Riverside Pedestrian Accident Attorney

Pedestrians are completely unprotected and vulnerable to serious injuries in a collision with a motor vehicle. If you have been hurt in a pedestrian accident, call Hanson & Mouri in Riverside, California right away. Our experienced Riverside pedestrian accident lawyer can assist you in a claim for compensation.

Why Choose Our Riverside Pedestrian Accident lawyer?

• We are a dedicated legal team, committed to giving our clients the focus and undivided attention they deserve.
• Our Riverside car accident lawyer have more than two decades of experience representing clients in all matters of personal injury law.
• We are seasoned litigators and effective advocates for injured people. We understand that bigger settlements come with thorough preparation, and we will not hesitate to take your case to trial, work with insurance companies, and, if necessary, recover the compensation you deserve.

Pedestrian Accident FAQ’s in Riverside, California

Riverside, California Pedestrian Accident Statistics

What Types of Driver Errors Cause Pedestrian Injuries in Riverside?

What are Common Injuries in Riverside Pedestrian Accidents?

What Do I Do After a Riverside Pedestrian Accident?

How Can a Lawyer Help Prove Your Pedestrian Accident Claim?

How to File a Pedestrian Accident Claim

How Long Do You Have to File a Pedestrian Accident Claim in California?

Who is Liable for Your Injuries After a Pedestrian Accident in Riverside?

What Damages Can You Recover After a Riverside Pedestrian Accident?

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Pedestrian Accident Statistics

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) reports that:

• 5,977 pedestrians were killed in U.S. traffic crashes in the most recent year for which statistics are available.
• This figure represents a 1.7% increase in pedestrian fatalities over the previous year.
• On average, a pedestrian was killed every 88 minutes.

As stated by the Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA):

• The number of pedestrian fatalities has grown significantly faster than all other traffic deaths in the U.S.
• In a recent nine-year period, pedestrian fatalities increased by 27% while all other traffic fatalities decreased by 14%.
• The number of states with pedestrian fatality rates at or above 2.0 per 100,000 population has more than doubled.
• The seven states and DC that legalized recreational marijuana use between 2012 and 2016 had a collective 16.4% increase in pedestrian fatalities in the first six months of 2017, as compared to a collective 5.8% decrease in all other states.
• Pedestrian fatalities accounted for 16% of all traffic deaths in a recent year.
• The pedestrian fatality rate in California per 100,000 population was 2.43.

What Types of Driver Errors Cause Pedestrian Injuries?

The following are examples of driver errors that can lead to accidents with pedestrians:

• Disregarding a crosswalk
• Ignoring traffic lights
• Driving while intoxicated
• Passing a school bus
• Disregarding pedestrians who are already crossing the roadway

When a pedestrian is involved in these types of auto accidents the results can be life-threatening. Even a low-speed collision carries a high potential for serious injury and wrongful death. Injuries resulting when several thousand pounds of metal and glass strike a pedestrian can severely limit a personʼs ability to lead a normal life. Your injury may require extensive rehabilitation and medical treatment. Serious injuries may leave you unable to work and pay your bills, leading to the foreclosure of your home, bankruptcy, and damage to your credit. You need the experience of a Riverside pedestrian accident lawyer to get you the monetary compensation you deserve.

Our pedestrian accident lawyer has 14 years of experience and will provide you with passionate, quality legal representation. Any pedestrian accident, even a minor collision can lead to injuries that have long lasting effects and cause irreparable pain and suffering. If you or a loved one were a pedestrian who was struck by a vehicle you may be entitled to monetary damages from insurance companies, companies that own the vehicle, and/or other parties. Let our experienced Riverside personal injury lawyer work for you.

What are Common Injuries in Pedestrian Accidents?

Pedestrians are likely to be seriously injured when hit by a 4,000 lb. moving motor vehicle. Depending on the speed of the car and the area of the body hit, a pedestrian my fall to the ground, be slammed into an object, or be thrown onto the hood or windshield of the vehicle. Common pedestrian car crash injuries include:

• Head trauma and brain injury: Traumatic brain injury (TBI) occurs when an external force, such as a violent blow to the head or body, causes a disruption in the normal function of the brain.
• Internal injuries: This may involve rib fractures, internal bleeding, or damage to internal organs.
• Pelvic injuries: Because of vehicle hood designs, pedestrians hit by a car are likely to suffer pelvic fractures and other pelvic injuries.
• Spinal injuries: A sudden traumatic blow to the spine can fracture or dislocate vertebrae. It can also damage the spinal cord, leading to paralysis.
• Bone fractures: This is one of the common injuries suffered in pedestrian accidents. Fractures occur when the physical force exerted on a bone is stronger than the bone.
• Soft tissue injuries: These are injuries to the soft tissues of the body that connect, surround, or support organs and structures, such as the muscles, tendons, ligaments, nerves, and blood vessels. Soft tissue injuries sustained in pedestrian accidents include strains, sprains, cuts, bruises, tears, and dislocations.

The insurance company offered me a nominal sum for my injuries. They said they would never ever pay a dime more. I hired Hanson & Mouri and they ended up paying way more than that. Thank you. – David K.

What Do I Do After a Pedestrian Accident?

When cars collide with pedestrians in a traffic accident, there is high potential for serious injury. If you or a loved one has been injured by a motor vehicle you may have questions about how to pay for your medical bills and what to do about your pain and suffering. Our Riverside pedestrian injury lawyer specialize in representing pedestrian victims injured by Riverside motor vehicle accidents. A pedestrian is someone who travels by foot and can be injured while walking, running, using skateboards, roller blades, or similar devices. If you have been injured while participating in these types of activities, you need an experienced Inland Empire/Riverside pedestrian accident lawyer to explain your rights. Driver errors, misconduct, and negligence often contribute to car-pedestrian accidents.

How Can a Lawyer Help Prove Your Pedestrian Accident Claim?

The quality of evidence collected after a pedestrian accident will have a tremendous impact on the outcome of your claim. An experienced pedestrian accident lawyer will help you gather the critical proof you need to establish your injuries were not your fault and ensure you recover the compensation you are entitled to. 

Most pedestrian accidents are preventable. They are the fault of careless or reckless drivers who fail to see pedestrians on the roadway or refuse to respect their rights. Proving a driver was negligent, however, will involve immediately arranging for an independent investigation into your accident. An attorney will collect available evidence before it disappears and determine which parties can be held liable. Examples of evidence include taking or collecting pictures and videos of the accident scene, vehicle damage, road conditions, obtaining available traffic or security footage, the clothes you were wearing at the time of the crash, police reports, eyewitness testimony, and medical records. They will also consult with legal, accident, and medical experts to recreate the scene and learn the extent of your injuries and how they will impact your life in the future. 

Being hit by a vehicle can be devastating, and you may be facing a long recovery and unable to work. Recovering the fair amount of compensation to fully cover your losses requires accurately calculating the value of your claim. A pedestrian accident attorney has the experience and knowledge to help you come up with an estimated value for your case and advise you on the lowest amount you should accept. To prove your claim’s worth, an attorney will use the evidence of liability, the type and severity of injuries you sustained, and how your life has changed. 

How to File a Pedestrian Accident Claim

If you are struck and injured by a motor vehicle, you have the right to file a bodily injury claim with the at-fault driver’s insurance company. Your health insurance may cover your treatment, but it won’t pay for lost wages and your pain and suffering, or other non-economic damages. The driver should have already reported the collision to their insurer, so the insurance adjuster may call you to get your version of the events. 

Be wary when speaking to the at-fault party’s insurance company. Insurance adjusters are known to use tactics to get you to accidentally say something that will minimize their policyholder’s liability. It’s important to note that you are not required to talk to the at-fault driver’s insurance company at all. You can hire a pedestrian accident lawyer to handle the claim for you and directly deal with the insurer to negotiate your claim.

In some cases, the driver does not carry enough insurance to cover the full extent of the losses or carries no insurance at all. As an injured pedestrian, you may be protected under the uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage in your auto insurance policies.

On the other hand, if the insurer has not called, you or your attorney can call them directly to file a claim if you have the driver’s contact and auto insurance information. If you were seriously injured and transported directly to the hospital after the accident, the contact information you need can be found in the police report. 

How Long Do You Have to File a Pedestrian Accident Claim in California?

The statute of limitations is a law that sets the amount of time a person has to file a claim with the court. In California, the statute of limitations for pedestrian accident cases is two years from the accident date. This means you have to file your lawsuit within two years of your injury, or the court may prevent you from pursuing compensation altogether. If you are concerned about the amount of time you have left on your case, speak with an experienced pedestrian accident attorney to discuss the possibility of “tolling” or delaying the statute of limitations. 

Filing your injury lawsuit early makes it easier to litigate your case. Your witnesses’ memories will be fresh, and they will be able to recall how the accident occurred clearly. The evidence against the negligent driver will also be easier to collect and sort through. Most importantly, you will be able to recover compensation for your injuries sooner if you win. 

Who is Liable for Your Injuries After a Pedestrian Accident in Riverside?

Determining liability in a pedestrian accident case is often a challenging process. The driver, the pedestrian, or both parties can be at fault for an accident. If the collision involved a commercial vehicle, the company that owns the vehicle may be liable as well. As a result, sorting out who is responsible will typically require the assistance of a lawyer.

In California, fault is determined by the standard of negligence. All drivers have an obligation to drive safely and obey traffic laws, or at the very least, must act reasonably under the circumstances. Commercial vehicle companies have a duty to hire drivers who are properly certified or experienced, maintain their vehicles, etc. The failure or breach of those duties is called negligence, which, if it can be proven, the driver or company will be liable for your injuries. 

However, the same standard applies to pedestrians. Contrary to popular belief, pedestrians do not always have the right of way. Pedestrians are required to maintain a degree of care to protect themselves. For instance, they cannot jaywalk, ignore walk signals, or dart into traffic. Doing so can be considered contributory negligence in an accident case, which can place liability wholly or partially onto them. 

When determining liability, an insurance adjuster or jury will decide each party’s degree of liability after hearing each party’s version of the accident and reviewing eyewitness accounts, the applicable laws (e.g., speed limits), the police report findings, and possibly expert testimony. 

California follows the rule of pure comparative negligence that can impact the amount of compensation you recover. The amount you are awarded will be reduced by your percentage of fault. For instance, if a pedestrian is found 20 percent responsible for an accident and awarded $100,000, they can only recover 80 percent of the amount of compensation awarded or $80,000. This rule can function as a defense for the at-fault driver to reduce their liability. 

What Damages Can You Recover After a Pedestrian Accident?

The damages available for a pedestrian accident in Riverside generally include both economic and non-economic awards. Economic damages are a form of compensation to help make you financially whole again after you are injured. While non-economic damages help to compensate for the intangible, subjective losses you encounter. For instance, the following damages are recoverable:

Medical Bills

Any expenses incurred from treating injuries are subject to compensation. Common examples include emergency services, hospitalizations, surgeries, doctor visits, prescription medications, physical and rehabilitative therapy, in-home care, and any other previous and ongoing medical care. As a result, victims should keep all medical reports, bills, invoices, prescriptions, and receipts.

Lost Wages

Pedestrian accident victims are often forced to take time off work. In doing so, they are entitled to lost income. If an accident results in disability, the victim’s earning capacity decreases and is also subject to compensation. A pedestrian accident lawyer may use pay stubs, income statements, case studies, and various estimates to calculate these losses

Pain and Suffering

Serious pedestrian accidents cause severe pain and suffering to the victims and their loved ones. Some develop chronic pain; others fall into depression and suffer from anxiety. There are also victims who experience terrible complications and side effects. To receive compensation for pain and suffering, your attorney will likely request expert testimonies and physical and psychiatric evaluations. They may ask your friends and family to testify to your injury’s degree of impact on your life as well. 

Other Losses

When a victim’s life is dramatically changed, other losses may be claimed as well. For example, if their disability prevents them from enjoying their hobbies, they can claim loss of enjoyment of life. A spouse of someone left unable to perform sexually may be entitled to claim loss of consortium.

Punitive Damages

Punitive damages are not awarded in every pedestrian accident case. They are designed to punish a defendant who acted maliciously or particularly reckless and intended to deter similar conduct from others. 

Contact Us Today

Contact our Riverside County, California law firm now. We offer free consultations and will listen to your case. after your free initial consultation, we will keep you informed of significant developments and provide legal advice and services promptly and professionally. You and your loved ones deserve to have your rights protected by a professional. Hanson & Mouri Riverside personal injury attorney can work to make your family whole again. We also serve injury victims in San Bernardino.

Our law office serves Riverside, Corona, Norco, Temecula, Murrieta, Lake Elsinore, Hemet, Banning, Beaumont, Moreno Valley, & Calimesa.