When pedestrian accidents occur, victims can recover compensation for their injuries. If you were injured a as pedestrian, a Columbus pedestrian accident lawyer may be able to collect compensation from the party or parties responsible for your injuries and any other damages you suffered in the accident. You do not have to fight for compensation on your own. A Columbus Personal Injury Lawyer from The Fitch Law Firm can handle your personal injury insurance claim or lawsuit while you focus on recovering from your injuries.
Pedestrian accidents occur with alarming frequency. Data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) shows over 6,500 pedestrian fatalities in the United States in 2020. The NHTSA also reports that there were roughly 55,000 pedestrians injured across the country.
To learn more about your rights in a free case review, you can call our firm today. We’ll discuss your case and how we can help you after an accident.
Filing Personal Injury Claims
If you suffered injuries or other losses as a result of someone else’s negligent actions, you can file a personal injury insurance claim or lawsuit against them. A lawyer from our firm can help you decide which is the best path for your case, though you may end up pursuing both.
Anyone operating a motor vehicle on the road owes other road users a duty of care. This means that all vehicle operators must be licensed and must follow all driving laws that apply to them. These laws include but are not limited to, following posted traffic signs, avoiding drinking and driving, avoiding distractions while driving, and ensuring vehicle upkeep.
Failing to follow traffic laws may qualify as a breach of the duty of care. Anyone who fails to meet their duty of care may be held liable for their actions. To file a personal injury claim against an at-fault driver after a pedestrian accident, you typically must:
- Gather evidence to prove their guilt
- Prove you suffered damages serious enough to warrant a claim
- Quantify your damages
- File your claim with the at-fault party’s insurer
A Columbus pedestrian accident lawyer from The Fitch Law Firm can manage all of these tasks for you when we represent you. To learn more about our services during a free case review with a member of our team, you can call our firm today.
What Our Columbus Pedestrian Accident Lawyers Can Do for You
A Columbus pedestrian accident lawyer from The Fitch Law Firm can help you in a number of ways. When you choose our firm, your lawyer will:
- Communicate on your behalf with the other parties involved in your case
- Gather evidence, such as police reports and witness statements, to support your claim
- Evaluate and quantify your losses and damages
- Negotiate with the at-fault party’s insurer or their representatives toward a settlement
- Take your case to trial, if necessary
- Give you legal advice, answer your questions, and provide updates on the progress of your case
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The Cost of Hiring a Columbus Pedestrian Accident Lawyer
When considering hiring a pedestrian accident attorney, you should not let costs stand in your way. Pedestrian accident lawyers generally work on a contingency fee basis. That means these lawyers only collect compensation if they are able to secure compensation for their clients.
The only fee your pedestrian accident attorney will receive will come as a fixed percentage of the compensation you recover from the liable party. Should your lawyer fail to get you money, they won’t get paid. Alternatively, the more compensation you receive, the higher the payday for your attorney.
How Long Do I Have to File a Pedestrian Accident Lawsuit?
As per Ohio Revised Code Section 2305.10, there is generally a two-year statute of limitations on personal injury lawsuits in Ohio. If you wait too long to file your lawsuit and the deadline expires, the court can dismiss your case without hearing any evidence. Because of this general deadline, we encourage you to contact our firm as soon as possible after your accident.
Even if the deadline has already passed, that does not necessarily mean you are out of options for pursuing compensation. Several exceptions to the statute of limitations exist that may allow you to pursue compensation long after the statute of limitations has expired.
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Common Pedestrian Accident Damages
After your accident, you may be dealing with the pain of your injuries, the treatment process, and an inability to work and perform basic tasks at home.
If you can prove your accident was caused by the negligence, recklessness, or driving errors of another driver, you can seek compensation for your damages, including medical care costs, lost income, and other accident-related expenses.
The Damages You May Be Able to Claim
There are a number of economic and non-economic damages you may be able to seek in a personal injury claim or lawsuit. Economic damages are financial losses and expenses, while non-economic damages are non-financial, such as pain and suffering. A lawyer from our firm can determine which damages you can claim and then calculate your damages for you.
For example, you might be able to claim:
- Medical bills, including any bills you incur in the future
- Medical device expenses, such as the cost of a wheelchair
- Your therapy costs, such as the cost of any physical therapy you require
- The costs of any ongoing care you may need, such as in-home care
- Wages you can’t earn due to an inability to work
- Lost earning potential in the future
- Your pain and suffering
- Mental anguish
If You Lost a Family Member
It may have been a family member who was injured in a pedestrian accident. If your loved one lost their life due to their injuries, you can claim wrongful death damages. Our Columbus wrongful death lawyers can help with this. Wrongful death damages include:
- Any medical costs your loved one incurred
- Lost income for your family
- Funeral expenses
- Your loss of companionship and consortium
- Your children’s loss of support and guidance
- Your deceased loved one’s pain and suffering
Damages to Punish the Liable Party
If the actions of the at-fault party were particularly egregious, you could be eligible to collect punitive damages. These damages are only awarded in a small percentage of cases and are used as a means of punishing the responsible party.
If a judge rules that the liable party acted in a criminally negligent manner or that they intended to cause harm to others, you may be able to collect these damages.
Common Causes of Pedestrian Accidents in Columbus
Most pedestrian accidents involve negligence, such as a driver failing in their responsibility to drive safely. Common causes of pedestrian accidents include:
- Driver distraction
- Speeding
- Reckless or aggressive driving
- Drunk driving
- Blocked line of sight
- Malfunctioning traffic control signals
- Unclear sidewalks, crosswalks, yield signs, or lane markings
- Sudden changes in traffic conditions
- Overcorrections
- Driver unfamiliarity with pedestrian traffic rules
If a driver is intoxicated, their response time may be slowed, and they may be more likely to make driving errors. If a driver speeds, it may be harder to come to a stop or take evasive action in response to changes in road conditions or a pedestrian crossing the road.
In crowded areas, drivers may be unable to see beyond the vehicle in front of them, leading to pedestrian accidents. Confusion at traffic lights or intersections can lead to pedestrian accidents as well. Vehicles often strike pedestrians in crosswalks, especially when the vehicle operator does not know that pedestrians in the crosswalk have the right of way.
Vehicles may also strike pedestrians while backing up in parking lots and private driveways. No matter how your pedestrian accident happened, a Columbus pedestrian accident attorney at The Fitch Law Firm can investigate your accident and identify the responsible party if we represent you.
Common Pedestrian Accident Injuries
You can sustain a wide range of injuries in a pedestrian accident. The larger a vehicle and the faster it is traveling when it strikes a pedestrian, the more serious the pedestrian’s injuries may be. Common injuries seen in these accidents include:
- Head and brain injuries
- Spinal cord, back, and neck injuries
- Broken and fractured bones
- Internal organ damage
- Internal bleeding
- Sprains and strains
These injuries can take days, weeks, or months to recover from. Injuries like brain contusions, nerve damage, and broken bones can require long-term treatment and may never fully heal.
About Our Law Firm
With Mr. Fitch’s 30+ years of experience handling personal injury cases, our firm is fully capable of managing your pedestrian accident claim or lawsuit for you. We’ve received excellent feedback from our clients, as well as a 10.0 (Superb) rating from Avvo, which rates lawyers and firms in every state. You can be confident in our ability to manage your case.
Our founder, attorney John Fitch, is rated among the best personal injury attorneys in Central Ohio by Three Best Rated. In 2019, he obtained a verdict of $134 million* which may be one of the highest personal injury verdicts ever in Ohio. Our other attorneys have also achieved outstanding results under John Fitch’s guidance.
Contact Our Columbus Pedestrian Accident Lawyers Today
At The Fitch Law Firm, we have helped countless pedestrian accident victims recover the compensation they need to get back on their feet after an accident. If you have suffered a serious injury, our team of Columbus pedestrian accident lawyers can help get you maximum compensation.
Call The Fitch Law Firm today for a free, no-obligation case review with a member of our team. We offer representation on a contingency fee basis, in which clients are not obligated to pay us any fees unless we win their case and recover their due damages for them.