Personal Injury Law

Driver Involved in SUV Rollover Accident After Trying to Dodge Pedestrian on Interstate 55

By Jeff Lowe, Esq.

Two people were seriously hurt and another suffered minor injuries in an unusual Missouri pedestrian accident, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported July 13. Randy Smith of Steele, Mo., was driving north on the interstate at around 10:30 p.m. when he saw pedestrian Henry Dempke of St. Mary?s, Mo. in the road. He swerved to avoid Dempke, but his Ford Explorer hit the man anyway, then overturned. Smith, who was wearing his seat belt, was not seriously hurt, but his passenger, Lacrisha Arender of Steele, was partly ejected. She was not wearing a seat belt. Arender and Dempke were both hospitalized in serious condition.

As a St. Louis auto accident attorney, I was interested in this accident because the investigators may ultimately decide that it was the pedestrian?s fault. That would be unusual, and it goes against most people?s ideas about pedestrian accidents. Cars are larger and more powerful than human bodies, which gives drivers a greater legal responsibility to avoid accidents. However, pedestrians also have a legal responsibility to take reasonable care for their own safety. When they fail in that duty, they can be held liable for the injuries and costs in any accident they cause -- even though they weren?t driving.

If investigators do decide that the pedestrian is responsible for the accident, it could create interesting problems for the insurance claims of everyone involved. Legally, the insurance company for the person responsible for causing the accident should cover the injuries. However, insurance companies don?t like paying expensive claims -- and when the responsibility for an accident goes against most people?s ideas, insurance companies are not afraid to use that fact to simply deny the claim. Frequently, accident victims in unusual situations must hire a Missouri car crash lawyer to force their insurance companies to provide the coverage they are legally entitled to.

Full post as published by Missouri Injury Lawyer Blog on July 15, 2009 (boomark / email).