Maison Law represents Bell, CA, pedestrian accident victims who are off their feet and injured due to a careless driver’s mistake. We stand by victims until they are fully recovered physically and financially.
We provide a free, no-obligation consultation for all local injury victims. It’s a no-risk opportunity to find out what your injury may be worth and how to hold a reckless driver 100% responsible.
Do I Need a Lawyer After Getting Struck by a Car?
California personal injury laws allow pedestrian accident victims to file claims and seek recovery support from at-fault drivers. This support becomes critical for victims who require medical care and who miss time at work.
If your injuries are only minor and you only require a quick check-up at the emergency room, you may not need a lawyer’s help to get compensated. But if your injuries end up more serious, including a diagnosis of a broken bone or a head injury, you may need a lawyer’s assistance to get everything you need to pay for a full recovery.
When recovery times are longer, building more medical debt, insurance adjusters are trained to use certain tactics to limit the settlement money you receive. They can try to blame you for the accident or question how badly you are hurt. Your Bell Pedestrian Accident Lawyer gathers the evidence necessary to keep insurers from changing the facts of what happened. Your lawyer also has a much better chance of earning you the maximum in compensation, often much more than you could earn by filing a claim yourself.
Pedestrian Accident Dangers in Bell CA
Traffic gets busy around Bell, and while drivers look for lane openings, they can forget to monitor the crosswalks they are approaching. This creates a frightening risk for those who travel sections of Bell on foot.
People may be walking to work, to school, or to the store when a driver going too fast is suddenly barreling towards them. A distracted truck driver who doesn’t slow down when approaching an intersection is another real risk.
These are just a few of the activities that can lead to pedestrians being struck:
- People crossing intersections
- People walking across parking lots into stores and businesses
- People jogging
- People walking dogs
- People getting on and off buses
- Students walking to and from schools
These are common dangers in Bell. California’s Transportation Injury Mapping System (TIMS) reports that in 2024, our city was the scene of 20 pedestrian accidents involving injury. Those accidents led to at least 2 tragic deaths. Those figures were consistent with 2023 figures, when there were 21 serious pedestrian accidents with 2 fatalities.
There have been too many incidents for such a small city, especially since these accidents can often be prevented. And especially since some of these pedestrian accidents can target the most vulnerable victims, young children.
Who Is Legally Responsible for Pedestrian Accidents?
California Vehicle Code (CVC) 21950 states that drivers must yield to all pedestrians crossing a roadway at a crosswalk. Under state law, a crosswalk may be marked or unmarked.
Drivers are required to slow down upon seeing a pedestrian stepping into the street or already in the street. They must reduce speed to be able to stop to avoid a collision.
In many cases, a driver would be held fully liable for an accident and responsible for the financial costs that come out of such a frightening incident. That would mean a financial obligation to pay the victim’s medical bills, to make up the time the victim lost at work, and support for other non-economic damages.
Can I File a Pedestrian Accident Claim If I Was Crossing the Street Outside of a Crosswalk?
Yes. California holds drivers to a special “duty of care” when traveling around pedestrians. Drivers bear some or all of the fault in many pedestrian collisions, even if the victim was jaywalking or crossing the street outside of a crosswalk.
Drivers must still slow down to prevent an accident, no matter where they encounter a pedestrian. This extra care is expected due to the extreme danger to vulnerable pedestrians when they must cross in front of heavy, fast-moving metal vehicles.
Victims could still seek help with their doctor bills and support their families while they can’t work. They might be able to secure full compensation. In other cases, a driver may only be cited for partial blame in the accident. However, the driver may still have to provide some support, if not 100%, to the victim.
What Type of Compensation Is Available in a Pedestrian Accident Claim?
A skilled pedestrian accident attorney fully investigates what happened to you. Evidence like surveillance video, witness testimony, and even accident reconstruction can be used to prepare a strong case.
A strong case makes it easier to hold a car insurance company financially responsible for your hardships after a collision. Your claim should be filed with the evidence and a list of the damages that have changed your life over the last few weeks or months.
The size of a pedestrian accident injury settlement check will be determined by these and other factors:
- How high your medical bills go
- The estimated costs of care you are expected to need in the future
- Estimates on long-term support if your injury ends up causing a permanent disability
- Totals on travel costs to medical appointments while you are unable to walk or drive
- Support for the physical pain you endure
- Support for your loss of enjoyment of life
- Support for your loss of intimacy with a partner
- Lost income from work including the expected future lost income anticipated
- Support for the emotional trauma you suffer
The emotional anguish you must cope with can add to the amount on a settlement check. This includes the changes to your lifestyle caused by an impact with a car. It might include the activities you must give up due to pain from an injury, such as running for exercise and walking your dog.
Giving up the things you love to do, like family activities, can lead to depression. You might even suffer from PTSD symptoms, leading back to the moment of a frightening collision. Your Maison Law representative makes sure these very real hardships are compensated in any settlement.
Frequently Asked Questions
What type of documents do I need to bring with me to a meeting with a pedestrian accident attorney?
If you’ve obtained a copy of the Bell police accident report for your case or the CHP accident report, bring it in for your lawyer to look over. If you don’t have it, and you hire Maison Law, your attorney will secure this document for you. Medical records and billing invoices for every visit you’ve made to doctors, physical therapists, surgeons, and other specialists will help. Paystubs help your lawyer determine how much income you are losing each week while you can’t work.
How long do I have to file a pedestrian accident claim?
Two years. Pedestrian accident victims have a two-year statute of limitations to file an injury claim. They should act quickly. A lawyer can use the head start to collect fresh evidence and to track down witnesses.
What if I can’t afford to hire a pedestrian accident lawyer?
You won’t need any upfront money to hire a skilled lawyer to handle your case while you focus on healing. Maison Law doesn’t get paid unless we win your case for you. Then our fee comes out of the settlement that a car insurance company must pay you.
Contact a Bell Pedestrian Accident Lawyer
Contact Maison Law to schedule a free, confidential consultation with an actual Pedestrian Accident Lawyer. We want to hear what happened to you. We’re going to answer your questions and make sure you are prepared for the insurance tactics you’ll face so you don’t forfeit valuable support. You’ll know what your injury is worth before an insurance adjuster tries to convince you it’s worth nothing at all.
