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• Bike Helmets Save Lives...
  Posted on 4/27/2010

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Pedestrian and Bicycle Accidents

• Fairfax personal injury lawyers Weiner, Rohrstaff & Spivey want to make sure children are safe, so they give away free helmets to children who need them.
• Winning a fall down case in Virginia is very hard, because the pedestrian must be 'perfect'
• Bicycle accidents, child safety, prevent injury
• Contributory negligence bars pedestrian claims
• Careless Drivers Can Hurt or Kill Children

Every day in Northern Virginia pedestrians and bicyclists, many of them children, are struck and injured or killed by negligent drivers, including drunk drivers.

You should not have to put your life in danger every time you cross the street or walk along a sidewalk. 

Walking is one of the pleasures of life, whether you are ten years old or seventy.  Drivers have a responsibility to look out for pedestrians and people riding bicycles.  A driver's duty of care increases when it comes to children, because young children's behavior can be unpredictable and they are harder for a driver to see.  When a driver is in an area where he knows or should know that children are present, such as near schools and in neighborhoods, he must exercise greater caution.

But drivers also must exercise caution whenver there is any pedestrian present.  Although pedestrians must be careful for their own safety (such as using crosswalks and obeying WALK signals), drivers do not have the right to ignore what pedestrians do.  Many pedestrians are hit by cars and trucks in Northern Virginia in areas where there are no crosswalks or WALK signals.

A competent personal injury lawyer can look at the facts of each case to evaluate whether the pedestrian or bicyclist was acting reasonably under the circumstances.  The lawyers at Weiner, Rohrstaff & Spivey have represented many pedestrians and bicyclists in Northern Virginia who were hit by cars and trucks, including drunk drivers.

We believe it is important for injured people to have good information so they can make the best decisions.  Contact us through the website, http://www.WRSattorneys.com, or send an email to srohrstaff@wrsattorneys.com.  You can also call us at 703-273-9500 or send a fax to 703-273-9505.  We answer your questions for free.
At Weiner, Rohrstaff & Spivey, we only represent individuals who have been injured through the fault of someone else, including people who have been injured while walking or riding a bicycle.   We believe it is important for injured people to have good information so they can make the best decisions.  Contact us through the website, http://www.WRSattorneys.com, or send an email to srohrstaff@wrsattorneys.com.  You can also call us at 703-273-9500 or send a fax to 703-273-9505.  We answer your questions for free.

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Blog for Pedestrian and Bicycle Accidents

• Virginia accident lawyer has free book that will help you with your case
• Bicycle accidents, child safety
• $3.2M Verdict in Fairfax for woman injured in IKEA when merchandise fell on her
• Walkers: Beware. If you are injured while walking, winning your case is very hard.
• Cars + Children = Danger
• Pedestrian Dies After Being Hit by a Garbage Truck in a Parking Lot
• Pedestrian struck and killed in Alexandria area of Fairfax County

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Library for Pedestrian and Bicycle Accidents:

• Fairfax personal injury lawyers Weiner, Rohrstaff & Spivey want to make sure children are safe, so they give away free helmets to children who need them.   
  Description: Free bike helmets to children who need them. Fairfax, Virginia lawyers Weiner, Rohrstaff & Spivey want to make sure children are safe when riding bikes.
• Winning a fall down case in Virginia is very hard, because the pedestrian must be 'perfect'   
  Description: Contributory negligence in Virginia is a total bar to a claim. Pedestrian cases are especially hard because we have all been told to "watch where you're going" since we were young.
• Bicycle accidents, child safety, prevent injury [PDF]   
  Description: Children are out on their bikes, riding in crowded traffic with cars and trucks. Children are unpredictable,and drivers must be on the lookout for children to prevent accidents.
• Contributory negligence bars pedestrian claims   
  Description: If you walk, Virginia law favors the careless business (or driver). You will lose your claim if your own behavior contributed to your injury in any way.
• Careless Drivers Can Hurt or Kill Children   
  Description: If your child has been injured or killed by a careless driver, call Weiner, Rohrstaff & Spivey to help you. Your child may be entitled to be compensated for his or her injuries, or you may be entitled to be compensated for your grief.
• Bicycle Helmets -- Key to Safety   
  Description: Bicycle helmets save lives, especially when the bicyclist is hit by a car or truck. People on bicycles are much like pedestrians when it comes to car and truck accidents -- except they can be thrown farther. This Bicycle Safety Institute website has valuable information on statistics, how to buy and helmets and helmet recalls.
• Pedestrian Dies After Being Hit by a Garbage Truck in a Parking Lot [PDF]   

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Case Results for Pedestrian and Bicycle Accidents:

• Ninety-six-year-old pedestrian who was crossing the street was struck and severely injured by a delivery truck making a left turn on a solid green light. Case settled for $600,000.

Awarded: Settlement $600,000

• Pedestrian crossing the street a few feet outside the crosswalk after dark was hit by an oncoming car. Settled $45,000.

Awarded: Settlement $45,000

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Web Resources for Pedestrian and Bicycle Accidents:

• Information on helmet safety and use

  Description: Lids on Kids provides information on helmet safety and answers questions about helmet use. The National Ski Areas Association and others developed this site.

• Child pedestrian injuries are the seond leading cause of death in children 5 - 14 years

  Description: Although the number of traffic-relatled child pedestrian deaths has declined in recent years for children under 14 years of age(possibly because of the decrease in the number of child pedestrians), pedestrian injury remains the second leading cause of unintentional injury-related death among children ages 5 - 14.
  
  Children from birth to 2 years of age are more likely to suffer non-traffic related pedestrian injuries. What are these? Those where the child is in the driveway or on a sideway and is run over by a car backing out of a driveway. Or where the child is in a parking lot and is run over by a car.
  
  Children are particuarly vulnerable to pedestrian death because traffic threats are beyond their cognitive ability.

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