Injured Pedestrians' Claims Not Reduced by Dark Clothing, Time of Day
12/21/2007
On the evening of November 27th, a Seattle woman in her 50's was hit while walking across a crosswalk at the intersection of Aurora Avenue North and North 90th Street. The woman was hit by a pickup and dragged underneath it. The driver of the pickup left the scene but was stopped several blocks away by police. The woman who was struck suffered head and pelvis injuries and was transported to Harborview Medical Center in serious condition.
Have you or someone you know been involved in a similar accident? If so, consider speaking to an attorney today.
Most pedestrian versus vehicle accidents happen in the winter months. It's darker for longer and visibility is limited by this and by rain. But drivers have a duty to see and pedestrians are given the right of way in cross walks. While some insurance carriers take the position that wearing dark clothing is a form of contributory negligence or comparative fault, they're wrong. The value of a pedestrian's claim should not be reduced because of what he or she was wearing at the time of the accident.
