Your emotions may be riding high in the immediate aftermath of your pedestrian accident. But once you sit down and deeply reflect on the event, you may assure yourself that you did nothing less than abide by the enforced pedestrian safety rules and regulations. You may even admit that the involved driver did not necessarily operate their vehicle recklessly or carelessly. With this, you may be stumped in identifying the catalyst. Well, please continue reading to learn when a third party is potentially to blame for your accident event and how an experienced Tampa pedestrian accident lawyer at Merricks Law Group, P.A., can help you navigate your possible legal avenues at this point.
Under what circumstances is a third party at fault for my pedestrian accident?
First of all, your pedestrian accident may have been caused by reasons beyond anyone’s reasonable control. This is if there were poor inclement weather conditions at the time (i.e., rain, snow, fog, etc). that severely minimized visibility for you and the involved driver(s).
Another possibility, though, is that it was the fault of a property owner. For example, overgrown shrubbery may have extended beyond the sidewalk, creating a blind spot as you tried to check both ways before entering the crosswalk.
Or, if you are in a parking garage, convex safety mirrors may have been absent at sharp turns with large blind spots. In addition, there may have been a lack of designated pedestrian walkways, all of which made you vulnerable to colliding with a driver.
Lastly, there may have been a glitch or malfunction with a pedestrian traffic signal. That is, it may have signaled for you to cross while oncoming vehicle traffic still had a green light. Or, it may have indicated you to cross and abruptly switched to the don’t walk signal while you were still in the middle of the crosswalk.
Is the statute of limitations different for a pedestrian accident on government property?
You may pinpoint the blame for your pedestrian accident on a government entity if it took place on a government-owned property, or the catalyst was a government-owned traffic signal. Here, your pedestrian accident claim still holds the statute of limitations of two years in the state of Florida. However, you must first consider your deadline for a notice of claim.
Specifically, most states require that plaintiffs notify a respective government entity on their intention to sue generally within three to six months of their pedestrian accident event. Lucky for you, though, the notice of claim deadline in Florida is three years, or two years if your accident resulted in a wrongful death. From here, the government entity has 180 days to investigate and respond to your claim.
In conclusion, if you find yourself up against this, please do not go through it alone. Instead, pick up the phone and speak with a skilled Tampa auto accident lawyer. Our team at Merricks Law Group, P.A., wishes to aid you during this difficult point in time.
