SACRAMENTO PEDESTRIAN ACCIDENT ATTORNEY
CALL: (916) 476-9781
Pedestrian accidents generally result from a pedestrian being struck by a motor vehicle. Normally, it is the inattentive driver that fails to recognize the pedestrian legally crossing the street or walking in some other legal way. Pedestrians are vulnerable, they are not protected within a vehicle, and many people are unable to maneuver out of the way of an oncoming car in a fast manner, especially the elderly.
This applies as well in slow-moving accidents, where the pedestrian can be significantly injured, compared to the motorist, who would more than likely have survived unscathed. Whether the impact was slow moving or not, the injuries will be significant in these cases. Pedestrians are also injured on a regular basis from non-motor vehicle accidents. This area of law deals with premises liability, where some property defect leads to injuries of pedestrians. In the pedestrian-motor vehicle accident context, the court and your attorney should analyze the different duties of care to all involved.
Drivers must exercise reasonable care under the circumstances. Pedestrians must also exercise reasonable care, but the courts have found that the pedestrian duty of care is not as great as the driver’s duty of care. Pedestrians can be found liable as well, if their actions were unreasonable, such as jaywalking, or simply inattentive behavior under the circumstances. In this circumstance, the rules of contributory negligence would apply, and any potential recovery would be reduced by the percentage of fault of the pedestrian. So, pedestrians do not have to meet the driver’s duty of care, which is an important fact to remember in court or in negotiations with the other sides insurance company.
Per the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, there were 5,376 pedestrians injured or killed in traffic accidents in 2015 alone. These accidents are all too common, they come with severe injuries, and the importance of having a lawyer that understands the law surrounding pedestrian accidents, coupled with the ability to ensure that you get the treatment you need, cannot be overstated.
If you have been injured as a pedestrian in a traffic accident, contact Sacramento Personal Injury Lawyer Michael Rehm at (916) 476-9781 to determine your next steps forward.