Every year in the San Antonio area and throughout the State thousands of pedestrians are injured or killed in motor vehicle accidents. In fact, over the past few years in North Texas alone, hundreds of pedestrians have been seriously injured or killed as a result of being struck by a motor vehicle. Pedestrian knock down accidents are usually the fault of the drivers of motor vehicles. Among the more common causes are drivers who speed, run traffic signals or fail to yield the right of way to pedestrians, particularly those within a crosswalk when making a turn. More recently, inattentive or distracted driving has been identified as the most common cause of motor vehicle accidents in the San Antonio area. This is often seen with cell phone use and texting or simply a driver not paying attention. Laws exist in Texas whose goal is to protect pedestrians from being the victims of motor vehicle accidents. Often, the key to the successful resolution of these claims is having an attorney familiar with the various sections of the Texas State Vehicle and Traffic Laws. It is imperative that an attorney be familiar with the insurance laws applicable to a given accident to insure that the victim receives the fullest recovery allowable under the law. There are also laws that proscribe the time limits within which a person injured in an automobile accident must take certain steps to protect their legal rights or forever be prevented from proper and adequate compensation. As mentioned previously, pedestrian accidents often result in serious injuries. In many accidents, a pedestrian sustains what is commonly known as a “bumper fracture.” This occurs when a car bumper hits the pedestrian's pelvis and legs shattering his or her bones. Another common injury involving pedestrians occurs when a pedestrian is "scooped" off the ground by the front of a car and smashed onto the hood and the windshield causing traumatic brain injury. Further compounding this injury is the natural reaction of the driver to step on the brake. This results in the pedestrian being thrown to the ground, causing further injury to the brain as well as spinal and pelvic injuries. The following are but a few examples of pedestrian accidents that occurred in the San Antonio area in 2015: Lewisville, Texas – On September 9, 2015 two elementary school-aged kids, a boy and a girl were struck by a car. It happened in the 800 block of S. Valley Parkway, outside the Sun Valley Aquatic Center. Both children are conscious. The girl was airlifted to the hospital. The boy was taken by ambulance. Each were in serious condition but talking to first responders and expected to recover. San Antonio, Texas – On April 5, 2015 a 20-year-old Southlake college student was struck and killed by a hit-and-run driver in San Antonio. The accident happened near the DART rail station in the 5500 block of Mockingbird Lane, near North Central Expressway. Paul Robert Miltenberger, a sophomore at the University of Missouri, was not in a designated cross-walk area, according to police, when he was hit and killed on Mockingbird Lane. San Antonio police are looking for the driver of the black Dodge Charger who hit Miltenberger and never stopped to render aid. San Antonio, Texas – On January 23, 2015 a shuttle bus driver crashed into two hospital employees walking to work Friday Morning. Police say 61-year-old Randal Dygert, a registered nurse, died from his injuries. Dygert and a female employee at Parkland Hospital were crossing Harry Hines at Medical District around 7 am when they were hit. Police say the shuttle bus, operated by the private company ‘Buses By Bill’, was in route to drop a patient off when the vehicle struck the pedestrians. Authorities say the bus dragged the man about 50 yards before coming to a stop. Hospital workers say the intersection can be very dangerous, “ like New York down here”. The personal injury attorneys at the Law Firm of Aaron A. Herbert, including Board Certified Personal Injury Attorney Aaron Herbert, have helped thousands of individuals and families suffering serious injuries or death as a result of a pedestrian being struck by a car, truck, bus or other motor vehicle. We retain experts such as accountants, financial analysts and economists because every personal injury case has its own set of associated costs, including pain and suffering, lost wages, the cost of care and many other monetary costs. In order to accurately assess what these costs will be for the remainder of a victim's life, we use financial professionals to derive fair resolutions for injury victims. Additionally where necessary we retain the best accident reconstruction engineers in the field. It is also often necessary to retain a biomechanical engineer where the cause of the injury is challenged.
Types of Injuries in accidents involving pedestrians
Pedestrians have no protection from injury in a collision with a motor vehicle, and the injuries they suffer are often serious, catastrophic or even fatal. Common injuries include:- Traumatic brain injury (TBI).
- Spinal cord injury.
- Limb loss and traumatic amputation.
- Internal injuries.
- Disfigurement.
- Fractures, such as a broken leg, arm, rib or pelvis.
- Neck and back injuries.
- Sprained or torn ligaments.
- Contusions, lacerations and abrasions.