A pedestrian has the right of way in either a marked or unmarked crosswalk. Many states define a crosswalk for legal purposes as the line connecting the opposite sides of a street at an intersection, regardless of whether it is marked or otherwise identified as a crosswalk. We have recovered large settlements for clients injured in pedestrian accidents while crossing in unmarked crosswalks.

The insurance company responsible for paying for your medical bills if you were injured in a pedestrian accident will depend on state laws and insurance policy provisions. Many states have laws that say that the no-fault medical payment or personal injury protection benefits of the car that caused the accident is primary coverage. Your no-fault medical payment coverage would be secondary coverage in these states. In other states, your health insurance would provide primary coverage for medical bills.

For crosswalks governed by a light, you have the right to clear the crosswalk if you began to cross on a green light, even if the light turns red before you clear the crosswalk. We have successfully won in court in cases where our client began to cross on a green light, but the light turned red before the client cleared the crosswalk, and a car with a green light struck our client in the crosswalk. The car operator should have waited until our client had cleared the crosswalk before proceeding.

Whether a bicyclist is considered a motorist or a pedestrian is different depending on your state laws. Some states consider a bicyclist a motorist on the road and a pedestrian when riding their bike on a sidewalk or a crosswalk. In these states, a person riding their bike in a crosswalk is treated as a pedestrian. Other states consider a bicyclist a motorist when on the roadway, even when the bicyclist rides their bike to cross the street in a crosswalk. In these states, a person riding their bike in a crosswalk is treated as a motorist.