Zebra Crossing Law and Claims

Road traffic accidents do not just involve those in motor vehicles; they can also involve innocent pedestrians who are struck by those driving motor vehicles.  At The Injury Lawyers we are only too aware of the number of pedestrians who have been involved in road traffic accidents, have dealt with numerous pedestrian accident claims.  Although there have been plenty of vigorous safety campaigns, it would appear that some motorists neglect to consider the harm their actions may have on pedestrians. 

Despite pedestrians having their own routes, normally paths and crossings, they can still be caught up in collisions with motor vehicles.  This blog focuses on accidents at zebra crossings.

Too many accidents occur on zebra crossings.  It would seem that some motorists do not heed the presence of a zebra crossing nor take into account the likelihood that a pedestrian will be using that zebra crossing to get from one side of the road to the other and end up hitting the pedestrian, causing them injury.  It may be that one of the reasons there are accidents at zebra crossings is because there are no traffic lights and the pedestrian is relying on the fact that a motorist should give way to them.  Either way, motorists have a duty to slow when approaching a zebra crossing to ensure that they are able to give way to any pedestrian waiting to cross, and that they are not to proceed until the pedestrian has fully reached the other side of the road.

Importantly, although a zebra crossing is the pedestrian’s right of crossing, this does not mean that a pedestrian can simply just walk out onto the zebra crossing and expect all vehicles to stop.  As we at The Injury Lawyers are only too aware, not all motorists are polite enough to allow pedestrians to cross at zebra crossings, and for this reason pedestrians must ensure that all motor vehicles have stopped before using the zebra crossing.  Although motor vehicles should stop at zebra crossings, if a pedestrian walks in front of a car at a zebra crossing, there will certainly be an argument to say that any injuries caused from a resulting collision may be the fault of the pedestrian – for that reason they may not be compensated or may face having their compensation reduced.

The law allows for injured party’s to claim compensation from those whose negligence caused these injuries to obtain compensation.  To find out if you have a potential claim for compensation, the best thing to do is to get in touch with a quality and expert injury lawyer with vast experience in dealing with personal injury claims, so that they can assess your prospects of a successful claim and advise you on the next steps. 

At The Injury Lawyers we are on hand every week day between 9am and 10pm and weekend day between 9am and 5pm to answer any queries you may have.  Call us on 0800 634 75 75.