Pedestrian Accidents

Drivers in California and throughout the United States have a duty of care to prevent injuries to pedestrians. While the law expects pedestrians to follow posted traffic signs and use good judgment when traversing roadways, motorists ultimately have a higher duty of care due to the fact that it is much easier for a driver to injure a pedestrian than vice versa. Drivers must be vigilant at all times when driving near areas populated by pedestrians, and pedestrians should use extra caution when crossing busy roadways or navigating intersections to prevent serious injuries.

When pedestrian accidents occur in Palm Springs, the Palm Desert area, Indio, Coachella Valley, or anywhere in the Inland Empire, injured victims need reliable legal representation to pursue personal injury claims against the drivers responsible for these accidents. Finding the right attorney can make a significant difference in the recovery process for the victim of a pedestrian accident in California.

Why You Should Consider the Law Offices of Michael R. Kaiser

If you’ve suffered injuries and economic damages in a pedestrian accident, it’s essential to seek legal representation from an experienced attorney. Your attorney can handle your legal concerns while you and your loved ones focus on recovery. Michael R. Kaiser is committed to helping pedestrian accident victims obtain fair compensation to get their lives back on track after serious accidents.

• Attorney Michael R. Kaiser has more than four decades of experience as a California personal injury attorney. He gives every case his complete attention and uses the full extent of his experience to ensure the maximum possible recovery for pedestrian accident victims.
• Michael R. Kaiser has handled many pedestrian accident cases over the years. He understands the laws of the Palm Springs area and California and how they apply to these damaging cases.
• Our team focuses on the client first. We will take time to get to know you and learn how your accident has impacted your life to provide the most complete representation possible.
• We can coordinate with medical professionals, legal experts, and other expert witnesses who can provide professional interpretations of your accident and strengthen your case, if necessary.
• We offer contingency fee billing, meaning our clients pay nothing unless we win their cases.

When you are facing the aftermath of a pedestrian accident, you need an experienced legal team with the skills, experience, and resources necessary to guide you to a positive outcome.

Potential Damages in a Pedestrian Accident Case

When a driver strikes a pedestrian, the pedestrian could suffer many different types of injuries including:

• Broken bones.
• Skull fractures and other traumatic head injuries.
• Spinal cord injuries.
• Internal organ injuries.
• Abrasions, laceration, and other surface injuries from contact with the road.
• Facial and dental injuries.

These injuries can easily lead to extensive recovery time in the hospital and additional recovery time at home, the inability to work for an extended period, and severe pain and suffering. When Michael R. Kaiser accepts a pedestrian accident case, his office will consider the full extent of the economic damage resulting from the incident to maximize the client’s compensation.

When a pedestrian suffers injuries due to a negligent driver’s actions in California, the injured pedestrian can potentially sue for medical expenses, lost income, and pain and suffering. Depending on the driver’s behavior, the court may also award punitive damages to further punish a defendant’s grossly negligent or intentionally dangerous behaviors.

Medical expenses may include the immediate costs of emergency medical treatment following the accident as well as future medical expenses like physical therapy, occupational therapy, and rehabilitation. Lost income may not only apply to lost wages while in recovery but also lost future earning capacity if the victim is unable to work in the future due to their injuries.

Pain and suffering are a bit trickier to determine. Since this type of compensation pertains to intangible losses such as physical pain and emotional suffering, there is no hard and fast formula for determining how much a plaintiff could receive. Some courts award pain and suffering compensation based on the amount of economic damages awarded in the case while others use a per diem system to calculate the victim’s time spent in recovery.

Proving Negligence in a Pedestrian Accident Case

In California, drivers have a duty of care to pedestrians near the road to operate their vehicles safely and yield the right of way to pedestrians whenever necessary, including when pedestrians jaywalk or otherwise disregard nearby traffic signals. California follows a comparative negligence statute, which means plaintiffs in a personal injury case could lose a percentage of their compensation if the case uncovers any share of fault in causing the accident in question.

While it is possible that a pedestrian’s behavior could warrant a comparative negligence ruling, it is very unlikely for any California court to side with a driver against a pedestrian in a pedestrian accident case due to the driver’s higher duty of care, except in cases of obvious fraud.

To prove negligence in any personal injury lawsuit, the plaintiff’s legal team must prove the defendant owed a duty of care to the plaintiff, failed to meet that duty, and directly caused the plaintiff’s claimed damages. The plaintiff’s legal team must also provide sufficient evidence to prove the full extent of the damages caused by the defendant’s negligence. Plaintiffs’ legal representatives will use evidence such as traffic camera footage, vehicle computer data, cell phone records, GPS data, and much more to prove fault for pedestrian accidents in California.

Find Reliable Legal Counsel for Your Pedestrian Accident Claim

A pedestrian accident may not only lead to expensive medical bills, but also interfere with the victim’s ability to work and enjoy an independent lifestyle. The right attorney can help injured victims secure the compensation they need to return to as normal of a life as possible following a pedestrian accident. If you recently sustained injury as a pedestrian due to the actions of a negligent or inattentive driver, contact the Law Offices of Michael R. Kaiser today to schedule a free case evaluation and find out how our team can help you recover.