Child Injury Laws - By Jonathan Rosenfeld

More than 10 pedestrians are are struck by vehicles in the Chicagoland-area every day. Statistics tell us that many of these pedestrians suffer serious injuries or death in these incidents.

In an attempt to improve pedestrian safety at busy crosswalks around schools, senior citizen centers and hospitals, The Chicago Department of Transportation has installed buckets containing brightly colored flags for pedestrians to use while crossing the street. The flags are intended to get drivers' attention while the pedestrians cross the street in areas without traffic signals.

The addition of street crossing flags to crosswalks is the most recent addition to the City of Chicago's driver safety program, "It's Up To You" which is intended to make drivers more aware of the dangers posed to pedestrians.  As part of the program, city officials placed mannequins near downtown intersections with t-shirts reading, " One of 32 pedestrians killed last year in Chicago."  Similarly, the program has installed placards inside of taxis to encourage passengers to report dangerous driving to city officials.

According to a Chicago Tribune article, "Flags are newest weapon in city's pedestrian safety push" on the implementation of the traffic safety flag program, the flags are available at the following intersections:

• 71st Street and Spaulding Avenue, near Tarkington Elementary School
• Central Avenue and Walton Street, near Brunson Elementary School
• Belmont and Kilpatrick avenues, near a senior housing building
• 93rd Street and Oglesby Avenue, near Trinity Hospital
• 63rd Street and Talman Avenue, near a senior center
• 50th Street and Cottage Grove Avenue, near Hales Franciscan High School
• Devon and Francisco avenues, near the Croatian Cultural Center
• 64th Street and Western Avenue, near Claremont Academy
• 79th and Throop streets, near a senior housing building
• Elston Avenue and Grace and Bernard streets, near Murphy Elementary School

As a personal injury lawyer who frequently sees the horrific injuries related to vehicle v. pedestrian collisions, I applaud this latest addition to the City's pedestrian safety program.  Hopefully, this program will help save lives as the flags will greatly improve pedestrian visibility. 

Related:

Uninsured Motorist Coverage Can Help Children Who Have Been The Victim Of Hit-And-Run Auto Accidents

Chicago Drivers Must Stop For Pedestrians In Crosswalk.... Or Pay Up

Are Facebook & Twitter To Blame For Car Accidents?

80% Of Vehicle-Pedestrian Accidents Occur Within Crosswalks

After reading the Chicago Tribune's article "City Study: Chicago pedestrians in crosswalks are in cross hairs", I'm definitely going to step-up my level of caution before crossing the street.  

Once again, I'm continually impressed with how drivers continue to ignore pedestrians--- even when they are crossing the street within the crosswalks.  

After evaluating traffic data from 2005 through 2009, a staggering 80% of all traffic accidents involving pedestrians who were injured or killed occurred when the person was within the seemingly safe confines of the crosswalk. While pedestrian deaths, have declined fairly significantly from 1994 to 2009, the total number of traffic accidents involving pedestrians remains fairly consistent at around 3,000 per year within the confines of the city.

Other data tidbits from the Chicago Tribune article:

• Hit-and-run accidents account for 33% of all pedestrian accidents
• Hit-and-run accidents account for 41% of pedestrian deaths
• Teens come the largest segment of crash victims
• Taxi cabs account for almost one-third of all pedestrian crashes
• Areas of Chicago with higher incidence of violent crime tended to have more pedestrian accidents

Is help on the way for pedestrians?

Recognizing the frequency and severity of these pedestrian accidents, some states and municipalities have enacted legislation to protect pedestrians.  Though it's still too early to tell, Illinois passed legislation last year that requires drivers to stop--- not just yield when a pedestrian is present within a crosswalk.

In addition to the legislation, new technology may provide an added level of safety for pedestrian trying to navigate their way through the streets of Chicago.  The City has plans to install pedestrian countdown clocks at all of the cities 2,900 intersections that both warn pedestrians how much time they have before a signal changes and provides additional warning to drivers to alert them that the crosswalk may be occupied.

Is driver carelessness to blame?

I remain cautiously optimistic that the new legislation and traffic control technology will help make pedestrians safer.  However, both as my experience as an injury lawyer and statistics tell us, pedestrian-vehicle accidents will most certainly remain a threat to every person walking across intersections until we can recalibrate drivers' behavior.

Chicago Transportation Commissioner Gabe Klein, believes a societal problem is to blame for the apparent indifference for the safety of our peers.  

Whether it is people getting hurt or killed by cars, or people getting shot in their living room by accident (during drive by shootings), which has happened all to often lately, there is a connection.  It's a certain recklessness in our society and in our city thus is causing too many innocent bystanders to get hurt.

While I hope Mr. Klein's somewhat cynical take on society is incorrect, I'm keeping my fingers crossed that new options can prod drivers to take a closer look at safe driving.

Related Child Injury Laws Blog Entries:

Uninsured Motorist Coverage Can Help Children Who Have Been The Victim Of Hit-And-Run Auto Accidents

Chicago Drivers Must Stop For Pedestrains In Crosswalk.... Or Pay Up

Are Facebook & Twitter To Blame For Car Accidents?

Unknown to many, a new Illinois law took effect several months ago that forces drivers to stop for pedestrians within the confines of a crosswalk. 

The new law is far more restrictive that the former law merely required drivers to 'yield' to pedestrians within crosswalks.  Similarly, the new crosswalk law applies to all intersections, not just those controlled by traffic signals.

I was glad to see an article by Jon Halkevitch in the Chicago Tribune regarding efforts by the Chicago Police Department to ramp up enforcement of the new law.  Just last month, Chicago officers wrote 127 tickets to drivers who failed to yield to pedestrians in undercover sting operations where plain-clothes officers pose as plain-jane citizens trying to cross the street.

As the new law takes hold, I certainly hope it effectively reduces the number of traffic-related injuries and deaths in Illinois.  According to the Illinois Department of Transportation:

• 6,000 pedestrians are hit by cars annually
• 170 pedestrians are killed in auto-related accidents every year
• More than 1,000 pedestrians are seriously injured every year
• In Chicagoland alone, 12 pedestrians were killed last year

The amount of the fine drivers face is based upon where the incident occurred, but ranges from $50 to $500.

I applaud this important piece of legislation that promises to improve the safety of pedestrians in Illinois.  In addition to hopefully preventing injuries and deaths, the new law will also make the prosecution of personal injury lawsuits involving injured pedestrians somewhat easier given the clear and direct language of the law.

Related:

Active Transportation Alliance

Last week I met with the family of a seven-year-old boy who received horrific orthopedic injuries (fractured tibia and fibula with de-gloving of his leg) he sustained due to being hit by a car as he was crossing the street with friends. 

The driver completely ignored a traffic signal before hitting the boy and racing away before their plates could be written down.

Several months after the incident-- and several leg and arm surgeries later, the boy’s parents called to tell me about the incident and inquired as to what if anything they could do for their son who has incurred significant medical bills and will need extensive future medical attention.

While the lack of a responsible party in a situation like the one above may appear problematic from a tort-recovery standpoint, this is exactly the type of situation that uninsured motorist covered was intended for.

Unbeknownst to most drivers, they likely have un-insured (UM) and under-insured motorist (UIM) coverage as part of their existing automobile insurance.  Like all types of insurance coverage, UM / UIM is something most of us don’t want to think about—yet when a situation arises we are grateful we have it.

Un-Insured Motorist (UM) Coverage:

Exactly like it sounds, un-insured motorist coverage covers injuries and property damage sustained in auto accidents in which the at-fault driver did not have any insurance coverage for the incident.  Consequently, the damages from the incident can be recovered pursuant to the un-insured motorist coverage in the auto policy.

Many uninsured motorist cases can be resolved relatively quickly by negotiating with the insurance company.  However, when an agreement between the injured party and the insurance carrier cannot be achieved, most policies allow the injured person to file a demand for arbitration or a direct action against the insurance carrier directly.

The language of the policy and the jurisdiction where the claim is being pursued with dictate the procedure for resolving disputed UM claims.  Nonetheless, most policies require confirmation from the un-insured driver directly or the secretary of state that there was no insurance coverage before they will consider resolving the UM claim.

Under-Insured Motorist (UIM) Coverage:

Some states, such as Illinois, have passed legislation requiring drivers to carry a minimum amount of automobile insurance.  In theory, the minimum amounts of coverage would adequately compensate most automobile related injuries and property damage.

However, as you can imagine, legislating to cover the bulk of injuries and damages, will not cover most severe injuries where people have sustained truly life-altering damages.

When the responsible driver does not have adequate insurance to cover the damages of the person(s) injured in the accident, the injured party can pursue the balance of their damages directly from their insurance carrier under their under-insured motorist coverage.

The assumption with under-insured motorist coverage is that the amount of coverage exceeds that of the tort-feasor or person who caused the accident. 

For example, if the responsible party carries $100,000 in liability coverage and the injured party has $100,000 in UIM coverage, they would not be entitled to make a UIM claim since the coverage is equal.  However, in the same situation, the injured party carried $1,000,000 in UIM coverage, they could potentially recover $900,000 in UIM benefits.

Obviously, in order to recover UIM benefits, the injured party has the burden of establishing their damages similar to the way damages must be established in a personal injury lawsuit against the driver.

What types of accidents are covered by under-insured motorist or un-insured motorist insurance?

Most uninsured and under-insured motorist policies cover both the insured driver(s) and members of their household who have been involved in various types of auto-related accidents including:

• Pedestrian accidents
• Bicycle accidents
• Hit-and-run accidents
• Injuries sustained while a passenger on a commercial vehicle
• Wrongful death
• Children who are passengers in cars-- even those who are driven by their parents

The elements of recoverable damages under UM / UIM policies are also similar to those afforded an injured party in a traditional lawsuit:

• Past and future medical expenses
• Lost wages
• Pain and suffering
• Disfigurement

Certainly, when faced with a situation where a child or other member of your family has sustained severe injuries, it is important to evaluate all avenues for potential recovery including: un-insured and under-insured motorist coverage.  I strongly suggest you review your automobile insurance policy very carefully with a lawyer who has experience with these claims before speaking to the insurance company.

Related: 

Hit-and-Run Forum

Fatal Pedestrian Collisions Driver Negligence (pdf) by SUSAN P. BAKER, MPH, LEON S. ROBERTSON, PhD and BRIAN O'NEILL, BSc

4-Year-Old Dies In Hit-And-Run Crash KCTV.com, September 20, 2010