South Bend
Pedestrian Accident
ATTORNEY

DELVENTHAL LAW

Pedestrians are a common sight in South Bend, with thousands of students and residents walking every day to run errands or get to work or school. With so many pedestrians around, collisions with motor vehicles are bound to happen. Sadly, these wrecks cause significant injuries. An injured pedestrian can require extensive medical care and have few ways of getting back to work. Call Delventhal Law Office today to speak with a south Bend pedestrian accident lawyer about what happened and whether you can submit an injury claim.

Do You Need a Lawyer?

A lawyer is an excellent resource if:

• You are too injured to fill out insurance forms or search for evidence to use in your claim.
• You have received a settlement offer, but it is too low.
• You are being blamed for the accident when a negligent driver is really at fault.

At Delventhal Law, we handle pedestrian cases from the initial investigation into fault to final negotiations with the negligent motorist or their insurer. By doing the heavy legal work, we allow our clients to focus like a laser on their recovery.

Why Pedestrian Accidents Happen

Most collisions are the fault of a distracted or negligent motorist:

• Driving while fatigued
• Cell phone use or texting while driving
• Operating a motor vehicle while chemically impaired
• Speeding
• Making an illegal turn
• Illegally passing a car stopped at a red light
• Left-on-red turns

A pedestrian might also have contributed to the crash. In fact, we can expect motorists to blame pedestrians for lunging into traffic or trying to cross when the lights told them not to. Our firm will analyze the effect of comparative negligence on your case.

Evidence for Your Claim

To win a pedestrian accident case, we must prove fault for the crash first. Some helpful evidence includes:

• The police report identifying basic facts about the crash.
• Testimony from witnesses about what they saw.
• Your own testimony about how the accident unfolded.
• Any admissions made by the negligent driver at the scene or later.
• Breath test or other toxicology results.
• Cell phone records which show if the driver was on the phone.

Each case is unique and turns on its own facts. Let us begin picking through the evidence to identify what is helpful.

You Deserve Fair Compensation

Pedestrians are completely exposed while walking in and around South Bend. Any collision, even at low speeds, can send a pedestrian to the hospital with permanent disabilities.

These are expensive accidents. A settlement should include compensation for:

• Lost wages—If you cannot work after the crash, you can lose thousands each month through no fault of your own.
• Medical treatment—You should receive compensation for all care, including emergency medical treatment, pain medication, and post-accident rehabilitation.
• Pain and suffering—Any injury can leave someone holed up at home, depressed, and in pain.

If a loved one passed away after a pedestrian crash, then we might seek wrongful death damages in a legal claim. Let our office review. We have decades of experience negotiating fair settlements. We can also file a lawsuit before the statutory deadline in the event negotiations are unsuccessful.

How Motorists Defend These Cases

Receiving a settlement takes hard work. Many motorists will deny liability for the crash. Instead, they might blame you for darting in front of their vehicle. Or they claim you did not cross in the crosswalk or were staring at your cell phone when injured.

Indiana’s comparative negligence law can prohibit compensation if you were more than 50% to blame. That is a factual analysis. As your lawyer, we will do our best to minimize your own negligence, if any.

If you were less than 50% at fault, then your settlement is reduced proportionally. Someone 15% at fault will only receive 85% of what they otherwise would receive. Comparative negligence can take a large bite out of any settlement or court award.

Other insurance companies will delay an investigation and drag their feet in negotiations. Let us respond in kind. We can file a lawsuit, allege bad faith, and take other steps to light a fire under them.

Speak with a South Bend Pedestrian Accident attorney in a Free Consultation

Were you hurt in a pedestrian accident? Call Delventhal Law Office to meet with a member of our legal team. Injured pedestrians benefit from our broad experience and negotiation skills. We can jump in and begin gathering the necessary evidence to establish your legal right to fair compensation. To learn more, call our office to set up your free case evaluation.