People love to go for a walk – especially this time of year. The air is crisp and cool. The leaves are changing colors and the sky looks amazing at sunset. You should be able to go for a walk without worrying about getting hurt. Unfortunately, accidents happen. People don’t always pay attention to the road the way they should. When this happens, pedestrians get mowed down. People get hurt. If this happens to you or a loved one, contact a Roswell pedestrian accident attorney in Roswell.
You could be walking down a road or city street and a car comes out of nowhere. It may be driving too fast. Or it may be dark and they don’t have their lights on. Regardless, driver is always required to be on the lookout for pedestrians. Many towns have rules that give the pedestrian the right of way. If you are walking at a crosswalk, cars are supposed to stop until you safely pass. This doesn’t mean that all cars follow the rules. If you are hit while in a crosswalk, you need to call a Roswell accident attorney.
The problem with pedestrian accidents is that it’s always the pedestrian who gets hurt. You don’t stand a chance against a car or truck. If you’re hit by a car, you are going to sustain some pretty serious injuries. This is why you will need a pedestrian injury lawyer. They can fight to get you the compensation you deserve. Roswell pedestrian accident lawyers will deal with the driver’s insurance company to make sure you are compensated for your injuries.
Pedestrian Accident Statistics
Although they don’t seem like they’d be that common, pedestrian accidents actually make up 11% of all traffic fatalities. To put it into perspective, in 2013 there were over 66,000 people injured in pedestrian accidents. Almost 5,000 people were killed. This is why pedestrian injury lawyers exist. To make sure that they are there to help the people are who injured in this type of accident. Pedestrian accidents occur most commonly in the following instances:
- Jogging
- Walking
- Laying down in the road
- Hiking
- Sitting
- Getting out of passenger vehicle
You may ask yourself why someone would be lying down in the middle of the road. It happens! Perhaps somebody falls and is laying on the side of the road. They may not be able to get up. If a car comes by, they have a duty to avoid hitting that person. In cases like this, your pedestrian accident attorney will have to prove that the driver was more at fault than you were.
A defendant in a pedestrian accident will always try to claim they were not negligent. It is the burden of your Roswell pedestrian accident attorney to prove that they were. This isn’t easy to do. You still have to prove the four elements of a negligence case:
- Duty of care
- Breach
- Injury
- Causation
Your pedestrian accident attorney needs to prove each element. He will have to show that the driver should have been more careful while driving down the road. He will have to prove that the driver’s carelessness caused you to get run over. It won’t be very difficult to prove your injuries were caused by the accident. That is, unless you have been involved in an accident prior.
Your Pedestrian Accident Lawyer in Roswell Will Get You the Compensation You Deserve
You can imagine how badly you would get hurt should you get hit by a car or truck. You will be lucky to survive the accident let alone come out unscathed. Even if the car is driving slowly, such as in a parking lot, you are still going to get hurt. Pedestrian accident attorneys handle these cases all the time. They know what damages you are entitled to. These damages include:
- Lost wages –If you miss time from work due to your injuries, you are entitled to compensation. Your Roswell pedestrian accident attorney will produce copies of your timesheets and paystubs to prove how much time you missed. This could be weeks or even months given the type of serious injuries you will sustain.
- Medical Bills –Your pedestrian injury lawyer is going to make sure you are reimbursed for all of your medical bills. This includes past, present and future medical bills. You will likely have hospital bills. You may need surgery or physical therapy. The costs for this sort of treatment are extraordinarily high. There is no reason you should have to absorb these costs. Whether you have medical insurance or not, the defendant needs to compensate you for these medical bills.
- Pain and Suffering –Georgia is a state that allows pain and suffering damages. In order to recover this type of compensation, your pedestrian accident attorney will have to demonstrate the following:
- Does the person act like a person in pain would act?
- Did the victim have any pre-existing injuries or conditions?
- Can the victim do normal, everyday activities?
- What did the person do for a living?
- What did the individual earn prior to the accident?
- How old is the victim? How many more years would they work?
- Does the claimant have a family and children?
Whether your injuries are serious or minor, your pedestrian injury lawyer is going to work hard to get you compensation. The accident wasn’t your fault. There is no reason why you should suffer and pay out of pocket for your care.
Your Roswell Pedestrian Accident Attorney Will Have to Demonstrate Your Injuries
Pedestrian accidents typically result in serious injuries. This is because you are struck by a large and powerful machine. Your body doesn’t stand a chance. Your injuries may depend on how fast the car was going at the time of the accident. It also depends on whether or not the driver tried to stop to avoid a collision. Some of the injuries that are common with pedestrian accidents include:
These injuries may require multiple surgeries. At a minimum, they will require physical therapy. You are going to miss a lot of time from work. Some injuries, such as a traumatic brain injury, may cause permanent disability. If you are hurt seriously in a pedestrian accident, you may never work again. You will need an experienced Roswell pedestrian accident attorney by your side to make sure you are compensated for your TBI.
What if the Defendant Claims You Were at Fault?
If you’re the victim in a pedestrian accident, the defendant will be hard pressed to claim it was your fault. This doesn’t mean they won’t try. The insurance company and the defendant’s attorney main job is to prove that it was your fault. They may say you stepped out into oncoming traffic. They may argue that you were walking down a dark road at night with no reflective gear. If this is true, make sure you tell your pedestrian accident attorney right away. If he knows ahead of time, he can prepare himself to have a challenge to this argument.
Depending on the circumstances, you may have been partly at fault. Perhaps you were under the influence and were staggering down the road. This doesn’t mean the defendant didn’t have a duty to avoid hitting you. Just because you are partly at fault doesn’t mean the defendant bears no responsibility. In Georgia, if you are partly at fault, you may still file a personal injury claim. This is because Georgia follows the comparative negligence rule.
Comparative negligence means that the court will compare the fault of both parties. If you are less than 50% at fault, you may file suit against the defendant. Your claim will be reduced by the amount of your fault. So, for example, if you are found to be 20% at fault, your judgment will be reduced by 20%. If, however, you are more than 50% at fault, your claim will be dismissed. It will be the job of your pedestrian accident attorney to prove that you were not more than 50% at fault.
Contact a Roswell, Georgia Pedestrian Injury Lawyer Today
If you or a loved one have been hurt in a pedestrian accident, you need to contact a Roswell pedestrian accident attorney today. It is going to be a long road to recovery. Let a Roswell pedestrian accident attorney focus on the legal side of things. They will deal with the insurance company for you and try to get your claim settled. They will deal with the letters, emails and phone calls that are sure to fill the days ahead.
Your pedestrian injury lawyer will also make sure you file your suit within the Georgia statute of limitations. In Georgia, your Roswell pedestrian accident attorney only has two years to file your lawsuit. The two years starts on the day of the accident. Regardless of how long your recovery takes, the court will not extend the statute of limitations period.
This is why it’s so important that you contact a Roswell pedestrian accident lawyer immediately. For your initial consultation, make sure you bring the following:
- Accident or police report
- Insurance information for driver
- Contact information for any eye witnesses
- Medical documentation
- Pictures of accident scene
- Pictures of your injuries
- Correspondence received by driver or his insurance company
When you meet with your Roswell accident attorney for the first time, he will go over the basics of your case. He will ask the necessary questions in order to determine how strong your case is. Be upfront an honest. Your lawyer needs to know everything in order to properly represent you. The initial consultation is absolutely free. You get a chance to ask any questions you may have. And, remember – you pay nothing until you settle your case.
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