If you’ve been in an auto accident, you need an excellent Joliet car accident lawyer. An attorney can help make sure that your claim is filed correctly. In addition, the insurance company offers a fair settlement to pay all your medical bills and deal with any other issues related to the accident.
- Pedestrian Accident Statistics
- Joliet Takes Steps to Stop Pedestrian Accidents
- Taking Legal Action to Obtain Financial Compensation
- How to Establish Fault in a Joliet Pedestrian Accident
- The Ways We Can Secure Damages After Your Pedestrian Accident
- When Children Are Injured in Pedestrian/Car Accidents
- Private Property Accidents
- Common Pedestrian Accident Injuries
- How a Personal Injury Attorney Can Help
- Joliet Pedestrian Accident FAQs
- Our Joliet Pedestrian Accident Lawyers are Ready to Review Your Claim
- Joliet Pedestrian Accident Lawyer Resources:
Have you suffered severe personal injury in an auto accident or due to medical malpractice? If so, contact the personal injury attorneys at Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers LLC today. Our auto accident attorneys want immediate legal representation and help you fight for your rights!
You need a Joliet pedestrian accident lawyer who knows how these things work and will fight for every penny you deserve.
Call a Joliet personal injury lawyer today at (888) 424-5757 or contact us online to schedule a free consultation. We have offices in Chicago, Naperville, Plainfield, Oswego, and Romeoville, so meet wherever is convenient for you!
Pedestrian Accident Statistics
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), there were 5,987 pedestrian deaths in the United States in 2010. It accounts for about 16% of all traffic fatalities that year.
The number may seem low, but it is higher than in any other country. In addition, of the total number of pedestrian fatalities, the average age was 46, and roughly 50 percent were male.
Statistics show that older pedestrians are more likely to be involved in fatal accidents. Older pedestrians are also less likely to recover from injuries sustained during a motor vehicle accident, which is why they need to seek the counsel of an experienced personal injury lawyer.
Walk signals and crosswalks are meant to protect pedestrians but can do little if drivers don’t pay attention or follow the road rules.
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety study found fewer pedestrians are being struck at intersections because drivers have become better at adhering to traffic signals and stop signs. Because crosswalks have been equipped with flashers and countdown timers, drivers know when to stop, and pedestrians know when it’s safe to cross.
Recently, the city of Joliet was chosen as one of the top three cities in the country for pedestrian safety by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). It has also been ranked 15th on Bicycling Magazine’s 50 Best Bike Cities list. Yet, despite these accolades, there are still issues with pedestrian safety in Joliet.
Joliet Takes Steps to Stop Pedestrian Accidents
Currently, Joliet is attempting to improve its infrastructure to decrease the number of accidents involving pedestrians and motor vehicles. This is being done by increasing sidewalks near schools and downtown areas.
Also, the city is ensuring that all intersections are equipped with crosswalk guards that will alert drivers when pedestrians enter the crosswalk. In addition, the city is installing countdown timers so pedestrians know when it’s safe to cross.
Joliet has also conducted a safety campaign that includes handing out free reflector kits to residents with special needs to help them be seen more easily in traffic. The mayor of Joliet says that his number one priority is to keep residents safe.
Therefore, he is now working with the Illinois Department of Transportation to develop a solution to make it easier for pedestrians to cross the street without worrying about getting hit by an oncoming car or truck.
When walking in Joliet, you should take precautions and always be aware of your surroundings. Always walk facing traffic on a major road, and never assume drivers can see you. Crossing the street in designated areas and not between parked cars where drivers may not be able to spot you is essential.
Taking Legal Action to Obtain Financial Compensation
The Joliet, Illinois, car accident attorneys of Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers LLC are committed to the needs of accident victims who were struck by vehicles while lawfully crossing the street or using the road.
These motor vehicle accidents are often much more severe and life-changing than most other traffic accidents. Because of that, you must have access to fair compensation to receive the best medical care available without worrying about the financial toll.
Our Joliet car accident lawyers can explore pursuing a wrongful death lawsuit for those who have lost a loved one in a pedestrian accident. In addition, qualifying surviving family members can file a wrongful death lawsuit on behalf of their loved one’s estate to ensure they are financially compensated for losing a loved one who provided monetary, caregiving, or loving support and services to the family.
How to Establish Fault in a Joliet Pedestrian Accident
We know that there are many things you need to deal with when you are involved in an accident, let alone when you are struck by a car. We will perform a thorough investigation to help determine who was at fault for your injuries to hold the responsible party liable.
The methods we use include the following:
- Obtain any available accident reports from the police, including statements from witnesses and the driver.
- Request access to videos from any cameras in the surrounding area to provide a visual reconstruction of the accident. There are often traffic control cameras or closed-circuit security cameras near many of the places these accidents unfold.
- Gain access to the calls made to 911 following the accident, as the information recovered here may help us reconstruct the sequence of events.
- Contact the witnesses to get their account of events. Even though they may have made statements to the police, we may gain additional information not provided in their initial accounts.
- Send accident reconstruction specialists to the accident scene to recreate the accident. It will help us determine the speed and trajectory of the vehicle, which could reveal whether the driver was distracted or whether a reasonable effort was made to avoid the collision.
- Obtain phone records to determine whether the driver was talking on the phone or texting while driving when the accident occurred. It can often make a huge difference in your claim.
- Create an animation of the accident that can visually represent a judge or jury of what transpired.
The Ways We Can Secure Damages After Your Pedestrian Accident
Once we have enough evidence to prove that the driver was at fault, we can negotiate with their insurance company and evaluate the need to file a lawsuit. We can take some avenues to recover compensation, so we have other places to look if one method is insufficient.
Here are the different avenues available to recover compensation:
- Liable driver: If the driver is found liable, the driver’s insurance policy is the primary source of compensation. Insurance companies are notorious for limiting liability, so you must be careful about what you say to an insurance adjuster. We would be happy to do the talking for you.
- Your driver’s insurance policy: You may be able to cover costs over the driver’s policy limits through your insurance policy. If the driver does not have insurance, you may be able to use your uninsured driver coverage.
- Your health insurance coverage helps cover any gaps in scope by the driver’s policy and your own. In addition, we can help you negotiate with your health insurance company to cover the cost of medical treatment and long-term treatment or therapy.
- A lawsuit against the driver’s assets: If all of the above is still not sufficient to cover your expenses, we may be able to file a lawsuit on your behalf if the driver has the assets to cover the difference.
- Hold third parties accountable for negligence: Some pedestrian/car accidents result from a defective roadway, car parts, or other negligent parties. We can help determine whether it would be possible to recover damages from your injuries and damages through any of these avenues.
The compensation you may be able to recover following your accident will include the cost of your medical care, rehabilitative care, out-of-pocket expenses, pain and suffering, lost wages, and loss of consortium in the event of wrongful death.
We may also recover the cost of a memorial service and the financial contribution made to the family through a deceased loved one’s estate. Additional financial recovery might be available through the dead victim’s insurance company.
When Children Are Injured in Pedestrian/Car Accidents
Unfortunately, statistics show that most pedestrian/car accidents involve young children walking or playing with their moving vehicles. Typically, the results of these car crashes are catastrophic.
With children’s developing bodies, their ability to recover from injuries is far less than adults. For example, a severe injury sustained by a twelve-year-old can take as long as three times to heal as it does for an adult. If the child undergoes lifelong therapy or medical treatment, these expenses can be crippling.
The emotional impact is also difficult to measure if your child has been injured in a pedestrian accident. Parents are often asked to assist their children with physical tasks usually not necessary for an adult.
For example, young children do not have the strength to move themselves out of harm’s way if they are struck by a car, so it’s critical to protect them from their environment.
In most cases of a child being severely injured, the injuries will leave a lifetime disability and, consequently, a lifetime cost to care for these children. If you have been involved in a pedestrian/car accident where your child was seriously injured or killed, we would be happy to discuss pursuing a claim for damages with you.
Private Property Accidents
The most common cause of a car accident is a driver failing to stop or yield at an intersection. However, accidents can also occur on privately owned properties such as shopping malls, hotel parking lots, buildings, etc.
In these cases, the owners are responsible for exercising reasonable care in maintaining their property. If these owners fail to do so, they could be held liable for any injuries from their negligence.
If you were injured in a car crash due to the negligent maintenance of the private property, we might be able to file a claim against the property owner on your behalf.
Common Pedestrian Accident Injuries
Data shows that the most common pedestrian accident injuries can cause life-altering injuries if the victim survives. In addition, the sheer size and weight of a passenger vehicle or fully loaded commercial truck can crush bones and cause significant problems, leaving the victim with emotional anxiety and concerns about their future health problems.
Common pedestrian accident injuries include:
- Traumatic brain injuries
- Spinal cord damage
- Fractures and broken bones
- Amputations (dismemberment)
- Cuts, lacerations, and bruising
- Total or partial paralysis
- Paraplegia, quadriplegia, and tetraplegia
- Contusions and concussions
- Burns and road rash
- Wrongful death
Did you or a loved one suffer life-threatening injuries in a pedestrian/car accident? If so, you must contact an experienced personal injury attorney as soon as possible to maximize your chances of recovering damages.
A Joliet car accident lawyer from our law firm is ready to help and looks forward to providing the information necessary to make the best decisions about your case. In addition, your experienced attorney can ensure monetary recovery from the negligent driver to pay current and future medical expenses.
How a Personal Injury Attorney Can Help
There is no reason to suffer financially after an automobile collision, especially if it was not your fault. Unfortunately, in some personal injury cases, the at-fault driver or their insurance company may try to take advantage of you or deny liability altogether.
A qualified attorney from our firm can help resolve this situation quickly so you can get on with life again. We have decades of experience helping injury victims recover compensation when they suffered injuries and damages caused by others’ negligence or carelessness on Illinois roads.”
Joliet Pedestrian Accident FAQs
Our personal injury law firm understands many families have unanswered questions about dealing directly with an insurance company to receive financial compensation after being involved in an accident. A Joliet pedestrian accident lawyer has answered some questions below.
Call our law office at (888) 424-5757 (toll-free phone number) or use the contact form for additional information. Then, let us answer all the questions you have.
Our Joliet Pedestrian Accident Lawyers are Ready to Review Your Claim
Our personal injury lawyers know what it takes to ensure our injured clients recover every bit of compensation that the law will allow. For your injuries or the death of a loved one resulted from a reckless driver’s negligent actions?
Contact us at (888) 424-5757 (toll-free phone number) or use the contact form today to schedule a free case evaluation. Speak with a Joliet personal injury attorney about what happened in your case to determine if you can file a compensation claim seeking monetary recovery.
Our legal team accepts all personal injury lawsuits and wrongful death cases on a contingency fee basis. This promise ensures you pay nothing until your case is resolved through a negotiated settlement or jury award.
All confidential or sensitive information you share with our Joliet car accident lawyers remains private through an attorney-client relationship.
