Cumberland, MD Pedestrian Accident Lawyer

No one expects to suffer injuries when they go for a walk in Cumberland. Unfortunately, though, drivers do not pay nearly enough attention to pedestrians, causing devastating injuries through their negligence.

Our attorneys are here to help you hold the person who injured you responsible in a lawsuit. Pedestrian accidents often prove to be complicated cases. However, you can start preparing for your case before your lawsuit is filed. Document your crash site if you can, and definitely get medical treatment immediately after. Our attorneys can use this evidence to show how the defendant was liable and the damages to be compensated. We will also obtain other pieces of evidence, so it is okay if you do not have any with you. Starting your case as soon as possible is how we can get the most information to use against claims that you were partially at fault for the accident.

Call Rice, Murtha & Psoras at (410) 694-7291 for a free assessment of your case with our pedestrian accident lawyers.

What to Do if You Are Injured in a Pedestrian Accident in Cumberland, MD

Pedestrian accidents are some of the worst kind in Cumberland. Pedestrians can be severely injured even when struck by vehicles going slowly. These cases tend to also be trickier than others because the issue of liability often comes down to your word versus the driver. Worst case, the driver flees.

Fortunately, our pedestrian accident attorneys know how to handle these difficult cases and can help you get the compensation you deserve. Before you file your lawsuit, there are a few things you can do to strengthen your case from the outset. The following will help you be prepared for what to do in the event a negligent driver hits you in Cumberland:

Call 911

The first thing to do after being injured by a negligent driver is to contact 911. Dispatchers will usually send emergency medical services and law enforcement. Getting medical treatment at the scene is a good way to begin prepping your claim since we will be able to use the EMS records in your claim.

You should also speak to the police. The police will investigate your accident and file an accident report later. This report is usually necessary to file an insurance claim, but it is much more important as a source of other evidence. Your police report will contain the names and contact information of the parties involved, including the driver who hit you and any witnesses who saw the accident. Our lawyers can help you get a copy of the police report if you cannot get one on the scene. We will also get your EMS records, so there is no need to have those with you when you first meet our team.

Document the Accident

If your injuries are not too severe, you can gather a great deal of evidence while still on the scene. The best way to do this is by taking pictures with your phone. Start by photographing your injuries. By having photos of your injuries while fresh, their severity will be preserved for later when your claim is actually litigated.

Next, take pictures of the car that hit you and where it finally came to rest. Where the car stopped and where the damage is on it can tell our lawyers a lot. For instance, if the car is in the middle of a crosswalk with a large dent in the hood, the driver’s liability will be easier to argue.

Do not be afraid to take as many pictures as necessary. Take photos of any nearby traffic lights, crosswalk signs, sidewalks, debris, intersections, and anything else you notice.

To ensure every base is covered, though, our lawyers will also investigate the scene to find anything that might have been overlooked. Depending on where your accident occurred, we might find surveillance footage from a business’s security, a home’s doorbell camera, or a traffic camera. If there were nearby businesses, we can see if any employees witnessed your accident but whose names were not in the police report.

If this seems like a detailed process, that is because it is. Thus, you will want to get your case started as quickly as possible. Md. Code, Cts. & Jud. Proc. Art., § 5-101 gives injured pedestrians three years from the date they are injured to file a lawsuit. This is not much time in a pedestrian accident case, so get in touch with our team as soon as you are able.

Get Medical Treatment

The most important step you can take for your lawsuit is getting the medical treatment you need. Even if you have minor injuries, you should still go to the emergency room. Not only will getting further medical care continue documenting your injuries for your case, but you will also get the testing you need to discover deeper, internal injuries of which you might not be aware. Moreover, not going to the emergency room or going to an urgent care center just a day later can give the other side room to fight your claim.

Getting examined at the emergency room is much preferable to having it done by urgent care. At the ER, you can get extensive testing that will be immensely helpful in proving your damages later. This includes CT scans for serious internal head injuries and MRIs to determine the extent of broken bones and other internal injuries.

Your examining physician at the ER should give you instructions on how to get further medical care. Be sure to follow these instructions. If you do not get the continued treatment recommended or miss even one or two appointments, you will have trouble proving the damages you suffered.

Because pedestrian accidents are often serious, you might need to visit several types of doctors and specialists, including neurologists and physical therapists. This can make organizing your medical records an incredible challenge. Fortunately, our attorneys will gather all your medical records while you recover.

What if the Driver Claims I Am Partially Responsible for My Cumberland, MD Pedestrian Accident?

What makes pedestrian cases particularly challenging is that the defendant can raise “contributory negligence” as a defense. Contributory negligence is a harsh rule that heavily disfavors injury victims and is not used by most jurisdictions in the country. Under this rule, pedestrian accident victims cannot recover any compensation if they are found to have contributed to their accident in any way. Thus, if you were hit in the middle of the road, far from a crosswalk, fighting your case will be much more challenging.

However, our team can circumvent this defense if we show that the defendant actually had the “last clear chance” to avoid the accident after you were contributorily negligent.