If you've been involved in a pedestrian car accident, one of the first legal issues you'll need to consider is liability. The person at fault (responsible) for the driver or pedestrian for the accident usually has to pay for the damages. In most cases, proving liability means proving that someone was negligent (careless). Liability is divided according to the percentage of fault, up to a certain level.
Once the plaintiff reaches or exceeds that level, they are prohibited from recovery. In other words, if a plaintiff is more than 50% at fault for the accident, the plaintiff cannot recover anything from the defendant. Liability in all traffic accidents is based on negligence. Because pedestrians are a particularly vulnerable segment of traffic, motorists must give way to people crossing the street or crossing the paths of cars.
At the same time, pedestrians must also take the same care as a reasonable person in the same situation. This often means obeying traffic signs and pedestrian controls and staying within designated crosswalks According to The Advocate, a pedestrian accident that occurred in East Baton Rouge resulted in the death of a young child. Not only can you be entitled to no-fault PIP benefits as a pedestrian, but you can also file a pedestrian accident liability claim against the negligent driver. It can be easy to assume that the driver is at fault in an accident between a vehicle and a pedestrian.
For example, a driver whose job requires him to be on his feet most of the time might not be able to work full time or perform his job at all after a pedestrian accident that shattered his hip or pelvis. For example, some states have a crosswalk statute intended to protect pedestrians, and a driver who does not obey the law and hits a pedestrian can be sued for negligence per se. Interestingly, a pedestrian who is “just outside a crosswalk” is entitled to the same protections as a pedestrian who is in a crosswalk. If a pedestrian fails to act reasonably and causes damage to a car, a motorist could, in theory, sue the pedestrian to recover from the damage, although this rarely happens.
A motor vehicle driver making a turn must pedestrians at marked and unmarked crosswalks warn the pedestrian of their approach using a horn, if that would be reasonable under the circumstances. In addition, each pedestrian has a duty, before entering a street, to make reasonably careful observations to determine the traffic conditions to be encountered; therefore, a pedestrian has a duty to look in the direction from which an approaching motorist could endanger the pedestrian's safety, to exercise a reasonable care at all times when crossing the street and remaining alert to protect against injury. Just because a pedestrian is hit at a crosswalk does not mean that the pedestrian automatically wins a legal case. If a pedestrian fails to perform that duty of care and their negligence causes an accident, the pedestrian is at fault.
In a pedestrian accident case, the plaintiff can recover from past medical expenses, anticipated future medical expenses, past wage loss, predicted future wage loss, and past and future pain and suffering. This is an important factor in pointing out to jurors when a plaintiff attorney represents a pedestrian in a serious accident case. A pedestrian walking on a sidewalk has a right of way; therefore, a vehicle entering an entrance must give way to the pedestrian. Therefore, if a pedestrian fails to exercise reasonable care in any way, and that failure causes a car accident, the pedestrian will be considered to be at fault.
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