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Pedestrian Accidents Attorney in Bronx
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Bronx Attorneys Advocating for Car Crash Victims
In the battle between cars or trucks and pedestrians, the pedestrian will always lose. There is simply nothing to protect a pedestrian, other than their own body, if they are struck by a car or a truck. Operators of cars and trucks are, conversely, protected by a multi-ton metal cage which will shield them from injury if they strike a pedestrian. It thus comes as no surprise that pedestrians made up 52% of the traffic fatalities from 2005-2009 in New York City. Studies of New York City car accidents have found that pedestrians are 10 times more likely to die than a motor vehicle passenger or driver involved in the same crash. Approximately 79% of the crashes that involved serious injuries or fatalities to pedestrians involved passenger vehicles driven by private citizens, rather than public busses or other forms of public transportation. If you or a loved one is injured or killed in a pedestrian accident, the Bronx pedestrian accident lawyers at Jesse Minc Personal Injury Law are standing by to assist you in your time of need.
Holding a Negligent Driver Accountable for a Bronx Pedestrian Accident
Pedestrians are often injured as a result of a car driver’s negligence. Drivers who speed, disobey traffic signals, fail to yield, drive drunk or drugged, weave through traffic, or text while driving may seriously injure or kill a pedestrian. Generally, a pedestrian hit by a car must first turn to the at-fault driver’s no-fault insurance for medical expenses. As an injured pedestrian, you will need to file a notice of an application for no-fault benefits within 30 days of the accident to obtain the benefits. If you are subject to a hit and run, you will be entitled to uninsured motorist benefits from your own insurer. There is also a state fund (the New York Motor Vehicle Accident Indemnification Corp.) that offers first-party benefits and takes the place of the insurance for the vehicle that fled the scene in a hit and run.
However, pedestrian accidents often result in catastrophic injuries, such as bone fractures, traumatic brain injuries, paralysis, and others that entitle the pedestrian to bring a bodily injury lawsuit against the driver at fault. In every pedestrian accident lawsuit, the first step that a pedestrian accident attorney in the Bronx will need to take is to demonstrate that the driver’s negligence was, more likely than not, the cause of the pedestrian accident. Under New York Law, the sources of drivers’ duties of care to pedestrians come from the New York Vehicle and Traffic Law (the “VTL”), as well as from “common-law” rules established by the courts.
The duty of care can be breached in many different ways. For example, a driver who is driving aggressively or is texting and not looking at the road can be shown to have breached his or her duty to use reasonable care while operating a vehicle pursuant to VTL Sections 1225-C or 1225-D, rules which prohibit the use of cell phones and other hand-held electronic devices while driving. In a pedestrian accident wherein a driver turning across an intersection strikes a pedestrian in a crosswalk, skilled Bronx pedestrian accident attorneys will use VTL Sections 1146 and 1151 to hold the negligent driver to account for failing to exercise due care and yield the right of way to the injured pedestrian.
Our pedestrian accident attorneys have extensive experience litigating cases in which a driver claims that the pedestrian was partly at fault, a claim by a defendant known as “comparative negligence.” If, for example, the pedestrian was not crossing in a crosswalk, or crossing against a light, or darted out into the path of a vehicle, or failed to look in all directions prior to crossing the street, the pedestrian may be assigned partial fault for an accident, and the compensation available to them may be reduced. In order to minimize your comparative negligence if you are injured in a pedestrian accident, you must hire pedestrian accident lawyers who know the intimate details of the VTL and other applicable laws to ensure that your case is prepared so as to minimize your exposure to the comparative negligence defense. Even if you suspect that you may have been partially negligent in causing your own accident, you should consult with our attorneys, as you may still be able to obtain compensation even if you are partially at fault for your pedestrian accident.
Pedestrians who successfully establish liability may be able to recover damages related to medical expenses, rehabilitation costs, physical therapy costs, modifications to their home or vehicle to enable movement, permanent disability, pain and suffering, household services, lost wages, loss of earning capacity, and disfigurement and scarring. When a family member is killed in a pedestrian accident, it may be possible to recover wrongful death damages. Our pedestrian accident law firm has the resources and expertise necessary to ensure that the proper experts are hired to analyze your damages and to ensure that you obtain every penny of compensation that you deserve if you are the victim of a pedestrian accident in New York City.
Contact Experienced Pedestrian Accident Lawyers in the Bronx Today
When you are seriously injured by a driver who was distracted or otherwise careless in causing a serious pedestrian accident, it is essential to retain experienced and aggressive trial attorneys to represent you. Our firm has lawyers from Top 20 nationally ranked law schools who are nationally recognized and honored for being at the top of their field. We are selective in the cases that we take, and we have a success rate of over 95% in these lawsuits due to the extraordinary time, energy and resources that we dedicate to our clients. Our firm has the resources to pay for credible experts and advanced investigative techniques, something which is essential to a successful pedestrian accident case and which most Bronx law firms do not provide to the same degree. We prepare carefully so that we can present your case effectively at trial; that is our top priority. Call us at (718) 354-8000 or contact us through our online form for a free consultation. We represent pedestrian accident victims in the Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens, Manhattan, and Nassau, Suffolk, and Westchester Counties.