Yes, you can have a personal injury case if a vehicle hit you while you weren’t in a crosswalk. But the success of your case hinges on the specific circumstances of the accident.
A crosswalk is a designated area where pedestrians always have the right-of-way. But it is not the only area where motorists must exercise due care.
All motorists must exercise care when sharing the road with others. This rule applies to pedestrians because they have an increased risk of suffering more severe injuries than people inside motor vehicles, even if they’re not in a crosswalk.
Florida pedestrian laws cover all rules that motorists and pedestrians owe each other. Plenty of laws apply outside crosswalks.
Drivers And Other Motorists Have A Legal Duty Of Care To Pedestrians
Drivers usually have the right-of-way outside crosswalks. But this doesn’t mean that you’ll be considered at fault if a vehicle struck you while you were not walking in a crosswalk.
In fact, Florida laws state that all motor vehicle drivers must exercise proper care to avoid crashing into any pedestrianor individual using a human-powered vehicle and provide ample warning whenever necessary.
They must likewise exercise proper caution when driving whenever they see a child or a clearly incapacitated, disabled, or confused individual.
This statute establishes that even if drivers have the right-of-way, they are legally obligated to do everything they can to avoid accidents with pedestrians. This may involve slowing down, honking their horn, or changing lanes.
Put simply, whatever they need to do, they must do their best to avoid getting into an accident.
How Florida’s Comparative Negligence Laws Will Affect Your Compensation
The comparative fault or negligence laws in Florida may significantly impact pedestrian crashes that occur outside crosswalks. Fortunately, whether you’re 3% at fault for the accident or 97%, you can still recover damages.
But you’ll still have to bring a claim against the other party’s insurer to obtain proper compensation.
Let’s say you were walking outside a crosswalk, and a car hit you. Your fault for the accident was found to be 20%. This means that your insurance provider will cover 20% of the other party’s damages. But since the other part is 75% at fault for the accident, their insurer must pay you 75% of your damages.
If you have PIP (personal injury protection) coverage, your PIP will also pay for covered losses up to your policy limits.
Speak To A Skilled Tampa Pedestrian Accident Attorney Now
A lot of pedestrians believe that they are at fault if they get injured as a pedestrian in a traffic crash outside of a crosswalk. The reality is that all accidents deserve a fair investigation and assessment with the proper context.
Pedestrian injuries are some of the most devastating injuries people can suffer. If you or a family member were hurt in a pedestrian crash, please reach out to Hancock Injury Attorneys right away.
Set up an appointment with our Tampa pedestrian accident attorney by contacting us online or calling 813-534-6929.