A Atlanta Pedestrian Accident Attorney, can protect you from tactics an insurance company may use to devalue your claim. It’s important to seek medical assistance and a full evaluation of your injuries, as some injuries may not appear immediately or take time to show symptoms.
To prove negligence, a lawyer must establish that the driver violated their duty of care by failing to follow traffic laws or yield to pedestrians in crosswalks. Compensation for injuries can include both economic and non-economic damages.
Pedestrians Have the Right of Way
Pedestrians must obey traffic laws and always use caution, especially when crossing the street. They must also cross the road only within a marked or designated pedestrian area. However, there are a few instances in which pedestrians may not have the right of way.
If a pedestrian is on the sidewalk next to a driveway or private road/roadway and the driver wants to enter or exit the driveway or roadway, they must yield to the pedestrian. Likewise, drivers must stop for pedestrians in marked crosswalks and remain stopped until the pedestrian crosses over to the other half of the road or exits from the intersection.
If a pedestrian crosses the street against a signal or walks out into the road while it is still red, they are at fault for the accident. They should wait until the signal changes to green and walk across the road carefully and slowly. They should also always look both ways before entering or crossing the street, as well as keep an eye out for children who may dart out into traffic unexpectedly.
Drivers Have a Duty of Care
When drivers are on the roadway, they have a duty to be aware of pedestrians and to make every reasonable effort to avoid hitting them. If a driver fails to do so and pedestrians are struck, they could be held liable for the injuries sustained by the victims.
This duty of care applies to all motorists on public roads, including people who use MARTA buses. Even though jaywalking is legal in Georgia, the people who choose to cross streets illegally must assume the risk of being hit by a vehicle.
Often, pedestrian accidents result in severe injuries that change how they move and look forever. Compensation can cover medical expenses, rehabilitation costs and long-term care needs as well as lost wages. The key to winning a claim is proving that the driver breached their duty of care and that this breach caused the accident to occur. This is known as “but-for causation.” Our firm will carefully review the evidence in your case to determine the best approach for pursuing damages.
Drivers Can Be Distracted
Pedestrians must be vigilant about looking both ways when crossing the street, but it is equally important for drivers to pay attention too. When they do not do so, they can cause pedestrian accidents that result in serious injuries or even death.
Distracted driving involves any activity that diverts a driver’s focus or attention away from the road. Some examples of this include talking on the phone, texting, using electronic devices, eating and drinking, adjusting the radio or music, grooming, interacting with passengers and more.
Cognitive distractions can also reduce a driver’s ability to concentrate and react quickly on the road. For example, emotional states like anger and sadness can impair a person’s ability to drive safely. The law considers this a form of distracted driving, and it can be grounds to pursue monetary compensation for damages. The law provides for economic and non-economic damages, including medical bills, lost income and other losses. The law requires that the person who brings the claim can prove that the other party owed them a duty of care.
Drivers Can Be Liable
In general, the law views people who travel from one place to another without a vehicle as pedestrians. While pedestrians cannot control the actions of drivers, they must be careful not to step into moving traffic or fail to use sidewalks and crosswalks. If a pedestrian is hit by a car, they can seek compensation from the driver.
To recover damages, the victim must prove that the driver owed them a duty of care and that the driver breached this duty by failing to act reasonably while driving. The victim must also show that this negligence led to their injuries and losses.
Often, there are many pieces of evidence that can help victims make these claims. These can include surveillance video (many businesses in urban areas have security cameras), witness statements, physical evidence at the scene such as skid marks and debris, and police reports. These are crucial to the success of a pedestrian accident claim.