Were you or a family member injured in a pedestrian accident in Palm Harbor, FL? If you were, you may be entitled to compensation for medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering, and more. An experienced Palm Harbor pedestrian accident lawyer at Roman Austin Personal Injury Lawyers can help you fight to hold the at-fault parties responsible for your damages.
Our attorneys have over 50 years of combined experience helping injured clients like you. Since we founded our law firm in 1996, we’ve helped accident victims and their families recover over $100 million in settlements and verdicts.
You only have a limited amount of time to take legal action if you were injured. Contact our law offices in Palm Harbor, Florida at (727) 787-2500 to schedule your free consultation today.
How Roman Austin Personal Injury Lawyers Can Help After a Pedestrian Accident in Palm Harbor
Pedestrian accidents almost always leave the pedestrian with serious injuries. You shouldn’t have to worry about fighting with insurance companies if you were hit by a careless driver. You deserve fair compensation, and our Palm Harbor personal injury lawyers know how to help you get every dollar you deserve.
Founding Attorney Mark Roman is Board Certified in Civil Trial Law. Our lawyers have been recognized as Super Lawyers and as Tampa Bay’s Top Trial Lawyers. We’ve also earned a perfect 10 Avvo rating.
When you hire our legal team, you can expect us to:
- Conduct a full investigation into your accident
- Gather evidence to prove your case
- Work with top experts to establish causation and prove your case value
- Protect you if you’re blamed for contributing to the cause of the accident
- Handle all insurance negotiations so you can focus on recovering
- Protect your interests in court if the insurance company won’t offer a fair deal
Our Palm Harbor personal injury attorneys are here to put decades of experience to work for you. If you have questions about your legal rights after a pedestrian accident, give us a call for a free initial consultation today.
How Common Are Pedestrian Accidents in Palm Harbor?
Walking down the street in Florida can be dangerous. In fact, it can even be deadly–and pedestrian accident fatalities are on the rise across the nation and in the Sunshine State. According to preliminary data for 2021, 7,485 pedestrians were killed in car accidents across the United States.
Unfortunately, Florida is one of the most dangerous states in the U.S. for pedestrians. A recent Governor’s Highway Safety Association report found that 899 pedestrians were killed in the state of Florida in 2021.
By comparison to prior years, that’s a shocking number. 716 pedestrians were killed in 2020, and another 745 pedestrians died in traffic accidents in 2019.
According to data collected by the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, 639 pedestrians were killed in the first eleven months of 2022. 33 of those fatal pedestrian accidents occurred in Pinellas County.
What is My Palm Harbor Pedestrian Accident Case Worth?
The value of your personal injury claim depends on the facts and circumstances of your accident. The amount of your settlement typically depends heavily on the severity of your injuries. However, before taking any settlement offer, it’s important to evaluate all of the facts.
The following factors often influence the value of a personal injury case:
- The cost of your medical treatment
- Your out-of-pocket expenses and anticipated future expenses
- The value of your lost wages
- The impact of the injury on your quality of life in general
- How the injury harms your ability to work and earn a living
- Your physical and emotional suffering
There are also factors that the insurance companies will try to use to decrease your case value. They might blame you for contributing to the accident or claim you failed to mitigate damages. They might even claim that your injuries weren’t really caused by the crash.
Our pedestrian accident lawyers in Palm Harbor can help you understand how much your case is worth before you accept a settlement.
What Types of Damages Are Available To Pedestrian Accident Victims in Palm Harbor, FL?
At Roman Austin Personal Injury Lawyers, our team will fight to recover compensation for all of the damages you’ve sustained. Under Florida law, victims are entitled to seek compensation for economic damages and non-economic damages.
What Types of Economic Damages Are Available?
Your economic damages are your financial costs. The types of economic damages will depend on the nature of your specific losses.
For example, you may be entitled to compensation for:
- Past and future medical expenses
- Lost wages
- Reduced earning potential
- Physical therapy
- Rehabilitation
- Property damage
It’s important to keep detailed records during your recovery. Receipts and records can be used to prove the amount of your financial losses.
What Types of Non-Economic Damages Are Available?
Non-economic damages can be more difficult to prove. That doesn’t make them less important. In fact, a significant amount of your settlement may compensate for non-economic losses if you were seriously hurt.
Examples of common non-economic damages include:
- Pain and suffering
- Emotional distress
- Diminished quality of life
- Anxiety
- Depression
- PTSD
- Physical disfigurement and scarring
- Loss of consortium
Our experienced attorneys will work closely with your family, your doctors, and other specialists who can help assess the value of these hard-to-value losses.
Can I Recover Damages If I’m Being Blamed for a Pedestrian Accident in Florida?
If your portion of allocated blame is 50% or less, then yes. However, under the modified comparative fault laws in Florida, your compensation will be reduced to account for your share of fault. For example, if you’re found to be 50% at-fault for the accident, your settlement will be cut in half. If you’re found to be 51% or more at fault, you will not receive a settlement or award.
Pedestrians are often blamed for traffic accidents. The insurance company may claim that you crossed the street outside of the crosswalk or failed to use the sidewalk. Our experienced lawyers can fight to minimize the impact of any allegations that you caused the accident.
We’ll Fight To Recover Compensation for All of Your Pedestrian Accident Injuries
Injuries sustained by pedestrians in motor vehicle accidents have the potential to be devastating. When you’re hit by a car, the impact of that collision itself can cause life-altering injuries. If you hit the pavement again, the body often suffers additional damage.
At Roman Austin Personal Injury Lawyers, we often represent injured pedestrians who have suffered:
- Broken bones
- Soft tissue damage
- Traumatic brain injuries
- Spinal cord injuries
- Head and neck injuries
- Concussions
- Back injuries
- Internal organ damage
- Crushing injuries
- Burns
- Road rash
- Amputations
- Paralysis
- Catastrophic injuries
- Wrongful death of a loved one
It’s never too early to explore your legal options if you were injured in an auto accident. We’re always available to discuss your case, so contact an experienced Palm Harbor pedestrian accident attorney today.
What Causes Most Pedestrian Accidents in Palm Harbor, Florida?
Many different factors contribute to the cause of pedestrian accidents. However, most of these accidents are caused by driver error.
Some of the most common causes of pedestrian accidents include:
- Distracted driving
- Failure to yield the right-of-way to pedestrians in crosswalks and at intersections
- Lack of dedicated infrastructure, including sidewalks and traffic signals
- Speeding
- Aggressive driving
- Dangerous turns
- Driving too close to the shoulder
- Running a red light or stop sign
- Drunk driving
- Driving under the influence of drugs
- Driver fatigue
- Malfunctioning traffic signals
- Poor lighting and bad visibility
Many different factors can combine to cause an accident. That means that more than one person may be responsible for your accident. Our Palm Harbor pedestrian accident lawyers will work to determine every factor that played a role.
How Do I Prove Negligence After a Pedestrian Accident in Florida?
Most of the time, injured parties have to prove that someone else’s negligence caused their accident.
The elements of a successful negligence claim are:
- The responsible party owed you a legal duty of care
- They made some kind of mistake and breached the duty of care
- The breach was the direct and proximate cause of the accident
- You were injured and suffered damages in the crash
The types of evidence that we’ll gather to prove negligence can vary from case to case. Eyewitness statements, video footage, police reports, and even data from the crash scene can all be valuable.
How Long Do I Have To File a Lawsuit After a Pedestrian Accident in Florida?
The statute of limitations in Florida typically gives pedestrian accident victims two years to file a personal injury lawsuit. If you don’t file your lawsuit within two years of the accident, you lose your right to sue for damages entirely.
Florida law used to give you four years to file a personal injury lawsuit, but it was updated on March 24, 2023. Therefore, if your Palm Harbor pedestrian accident happened after that date, you must file a lawsuit within two years of the incident.
Contact a Palm Harbor Pedestrian Accident Lawyer for a Free Consultation
If you or a family member were injured while walking around Palm Harbor, you may be entitled to significant compensation. However, it can be tough to get fair compensation while you’re recovering in a hospital bed.
An experienced Palm Harbor pedestrian accident lawyer at Roman Austin Personal Injury Lawyers can handle your case while you rest and recover. Just call for your free case evaluation today.
