What to do If You are a Pedestrian Struck By a Vehicle
Accidents can occur every day and anywhere. It doesn’t matter who you are or where you live, you can be confronted with this misfortune. We all are familiar with street and road accidents. It is now common for accidents to happen to pedestrians. If there were injuries or hospitalization involved, it might be necessary to hire an attorney to help you seek fair compensation.
In smaller communities such as those in Lake County, many of the streets are marked with stop signs rather than tri light signals. Many of the towns have one major street with all the shops, restaurants and businesses on them. This leads to a high level of pedestrian traffic, walking from shop to shop, business to business or to a restaurant. Because the traffic is controlled only by stop signs many drivers neglect to watch out for pedestrians crossing the streets and unfortunately many accidents that can be avoided, occur.
If a person is struck by a vehicle while they are walking they absolutely need to seek advice from a lawyer. The pedestrian should ask the attorney which auto insurer they should contact first. Also, find out which insurer they could get additional coverage.
An attorney can present your arguments to your insurance as far as who was at fault. It is devastating for a driver to hit a pedestrian. According to statistics over 60,000 pedestrians were hit by vehicles in 2006.
Drivers should be conscious of defensive driving. They should watch out for children and the elderly. This category of people may not be aware of the drivers in the streets or roads. It just takes a little extra care to pay better attention to give pedestrians room and avoid any unnecessary accidents.
It is important to know what to do following an accident with a pedestrian. Try to stay calm and contact the police and your insurance company.
Know Your Rights
Consult an attorney as soon as possible. Be sure to find one you will feel confident with, someone who will represent you well. Be certain to find out how long they have been in practice, how many cases similar to yours they have handled. It is also a good idea to ask how often they settled cases out of court. Most important ask about their fees and costs and brief you on what else you need to do.
It is better to be safe than sorry. Contact us for a free case evaluation if you have been injured in a pedestrian accident anywhere in Northern California.