Over 4,500 pedestrians are killed each year in motor vehicle crashes. Another 70,000 or so are injured when hit by an automobile or truck. The highest rate for pedestrian-automobile injuries and deaths involve 5- to 9-year-old boys, who tend to dart into the street without looking both ways for oncoming traffic. Many of these injuries occur on residential streets where the child darts out into the street from between two cars, giving the driver of the automobile little time to react. However, exceeding the speed limit by the motor vehicle is a contributing cause to many of these accidents and deaths.
Injuries and fatalities involving pedestrians occur most frequently in three groups of people: young children (between the ages of 5 and 9), older adults (those 70 andolder), and persons impaired by alcohol. Fatal pedestrian motor vehicle collisions occur most often between 6:00 p.m. and midnight, and are more likely to occur on Friday,Saturday, and Sunday. Approximately half of the pedestrian deaths and injuries during these times are alcohol-related, either on the pedestrian’s behalf or more likely on the driver’s part. Crosswalk accidents and injuries are extremely common.
The driver of a motor vehicle must always be on the lookout for pedestrianswalking along the side of the road or crossing the street. A driver who is distracted by talking on a cell phone, eating, changing the station on the radio, and other factors islikely not to see the pedestrian until it is too late.
When an automobile hits a pedestrian, the damages to the pedestrian are often substantial, if not fatal. Broken legs, arms, and ribs are not uncommon when a pedestrian is hit by a car, SUV, truck, bus, etc. In many cases the pedestrian may be partially at fault, but this is usually not a bar to his or her recovery for that portion of damages attributable to the negligence of the vehicle driver.
If you have been injured by a motor vehicle while a pedestrian, you should discuss your case with a personal injury lawyer as soon as possible, so that the lawyercan begin an immediate investigation into the cause of the accident and obtain maximum recovery for you. Don’t make the mistake of blindly assuming that it was all your fault; the driver of the car may be the one who is completely or partially at fault, and you deserve to be compensated for his or her carelessness (“negligence”).
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