Waking up each morning in California has many perks. The weather and all the things to do encourages people to get out of the house each day. Some people choose to walk to their destinations. Others drive to work or to the store and become pedestrians when they park and get out of their cars.
Using your own two feet to get around is a great option, but it also puts you in front of a lot of careless California drivers. A driver looking at a text on a cellphone screen, or speeding too fast, might fail to stop for someone in a crosswalk or in a parking lot.
A defenseless pedestrian could suffer any number of broken bones in a collision with a car and suffer through a long term recovery. Hospital bills will continue to pile up, all while a victim may not be able to work. A California Pedestrian Accident Lawyer fights to make sure victims get the support they need to pay for the best medical care available and provide for their households.
A Free Legal Consultation for California Pedestrian Accident Victims with Broken Bones
When a driver’s carelessness is responsible for a fractured bone, you’ll only have one chance to secure the compensation you’ll need to recover physically and financially. You must handle your pedestrian accident injury claim correctly, or you could leave yourself without support when you require additional surgeries or physical therapy in the years ahead.
Schedule a free consultation with a California Pedestrian Accident Broken Bone Lawyer to discuss how much your injury is worth and how to hold a car insurance company fully accountable. We also help pedestrian victims who are struck by hit-and-run drivers or uninsured drivers find the support they need to rebuild their lives.
There’s no obligation, but if you decide Maison Law can help you get the most out of an injury claim, you won’t need any upfront money. We don’t get paid unless we win your case. Then our fee comes out of the settlement you are awarded.
Broken Bone Injury Dangers in California Pedestrian Accidents
Pedestrians don’t have airbags, seatbelts, and metal walls to protect them in a collision with a vehicle. That’s why California requires all drivers to show an extra “duty of care” towards those on foot. This means drivers must monitor sidewalks, crosswalks, and every lane for pedestrians. They must slow down upon seeing a nearby pedestrian. Their speeds must be slow enough in order to avoid an impending collision.
This duty of care is why drivers can be found liable for injuries even if they hit a pedestrian who may not be crossing the street in a legal area, like a crosswalk.
These necessarily strict rules are meant to safeguard the lives of pedestrians who can suffer broken bones in their chest in an impact, to endanger internal organs. Those on foot might also endure broken arms and legs and be unable to return to their careers. A dangerous skull fracture might cause brain bleeding and put a victim’s brain function in jeopardy.
A California pedestrian accident lawyer is often needed in cases involving a serious injury because the higher medical bills go, the harder car insurance companies fight to avoid responsibility. Any broken bone is considered a very serious injury.
Doctor and surgeon fees can skyrocket as victims must go through surgeries and long physical therapy schedules. A skilled lawyer also examines the long-term effects of a broken bone on a client’s life and seeks full support for the years ahead.
These are just some of the types of broken bone cases we help California pedestrian accident victims win:
- Broken Ribs
- Tibia & Fibula Fractures
- Sternum Fractures
- Facial Bone Fractures
- Neck Fractures
- Knee Fracture
- Vertebrae Fractures
- Skull Fractures
- Shoulder Fractures
- Wrist Fractures
- Radius & Ulna Fractures
- Femur Fractures
Dealing with California Car Insurance Companies After a Pedestrian Accident Injury
Pedestrian accident victims must be looking out for common auto insurance company tactics meant to rob them of the support they need in recovery.
Insurance adjusters can be counted on to try to get their drivers/policyholders off the hook for any accident they cause. This saves the insurance company money.
These are just a few of the strategies insurance companies use to avoid paying what’s fair to pedestrian accident victims:
- Devalue your injury – Insurance adjusters won’t tell you what your injury is really worth and how much you’ll pay out of your own pocket for care and other hardships. They may also question how serious your injury is by using testimony from their own doctors. This can leave victims paying emergency room fees and physical therapy bills out of their own savings.
- Blame the victim – Insurance adjusters also like to find ways to blame pedestrian accident victims for their own collisions. They can even dispute a police officer’s accident report on who was to blame. Having a skilled California pedestrian accident lawyer investigating your case and collecting evidence makes it much harder for insurance providers to get away with unfair accusations.
- Make you wait – Insurance companies like to make pedestrian accident victims wait on the financial support they need to pay their medical bills, rent, and car payments. The longer victims wait the more desperate they may become as invoices arrive in the mailbox. The more distressed victims and their families become, the more of a chance the insurance company can get away with offering a “lowball” settlement offer. The desperate victim may accept less than what’s fair, just to be able to pay toward some bills.
A California personal injury lawyer puts the car insurance company on notice that these tactics won’t be tolerated. By providing powerful evidence and through aggressive negotiation, a personal injury lawyer holds insurers fully accountable for the mistakes their drivers make.
What to Do After a Pedestrian Accident Involving a Broken Bone
After a serious pedestrian collision, you may be in shock, and in a lot of pain. But if your broken bone will allow, it’s important for victims, or someone with them, to collect as much evidence as possible on the scene.
This proof will help keep a car insurance company from twisting the facts about what happened.
If you are well enough, you should set out to gather certain details after your accident:
- See to injuries first. Call 911. Let paramedics check out every pain. Go to the emergency room if necessary. Tell police officers or the California Highway Patrol everything you can remember about how your accident unfolded. Alert them if the driver appeared to be distracted or behaving recklessly before the crash.
- Pull out your cell phone and take pictures. Show the damage the impact did to the vehicle. Take pictures of any visible injuries, including damage to your clothing. Show traffic signs and lane markings. Note the time and weather conditions.
- Talk with witnesses. Discuss what they observed and find out how to contact them.
- Exchange information with the driver, but don’t admit fault or talk about how badly you are hurt. You may state that you’re “okay” but be injured more seriously than you think. You could have a hairline fracture of a bone and not notice the pain until your shock has worn off.
- Note the presence of any security cameras on houses or businesses around the scene. Tell your California Pedestrian Accident Lawyer about any potential footage so access can be requested.
- Don’t dispose of damaged clothing, shoes, and other personal property. It will all serve as powerful evidence of your collision.
- Schedule an appointment with your doctor. Get all injuries documented. Pay special attention to pain that arises after the shock of your incident wears off. X-Rays could reveal a broken bone you didn’t realize you had. Do everything your doctor recommends. Save all medical invoices.
What Kind of Compensation Can I Ask for After a Pedestrian Accident?
A pedestrian accident injury lasting for months and requiring weeks of physical therapy quickly racks up an enormous amount in invoices. Victims may also miss work during this time and have no savings left to pay for medical expenses.
A California pedestrian accident attorney works to make sure every hardship the victim is facing now and will face in the future is considered in any insurance settlement offer.
These are just a few factors in your recovery that must earn fair financial support from an at-fault driver’s car insurance provider:
- Totals on all medical expenses. The immediate costs and the costs expected in the future. When a permanent physical disability is involved, estimates on long-term care and support are submitted.
- Support for physical pain endured.
- Support for emotional trauma endured.
- Compensation for a loss of enjoyment of life, perhaps stemming from being unable to walk anywhere for a while.
- Support for a loss of consortium (the loss of intimacy with family members).
- Travel costs getting to and from doctor’s visits and surgery consultations.
- Money for damage to your personal property.
- Past and future lost earnings and work benefits if a pedestrian victim can’t return to work.
- Wrongful death benefits. Families who have lost loved ones in a fatal pedestrian accident should file wrongful death claims to secure support for burial expenses and lingering medical bills. They’ll also seek help with making up the income the victim can no longer provide for close relatives.
Contact a California Pedestrian Accident Broken Bone Lawyer
Bone fracture victims and their families have up to two years to file a pedestrian accident claim in California. However, it’s critical to bring your injury case to a California Pedestrian Accident Broken Bones Injury Attorney as soon as you can.
The longer you wait the more difficult it gets to track down evidence and locate witnesses. Our attorneys want the chance to inform you of what your case should earn before an insurance adjuster tries to convince you otherwise.
Contact Maison Law of California for a free, no-obligation consultation. It’s a no-risk way to find out what your pedestrian accident injury is worth and what you should demand from an insurance company.
