Portsmouth, VA Pedestrian Accident Lawyer
- Last Updated: 12 Aug. 2025
With no protection from airbags, seatbelts, or a vehicle frame, pedestrians are susceptible to serious or catastrophic injury in an accident with a motor vehicle. If a negligent driver struck you while walking, you may face months or years of medical treatment, lost work, and pain.
Cooper Hurley Injury Lawyers is here for you during this challenging time. Our Portsmouth pedestrian accident lawyers can answer your questions and help you seek fair compensation while you focus on your recovery.
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Why Choose Us After a Pedestrian Crash?
Our firm has over 120 years of combined experience representing injured people and families. We’ve achieved record-setting results throughout our careers, including the largest reported recovery in Virginia for a single-car accident victim in 2020. In 2023, we recovered 3 of the top 50 million dollar settlements reported to Virginia Lawyers Weekly, including a $7 million settlement for an injured motorcyclist.
Our Portsmouth personal injury attorneys live and work in the communities we serve. That means we’re familiar with where pedestrian accidents commonly occur, which local hospitals treat victims, and how the nearby courts operate. This local insight can play a key role in the outcome of your case.
Also, we work on a contingency fee basis, meaning you pay nothing unless we win. Our fee is a percentage of your total award, so there are no out-of-pocket fees for our services.
Available Compensation After a Pedestrian Injury
You may potentially recover compensation for any losses you suffer as a result of your pedestrian accident. This includes both economic and non-economic damages, such as:
Economic Damages | Non-Economic Damages |
Past and future medical expenses | Physical pain |
Lost wages | Emotional distress |
Lost earning capacity | Loss of enjoyment of life |
Disability-related expenses | Mental anguish |
Travel expenses for treatment | Scarring and disfigurement |
Our attorneys can prove these damages by gathering medical records, testimony from you and your loved ones, and expert opinions from medical professionals. Settlement and verdict amounts vary significantly due to factors such as injury severity, the impact on the victim’s future, and insurance policy limits. We can collaborate with economic experts to calculate the full value of your losses and then seek fair compensation.
Negligence in Pedestrian Accidents
Drivers have a legal responsibility to act with care in order to avoid putting others at risk of harm. A failure to meet this responsibility is known as a breach of duty. If a driver’s breach of duty directly causes an accident, they may be considered negligent.
Many types of negligence can cause a pedestrian accident, such as running a red light or not yielding to pedestrians in a crosswalk. You must present evidence proving someone else’s negligence to recover compensation.
Police reports and surveillance footage can often show that the driver who hit you was negligent. However, some cases require our attorneys to gather stronger evidence, such as witness statements. We may even need to subpoena cell phone records to show that the driver was using their phone when they hit you.
What Happens if You're Partially at Fault?
Drivers are primarily at fault for many pedestrian accidents. However, you may also be partially at fault for your injuries if you contributed to the accident in some way.
Under Virginia’s contributory negligence law, you cannot recover compensation if you’re partially at fault. This is true even if you’re only 1 percent at fault for your injuries.
Therefore, the insurance company will do everything in its power to argue that you were at least partially responsible for the accident. Our Portsmouth pedestrian accident attorneys can fight against this tactic and reduce your risk of losing compensation.
When To File a Claim
Virginia has a two-year statute of limitations for most personal injury claims. That means you must file a claim within two years of the accident date. If you miss the deadline, you may be unable to receive compensation for your injuries.
Some cases have different filing deadlines. For instance, injured minors may have until their 20th birthday to file a personal injury claim. If the Commonwealth or a city government is at fault for the accident, you may have as little as six months to provide formal notice of your claim.
It’s therefore crucial to consult with an attorney as soon as possible after a pedestrian injury, even if you have plenty of time to file. Quick action allows us to preserve key evidence before it fades. It also gives us more time to build a strong case before the statute of limitations runs out.
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Seek Help from a Portsmouth, VA, Pedestrian Accident Attorney
Getting hit by a car can cause life-changing injuries. If you do not take legal action against the person who hit you, you could be stuck paying for your medical bills and dealing with your personal losses all by yourself.
Fortunately, our Portsmouth pedestrian accident lawyers are here to provide dedicated guidance and support when seeking the compensation you deserve. Call today for a free consultation to learn more about how an attorney from our firm could help you.
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