Taking on a motor vehicle is no mean feat so it’s not surprising that serious injury can often follow. Despite pedestrians injured in traffic accidents being a fairly common occurrence, it can often leave victims confused as to what to do next.
Should you go through the same process as if you were in a motor vs motor accident? What rights do you have as a pedestrian? It’s important to be aware of the process so you’re in the best position when it comes to potentially making a claim.
What do I do if I’m a pedestrian in a motor vehicle accident?
This process is very similar to what you would do as a motor in a motor vehicle accident. If possible, you or anyone with you should trade information with the driver of the vehicle, including:
- Names, addresses, phone numbers
- Insurance information
- Vehicle details including make, model, colour and license plate
You should also make a record of:
- Time and location of the accident
- Photos of accident and injuries sustained
- Witness details if possible
- If Police attend obtain the event number
Injuries sustained by a pedestrian as a result of a motor vehicle accident
Sustaining minor injuries often means you can easily follow the steps above. However, a more serious injury may not make this possible. If you have been injured seriously and have been taken to hospital, the police should have been called and if so will be able to provide you with an incident report that details what you need.
Contributory negligence
While pedestrians are definitely the smaller than motor vehicles and unable to do as much physical damage to the other party, there are many cases where the accident is mostly the fault of the pedestrian - typically where they were not looking and walked out into the road, or were walking somewhere they shouldn’t like a motorway. This is called contributory negligence, and may, if relevant, limit the compensation the pedestrian can get.
Of course, contributory negligence can limit compensation of the driver of the motor vehicle if it is found that they are at fault. Drunk driving, mobile phone distractions, and reckless behaviour are just some of the ways a driver can be at fault.
Sometimes, both parties can be at fault, and at other times the situation may be deemed a ‘blameless accident’, where fault lies with no one. In contrast, there are hit and run accidents where one party flees the scene.
Pedestrians can still claim payments covering costs such as hospital and treatment fees, economic loss, rehabilitation services, and pain and suffering afflictions.
Click here to read more facts.
How can Taylor & Scott help pedestrians who have been involved in accidents with a motor vehicle?
In all pedestrian compensation claims, at Taylor & Scott we offer:
- A Free Case Assessment at one of our offices or at your home, hospital or other convenient location.
- If we act for you or your loved one, it will be on a no-win, no-pay basis meaning if you don’t win, we don’t get paid.
- We retain the best experts to prove liability and to prove each aspect of the pedestrian’s compensation claim, for example, by retaining medical experts, rehabilitation experts and experts on liability.
If you think you might have a claim, speak to our expert lawyers on 1800 600 664 or complete the Contact Form on this page, and we can help you get the compensation you deserve.
At Taylor & Scott Lawyers Experience. Commitment. Results.
