If you were hit by a car on foot, you could be left with life-altering injuries. Lost time at work is one of the most common consequences of a serious injury from a pedestrian accident, and it has a snowball effect on your life. Without being able to work, you could be unable to cover medical bills and other daily expenses, putting you into more and more economic distress. This is all while dealing with the physical injuries and the mental and emotional distress the accident caused you.
Our lawyers can fight to get you compensation for the injuries and other damages you faced from the driver(s) that caused your crash. Getting them and their insurance companies to pay full damages is one of the main focuses of our practice.
For a free assessment of your injury case, call Howe Law’s pedestrian accident attorneys today at (844) 876-4357.
Proving Who is at Fault in Pedestrian Accidents in Milton, GA
In most cases, pedestrian accidents are the driver’s fault. Drivers have a legal duty to follow all traffic laws and to drive with proper care and skill. All of these duties overlap and create layers of rules and procedures drivers need to follow, many of which are specifically aimed at protecting pedestrians walking in and alongside the street. Unless the pedestrian did something especially dangerous, it is likely that the driver is going to be at fault for a pedestrian accident.
Rules for pedestrians require them to walk on the sidewalk or shoulder and to cross at marked or unmarked crosswalks, waiting for proper signals or clear opportunities to cross. Otherwise, pedestrians should not be in the street. If you did not violate any of these rules, then our pedestrian accident attorneys should be able to prove that you were an innocent victim.
Instead, we will be able to focus the case on the driver’s behavior and show how their mistakes and legal violations caused your crash. For example, drivers who make a right on red through a crosswalk without stopping first will have violated the law. More obviously, drivers who hop the curb onto a sidewalk or who cause a crash while driving drunk will also have violated the law.
Fault in a pedestrian accident case usually involves drunk driving, distracted driving, tired driving, or speeding. However, other common causes involve mere inattention or failure to check both ways or check one’s blind spot while driving. In all of these situations, we can point to the driver’s specific traffic violation or unreasonable driving practices to show that they were at fault.
Evidence Needed for a Pedestrian Accident and Injury Claim in Milton, GA
For a pedestrian accident victim to claim damages and win their case, they need sufficient evidence to prove what happened and to show the court or insurance company that the driver was responsible. In most cases, evidence will involve the following:
Testimony
Your testimony, as well as testimony from witnesses to the crash, will be important when explaining how the accident happened. From this testimony, the jury or insurance company can usually see what the violation was, whether it be testimony that a driver ran a red light or evidence that they were slurring their speech and staggering from intoxication after the accident.
Photos and Video
If you can take pictures of the accident scene, this can help prove what happened and back up any testimony in your favor. For example, if you claim that the car hopped the curb and hit you while you were on the sidewalk, then a photo of the car on the sidewalk would go a long way toward proving your claim. Sometimes, accidents are caught on security cameras or even the driver’s dash camera. Other bystanders might have also pulled out their phones to record the crash or the aftermath of the accident, and getting video or photos from them would also be helpful.
Records
Medical records, police reports, and any other records proving when and where the accident happened or detailing what occurred in the accident will be helpful. You also need evidence of the injuries and damages you faced, so medical records, financial records, bank statements, and receipts will also be important evidence when it comes to proving how much your accident cost you.
Expert Reports
Experts can be used to analyze information in a car crash and give an “expert opinion” on areas of specialized scientific or technical study related to the accident. Some accidents require us to use accident reconstruction experts to explain how the accident happened or even financial experts to explain how much your future lost wages will cost. Although these experts might not have seen the events, they can be called as “expert witnesses” to provide their opinions and reports to the court.
Police Reports
Police reports are an excellent collection of information about the crash. Always call 911 for an ambulance and police response after a crash to make sure you get the care you need from the ambulance crew and to make sure a report gets written.
Often, police do not respond until after the accident, so the information in the report might not be admissible at trial as evidence of what happened because the officer did not actually witness the crash. However, if they can be qualified as an expert, some of their opinion might be usable. We can also use the report for other purposes, such as impeaching a witness who might be lying or simply for finding information to build your case, which we can then corroborate from other admissible sources. For example, the police report might have the name and contact info of a witness to the accident, and we can use that info from the report to get in touch with the witness and call them to testify in your case.
Call Our Pedestrian Accident Lawyers in Milton, GA Today
For help with an accident, call Howe Law’s pedestrian accident attorneys at (844) 876-4357 today.
