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Lever & Ecker, PLLC October 30, 2015 Car Accidents
Car accidents in New York State unfortunately happen more often than they should. More so, car accidents that involve pedestrians are also far too common and usually result in much more tragic outcomes and serious injuries.
A study performed by Bellevue Hospital in New York City by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration with a grant from the New York State Governor’s Traffic Safety Committee from 2008-2011 collected data from pedestrian accidents in New York City and surrounding boroughs. The study showed that pedestrians sustained more severe injuries than bicyclists in general and 1.4% of patients died as a result of their injuries. Young walking adults were the group most frequently injured by motor vehicles and 49.8% of the pedestrians struck were struck by private vehicles. 24.8% of the pedestrians studied were struck by taxis and at the time of their injury, 77% of pedestrians were crossing the street.
The New York Department of Motor Vehicles listed accidents involving a pedestrian and a vehicle in their annual report. In 2014, 14,952 reported crashes involved a pedestrian and a vehicle. Out of those crashes, 269 were fatal and 14,906 pedestrians were injured.
10,846 of these crashes were caused by some kind of human factor such as alcohol involvement (387), road rage or aggressive driving (257), the driver being distracted (3,592), cell phone usage (47), speeding (417), or texting (8). 387 of the reported crashes were caused by a vehicular factor such as defective brakes (26) or a steering failure (6), and 1,244 of the crashes reported were caused by an environmental factor such as a sun glare (330) or slippery pavement (326). The full 2014 report from the New York DMV can be found here.
If you were a pedestrian injured in a car accident, you may be facing piles of medical bills and unsure where to turn
next. The time after an accident can be overwhelming, but there are options available to you. If you were injured by a vehicle as a pedestrian in New York State, you may be able to hold the driver legally responsible for your injuries. If the accident you were involved in was caused by the negligence of the driver of the vehicle, they deserve to be held responsible for their actions. We’ve outlined the steps one should take after an accident below.
It is important to try to stay calm after an accident. You are probably shaken up and you may be injured, but by trying to stay as calm as possible, you will best be able to communicate your injuries and the situation to those who are there to help you.
Write down every detail that happened immediately before, during, and after the accident. If you have a camera on your phone, take pictures of the accident scene. If there were any witnesses to the accident, gather their names and contact information. This information will all be very important, if not crucial, if you choose to file a personal injury case in the future. Other types of documentation come in the form of medical bills, doctor’s reports, and bills from repairs to any property damage that you incurred in the accident.
Once you decide to file a personal injury case, contact an experienced personal injury immediately. Time is often of the essence in a personal injury case and every day counts. The personal injury lawyers at Lever & Ecker, PLLC have years of experience handling a wide variety of personal injury cases in different practice areas. A full list of our practice areas can be found here.
The personal injury lawyers at Lever & Ecker, PLLC work hard on behalf of our clients to achieve the best possible results for those injured by a driver’s negligence. Do not hesitate to contact us for a free consultation and case evaluation today.
