Pedestrian Accident Lawyers in Suffolk County, New York
Traveling by foot may be better for the environment, but it may not be the best choice for a person’s health and safety. An inattentive driver or reckless motorist can quickly and unexpectedly strike a pedestrian who is walking along a sidewalk or jogging on a running trail.
Or someone in a hurry to leave a parking lot can inadvertently strike a pedestrian walking to his or her car. All of these accidents are likely to do little harm to the car or truck – but considerable harm to the pedestrian. Physical, mental, and emotional reminders of a Suffolk County pedestrian accident may linger for years after the collision. Parker Waichman LLP assists pedestrians in Suffolk County who have been struck and injured by negligent motorists to recover financial damages for their expenses and losses. Contact Parker Waichman LLP and learn how we can assist.
Why Do Pedestrian Accidents Happen in Suffolk County?
After a pedestrian collision has occurred, one of the biggest questions that will need to be answered is this: “Who is at fault?” In other words, insurance companies, the injured pedestrian, the other motorist(s) involved in the accident, and any court involved in a lawsuit will want to know what set into motion the chain of events that resulted in the collision.
Usually, there is no one clear answer: pedestrians and motorists alike can make decisions that contribute to the collision’s occurrence.
- Pedestrian Factors: For pedestrians, irresponsible behaviors that can lead to a collision or accident include:
- Distractions/Inattentiveness: Pedestrians should always remain vigilant and aware of their surroundings. This is especially important when walking where there are motor vehicles close by (such as along major streets and highways and in parking lots). Cellphones, radios/music players, and other electronic devices are major sources of distractions for pedestrians that can lead to a collision.
- Disobeying pedestrian control signals and signs: Crosswalks and crossing signals may be cumbersome and inconvenient, but they help ensure that pedestrians are safe and visible to motorists when crossing the street. Choosing to jaywalk or cross a street at a time when a signal is instructing pedestrians not to cross the street can put the pedestrian in jeopardy.
- Lack of visibility: Finally, pedestrians who walk at night or when visibility conditions are poor and who do not take steps to make themselves more visible to motorists may increase the likelihood that they will be hurt in a collision. Wearing reflective clothing or carrying a light after dark, for example, can dramatically lessen the chances that a pedestrian will be struck by a motorist.
Motorist Factors: Similarly, motorists who do one or more of the following behind the wheel may make a pedestrian crash more likely:
- Inattentive driving: Motorists who text while drive, daydream, or carry on conversations with others in the car are more likely to miss seeing pedestrians who are walking near the road or crossing the road. If a motorist does not see a pedestrian in the road in time, the motorist may not be able to stop his or her car or truck in time to avoid an accident.
- Failing to yield the right of way: When the driver of a car or truck is in a rush, he or she may not give the right of way to pedestrians crossing the street even if the pedestrians have a signal telling them that it is safe to cross. Hurried motorists may not intend to cause injuries to pedestrians – they may just want to reach their destinations as quickly as possible – but this lack of intent does not negate the damaging consequences of their decisions.
- Driving under the influence: Being intoxicated or under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs can reduce a motorist’s senses and reaction time, meaning that the motorist is less likely to notice a pedestrian in or near the roadway. Even if the motorist does see the pedestrian, alcohol and/or drugs can make it less likely that the motorist will be able to safely and promptly react so as to avoid an accident.
Whatever the circumstances that led to a particular pedestrian accident, recovering compensation is made easier with the assistance of a helpful and knowledgeable law firm like Parker Waichman LLP. Contact us today to discuss your case and rights.
Where to Go for Medical and Legal Help in Suffolk County After a Pedestrian Accident
Peconic Bay Medical Center and Brookhaven Medical Center are just two of Suffolk County’s many hospitals and healthcare treatment centers where victims hurt in a pedestrian collision can receive treatment for injuries sustained in a pedestrian crash. After a pedestrian collision, it is extremely important that medical attention is sought quickly so that any internal injuries or injuries to the brain or spine can be diagnosed and treated promptly before any permanent damage occurs. When it comes time to file a lawsuit and seek monetary damages from a negligent motorist, the injured pedestrian in Suffolk County will file his or her lawsuit with one of the local Supreme Courts in Suffolk County. There may be advantages and/or disadvantages to filing one’s lawsuit in on Supreme Court over another. For this reason alone, speaking with an experienced pedestrian accident attorney who can review the injury victim’s case and advise the victim as to the best court to hear the victim’s case is almost always the best course of action.
Pedestrian Injuries Following a Suffolk County Collision
Pedestrians will likely suffer serious, if not catastrophic, injuries when they are struck by a car or truck (unless the collision occurs at a very slow speed). The extent and severity of these injuries will depend on factors such as the pedestrian’s age and general health, the size and speed of the vehicle that strike’s the pedestrian, whether the pedestrian was thrown or dragged under the vehicle during the accident, what kind of surface the accident occurred on, and how quickly the pedestrian received medical care and treatment (just to name a few).
Pedestrians may, for example, suffer:
- Head and spine injuries, which can cause damage to or sever the spinal cord. Trauma to the spinal cord can lead to severe, debilitating pain that can be difficult to manage or treat. A severed spinal cord (or a spinal cord that suffers too much damage) can lead to a loss of use of one’s arms, legs, and/or other body parts. Swift medical treatment may lessen the duration and/or severity of any pain or paralysis.
- Broken bones, especially bones in the legs or pelvic region. In addition to making mobility, a challenge, broken bones in these regions can be difficult to repair and can require a great deal of time to heal. For some pedestrians, these injuries will never fully heal but will instead require the use of a cane or walker for the rest of the pedestrian’s life.
- Psychological injuries such as anxiety and depression. The loss of one’s mobility (whether for a period of time or permanently) can have a profoundly negative impact on an injured pedestrian’s mental health and wellbeing. An injured pedestrian’s sense of safety in the world can be shaken and lead to challenges in leaving one’s home: an inability to do the things the pedestrian was once accustomed to doing can lead the pedestrian to question life’s meaning and purpose. These are incredibly painful and troubling feelings and thoughts that can negatively impact the injured pedestrian’s quality of life.
Addressing these physical and psychological injuries costs money; oftentimes, more money than the injured pedestrian and his or her family have available to them. Pedestrian injury lawsuits are meant to provide injury victims with the cash they need to fully address their injuries by requiring the person or persons responsible for causing injury to the pedestrian to pay for the costs of medical appointments and surgeries, prescription drug costs, counseling services, home health care services, and other similar expenses.
Even where the pedestrian is partly to blame for the accident (i.e., the pedestrian was jaywalking or did not look for traffic before stepping out in the street), the pedestrian may still be able to recover some amount of damages to address his or her injuries. Parker Waichman LLP dedicates itself to helping injury victims of all sorts, including injured pedestrians in Suffolk County, recover the most compensation possible for their injuries.
Our firm has received a “5 Dragons” rating from Lawdragon.com and an “8” (out of a possible 10) on the national attorney-rating website Avvo.com, along with numerous other awards and recognition for our superior representation and work on behalf of injury victims. Learn about the hard work and dedication to our clients that has led to these awards: contact Parker Waichman LLP today to discuss your situation and how we can assist you.
Your Opportunity to Obtain Damages is Closing Fast
A victim’s pedestrian accident-related injuries may take years to fully heal: however, that victim’s window of opportunity to obtain compensation closes much faster than this. In Suffolk County and throughout New York, the state’s statute of limitations only provides injured pedestrians a three-year time period within which they are expected to investigate the circumstances leading to the collision, determine if a motorist’s or someone else’s careless behavior is to blame for their injuries, and file a lawsuit to seek compensation.
While some states’ statutes of limitations are shorter, New York’s statute of limitations does not give injured pedestrians much time at all to take action and assert their rights. Any injury lawyer or law firm can attest to the severe consequences of not filing a pedestrian injury lawsuit within the statute of limitations. A lawsuit can be dismissed if it is filed outside the statute of limitations time period, and the injured pedestrian can be left without any further recourse or path to recovery. While there are some ways whereby this result can be avoided, these exceptions to the statute of limitations are narrow and apply only in a very few circumstances.
The best way to avoid violating the statute of limitations is for injured pedestrians to retain legal representation as soon as possible after their injury accident.
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