What to Do After a Pedestrian Accident Occurs?
When going out for a brisk walk to get some exercise, or just simply crossing from one side of the street to the other, nobody ever expects to be struck by a motor vehicle. Sadly, it happens far more than you may expect – in 2019 alone, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia all had close to or over 100 different pedestrians struck by a motor vehicle.
While both devastating in nature, and highly difficult to move on from, pedestrian accidents are a bit different than motor vehicle accidents. In a motor vehicle, you’re protected by a seat-belt, air-bags, breaks, and the like, however, when you’re struck by a motor vehicle while on foot, there’s virtually nothing protecting you from the hit itself. One minute everything is alright, and out of nowhere you and your family are faced with a lengthy hospital stay, intensive medical care, and abrupt changes to their schedules.
We’ll be using the rest of this blog post to help anyone impacted by this type of accident learn what the proper next steps are.
Step One: Medical Attention
Before doing anything, call 911 immediately, or ask someone around you to do it if you’re unable. Allow the first responders to take you to the emergency room, where you can receive the proper medical treatment and stay as long as required.
This situation is the rare occasion where it’s literally a matter of life and death. There’s nothing more important to the victim than immediate & consistent medical attention. It’s also key to make sure that you or a loved one is following up with their doctor, taking the necessary physical therapy sessions, and any medication that’s prescribed.
Step Two: Understand the Financial Impacts
When one is injured in a pedestrian accident, it typically means that they can expect to face medical expenses while simultaneously missing time at work while recovering. This means that a steady stream of income will be disrupted, making bills harder to cover the longer you’re out or on leave, caring for a loved one.
That’s a roundabout way of saying although you may be the one injured, this accident is going to cost you some money. It’s important to have a basic understanding of the financial impacts as soon as you can find the time to focus.
In 2018, a West Virginia jury ordered a man to pay $7.6 million to the family of a 20-year-old woman he struck and killed in 2016 while driving drunk. The award included $500,000 to compensate for the pain and suffering the victim experienced in the six hours between the time she was hit and the time she died.
Many different factors play into the decision of what you will be awarded after being struck by a driver, they are, but might not be limited to the following:
- The Severity of the Injuries — Serious injuries may come with more psychological trauma than minor injuries. The medical treatment applied to an injury may be used to help calculate pain and suffering.
- Mental Anguish — A jury may consider, for example, the embarrassment a victim feels about a new physical disfigurement or the crippling anxiety a victim experiences when remembering the accident.
- Medical Evidence — A doctor’s detailed assessment can help a jury to understand the medical basis for a victim’s suffering.
- Recovery Time — Larger awards will likely be given for permanent or long-lasting injuries than for temporary suffering.
- Negligence/Fault — If another party is clearly responsible for an accident, such as when a drunk driver hits a pedestrian, higher awards may be given than in circumstances where liability is harder to prove.
- Quality of Life — By considering how a day in the victim’s life has changed since the accident, from the minor inconveniences to the major life shifts that have resulted, jury members may be better able to come up with a compensation figure that fits the circumstances.
“…33% of fatal pedestrian crashes involved a pedestrian with a blood alcohol concentration of 0.08% or higher and an estimated 16% of drivers involved in these crashes had a BAC of 0.08% or higher.”
Localized Pedestrian-Related Death Statistics
North Carolina was among thirty states in the U.S. to report a surge in pedestrian-related deaths.
When analyzing data from January-June of 2018 and 2019, North Carolina saw a reported increase of 12%, ranking 12th nationally.
New Mexico was ranked as the state with the highest pedestrian deaths, coming in at 4.5 fatalities per 100,000 citizens – while Maine ranked last with 0.5 fatalities per 100,00 citizens.
In 2017, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) reported that North Carolina saw 198 pedestrian deaths, which amounted to one out of every seven traffic fatalities that year.
In 2018, a West Virginia jury ordered a man to pay $7.6 million to the family of a 20-year-old woman he struck and killed in 2016 while driving drunk. The award included $500,000 to compensate for the pain and suffering the victim experienced in the six hours between the time she was hit and the time she died.
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If you sustained injuries, in a motor vehicle accident, anywhere in North Carolina, South Carolina, or Virginia, our attorneys at Marcari, Russotto, Spencer & Balaban may be able to help.
We thoroughly investigate the circumstances of your accident and aggressively pursue the maximum compensation possible for your injuries. Call us today at (855) 435-7247 or contact us online to schedule a free consultation.
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