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Being hit by a car while walking in a crosswalk is one of the most serious situations a personal injury attorney handles. There’s no steel frame around a pedestrian, no airbag, no crumple zone. When a vehicle strikes a person on foot, even at a relatively low speed, the injuries that result are often catastrophic. Traumatic brain injuries, spinal damage, multiple fractures, and internal injuries are common outcomes. And because the damages in these cases tend to be severe, they are also among the most likely personal injury cases to reach, and sometimes exceed, the at-fault driver’s policy limits. A Dallas, TX pedestrian accident lawyer can help injured pedestrians investigate the crash, identify all available sources of insurance coverage, and pursue compensation that reflects the full extent of their medical expenses, lost income, pain and suffering, and long term injuries.
Why Liability in Crosswalk Cases Is Usually Clear
Texas Transportation Code Section 552.003 requires drivers to yield the right of way to pedestrians crossing the road in a marked crosswalk. When a driver fails to do that and strikes someone who is legally crossing, the liability picture is about as clear as it gets in a personal injury case.
That clear liability is one reason these cases can move efficiently toward maximum available compensation. When the at-fault party’s insurer can’t reasonably dispute who caused the crash, the fight shifts entirely to the value of the damages. And in serious pedestrian injury cases, those damages are often substantial.
Why Damages in Pedestrian Accident Cases Tend to Be High
The injuries that result from a pedestrian being struck by a vehicle are simply more severe than most car-on-car collisions. A few of the reasons these damages tend to be significant include but are not limited to:
Medical costs are often extensive. Hospitalizations, surgeries, rehabilitation, and ongoing specialist care following a serious pedestrian accident can produce medical bills that reach six or seven figures in catastrophic cases. Future medical needs, including long-term rehabilitation or permanent care, add to that total significantly.
Lost income and earning capacity. Serious injuries often keep people out of work for months. Permanent injuries can change what someone is able to do professionally for the rest of their life. Both categories are recoverable under Texas law, and both can be significant in a case involving severe physical trauma.
Non-economic damages are substantial. Pain and suffering, physical impairment, disfigurement, and loss of enjoyment of life carry real weight in a pedestrian accident case. Texas law allows recovery for both past and future non-economic damages, and when the injuries are permanent, the future component alone can be a large part of the total claim.
What Happens When the Policy Isn’t Enough
When the full value of a pedestrian accident claim exceeds the at-fault driver’s liability limits, which happens frequently in serious cases, there are additional sources of compensation worth pursuing.
Your own uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage is often the most important. If the at-fault driver carried Texas’s minimum liability coverage of $30,000.00 per person, and your damages are worth far more than that, your own UM/UIM policy can step in to cover the gap. As personal injury attorneys, we review every available policy from the start of a case, because leaving your own coverage unclaimed is a mistake that is very difficult to correct after the fact.
In some pedestrian cases, there are also additional parties whose negligence contributed to the crash. A driver who was distracted by a phone may have an employer who bears responsibility if the driver was on a work call. A road design that obscured visibility at the crosswalk may implicate a government entity. Those additional avenues are part of what a thorough investigation uncovers.
What to Do After a Pedestrian Accident
Do not allow the at-fault driver’s insurer to guide the scope of your claim. These companies know that pedestrian accident cases carry high damages, and their goal from the first contact is to limit their exposure. A personal injury attorney can make sure the full picture of your injuries and losses is documented correctly and that every available source of compensation is identified and pursued.
Kelso Law works with pedestrian accident victims throughout Dallas to build cases that reflect the true cost of what happened. If you or someone you love was hit by a car while walking in a crosswalk in the Dallas area, reach out to a Dallas personal injury lawyer. These cases often reach policy limits, and making sure you recover every dollar available requires having the right people in your corner from the start.
