A life-changing motorbike accident On death’s door: our client was riding his motorbike when he was hit from behind by a driver. Motorbike riders are one of the most vulnerable road users and statistically the most likely to be injured or killed on the road. In 2024, 63 motorcyclists were killed on the road in Victoria. More than 500 were injured requiring hospitalisation, and our client was one of them. Our client’s story On February 15 last year, Corey Christoph, riding his Harley Davidson, dropped off his wife Kirsty to work in Melbourne and was making his way back home to Drouin. But the 37-year-old was travelling eastbound on the Princes Fwy toward Longwarry when his life about 8pm changed for the worse after the car came speeding up behind him, hitting him and sending him flying. Corey suffered multiple injuries including an acquired brain injury, a broken tibia, 14 broken ribs, five lumbar spinal fractures, damage to his spleen and kidneys, a skin graft to the left arm, an acl avulsion and more. “And meniscus root injury, a very severe fracture to my right humerus requiring internal fixation and now in future a bone graft, some really gnarly road rash all down the right hand side of my body, along with a heaps of other wounds cuts and scars,” Mr Christoph said. “From what I have been told — I was on death’s door — with both lungs compressed and full of fluid,” he said. The dad-of-two and a roof plumber has not been able to return to work since the incident and has an upcoming surgery on his right arm. “I am (also) undergoing some intensive rehabilitation and physiotherapy for the left knee and leg, as this was unable to be operated on until after about five months, so I was stuck in a brace and wheelchair for quite some time,” Corey said. His lawyer Shalyn Mathew, from Arnold Thomas & Becker, said motorbike riders were some of the most “vulnerable” users on the roads. “People often miss motorbike riders in their blind spots, or because they’re expecting to see a car,” Ms Mathew said. “When you get behind the wheel you have to be vigilant and remember you’re not only responsible for yourself, but also the lives of those around you. “You don’t want to be responsible for the injury, or worse, the life of another person. The ripple effects of these accidents reach far and wide.” Ms Mathew said what happened to Mr Christoph was “completely preventable”. “We remind drivers and riders to look out for each other — due to the careless actions of someone else, Corey must now live with the physical and mental trauma of this accident for the rest of his life,” she said. Injured on the road? If you’ve been injured in a road accident, we understand how stressful this can be, and the last thing you want to be doing is worrying about your financial situation. Permanent injuries can be life changing and you might be eligible for compensation, so we encourage you to contact us to see how we can help you ease the burden. Contact us For more information about TAC claims and eligibility, visit our TAC page. At Arnold Thomas & Becker, we operate on a No Win No Fee basis. To talk to one of our lawyers, call us on 03 9034 8433.