Normally, walking is an inherently safe and healthy way to get around. We walk from our homes to our cars. We walk through stores while shopping. We walk to the subway or bus when coming and going to work. We walk within our apartments or homes. Walking is a common and routine event for most people. Especially in Manhattan, walking provides an easy means of transport when the distance is not too great and may even be faster than other forms of public transportation depending on the traffic. Whatever the case, we are on foot a great deal of the time.

When we are on foot we are considered to be a pedestrian. As a pedestrian, the law provides certain protections when we are injured due to the carelessness or negligence of another person or party. When this happens, this is known in a legal sense as a “pedestrian accident.” A pedestrian accident may occur anywhere someone is walking or standing: in a store, coming down a flight of stairs, crossing the street, walking down the sidewalk, or even merely standing still.

Some common pedestrian accidents include:

• Tripping on a defective sidewalk
• Tripping on a pothole
• Tripping on a broken curb
• Tripping on an object left in the path of pedestrians (such as an item left on the floor within an aisle of a store)
• Tripping on torn or buckled carpet
• Slipping on ice or snow
• Slipping on an overly waxed floor
• Slipping on a substance (such as a liquid or even fruit or vegetables)
• Being hit or struck by a car, bus, or truck
• Being hit by a falling object
• Falling due to a defective banister or railing

The City of New York has recently taken measures to increase pedestrian safety. Some of these measures are to install countdown pedestrian signals at intersections, enforce speed limits, and re-engineer streets and intersections. Still, every day in New York City people are injured in pedestrian accidents.

What are your rights?

If you or a loved one has been injured in a New York City pedestrian-related accident that was caused by the carelessness of another party you are entitled to assert a civil claim to redress your damages for pain and suffering, medical expenses incurred as a result of the accident, and lost income. In the case of a fatal accident, the distributees of the decedent may assert a wrongful death claim and/or a survival action for the decedent’s conscious pain and suffering.

If the pedestrian accident occurred while you were on the job performing your duties, you are entitled to workers’ compensation benefits. These benefits will pay for your accident-related medical expenses and reimburse you a certain portion of your lost wages. If the accident involved a motor vehicle, you are entitled to no-fault benefits from the car that struck you.

Similarly, these benefits will pay for your medical expenses and a portion of your lost wages. If the accident occurred upon an insured premises such a store and there is no other private medical insurance available to you, some liability insurance for such properties as businesses or apartment buildings carry a provision for what is known as “medpay.” When available, this provision will pay for your accident-related medical expenses up to a certain defined amount, usually $5,000.00 to $10,000.00 regardless of who may have been at fault for the accident.

What are the requirements for bringing a claim?

Depending on the type of accident, there are a variety of legal requirements that must be met and established in order to prove your claim. Just because someone is hurt in an accident does not mean that they are entitled to damages for the injuries they sustained. They must prove that another person was at fault for the accident. Only when the issue of fault has been established can the injured person seek compensation for damages in a civil claim.

For example, if someone slips on a substance in a supermarket, they must prove that the store had actual or constructive notice of the dangerous slipping hazard. This means that the store must have actually known and been aware of the danger prior to the accident with enough time to take measures to remedy or clean the area and failed to do so, or that it should have known of the condition due to the length of time it existed on the floor before the accident occurred. If either condition can be established, the injured party is entitled to damages for their injuries.

In other cases where the City of New York may be the potentially responsible party due to a broken or defective sidewalk, the person hurt in a trip and fall accident must establish that the city had actual written notice of the defect. In addition, it is the injured party’s responsibility to serve a Notice of Claim upon the City within 90 days of the accident.