Every state and local jurisdiction has car accident injury laws in effect to protect pedestrians injury rights after getting hit by a car. These local pedestrian accident rights legally ensure you can file an accident claim lawsuit to receive monetary compensation if you’ve been injured by a vehicle.
We understand you want a quick answer for what is the average settlement for a pedestrian hit by car or other motor vehicle, but this total figure really will depend on the injuries sustained in the accident. However, even if you look at typical accident claim payout figures, the pedestrian injury lawsuit settlement amount ranges are pretty significant. These median injury settlement awards would be about $15,000 for a bad case of whiplash to something exceeding $75,000 for broken bones and more severe injuries.
If there are far more serious injuries, such as brain trauma, well, now you are talking high six and low seven figure settlements for a severely hurt pedestrian.
A Board Certified pedestrian accident attorney nearby will help find all sources of auto insurance coverage so that you can immediately file a free injury claim to receive the maximum pedestrian injury lawsuit settlement amount possible.
The Stats
This is not as uncommon as you may think. For instance, in 2019, prior to the pandemic, there were about 76,000 pedestrians that were injured by cars. Of those, more than 6,200 of them died. In the majority of those cases, the individual driving the vehicle was found at fault in the accident.
Establishing Responsibility for the Accident
The very first thing you will need to do in order to get the compensation you deserve from the accident is establish liability. As noted above, this is generally going to be the fault of the driver of the vehicle, but that is not always the case. You will need to document the case, including police reports. You will also need to document the drivers that were involved in the accident, even if the other cars never struck you.
As an example, say you were crossing a street at the light, with the green signal, and you were hit by a car that was the last car in the string of a multi-car accident. That car that hit you may have been hit by the car behind him, who ended up pushing that car into you. The person that actually caused the accident and may be deemed at fault could be two or three cars back, even though their car never actually struck you.
Once liability is established, an insurance claim will have to be filed with the at-fault party.
You can also file an insurance claim to be treated with your own insurance company. However, if your company covers the costs when there was someone else at fault, you are likely to have to pay your insurance company those costs out of the settlement.
There will also be exceptions to this. For instance, in states where “no fault” insurance is carried, all injured parties use their own insurance, called Personal Injury Protection (PIP), regardless of who caused the accident. Of course, as a non-driver, you are not required to have PIP insurance. If that is the case and you do not have personal insurance of any kind, you may still be compensated through a government fund.
Insurance Limits
There are cases when the driver of the at-fault vehicle has minimal insurance that does not cover the full costs of all injuries and additional costs. If this happens, you are going to have to hire an attorney and file suit. In fact, if you are injured in an accident such as this, we highly recommend you seek out the advice of an attorney as quickly as possible.
How Long Do I Have to File?
In any accident, you will have to look up the statute of limitations for your particular state to find out how long you have to file your suit. You will generally find that, barring exceptions, you have somewhere between two to three years for the suit, however, there are states that only offer a one-year statute of limitations. Other exceptions, such as an accident with a state of local vehicle, can also have shorter time limits to file the suit.
What Types of Damages Can I Recover?
Generally speaking, your injuries are going to fall into the following categories:
- Lost income (past, present, and future)
- All medical bills (including surgery, therapy, equipment, and medicine)
- Pain and suffering (both mental and physical)
If someone was killed in the accident, the family of the victim can file a wrongful death suit against the driver.
Determining Value of the Case
As is the case with other personal injury lawsuits, the attorneys and insurance companies will look at key factors to determine the overall value of the case:
- Severity of injuries
- Any loss of quality of life
- Is your earning potential reduced as a result of the accident
- Is a full recovery possible
- How long will the injuries impact your life
- The at-fault party
Contact an Attorney for a Pedestrian Car Accident Injury Case
As you can see, these cases can be very difficult to navigate, especially when you are dealing with insurance companies. They will purposely try to keep the early offers as low as possible in the hopes you will settle quickly, saving them money. For that very reason, we recommend discussing your case with personal injury attorney.
If you have been hit by a car, give us a call at 855-633-0888. Your initial consultation is free of charge and you are under no commitment to use our services just for talking to us. If you do decide to use our attorneys, the services come at no cost to you, as personal injury attorneys work on a contingency fee, which means the attorney only gets paid if he or she wins the case, then gets an agreed upon percentage of the settlement.
Remember, the clock starts ticking the moment the accident occurs, so give us a call give us a call at 855-633-0888! Or please fill out the Free Car Accident Injury Consultation Form.
