundred dollars ($100.00) of such damages. The provision shall further provide that a written statement by the liability insurer, whose name appears on the certification of financial responsibility made by the owner of any vehicle involved in an accident with the insured, that the other motor vehicle was not covered by insurance at the time of the accident with the insured shall operate as a prima facie presumption that the operator of the other motor vehicle was uninsured at the time of the accident with the insured for the purposes of recovery under this provision of the insured's liability insurance policy. The coverage required under this subdivision is not applicable where any insured named in the policy rejects the coverage…

If a person who is legally entitled to recover damages from the owner or operator of an uninsured motor vehicle is an insured under the uninsured motorist coverage of a policy that insures more than one motor vehicle, that person shall not be permitted to combine the uninsured motorist limit applicable to any one motor vehicle with the uninsured motorist limit applicable to any other motor vehicle to determine the total amount of uninsured motorist coverage available to that person. If a person who is legally entitled to recover damages from the owner or operator of an uninsured motor vehicle is an insured under the uninsured motorist coverage of more than one policy, that person may combine the highest applicable uninsured motorist limit available under each policy to determine the total amount of uninsured motorist coverage available to that person. The previous sentence shall apply only to insurance on non-fleet private passenger motor vehicles as described in G.S. 58-40-10(1) and (2).

In addition to the above requirements relating to uninsured motorist insurance, every policy of bodily injury liability insurance covering liability arising out of the ownership, maintenance or use of any motor vehicle, which policy is delivered or issued for delivery in this State, shall be subject to the following provisions which need not be contained therein.

b. Where the insured, under the uninsured motorist coverage, claims that he has sustained bodily injury as the result of collision between motor vehicles and asserts that the identity of the operator or owner of a vehicle (other than a vehicle in which the insured is a passenger) cannot be ascertained, the insured may institute an action directly against the insurer: Provided, in that event, the insured, or someone in his behalf, shall report the accident within 24 hours or as soon thereafter as may be practicable, to a police officer, peace officer, other judicial officer, or to the Commissioner of Motor Vehicles.

Ø      North Carolina Statute of Limitations: If you wish to commence suit to recover damages for injuries resulting from your North Carolina motorcycle accident, you must do so within 3 years from the date of your North Carolina motorcycle accident.

N.C.G.S.A. § 1-52

§ 1-52. Three years

Within three years an action --

(16) Unless otherwise provided by statute, for personal injury or physical damage to claimant's property, the cause of action, except in causes of actions referred to in G.S. 1-15(c), shall not accrue until bodily harm to the claimant or physical damage to his property becomes apparent or ought reasonably to have become apparent to the claimant, whichever event first occurs. Provided that no cause of action shall accrue more than 10 years from the last act or omission of the defendant giving rise to the cause of action.

*There are many exceptions, special definitions and complex issues that cannot be explained in this material. It is not intended to be a substitute for specific legal advice. Your legal rights greatly depend on the facts of your accident.

*Law changes constantly. Do not rely on this information. Law is vast and can not be covered in this limited space.

***Law portion of site in progress. North Carolina motorcycle law regarding North Carolina motorcycle accidents is being drafted and will be updated soon. Please call our firm for a free consultation to see if you have a case.