Florida has one of the worst track records for safety of its bicyclists and pedestrians. Talking to a Palm Beach injury lawyer as soon as possible following bicycle accidents or pedestrian accidents is important to begin building a case that maximizes your chance of obtaining fair compensation against the negligent drivers who inflicted harm.
Of the 394,000+ crashes reported in Palm Beach County last year, 10,300 were pedestrian accidents and 8,400 were bicycle accidents, according to the FLHSMV. Of the 3,400 people who died in Palm Beach traffic crashes in 2023, bicyclists comprised 227 of them, while pedestrians accounted for 790. Bicyclists and pedestrians are far more likely than other road users to be seriously hurt or killed when they’re in a crash (compared to other motorists). It’s also exponentially more likely that the drivers involved in pedestrian and bicycle accidents will leave the scene in a hit-and-run.
Investigators conclude a myriad of causal factors in these cases, including distracted driving, speeding, failure to yield or impaired driving. But almost always, it comes down to driver error. And even if the bicyclist or pedestrian was partially at-fault, they can still pursue compensation, so long as their percentage of comparative fault doesn’t exceed 50%. (Even if a bicyclist or pedestrian is half responsible for the accident, they can still collect damages on the other 50% from the at-fault driver – which can be a substantial sum considering how many result in serious consequences like traumatic brain injury, spinal cord injury, broken bones and internal organ damage.)
Avenues of Compensation in Florida Bicycle Accidents and Pedestrian Accidents
Injured bicyclists and/or pedestrians have a few potential avenues they can pursue for compensation.
The first is PIP, or personal injury protection coverage. As outlined in F.S. 627.736, is no-fault protection that provides up to $10,000 in coverage (80% of medical bills and 60% of lost wages up to that $10,000), regardless of who was to blame. The nice thing about PIP is you don’t have to prove negligence. You may be able to collect PIP from the driver’s policy or your own. Even though you weren’t in a car at the time of the incident, your own PIP car insurance will likely still consider the incident a coverable offense if you were struck by a motor vehicle.
Unfortunately for many bicyclists and pedestrians, PIP doesn’t begin to scratch the surface if their injuries are severe. So from that point, if their injuries meet or exceed the serious injury threshold, as outlined in F.S. 627.737, they can pursue damages against the at-fault driver. They will have to prove negligence. This requires showing that the driver owed a duty of care, that duty was breached, the breach caused your injuries and your injuries resulted in financial damages. Some of these cases are fairly straightforward, especially if there are witnesses or if there’s surveillance or other video footage of the incident.
It is possible that the defendant may argue comparative negligence. Florida’s comparative negligence law did just become more stringent as of late, when the state moved from a model of pure comparative fault to one of modified comparative fault with a 51% bar. However, that doesn’t mean the claim isn’t worth filing. It just means that you’d be smart to work with an experienced injury attorney in doing so because your payout gets reduced according to your share of the blame.
If the driver does not have insurance OR if the driver fled the scene and was never caught, that doesn’t necessarily mean you’re out of luck. Your next move will be to file a claim through your own UM/UIM coverage. This assumes you have it. Neither pedestrians nor bicyclists are required to carry any insurance at all. But if you are also a driver, chances are you have UM/UIM coverage because it comes standard with most auto insurance policies (though you can opt out if you do so in writing). UM/UIM coverage will provide additional coverage to you, the insured, if you are hurt by someone who doesn’t have enough insurance to cover your injuries, doesn’t have any insurance, or has not been located because it was a hit-and-run. You still need to show that person was at-fault. But if you can successfully do so and establish causation and your damages, you can prevail in a claim for UM/UIM coverage.
If you have been injured in a bicycle accident or pedestrian accident in Palm Beach, contact our team of Palm Beach injury lawyers as soon as possible. Not only is it important for evidence preservation and independent investigation, but the statute of limitations on Florida injury claims also recently shrunk from four years to two years. The sooner you act, the better.
Contact the South Florida personal injury attorneys at Halberg & Fogg PLLC by calling toll-free at 1-877-425-2374. Serving West Palm Beach, Miami, Tampa, Orlando and Fort Myers/ Naples. There is no fee unless you win.
Additional Resources:
Florida Crash Dashboard, FLHSMV
More Blog Entries:
Understanding Rear-End Crashes From West Palm Beach Injury Lawyer Perspective, July 14, 2024, Palm Beach Injury Lawyer Blog