Philadelphia Pedestrian Accident Lawyer

Philadelphia is a busy urban mecca filled with active residents and enthusiastic visitors to one of the nation’s most historic cities. Many residents and tourists take advantage of the city’s miles of sidewalks to walk to work, school, and daily activities as well as to enjoy taking in the many historic and cultural sights Philadelphia has to offer. 

While Philadelphia is proud of its many important “firsts,” the fact that it also leads the nation in pedestrian accidents is not a source of pride for Philly leaders. Sadly, Philadelphia’s number of annual pedestrian fatalities per resident is higher than similarly sized cities, with an alarming average of 35 pedestrian fatalities per year—twice as many as New York City. A pedestrian death or injury occurs about every six hours in Philidelphia.

If you or a loved one suffered injuries in a pedestrian accident in Philidelphia, call our personal injury attorneys in Philadelphia to learn about your right to full and fair compensation.

Why Choose Grungo Law for Your Pedestrian Accident Attorney in Philadelphia?

The attorneys at Grungo Law understand the devastating toll a serious pedestrian accident has on the victim’s life, including the adverse impacts on the daily lives, routines, and finances of their family. These repercussions of a pedestrian vs. vehicle accident in Philidelphia are the “damages” in a pedestrian accident personal injury claim. At Grungo Law, we can help you recover compensation for those damages through the following:

• A free case consultation and contingency-based payment so you pay nothing until after we recover your compensation
• Open, honest communication so you’re never in the dark about the progress of your case and are included in all decision-making
• An individualized strategy developed for the unique circumstances of your case by an attorney who takes the time to get to know you and witness the impact of your accident
• Lead attorneys who are passionate about injury victim advocacy, including trial attorney, Richard Grungo Jr., ESQ, one of only 2.5% of attorneys in New Jersey who hold a certification by New Jersey’s Supreme Court as a Civil Trial Attorney

At Grungo Law, we have a history of obtaining millions of dollars in settlements and court awards for our injured clients, including a recent $3.1 million settlement in a negligent road design case for an injured client.

Common Causes of Pedestrian Accidents In Philadelphia

Pedestrian accident data in Philidelphia is concerning, with high numbers of pedestrian accidents in busy intersections such as Roosevelt Boulevard, where an alarming 25% of the city’s intersection-related pedestrian accidents occur. Common causes of pedestrian accidents in Philadelphia include the following:

• Speeding drivers
• Drivers making left or right turns in intersections (causing nearly half of all pedestrian injury crashes in Philidelphia)
• Impaired drivers
• Distracted drivers
• Fatigued drivers
• Drivers who fail to yield the right of way to a pedestrian in a crosswalk

Poor visibility, confusing intersection designs, and inadequate signage also contribute to pedestrian accidents in Philidelphia.

Injuries In Philidelphia Pedestrian Accidents

An average car weighs around 4,000 pounds and loaded commercial trucks can weigh up to 80,000 pounds. When a moving vehicle strikes a vulnerable pedestrian, the exposed pedestrian faces an extreme risk of catastrophic or fatal injury. Common injuries in pedestrian accidents include the following:

• Traumatic brain injuries
• Fractures, including broken limbs, hips, pelvis, ribs, and vertebrae
• Neck injuries
• Back injuries
• Internal organ injuries/internal bleeding/crush injuries
• Traumatic limb loss
• Facial/dental trauma
• Spinal cord injuries
• Lacerations and contusions
• Road rash (severe abrasions)
• Soft-tissue injuries like sprains and torn ligaments

Pedestrian accidents range from fully recoverable injuries like sprains, cuts, and bruises, to life-altering catastrophic injuries or wrongful death.

What Can I Recover In a Philadelphia Pedestrian Accident Claim?

Even mild injuries quickly become expensive, but serious or catastrophic injuries are economically devastating as well as physically painful and debilitating. Common damages recovered in successful pedestrian accident claims in Philidelphia include:

• Past and future medical expenses
• Past and future income loss
• Diminished earning capacity
• Compensation for pain and suffering
• Compensation for other non-economic damages like loss of limb, disfigurement, loss of vision or hearing, diminished quality of life, and PTSD

If a loved one died in a pedestrian accident, close family members could recover compensation in a wrongful death claim against an at-fault driver.

Proving Liability In a Pedestrian Accident Claim

Pedestrians have a responsibility to follow traffic laws, avoid darting out in front of traffic, and minimize distractions while walking; however, negligent drivers are the most common cause of serious pedestrian accidents. In these cases, proving liability in a pedestrian accident case includes showing the following legal points:

• The driver owed a duty of care to the injury victim: all motorists must take reasonable actions to prevent causing injury to others on the road, including pedestrians
• They breached this duty through negligent or reckless actions
• The negligent breach of duty directly caused the pedestrian’s injuries
• The injury victim suffered significant economic and non-economic damages from their injury

Under Pennsylvania’s modified comparative negligence accident system, an injury victim may recover compensation from the at-fault party’s insurance as long as they are less than 51% at fault. The state describes this system under Pennsylvania § 7102.0, which states:

“In all actions brought to recover damages for negligence resulting in death or injury to person or property, the fact that the plaintiff may have been guilty of contributory negligence shall not bar a recovery by the plaintiff or his legal representative where such negligence was not greater than the causal negligence of the defendant or defendants against whom recovery is sought, but any damages sustained by the plaintiff shall be diminished in proportion to the amount of negligence attributed to the plaintiff.”

Sadly, insurance companies sometimes protect their profits at the injury victim’s expense by assigning an undue percentage of fault to the injury victim. For example, if a pedestrian’s medical expenses, income loss, and pain and suffering amount to $100,000 in a claim but the insurance adjuster assigns 25% of fault to the pedestrian they can reduce the compensation to $75,000.

Call the Philadelphia Pedestrian Accident Lawyers at Grungo Law

Because insurance companies are private businesses that operate for profit, it’s not uncommon for them to dispute or deny claims even against seriously injured pedestrians who suffered from an impact with a careless driver. Call the experienced Philadelphia pedestrian attorneys at Grungo Law so we can take prompt action defending your right to the maximum compensation available in your claim.