Pedestrians are exposed and highly vulnerable to severe injuries or death if they’re hit by a vehicle. California leads the nation in pedestrian fatalities. As per the California Office of Traffic Safety, 893 pedestrians died on California roads in 2018. More than 14,000 pedestrian accident victims were injured. Preliminary 2019 numbers were looking to go well beyond the 2018 fatality total. The rate of California pedestrian deaths is nearly 26% higher than the rest of the country.
Who is a Pedestrian?
According to CVC section 467, a pedestrian includes anybody who is “afoot.” A person can also be a pedestrian when using a conveyance that is propelled by human power, so long as it isn’t a bicycle. Those using wheelchairs or motorized devices because of a disability or who are otherwise unable to move about as a pedestrian are pedestrians too.
California’s Pedestrian Right-of-Way Law
There are pedestrian crosswalks that are controlled by stop signs or traffic signals, and there are other crosswalks that are uncontrolled. CVC section 21950(a) states as follows: “The driver of a vehicle shall yield the right-of-way to a pedestrian crossing the roadway within any marked crosswalk or within any unmarked crosswalk at an intersection …” Under section (b) of the statute, a pedestrian also has a duty to use due care and caution for his or her own personal safety. A pedestrian can’t suddenly leave the curb and dart out into a roadway and into the path of a vehicle that comes “so close as to constitute an immediate hazard.” What might constitute an immediate hazard is a question of fact for a judge in a bench trial or 12 people in a jury trial.
The Pedestrian’s Duty to Yield
CVC section 21954(a) also doesn’t allow pedestrians to just walk out into the street. It states that “any pedestrian upon a roadway at any point other than within a marked crosswalk or within an unmarked crosswalk at an intersection shall yield the right-of-way to all vehicles upon the roadway so near as to constitute an unreasonable hazard.” Translated into plain English, a pedestrian must yield to vehicles when crossing outside of a marked crosswalk, but drivers still have a duty to use due care and caution.
Comparative Fault
In accordance with California’s comparative fault laws, a person who was partially at fault for their own accident and injuries can still recover damages. If the parties can’t reach a settlement, a jury will be required to determine any percentage of fault attributable to the claimant. That percentage is then deducted from a gross amount. For example, if a person is determined to be 25% at fault, and he or she received a $100,000 award, that sum would be reduced to $75,000. California is what’s known as a pure comparative negligence state. In such states, a person could be determined to have been 99% at fault, but still be awarded 1% of the damages claimed.
If you were injured as a pedestrian in an accordant, or if you lost a family member in a pedestrian accident, the opposing insurance company will do whatever it can do to try and to push over as much of a percentage of negligence as possible onto you or your deceased family member. Don’t give a statement of any kind to that insurer. California law doesn’t require you to do that. Contact us instead for a confidential and free consultation and case review. We might even be able to help in the event of injuries or death as a result of a hit-and-run.
