According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, there were 48 pedestrians killed in the state of Massachusetts in 2009. Many of those were children.
About 12.5 percent were young pedestrians killed: Two were under the age of five; one was between ages five and nine; two were between age 10 and 15 and one was between age 16 and 20.
When someone is involved in a pedestrian accident, whether it is a child pedestrian accident or an accident on school property, it becomes important to determine who was at fault for causing the accident. The party who was responsible may be required to pay compensation for the child's injuries and other losses.
Massachusetts personal injury attorneys at the Jeffrey Glassman Injury Lawyers can help you to determine if you, your child or a loved one has a right to compensation after a child pedestrian accident. Contact us today using our online form or via phone at (617) 777-7777.
Massachusetts Laws on Child Pedestrian AccidentsIn order to collect compensation for large medical bills, pain and suffering, emotional distress or wrongful death after a child pedestrian accident, the first step is to determine who was responsible for the accident.
In some cases, it is the driver of the vehicle who will be held responsible. This is true if the driver wasn't paying attention and hit the child, or if the driver was violating safety laws such as school zone speed limits and caused the child to be injured or killed as a result. It is the burden of the plaintiff- the injured victim or his/her parents and personal injury attorney- to prove that the driver was negligent in some way that led to the accident in order to recover compensation from the driver.
In other instances, a child may have caused or contributed to the accident because he/she did not take the proper care in crossing the street. When this happens, the damages available may be reduced by the percentage of fault attributed to the child. It is still possible to recover compensation if the driver was partially responsible for the accident and resulting injuries, but things become much trickier in these situations and it becomes even more important to get help from an experienced Boston car accident lawyer.
When a child did fall into harms way, another issue that may come up is whether negligent supervision played a role in the injury the child suffered. For instance, if the child was at school when the accident happened and was not being properly supervised by the school or if the playground or parking lot of the school was laid out in a way that led to the accident, then the school may be held responsible for the injuries suffered.
To determine whether there are any potential defendants after a pedestrian accident case involving a child, and for help in proving your case so that you can recover the compensation afforded by Massachusetts law for pedestrian accident cases, it is advisable to contact an experienced personal injury lawyer as soon as possible. The Massachusetts personal injury attorneys at Jeffrey Glassman Injury Lawyer have represented many injured victims and their family members in pedestrian accident cases involving a child and we can use our legal knowledge and experience to get you the compensation you deserve.
To learn more about how a Boston car accident lawyer can help you after a child/ school pedestrian accident, contact Jeffrey Glassman Injury Lawyers today at (617) 777-7777 or online.