Did a car hit you or a family member when you were crossing the street or walking along the road? Unfortunately, you are not alone. Every year, thousands of pedestrians in Texas, New Mexico and across the country suffer serious injuries or die in collisions with motor vehicles. In most of these pedestrian accidents, careless or reckless drivers are to blame. If you believe that a driver’s negligence caused your accident, you owe it to yourself to get legal help as soon as possible.
With more than 150 years of combined legal experience, including representing numerous injured pedestrians and their families, The Sloan Firm can provide the skilled and compassionate legal assistance you need for your case.
We see the person behind the injury. The attorneys of The Sloan Firm care about more than a case result – we care about you and your future. When you work with our Longview pedestrian accident attorneys, you can count on us to:
- Pursue full compensation for your injuries and losses
- Go the extra step to help you get your life back on track.
To learn more about how our pedestrian accident attorneys can help you, contact us today at our law offices in Longview, Houston or Santa Fe and receive a free consultation about your case. We will charge you nothing unless we obtain a financial recovery for the injuries and other damages you have suffered.
Our Experience Makes a Difference in Pedestrian Accident Injury Cases
The personal injury lawyers of The Sloan Firm take the time to listen to our clients and learn what is important to them. Our experience has taught us that our clients’ interests should always be our top priority. What matters to you, matters to us. We will tailor our representation to meet your goals and needs.
Our experience has also taught us that different types of accidents involve different issues. We can readily identify those issues and use our insight to our clients’ advantage.
For instance, when a case involves a collision between a car and a pedestrian, we know that a key question will be who had the right of way. The motorist typically will insist that he or she had the right of way and try to blame the accident on the pedestrian. For instance, the driver may argue that the pedestrian illegally entered the crosswalk or stepped out into the road. However, our pedestrian accident attorneys know that, in most cases, the opposite is true: The car driver is the one who is at fault.
For example, under Texas law, a car driver must yield the right of way when the pedestrian:
- Uses a sidewalk
- Uses a marked crosswalk and is on the half of the roadway in which the vehicle is traveling or is approaching so closely from the opposite half of the road as to be in danger
- Crosses at an intersection when a “walk” signal is flashing or when there is a green signal for parallel traffic
- Approaches on a sidewalk as the car is pulling out from a driveway, parking lot, alley, side street or private road
- Is a child who is getting on or off a school bus (drivers must actually stop when the bus flashes red lights or displays a stop sign).
Additionally, Texas law requires drivers to:
- Exercise due care to avoid colliding with a pedestrian on a roadway
- Give a warning by sounding their horn when necessary
- Use proper precaution when they see a child or an “obviously confused or incapacitated person” on a roadway.
If a car driver illegally failed to yield the right of way to you in a crosswalk or otherwise failed to exercise reasonable care, and you suffered injuries as a result, the attorneys of The Sloan Firm will use that information to seek the compensation you deserve in your injury claim. If the evidence shows that you had the right of way when you were injured in a crosswalk, our law firm will aggressively fight any attempts by the motor vehicle driver to blame you.
Why Did Your Pedestrian Accident Happen?
When you meet with a personal injury lawyer from our firm at your free consultation, the lawyer will listen closely to what you recall about the accident. The Sloan Firm will then get to work right away on conducting a thorough investigation of your pedestrian accident.
When our attorneys investigate your case, we will gather and analyze evidence that demonstrates why your accident happened and who was at fault for your injuries. This evidence may include accident scene photos, eyewitness statements, cell phone records, toxicology test results and even footage from red light or surveillance cameras.
Our lawyers also will consult with accident reconstruction experts. These experts can bring all of the evidence from your accident case together and provide a clear picture of how your accident and injuries occurred. These experts may also prepare a report or testify on your behalf at trial.
Additionally, our lawyers often use experts’ conclusions to create compelling exhibits, including computer animation exhibits. We know how a professionally prepared exhibit can have a powerful impact on insurance companies and juries.
The most common causes of pedestrian accidents that our law firm’s investigations tend to reveal are driver-related. Drivers cause accidents when they:
- Fail to keep a proper lookout
- Run red lights or ignore stop signs
- Speed and drive aggressively
- Drive while impaired by alcohol or drugs
- Distracted Driving (talking on a cell phone or texting while driving)
- Drive while overly fatigued.
If a car driver caused your injuries by engaging in any of these negligent acts, our attorneys will prepare a strong case on your behalf, demand a full and fair pedestrian accident settlement from the driver’s insurance company and, if necessary, present a compelling case at trial.
Do I Need a Personal Injury Attorney After a Pedestrian Accident?
At The Sloan Firm, we know how pedestrian accidents can cause severe injuries, including traumatic brain injury, back and spine damage, fractures, burns, scarring and disfigurement. A person who suffers these life-changing injuries in a pedestrian accident often may face expensive medical bills and be unable to return to work for a long period of time – if at all.
When our pedestrian accident attorneys take on your injury claim, we will seek full compensation for you, including:
- Past and future medical expenses
- Lost income and diminished future earning capacity
- Pain and suffering
- Emotional distress
- Loss of enjoyment
- Loss of consortium
- Wrongful death damages (if a loved one died due to a driver’s negligence).
To determine the compensation you deserve in a personal injury or wrongful death claim, our Longview pedestrian accident lawyers will review your medical records, consult with experts and focus on how your injuries have impacted your life. We will explore all potential sources of compensation, including:
- The at-fault driver’s liability insurance
- Your own uninsured/underinsured motorist (UM/UIM) coverage
- Any other insurance coverage available to you such as medical payments (medpay) or personal injury protection (PIP).
Many pedestrians in Texas and New Mexico suffer injuries in hit-and-run accidents. If authorities cannot identify the negligent driver who hit you or your loved one, our firm can turn to your uninsured motorist (UM) coverage. Keep in mind: Although you may have paid for this insurance, your insurance company may balk at paying your injury claim. However, we will fight for you and demand all compensation you are due.
Depending on the facts of your accident case, The Sloan Firm may also pursue third-party claims on your behalf against at-fault parties such as:
- The driver’s employer
- A store, bar or restaurant that served alcohol to the driver who hit you
- A social host who provided alcohol to a minor who, in turn, struck you.
In short: We won’t stop until we have done everything we can to pursue the maximum amount of damages for you in your personal injury or wrongful death case. If you or a loved one were hit by a car while walking, we believe that you deserve to have a personal injury lawyer at your side that will give your case that kind of exhaustive effort. You can count on the attorneys of The Sloan Firm to do everything it takes to pursue a result that fully addresses the harm you suffered.
Get Help Today from Our Longview Pedestrian Accident Lawyers
You have a limited period of time to file a lawsuit after you are hit by a negligent car driver while walking. The statute of limitations for personal injury claims in Texas is two years from the date of the accident, while in New Mexico, it is three years. Due to these time limits, you should get in touch with The Sloan Firm as soon as you are ready to take action.
Our lawyers represent pedestrian injury victims on a contingency fee basis. So, you will pay no upfront costs or legal fees unless we obtain a settlement or judgment for you. We don’t want concerns about paying for a personal injury attorney to stop you from getting the legal help you need.
What matters to you, matters to us. In other words, we will always be focused on your goals as we move forward in your accident case. We will consult with you at every stage and keep you fully updated about the progress we are making.
Contact us today to schedule a free consultation through our offices in Longview, Houston and Santa Fe. We are ready to give you the professional and highly personalized legal representation you deserve.