California Pedestrian Accident Lawyer

Under California Vehicle Code §21950, drivers must yield the right-of-way to pedestrians crossing the roadway within any marked crosswalk and within any unmarked crosswalk at an intersection. Most intersections in California have legal crosswalks at the corners even when no painted lines are visible. Drivers who hit pedestrians at intersections frequently try to argue there was no crosswalk, but California law treats intersection corners as crosswalks by default. The pedestrian has the right of way as soon as they step into the crosswalk, and drivers are required to slow down or stop to allow safe passage.

The Freedom to Walk Act (AB 2147), effective January 2023, decriminalized most California jaywalking. Pedestrians can now cross outside marked crosswalks without being cited as long as it is reasonably safe to do so. Even before this law change, California’s pure comparative negligence rule allowed jaywalking pedestrians to recover compensation, with their recovery reduced by their percentage of fault. A pedestrian who was 30 percent at fault for crossing mid-block can still recover 70 percent of their damages. Do not assume you have no case because you crossed outside a crosswalk. Many factors affect liability, including the driver’s speed, visibility, attention, and whether the driver took reasonable steps to avoid the collision.

Parking lot and garage pedestrian accidents often involve both driver liability AND premises liability against the property owner or operator. California property owners owe a duty of care to maintain reasonably safe parking areas, which can include adequate lighting, clear sight lines, speed bumps or other speed-control measures, marked pedestrian walkways, and warnings about known hazards. Apartment complexes, shopping centers, hospitals, restaurants, hotels, and commercial garages all carry these obligations. When the property’s design or maintenance contributed to the accident, the property owner’s commercial liability insurance becomes an additional source of recovery on top of the driver’s personal auto policy. These dual-liability cases often produce substantially higher recoveries than driver-only claims.

Hit-and-run pedestrian accidents are unfortunately common in California. Under California Vehicle Code §20001, leaving the scene of an accident involving injury is a felony, which triggers a criminal investigation that often produces useful evidence for the civil claim (traffic camera footage, eyewitness identification, recovered debris from the vehicle). If the driver is identified, the civil claim proceeds against their insurance. If the driver cannot be identified, your own Uninsured Motorist (UM) coverage typically becomes the primary path to recovery. UM coverage on your auto policy applies even when you were not in your vehicle, including when you were struck as a pedestrian. Many California drivers do not realize their auto policy’s UM coverage protects them in pedestrian accidents.

The value of a pedestrian accident case depends on the specific facts: severity and permanence of injuries, total medical costs (past and future), lost wages and reduced earning capacity, pain and suffering, available insurance coverage from all defendants, and the strength of the liability evidence. Pedestrian cases tend to produce higher recoveries than typical car accident cases because pedestrian injuries tend to be more severe (no airbags, no crumple zones, direct impact with the vehicle). Cases involving traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord injuries, multiple fractures, or wrongful death routinely produce six-figure to seven-figure recoveries when properly developed. Beware of websites or attorneys that quote a specific “average” without knowing your case facts. A free case evaluation provides a much more meaningful estimate.

Yes, in many cases. When a dangerous roadway condition contributed to the pedestrian accident, including poorly designed intersections, missing or faded crosswalks, inadequate lighting, defective signage, missing pedestrian signals, or obstructed sight lines, the government entity responsible for the roadway can be sued under California Government Code §835. Caltrans claims apply to state highways and certain freeway interchanges. City or county claims apply to local streets and intersections. These claims have strict procedural requirements: a notice of claim must be filed within six months of the accident under the California Government Claims Act. Missing this deadline typically bars the claim permanently. If your accident occurred at a location with prior pedestrian incidents or known design defects, the government claim is often a critical part of the case.

Rideshare and delivery driver pedestrian accidents involve distinct insurance coverage that depends on the driver’s app status at the moment of impact. Uber and Lyft both carry $1 million in third-party liability coverage when the driver is actively on a trip or has accepted a ride request. When the driver has the app on but has not accepted a ride, lower coverage limits apply. When the driver was not logged into the app, only their personal auto policy applies. Similar tiered coverage applies to DoorDash, Uber Eats, Amazon Flex, and other gig delivery work. Determining the driver’s app status at the moment of impact is critical evidence in these cases, and requires subpoenas to the rideshare or delivery company that should be issued quickly before records are routinely purged.