Wisconsin Pedestrian
Accidents Lawyer

Walking down the street should not be considered a risky or dangerous activity. Yet pedestrian accidents are a substantial problem in Wisconsin. According to the state of Wisconsin’s figures, there are 1,4000 auto accidents involving pedestrians every year. And over a five-year period, there were fifty-four pedestrians killed and 1,326 more injured while walking on or across public roads. That means on any given day, an average of 3 to 4 pedestrians are hit by a vehicle.

A pedestrian obviously has no protection against the force of impact from any kind of motor vehicle and can sustain serious, life-threatening and life-altering injuries or death.  Pedestrian vs. vehicle accidents can cause hundreds of thousands of dollars in medical bills as well as lost income and other out-of-pocket expenses.

Fitzpatrick, Skemp & Butler, LLC is a team of experienced Wisconsin accident lawyers. We represent pedestrians who have been injured due to the reckless conduct of motorists.

We also manage wrongful death claims on behalf of the families and estates of pedestrians who died as a result of their injuries. While we realize that money can never undo the damage done by a careless motorist, full and fair compensation can assist you and your family in rebuilding your lives.

Know Your Rights as a Pedestrian in Wisconsin

Wisconsin law defines a pedestrian as any person who walks on foot or uses a mechanical wheelchair (or something similar) to traverse public roads. All pedestrians have certain rights and responsibilities under the “rules of the road” and Wisconsin law. These rights and responsibilities include:

• A motorist must yield to a pedestrian who has started to cross an intersection at either a “Walk” signal or a green light (if there is no Walk/Do not Walk signal).
• If there are no traffic lights or control signals at an intersection, a motorist must yield to a pedestrian crossing the highway at a marked or unmarked crosswalk.
• A motorist must yield to pedestrians who are crossing a sidewalk.
• A motorist must yield to pedestrians entering a driveway or alley.
• A motorist cannot overtake and pass another vehicle that has stopped to allow a pedestrian to cross the street.
• A pedestrian must yield to a motorist before crossing a road where they do not have a green light or “Walk” signal, assuming that either is present at said intersection.
• A pedestrian cannot dart into the middle of the street or otherwise suddenly move into the path of a motorist who does not have enough time to yield.
• If a pedestrian is walking along a road without sidewalks, they must stay on the left side of the street.

Most pedestrian accidents in Wisconsin are the result of a motorist failing to yield. The reasons for such failure range from simple carelessness to criminal conduct. Some of the more common scenarios include:

• A motorist is distracted and fails to see a pedestrian crossing the street legally at an intersection or crosswalk.
• A motorist is driving too fast for current road conditions and does not give themselves sufficient time to yield to a pedestrian.
• A motorist tries to “race through a yellow light” and fails to keep a proper lookout for pedestrians already crossing the street.
• A motorist executes a left-hand turn without looking to see if there are any pedestrians in the way.
• A motorist is driving recklessly due to the intoxicating effect of alcohol or narcotics.

To recover compensation for an accident, a pedestrian need to only prove that the motorist was negligent in some way. It is not necessary to show the motorist acted intentionally. Indeed, most pedestrian accidents are not intentional; however, a negligent driver can still be held liable for civil damages and cited for a traffic violation in connection with a pedestrian accident.

What Are the Most Common Injuries in a Wisconsin Pedestrian Accident?

It is always essential to seek medical attention after you have been hit by a vehicle. This might sound like common sense, yet we often find that pedestrians will try to get up and minimize their injuries after a collision with a motor vehicle; this can be a deadly mistake. Even if a pedestrian’s injuries seem minor, there may be more serious underlying medical problems.  If you are injured, it is extremely important to seek medical attention as soon as possible after the accident.

While every pedestrian accident is unique, there are certain categories of serious injuries that we tend to see, including but not limited to:

• Traumatic brain injuries
• Whiplash
• Sprains
• Strains
• Eye injuries and loss of vision
• Dental injuries
• Spinal cord damage
• Bone fractures
• Abdominal injuries
• Lower extremity (leg) injuries
• Internal bleeding
• Internal organ damage
• Death

 Many pedestrian accidents can lead to long-term health problems; therefore, it is critical to document any injuries as close as possible to the date of the accident. This will assist you in your claim against an insurance company and makes it difficult for a defense attorney to claim the pedestrian’s injuries were the result of some “intervening” or other cause besides driver negligence. The sooner that you see a doctor, the sooner you can document your injuries that you sustained in the accident.

What If the Driver Does Not Have Sufficient Insurance?

Wisconsin requires all licensed drivers to carry auto insurance. Unfortunately, these rules only mandate a minimum amount of coverage.  These minimums are often not sufficient to fully compensate a pedestrian for the serious injuries that they have sustained in an accident. Current law requires minimum coverage of $25,000 per person or $50,000 per multiple-victim accident for bodily injury.

 There are also cases where a driver simply ignores the law and fails to carry even this minimum amount of insurance. Another common issue in pedestrian accidents is the “hit and run” driver who flees the scene and cannot be located by the police.

What are the pedestrian’s rights in uninsured or underinsured cases?

Coverage may come from the pedestrian’s own insurance. Wisconsin requires insurance policies to include uninsured motorist (UM) coverage. If you have UM coverage, it can provide coverage if you are hit by an uninsured or hit-and-run vehicle, even though you are not actually in your own car at the time of the accident, your UM coverage is typically the same as the amount of your own bodily injury coverage, which follows the minimums stated above.

You may also have underinsured motorist (UIM) coverage. This coverage is optional under Wisconsin law. Your insurer is required to offer UIM coverage, however you do not have to have underinsured coverage.   If you do purchase UIM coverage, it can provide benefits in the event the driver who struck you does not have sufficient insurance of their own to fully compensate you, as is often the case in pedestrian accidents.

Could I Be Blamed as the Pedestrian for Causing My Own Accident?

While the motorist is usually at fault for hitting a pedestrian, that is not always the case. Wisconsin follows a comparative negligence rule in all personal injury cases, which includes pedestrian accidents. This means that if a personal injury claim goes before a court, the judge or jury must decide how to apportion fault between all the parties involved–including the victim.

For example, if you are hit by a car while crossing the street, the driver could argue that you suddenly darted into traffic or entered the crosswalk at a red light. Even if the jury does not completely accept that argument, you could still be found partially at-fault, which can reduce the number of damages you can recover–and in some cases bar recovery altogether.

What Damages Can I Seek Following a Pedestrian Accident in Wisconsin?

The primary role of a personal injury lawsuit or settlement is to compensate you for all the losses arising from a pedestrian accident. Wisconsin law classifies such compensation as either economic or non-economic damages:

• Economic damages mean your directly measurable out-of-pocket losses, such as your medical bills and lost income, as well as your estimated future expenses or losses in those areas.
• Non-economic damages refer to your pain and suffering, emotional trauma, loss of enjoyment of life, and difficult to quantify losses arising from the accident.

With many pedestrian accidents, it can be difficult to fully assess a potential claim for damages immediately after the event. This is particularly true when you are dealing with potential long-term medical issues that may require a lifetime of professional care.  In cases involving fatal pedestrian accidents, the estate and surviving family members may be entitled to different forms of compensation under Wisconsin’s wrongful death laws.

Get in Touch with Our Expert Wisconsin Pedestrian Attorney Today!

 If you, or someone in your family, has been hit while walking or traveling down the street,  you need to speak with a qualified Wisconsin pedestrian accident lawyer, contact Fitzpatrick, Skemp & Butler, LLC today to schedule a consultation. There is no charge to speak with us–and we will not collect any fees unless we win a settlement or judgment on your behalf.