Cases where a pedestrian is hit by a car are more complex than many victims realize. Automobile insurance companies often use North Carolina’s harsh contributory negligence law to deny good claims. The rule can be a complete bar to any financial recovery. The insurance adjuster will say something along the lines of: “Yes, our driver was negligent for hitting you with their car, and we’re sorry about that, but you were also negligent for not seeing him before crossing the street. We think a jury will find you contributorily negligent, so we cannot justify paying you anything”. These insincere denials are based on one thing – the insurance company hopes you will walk away. Don’t. Let the North Carolina attorneys of Maginnis Law help you fight back against unfair insurance company denials of pedestrian injury cases, especially those resulting in wrongful death.
Pedestrian Right-of-Way
The truth is that most pedestrian collision claims are the driver’s fault. Pedestrians usually have the right-of-way in North Carolina if they cross the road in a marked crosswalk or within an unmarked crosswalk at an intersection. See N.C. Gen. Stat. § 20-174(a). If an intersection has no marked crosswalks, the “unmarked crosswalks” are where the marks on the road would go. As long as a pedestrian is crossing in a marked or unmarked crosswalk, most wrecks will be solely the fault of the driver. These accidents could potentially result in pedestrian injury or even wrongful death.
Contributory Negligence
Of course, not all situations where a pedestrian is hit by a car happen in a marked or unmarked crosswalk. Even in these cases, the fault is often the driver’s. The truth is that more and more drivers are distracted in their vehicles. Drivers frequently do not pay attention to the road. Maginnis Law has successfully represented plaintiffs not crossing in a marked or unmarked crosswalk. Even though the plaintiff in these cases may be “contributorily negligent,” there is an exception to that rule, which is crucial in pedestrian injury and wrongful death cases.
“Last clear chance” and Liability
The “last clear chance” exception provides that even if the plaintiff placed him or herself in danger, they can still be held liable if the driver should have had time to stop but did not do so. Recently, we represented a victim crossing a side street in rural North Carolina. She was not in a marked or unmarked crosswalk. The defendant came speeding around a corner, hit her violently with his vehicle, and then fled the scene. The insurance company blamed the wreck on our client. Even though the plaintiff was possibly negligent for crossing the street other than in an unmarked crosswalk, the defendant still had the “last clear chance” to avoid the wreck if he had acted reasonably and safely. Ultimately, we obtained the payment of all medical expenses, lost wages, and compensation for her physical pain and mental suffering resulting from the wrongful death of her relative.
We Can Help.
If a negligent driver kills or injures your loved one, the attorneys at Maginnis Howard can help. Our firm has extensive experience litigating complex wrongful death claims, including pedestrian injury claims. Attorney Shawn Howard has helped multiple clients hit while crossing the road recover fair compensation for their injuries, including in cases where the insurance company denied liability or argued that it was the pedestrian’s fault. Maginnis Howard offers free consultations to all prospective pedestrian injury clients. If we can help you with your case, we will agree to do so on a contingency fee basis, meaning that you owe no attorneys’ fees or court costs unless we recover money damages for you.
We represent clients across the Carolinas in Raleigh, Fayetteville, and Charlotte. You can visit our contact page to send a confidential case inquiry and set up a free consultation.
