The beautiful foothills of Gold Country and residents of Ione have always enjoyed walking to run errands, getting a little exercise, and sampling what the town has to offer. This family-oriented, pastoral area with its good climate makes it a perfect place to get out and enjoy nature, and the town certainly gets its fair share of visitors. Traffic accidents and serious injuries increase with heavy traffic and more pedestrians.

If a pedestrian is injured by a motorist or another entity, they may need to file a compensation claim to recover their losses. An Ione pedestrian accident lawyer can help you get the compensation you deserve and need to pay your medical expenses, lost wages, and pain and suffering.

We have been fighting for fair compensation for Ione pedestrians for years at AutoAccident.com. Aside from providing our clients compassionate and helpful support, our legal team keeps them informed about their claims’ progress. Pedestrians who suffer injuries due to someone else’s negligence are treated like family, and our pedestrian accident lawyers in Ione work hard to ease that financial burden.

Almost everyone is a pedestrian every day, at least for a while. It may be walking to the post office or market or visiting a friend in the next block. Pedestrians walk on foot or use mobility aids such as wheelchairs or canes. People walking skateboards, scooters, bicycles, or pushing strollers can also be pedestrians. Pedestrians who are injured are sometimes on foot while others walk to their cars after grocery shopping or dining in a restaurant. A bicycle rider walking their bike across the street is technically a pedestrian, so you can see the definition of a walker is much broader than you might think.

The driver of a motor vehicle is generally responsible for a pedestrian accident. However, this isn’t always the case. According to the National Safety Council, accidents involving pedestrians killed 7,668 people in 2019. Below are a few of the reasons pedestrians are injured in accidents caused by drivers of motor vehicles and government negligence:

• Drunk or drugged drivers: The motor skills and judgment of drivers who have been drinking or using drugs are impaired, as are their reaction times in an emergency. When driving at night or in bad weather, it is easy for the drunk driver to miss seeing a pedestrian.
• Accidents backing up: Many accidents are caused by motorists backing out of parking spaces or driveways without looking for pedestrians crossing behind them.
• Distracted driving: Drivers who text, talk on the phone, chat with passengers, or engage in other activities may miss seeing a pedestrian until too late.
• Red light runners: In pedestrian accidents, drivers who run stop signs or traffic signals are often to blame. This kind of collision is also caused by drivers speeding because they cannot slow down enough to avoid striking someone on foot.
• Fatigued drivers: The effects of fatigued driving have been compared to those of inebriation. Their responses may be slow, their thinking could be foggy, and they may have difficulty controlling the car or can fall asleep at the wheel.
• Government neglect: Trauma to pedestrians may be caused by government negligence when crosswalks, traffic lights, or overgrown shrubbery are not appropriately maintained. Governmental bodies can be held liable for these accidents. However, the timeline for an injured party to file a government claim is much shorter than for other personal injuries. The injured person has six months to file, after which the government entity has 45 days to respond. If the claim is rejected, the injured party has six months to file a lawsuit. They have two years to file a lawsuit if no response is received. Enlisting the assistance of an Ione pedestrian accident lawyer ensures that the paperwork will be filed before the statute of limitations runs out.

An injured pedestrian can file a claim against a motorist, a business, or a government agency that maintains a crosswalk or other area where an accident occurs that involves negligence, and an Ione pedestrian accident attorney can help:

• A claim can be made for all medical expenses incurred due to the accident. In recovering damages are ambulance fees, hospitalization costs, tests, medications, surgeries, and rehabilitation. Medical equipment such as walkers or wheelchairs, home modifications, and the cost of a caregiver can all be considered in the recovery of damages. Further recoverable costs can be added if the injury continues into the future or results in permanent disability.
• Injured parties can receive compensation for mental suffering and embarrassment due to scarring or amputation.
• If you lose wages because you are unable to work, you may be able to recover them, including bonuses or other benefits.
• As part of the settlement, the injured pedestrian’s lost earning capacity is calculated if he or she must take a lower-paying job. If they cannot work, that is also calculated until retirement.
• The spouse can claim to recover the loss of consortium, affection, and companionship due to the pedestrian accident injury.
• In addition to physical pain and suffering, injured parties often suffer emotional and psychological trauma. Sleeplessness, nightmares, and anxiety are all types of mental anguish compensation that can be recovered. That cost can be recovered when professional treatment is required, such as in post-traumatic stress disorder.

You can reduce your risk of being involved in an accident as a pedestrian by following specific steps. Below are some tips that may help:

• Whenever possible, use crosswalks with designated signals. You may want to walk the extra block to reach one if there is no designated crosswalk where you want to cross.
• Don’t jaywalk. Always obey traffic laws. Crossing the street in the middle of a block makes you less visible to motorists, who are not expecting to see you, which can lead to an accident with a pedestrian.
• As much as possible, walk on the sidewalk. In the absence of any sidewalks, stay close to the curb and face toward the oncoming traffic.
• During the day, wear bright colors to increase your visibility to pedestrians. Make yourself more visible at night by wearing light colors, carrying a flashlight, and placing reflective strips on your jacket.
• In parking lots and driveways, be aware of vehicles backing up. You may be just beginning to cross behind them but aren’t yet visible to them. Never assume they see you.
• You shouldn’t assume a driver will stop for you at a crosswalk. Be sure to wait to step off the curb once all vehicles have stopped.
• Never cross the street without looking left, right, left, as your family taught you.
• Before going out on foot, do not consume alcohol or drugs. Both pedestrians and drivers can be affected by these situations.

In the video that follows, attorney Ed Smith discusses how to choose a lawyer after being injured in an accident:

Related articles by Ione pedestrian accident lawyer Ed Smith:

• Accident Injuries Among Older Pedestrians
• Bone Fractures That Occur in a Pedestrian Accident
• Pedestrian Injury Risk Increased by Car Speed

You may be able to recover compensation if you’ve been injured by the negligent actions of another. You can contact our Ione pedestrian accident lawyers at (209) 227-1931 or (800) 404-5400 for free, friendly advice on whether you can file a claim for damages.

^{Editor’s Note: updated [cha 10.9.23] Photo attribution: Brian Merrill from Pixabay cd llo [1270]}