New York Pedestrian Accident and Pedestrian Knockdown Lawyers

The National Highway Traffic Safety Association (NHTSA) reports that each year nearly 5,000 pedestrians die in motor vehicle related accidents, and more than 78,000 pedestrians suffer injuries when hit by a car or truck.

Pedestrian accidents and injures can be devastating because injured pedestrians do not wear protective gear and are generally unable to take precautions to avoid the accident or mitigate their personal injuries before they are struck. When a pedestrian is struck by several thousand pounds of metal and glass, even a low-speed collision carries a high potential for serious or catastrophic injury.

Additionally, Children between the ages of 5 and 9 are at the greatest risk of being hit by a motor vehicle. Children are smaller and less visible and their conduct is unpredictable. The law imposes a higher duty of care on drivers when it comes to children. The very presence of children is a warning of danger to the driver to exercise greater care. Thus, a motor vehicle driver must exercise a greater degree of care when they know or should know that small children are at play in the immediate area. This is especially true when one is driving in the vicinity of a school and residential districts where children are known to play.

If you have been hit by a car and suffered, we can help you recover damages for the following item:

1. Medical bills
2. Medication
3. Lost wages and future income
4. Lost ability to work in a career of your choice
5. Loss of enjoyment and quality of life
6. Pain and suffering

Are you or someone you know a victim of a pedestrian knockdown accident? If so, contact us for a free consultation on New York Hit and Run Law today!

Pedestrian knockdowns usually occur when a distracted driver pays little or no attention to people using marked crosswalks or standing near intersections, stop signs or traffic signals. Reckless and distracted drivers who hit pedestrians should be held liable for the physical and emotional damage they cause, including injuries such as head trauma, disfigurement, fractures, back and neck injuries, paraplegia, quadriplegia and even death.

Common driver errors and misconduct that contributes to pedestrian accidents include:

1. Disregarding a Crosswalk - Drivers who don't pay attention to crosswalks, whether at intersections or at other points in the roadway, create a significant risk of accident. Drivers should exercise appropriate care that pedestrians are not crossing the road before passing through a designated crosswalk.
2. Disregarding a Traffic Control Device - When drivers ignore traffic controls, particularly those which specifically relate to pedestrian traffic, they significantly increase the chances of an accident.
3. Disregarding a Pedestrian Already Crossing the Roadway - When a pedestrian in the roadway ahead of a car is obviously crossing the road, or has entered the driver's lane while in the process of crossing the road, drivers should exercise appropriate caution and should yield as necessary to avoid accident.
4. Driving While Intoxicated - Drunk drivers pose a high risk of injury to pedestrians, and there are many notorious cases where drunk drivers have caused accidents, striking pedestrians on sidewalks.
5. Passing a School Bus - When drivers overlook or ignore the red, flashing overhead lights on a school bus, their passing of a school bus creates a high risk of injury to children who may be disembarking from the bus.

Are you or someone you know a victim of a pedestrian accident? If so, contact us for a free consultation on New York Hit and Run Law today!

A pedestrian must exercise reasonable care for his or her own safety. The care required of the pedestrian must be in proportion to the danger to be avoided and the consequences that might be reasonably anticipated. Contributory negligence may be assessed against a pedestrian if they failed to exercise such care and directly contributed to the cause of their own injuries.

A few of the most common factors contributing to pedestrian negligence are:

1. Pedestrians who ignore the "walk" signal at an intersection
2. Pedestrians who enter a stream of traffic and disrupt the flow
3. Pedestrians who fail to use marked cross walks
4. Pedestrians who "dart" in front of a vehicle

Be aware that those who may be legally responsible for your injuries might try to blame you for the accident, by claiming that your own negligence was the cause of what happened. If you have been involved in a pedestrian accident, you should do the following:

1. Call the police immediately
2. Do not leave the scene of the accident until police arrive
3. Gather names, phone numbers and addresses of all witnesses
4. Obtain the registration and insurance information of all vehicles involved.
5. Record a description of the vehicles involved, including license plate number, make and model
6. Record the time, location, weather conditions, road conditions, estimated speed of vehicles involved and damage to vehicles and other property
7. Do not make any statements to anyone except a police officer
8. Call an ambulance if you suspect you may have been injured. It is important that you seek treatment immediately, not days afterward

Are you or someone you know a victim of a pedestrian accident? If so, contact us for a free consultation on New York Hit and Run Law today!

Michael Gunzburg, P.C. is a New York pedestrian accident and pedestrian knockdown law firm serving the New York Metropolitan area, including New York City, Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, Staten Island, Nassau, Suffolk, Westchester, Rockland and Orange Counties.