Yes. In most situations, you can file a lawsuit against the person who ran you over, especially if their actions were careless, reckless, or unlawful. A driver may be legally liable for running someone over if their conduct behind the wheel violated a duty of care owed to others on the road, including pedestrians. A Northern Virginia personal injury lawyer can review how the crash happened and whether the driver’s carelessness caused your injuries.
In Virginia, the main legal option for a pedestrian hit by a car is to pursue a personal injury claim against the driver who was at fault. But filing a successful claim requires clear evidence of negligence and the damages you’re seeking.
Being hit by a vehicle as a pedestrian may trigger months or even years of medical treatment, lost income, and ongoing pain. In the chaos that follows, many victims are left wondering whether they have legal grounds to hold the driver accountable. Here’s what you need to know about suing someone so you can proceed with legal precision.
Proving the Driver Was Negligent
If a driver hit you while you were walking, you may have grounds to sue them. However, bringing a suit against someone is possible only if you can prove they were legally at fault. In a personal injury claim, this usually means showing that the driver was negligent.
Negligence is the term used to denote carelessness that causes harm to someone else. But in everyday language, it simply means the driver didn’t act as safely as they should have. They may have ignored a red light, failed to check their blind spot, looked at their phone, or driven too fast for the conditions. These are breaches of the basic responsibility every driver has to avoid causing harm to others on the road.
Driving under the influence is another example: drug-impaired driving is one of the most straightforward grounds for establishing fault, often supporting claims for punitive damages as well.
To hold someone legally responsible for running you over, your claim must establish four things:
- The driver had an obligation to act with reasonable care. Every driver has a duty to adhere to traffic regulations and operate their vehicle in a manner that avoids hurting others.
- They broke that duty. This could involve breaking a traffic rule, driving while distracted, or making a careless decision behind the wheel.
- Their actions caused the crash. The driver’s act, or failure to act, must be directly tied to how the collision happened and to the harm you suffered.
- You suffered damages. This includes physical injuries, medical bills, lost income, pain, and other financial or personal harm resulting from the collision.
Importantly, proving negligence doesn’t require showing that the driver intended to hit you, only that they acted carelessly in a way that led to your injuries.
When the Pedestrian Shares Some of the Blame
Many people worry that crossing outside a marked crosswalk ended their case. That does not always end your claim. While crosswalks provide pedestrians with the right-of-way, drivers still have a general duty to be aware of their surroundings and avoid collisions. The specific circumstances of the incident will determine who was at fault.
Insurers often argue that a pedestrian was partly to blame, for example by crossing against a signal, stepping out between parked cars, or walking where drivers could not see them. That argument carries more weight in Virginia than in most states. Virginia follows contributory negligence, which can bar a pedestrian from recovering anything if their own carelessness helped cause the crash, even in a small way.
The rule has limits. Under the last clear chance doctrine, a driver who had the final opportunity to avoid hitting a pedestrian who could not get out of the way may still be held responsible. Whether a pedestrian acted carelessly at all is also a question of fact, and a driver’s speeding or distraction often shapes how the whole crash is judged.
These disputes turn on details such as where you were crossing, the signal timing and what the driver could see. Our guide on whether a pedestrian can be at fault for a car accident walks through the arguments insurers raise most often.
Who Else May Owe Compensation
The driver is usually the main defendant, but other people or companies may share responsibility for a pedestrian crash. Depending on the facts, a claim may also name:
- An employer, if the driver was on the job, such as making deliveries or driving a company vehicle
- The vehicle’s owner, if the owner lent it to someone they knew was unsafe to drive
- A trucking, bus or delivery company that failed to hire, train or supervise its drivers with care
- A vehicle or parts maker, if a defect such as failed brakes or lights helped cause the crash
- A government body or contractor responsible for a dangerous road, crosswalk or signal
Claims against a government body follow special rules and can carry short notice deadlines, so they need prompt attention. Finding every responsible party usually takes the police report, ownership and employment records, and sometimes a reconstruction of the scene.
Naming each party matters because each one may carry its own insurance, which can increase the money available for serious injuries. Commercial vehicles raise their own questions, covered in our guide to trucking company liability.
Which Insurance Policies May Pay
In most pedestrian cases, the first source of payment is the at-fault driver’s liability insurance. Every policy has limits, and serious injuries can exceed them quickly.
What if the driver who hit me was uninsured or underinsured?
When the driver who hit you carries no insurance, or too little to pay for your losses, your own auto policy may let you make a claim. Uninsured/underinsured motorist (UM/UIM) coverage is designed for this exact situation and can provide a source of recovery. That coverage may apply even though you were on foot when you were hit, and a policy held by a relative you live with may also help.
How Insurers Handle Pedestrian Claims
The driver’s insurance company may contact you immediately, looking for any statement they can use to assign blame to you. Adjusters may also ask for a recorded statement or make a quick offer before the full extent of your injuries is known. Because any blame placed on you can threaten the whole claim, be careful about what you say and sign.
A first offer is a starting point, not a final word. Our article on refusing the insurance company’s offer explains what to weigh before you answer one.
Evidence That Connects the Driver to Your Injuries
Strong evidence is key. This includes the police report, photos of the accident scene and your injuries, contact information from any witnesses, medical records detailing your treatment, and documentation of your lost wages.
Medical proof matters as much as proof of fault. Seeing a doctor promptly and following the treatment plan creates records that tie the crash to your injuries, while gaps in care give an insurer room to argue that something else caused them.
Some evidence disappears quickly. Video from traffic cameras, buses, doorbells and nearby businesses may be recorded over within days or weeks, and skid marks and debris are soon cleared from the road. Asking for footage early, and keeping the clothes and shoes you wore, can preserve details about where and how you were struck.
A simple journal of your pain, sleep, missed work and the activities you can no longer do also helps show how the injuries changed your daily life.
What You Can Recover After Being Hit
Being hurt through another person’s negligence gives you a right to pursue payment for your losses. Understanding the causes of pedestrian accident cases can help clarify how fault is determined. The legal term for these losses is damages. The goal of seeking damages is to help restore you, as much as possible, to the financial position you were in before the accident.
A pedestrian injured in Virginia may be able to recover several kinds of damages, such as:
- Economic damages: These are the tangible financial losses that can be calculated and proven with receipts, bills, and pay stubs. This category covers medical treatments, hospital stays, future medical care, physical therapy, lost wages from being unable to work, and any reduction in your future earning ability.
- Non-economic damages: These damages are for intangible losses that don’t have a specific price tag but significantly affect your quality of life. This includes physical pain, mental and emotional suffering, scarring or disfigurement, and the inconvenience caused by the injury.
These categories help ensure that a settlement or award reflects the full scope of the harm you have experienced. In practice, the total is often limited by the insurance coverage available and by any fault an insurer can place on the pedestrian. Our guide to pedestrian accident compensation looks at value in more detail.
Getting Help With a Pedestrian Claim
Pursuing a personal injury claim can be a complex process, especially when you are focused on healing. A lawyer can take on tasks such as:
- Accurately calculating the full value of your damages, including future medical needs and lost earning potential.
- Speaking with the insurers for you so your interests stay protected
Timing matters too: Virginia generally allows two years from the date the cause of action accrues to file a personal injury lawsuit. A Northern Virginia pedestrian accident lawyer will help strengthen your case and seek compensation that can reasonably reclaim your life. At Tysons Trial Law, attorney Amy Griggs is recognized in Top 50: 2026 Women Virginia Super Lawyers.
A case review usually starts with how the crash happened, the injuries and treatment so far, and any insurance letters you have received. If you are weighing whether to hire help at all, our article on whether you need a pedestrian accident attorney covers the main factors.
Talk With Tysons Trial Law
If you or a family member was harmed by someone else’s carelessness, Tysons Trial Law, PLLC can review what happened in a free consultation.
