Pedestrian accidents can happen anywhere and at any time. According to the NHTSA, around 7,388 pedestrians were killed in traffic accidents in 2021. This was a 13% increase from the previous year. If you were injured or lost a loved one in a pedestrian accident, you have the right to seek justice by filing a personal injury lawsuit. To secure compensation for your suffering, you will have to prove that the accident was a result of the other party’s negligence or wrongdoing.
Contributing Factors in Pedestrian Accidents
Drivers in Indiana owe a duty of care toward other road users, including pedestrians. As pedestrians are not protected by the frame of a vehicle, they often suffer serious injuries. This could include amputations, traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord injuries, internal injuries, and wrongful death as a result of severe injuries.
Pedestrian accidents can happen due to various reasons, including reckless driving, speeding, distracted driving, driving under the influence, and failure to obey basic traffic laws. Pedestrian accidents can happen anywhere, but they are most common at intersections, walking paths, and sidewalks.
Damages Available
Pedestrian accidents often result in severe injuries, and therefore the compensation for such injuries can be high. Compensatory damages can’t undo the injury, but they can provide much-needed financial assistance to the injured.
If you have been involved in a pedestrian accident, you can seek compensation for your medical expenses that were needed to treat the injuries. This includes emergency medical care, surgery, extended hospital stays, laboratory tests, rehabilitation, and several other types of medical expenses. You may also be entitled to receive compensation for lost wages as a result of the injuries.
The noneconomic damages include your pain and suffering, such as depression, anxiety, stress, and mental trauma that resulted from the accident. In addition, you can seek punitive damages to punish the wrongdoer and discourage him from similar actions in the future.
Building a Strong Case
Indiana law required pedestrians to yield the right of way to the vehicle and only cross roads at designated pedestrian crossings. So, if you want to build a strong case as a pedestrian in the accident, you need to demonstrate that the other party was at fault. This can be done through physical evidence gathered from the accident site, witness statements, expert testimony, surveillance footage and other types of evidence.
Most importantly, you need an experienced pedestrian accident lawyer to obtain maximum compensation for your suffering. Pedestrian accidents can involve multiple parties, and they might share the fault for the accident. An attorney can help establish liability for the accident and help you calculate full and fair compensation for your suffering.
Contact Pedestrian Accident Lawyer
If you want expert legal advice and representation for a pedestrian accident lawsuit, you can contact us at the law offices of Wagner Reese. We have a team of Indiana injury attorneys who have experience in pedestrian accident cases, and we will be glad to use their expert legal knowledge and skills to help you secure maximum compensation for your suffering.
