Lane splitting by a motorcycle is legal in California. The Highway Patrol has published guidelines. Guidelines are not a statute that automatically assigns fault, and they are not a defense that ends the other driver’s duty to look.
How the argument actually goes
The insurer says the rider was between lanes, too fast, and unexpected. The response is the relative speed, the traffic, the other driver’s mirror check or the absence of one, and the point of impact. A legal act can still be negligent if it was unsafe in that moment. An illegal narrative — “splitting is against the law” — should not survive the first deposition.
If this was your crash, the photographs of lane position matter more than a general essay. See what to photograph.
Written for riders in California as general information from the Bike911 practice of A.G. Assanti & Associates, P.C. It is not advice about your facts, and it is not a substitute for counsel. Deadlines can be shorter than you think.
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