Pedestrian Accident Lawyers in Nashville

Nashville's pikes are where pedestrians are dying

The corridors that see the most pedestrian deaths in Nashville are not downtown. They are the multi-lane pikes, Nolensville, Murfreesboro, Gallatin, and Dickerson among them, where fast traffic runs past dense housing and transit stops but sidewalks are missing and marked crossings can sit a quarter mile apart. People cross where they must, not where the law provides a crosswalk, and a driver going well over a safe speed has little time to react. These are the crashes that leave a family facing catastrophic injuries or worse, and we understand the road design and driver behavior that cause them.

Tennessee law puts the duty of care on the driver

Under T.C.A. Section 55-8-134 a driver must yield to a pedestrian lawfully within a crosswalk, and even outside a marked crossing a driver still has a duty under Tennessee law to keep a proper lookout and to avoid striking a person on foot. A driver cannot simply race down a pike at full speed and blame whoever happens to be crossing. We build the case around what the driver failed to do, because in most of these crashes the driver was speeding, distracted, or never watching for anyone outside a vehicle.

The blame insurers try to shift onto the victim

The insurance company's first move in a pedestrian case is to argue the victim caused it, by crossing outside a crosswalk, stepping off a curb, or wearing dark clothing at night. Tennessee's modified comparative fault rule gives that argument teeth, because a recovery is reduced by the victim's share of blame and barred entirely at fifty percent or more. We answer it with the physical evidence, the vehicle's speed, the sight lines, the point of impact, and the absence of any safe place to cross, so responsibility stays with the driver who had the power to stop.

A person on foot has no protection

When a vehicle strikes a person, the body absorbs everything, and the results are broken bones, internal injuries, and traumatic brain damage that can change a life permanently. Serious cases across the region are taken to Vanderbilt University Medical Center, the area's Level I trauma center, and recovery often stretches across months of surgery and therapy. We work with the treating doctors to document not only the care already given but the future operations, rehabilitation, and lasting limits the injury will impose, so the claim reflects the full weight of the harm.

What a Nashville pedestrian claim can recover

A pedestrian struck by a vehicle can pursue economic losses, meaning the medical bills, the future care, and the income lost while unable to work, and non-economic losses, meaning the pain, the trauma, and the independence a severe injury takes away. Because these injuries tend to be so serious, valuing the future care correctly is where much of the real recovery is won or lost, and we build that projection on solid medical proof.

Tennessee's one-year deadline moves fast

A pedestrian injury claim in Tennessee generally must be filed within one year of the crash under T.C.A. Section 28-3-104, one of the shortest windows in the nation. The evidence on a busy pike disappears even faster than that, as the scene is cleared, the vehicle is repaired, and any nearby camera footage is recorded over within days. Acting quickly lets us preserve what proves the driver's fault before it is gone, and it keeps the short filing deadline from ending a valid claim before it starts.

Serving injured pedestrians across Middle Tennessee

From our office at 912 Harpeth Valley Place in Nashville, we represent people struck while walking across Davidson, Williamson, Rutherford, Sumner, Wilson, and Cheatham counties, and in the communities around the metro including Franklin, Brentwood, Murfreesboro, Hendersonville, Gallatin, Mount Juliet, and Antioch. Wherever you were hit in Middle Tennessee, we can help.

Talk to a Nashville pedestrian accident lawyer

If a driver struck you or someone you love while you were walking, we will stand between your family and the insurance company. Call (615) 697-6779 for a free case review, or reach us through our contact page. There is no fee unless we recover compensation for you.

Speak with a Nashville pedestrian accident attorney

Being struck by a vehicle while on foot can change everything in a heartbeat. If it happened in or around Nashville, call our office at (615) 697-6779 for a free and confidential case review. You owe nothing unless we recover for you, and we can begin preserving the evidence right away.

Common questions

I was crossing one of Nashville's pikes where there was no crosswalk nearby. Can I still recover?

Usually yes. When crossings are placed far apart on a wide, busy road, crossing between them does not automatically make you at fault, and Tennessee still required the driver to keep a lookout and avoid you. Even if you share some blame, you can recover as long as your share stays below fifty percent, and we use the speed and sight-line evidence to keep the fault on the driver.

The driver says I stepped out in front of them. How do you prove what really happened?

Physical evidence usually settles it. The point of impact, the vehicle's speed drawn from its damage and any downloadable data, and the distance the pedestrian was thrown all show whether the driver had time to stop. We also move quickly to pull footage from nearby businesses and traffic cameras and to reach witnesses before that proof disappears.

The person who hit me had little or no insurance. Is there any other coverage?

Possibly. Your own auto policy's uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage can pay when you are hurt as a pedestrian, and some households have more coverage available than they realize. We investigate every policy that might apply so a low-coverage driver does not become the ceiling on what you can recover.