Spinal Cord Injuries in a Pedestrian Accident: Your Options to Recover Damages

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While Seattle has made efforts to improve pedestrian safety and encourage more walking around the city through its Pedestrian Program, pedestrian accidents are still a reality for some. It is commonsense that pedestrians are vulnerable to the large cars and trucks with which they share the road.

When a motor vehicle strikes a pedestrian, serious injury or death are very realistic consequences. Spinal cord injuries are one of the many possible disabling injuries pedestrians might experience when hit by a vehicle.

If you sustained a spinal cord injury as a result of a pedestrian accident, you are probably facing many difficulties.

  • extensive pain and suffering.
  • loss of wages.
  • medical bills.
  • and, concerns about your future financial and physical wellbeing.

 

Fortunately, you have options to recover damages by filing an insurance claim or lawsuit against a negligent motorist.

Basics of Spinal Cord Injuries

A spinal cord injury typically results from a blunt force trauma, such as when a pedestrian is struck by a motor vehicle. The force of the impact can cause serious damage to the spinal cord. While most spinal cord injuries do not result in total severing of the cord, it is a possibility.

These injuries can completely alter a person’s life forever. Depending on the severity and location of the spinal cord injury, the victim can lose feeling and/or mobility at all parts of the body below the injury.

The victim of a spinal cord injury can experience a complete or incomplete diagnosis. In complete spinal cord injuries, there is no feeling or ability to move at points below the injury. In an incomplete diagnosis, there may be partial ability to move or feel sensation below the point of injury.

In either kind of injury, the victim will be likely to experience long-term disabling effects that can affect the ability to work or return to the lifestyle they once had. New therapies and improved emergency medical treatment services have increased the possibility for recovery for some spinal cord injury victims.

But for many, this is a permanently debilitating condition. As such, pedestrians whose spinal cord injuries are the result of a negligent motorist can pursue compensation for their damages.

Recovering Damages after Spinal Cord Injury from Pedestrian Accident

If you’ve been struck by a motor vehicle and sustained a spinal cord injury, you will need to file a claim with the motorist’s liability insurance company. All motorists in Seattle and throughout Washington are required to carry bodily injury liability coverage of at least $25,000.

You may have to file a lawsuit if the motorist’s insurance coverage is not sufficient to cover the full extent of your damages. In the event of spinal cord injuries, this is a real possibility given the extensive impact they have on victims.

You will need to prove fault for the accident and your attorney can assist you with gathering the necessary documentation.

  • police reports.
  • medical bills.
  • proof of diagnosis and disability.
  • and, proof of your lost wages and/or reduced ability to earn future wages.

 

 Your case must prove fault as well as the extent of your damages.

Call Max Meyers after a Seattle Pedestrian Accident

If you suffered spinal cord injuries in a pedestrian accident in the Seattle area and need legal representation, Max Meyers Law can help. Call us today at 425-399-7000 to set up a free consultation with a lawyer to review the circumstances of the accident and to start exploring your legal options.

Max Meyers
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Max is a Kirkland personal injury attorney handling cases in Seattle, King County & surrounding in WA State.