Hit by a car while walking? Talk to a lawyer with 25+ years in EMS.
Pedestrian injuries are often serious and the insurance company will look for ways to blame you. Ari Friedman knows the medicine and the law. Free, confidential consultation.
Call 323-596-1234Free case reviewA pedestrian has no protection at all. When a car weighing two tons or more hits a person on foot, the results are often broken bones, head and spinal injuries, and months of recovery. Then the driver’s insurance company starts looking for reasons to blame you: you weren’t in a crosswalk, you were wearing dark clothes, you were looking at your phone.
The first hour shapes your recovery and your claim.
What happens at the scene, in the ambulance and in the ER becomes the medical record an insurer will study. Ari knows that record from the inside.
Common causes of pedestrian accidents
What to do after a pedestrian accident: advice from a paramedic
- Take care of your medical needs first. If you’re hurt, stay where you are and let emergency responders come to you. Don’t try to tough it out or walk it off. Adrenaline can hide serious injuries, and internal injuries and nerve damage may not hurt right away.
- Let the responders protect your spine. Because of the force involved, EMTs, firefighters and paramedics often take spinal precautions with pedestrians, such as a cervical collar. It may be uncomfortable, but it shouldn’t be painful or affect your breathing. If it is, tell them right away.
- Go to the hospital. Let the doctors do their work. A gap between the accident and your first treatment is one of the first things insurers use to argue you weren’t really hurt.
- Get the report number and the driver’s information. If the driver leaves, call the police right away and try to note the car, the color and any part of the plate.
- Find witnesses. Ask a bystander to call a family member, and to take photos and get witness names and phone numbers if you can’t.
- Be careful with statements. If you’re too weak to talk at the scene, the police can take your statement later at the hospital. If you can, call a lawyer first, and don’t give the driver’s insurance company a recorded statement.
It can feel like a lot to handle while you’re hurt.
When Ari represents you, he helps untangle all of it, from the police report to medical bills and calls from insurance adjusters, and he assists you throughout your claim.
- Mechanism of injury. How you were hit, how fast, and where you landed.
- Level of consciousness. Early signs of a head injury.
- Your first complaints. What hurt at the scene, in your own words.
- Vital signs and treatment. What responders saw and did.
- What’s missing. Gaps an insurer will try to use against you.
Why medical experience matters
Most injury claims are won or lost on the medical evidence. Ari reads ambulance reports, ER records and treatment notes the way the people who wrote them do. He knows what each entry means, what is missing, and how to show an insurer the full course of your injuries.
His knowledge of emergency medicine is recognized beyond his own cases: Ari has been retained as an expert witness on EMS standards of care.
Crosswalks and right-of-way
Drivers must yield to pedestrians crossing in a marked crosswalk, or in an unmarked crosswalk at an intersection, and must slow down and take care around them. Pedestrians also have duties, like not stepping suddenly into the path of a car that’s too close to stop.What if I wasn’t in a crosswalk?
Since 2023, California generally doesn’t ticket pedestrians for crossing outside a crosswalk unless there’s an immediate danger of a collision. Crossing mid-block doesn’t automatically make the accident your fault. Drivers still have to watch the road. Don’t assume you don’t have a case.What if the driver fled?
The uninsured motorist coverage on your own auto policy may cover you even though you were on foot. There may be very short deadlines for this kind of claim, possibly as short as 24 hours to report the hit-and-run to the police and 30 days to notify your insurer, so act right away.What compensation may be available
Depending on the facts, an injured pedestrian in California may be able to recover:
- Medical bills, past and future
- Lost wages and lost earning capacity
- Pain and suffering
- Rehabilitation and future care
California deadlines you should know
There are many deadlines that can affect an injury claim. A few common ones are listed below, but this list is not complete.
- Two years to file a lawsuit for personal injuries in most cases (Code of Civil Procedure § 335.1).
- Six months to file a written claim if a government vehicle or agency is involved, such as a city bus, or if a dangerous crosswalk or intersection played a role (Government Code § 911.2).
- Possibly as short as 24 hours and 30 days in a hit-and-run. If you make an uninsured motorist claim under your own auto policy because the driver can’t be identified, there may be requirements to report the hit-and-run to the police within 24 hours and to notify your insurer within 30 days (see Insurance Code § 11580.2). Whether and how these apply depends on your policy and the facts, so check with an attorney right away.
Which deadlines apply, and when they start, depends on the facts of your case. Some are much shorter than two years. Review the deadlines with an attorney early so the statute of limitations doesn’t run on your claim. Missing one can end your case.
Talk to Ari about your accident
Free and confidential consultation. Serving Los Angeles County and all of Southern California.
Call 323-596-1234Free case review formAttorney advertising. This page is general information, not legal advice. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.