Answer:
What are common mistakes people make after having been involved in a pedestrian collision? In Idaho, pedestrians are hit by automobiles or other moving vehicles with great regularity. That is true everywhere. There are mistakes that people commonly make that given the opportunity, we’d like them not to make, and they’d like not to make.
Many times, following a wreck, the at-fault driver will check on the injured person. If they seem okay, they might say it isn’t necessary to call the police. They might suggest paying on the side. That is almost universally a bad idea.
If you’ve been run over by a car as a pedestrian and it’s the fault of the car, you should definitely call the police. The police can investigate. They can make determinations and find a number of facts that will matter to you later on, if it turns out that you’re injured.
Another problem that frequently exists in pedestrian versus auto or moving vehicle cases is when the injured party doesn’t call the police and doesn’t get all the information about the driver and his insurance. It’s critical that you have this information. I’ve had a number of cases where injured pedestrians have simply taken a business card from the person who ran them over. Sometimes that worked out fine because that person stepped to the plate and admitted they were involved; in other cases, a sly, young at-fault driver provided a business card that wasn’t him at all. That left our injured pedestrian scrambling to find the right person and the at-fault person. It’s never a good idea not to get a picture if you can of the person who ran you over, the vehicle they’re in, the vehicle’s license plate, a picture of their driver’s license, a picture of their proof of insurance, and a picture of their vehicle registration. These are all things the police will generally do if you call the police.
Another mistake people make is they leave an accident scene feeling like they’re okay. A few hours later, they almost universally find that being struck by a 6,000-pound vehicle was hard on their body. It’s very important if you’ve been injured— even if those injuries show up later in the day, the next day, the next week— that you get checked out by your healthcare provider as soon as possible. The lawyers at Hepworth Holzer can help you figure out how to get those bills paid.
Another problem people make is they have the vehicle information from the at-fault driver, but they make the mistake of contacting his insurance. Those insurance adjusters that answer the phone are in the business of protecting people. Unfortunately, they are not in the business of protecting you, the pedestrian; they’re in the business of protecting the knucklehead that ran you over. They’re very adept at getting information from you that we would not allow you to give them. Before speaking with the bad guy’s insurance company, it’s a good idea to check in with your lawyers at Hepworth Holzer or somewhere else.
If you decide to hire a lawyer for your pedestrian wreck, we would encourage you to do your research. Pedestrian wrecks are difficult cases. They take experienced injury trial lawyers, lawyers who the insurance companies know and fear. Please check with us. We can help.
