What should I do after being hit by a car as a pedestrian in Florida?

What to do when you are hit by a car while walking

If you are hit by a car while walking, call 911 and get medical care first. Get the driver's name, address and vehicle registration, the names of witnesses, and the police report number, and see a doctor within 14 days, because to get Florida PIP (personal injury protection) medical benefits, your first care must come within that time.

If the driver drove off, call the police right away, because Florida's crime victim compensation program generally makes no award if the crime was reported more than five days after it happened. For more on Florida pedestrian claims, see pedestrian accident lawyers in Melbourne.

What does Florida law say after you're hit by a car?

The driver must stop, share information and help

Under section 316.027, Florida Statutes, a driver in a crash that injures or kills someone "shall immediately stop" and "shall remain at the scene of the crash" until meeting the requirements of section 316.062. Under section 316.062, Florida Statutes, that driver must "give his or her name, address, and the registration number of the vehicle" to anyone hurt, show their driver license on request if available, and "render to any person injured in the crash reasonable assistance," including getting you to a doctor or hospital if it is apparent you need treatment or if you ask.

Police and the crash report

Under section 316.066, Florida Statutes, when an officer investigates a crash in which anyone involved was killed or injured, or showed "any indication of complaints of pain or discomfort," the officer must complete a Florida Traffic Crash Report, Long Form, and submit it within 10 days after the investigation is completed. The long form must list, among other things, the names and addresses of witnesses and "the names of the insurance companies" for the parties.

PIP can cover you on foot

Under section 627.736, Florida Statutes, a policy that meets Florida's PIP requirement must cover the policyholder and certain others, including "other persons struck by the motor vehicle and suffering bodily injury while not an occupant of a self-propelled vehicle," such as someone on foot, subject to other parts of the law. For an injury in Florida caused by physical contact with a motor vehicle while you were not in a self-propelled vehicle, whose insurer pays depends on you:

• If you own a car with Florida PIP, your own insurer must pay you PIP benefits.
• If you live with a relative who owns a car with Florida PIP, and you don't own a vehicle that must carry Florida PIP, the relative's insurer must pay you.
• Otherwise, you may get PIP from the insurer of the owner of the car that hit you, but only if you are a Florida resident, don't own a vehicle that must carry Florida PIP, and aren't entitled to PIP from the insurer of the owner of such a vehicle.

For more, see Who pays if a car hits you while walking or biking in Florida? To get PIP medical benefits, you must receive first care "within 14 days after the motor vehicle accident." That care must be lawfully provided, supervised, ordered or prescribed by a medical doctor or osteopathic physician, a dentist, a chiropractic physician, or an advanced practice registered nurse registered under section 464.0123, or be provided in a hospital or in a facility that owns, or is wholly owned by, a hospital; a licensed emergency transportation and treatment provider may also give first care.

Your share of fault

Under section 768.81, Florida Statutes, in a negligence case (a claim that someone was careless), your own share of fault "diminishes proportionately" your damages (the money you can recover) but does not by itself bar recovery, subject to the more-than-50-percent rule. If you are found "greater than 50 percent at fault" for your own harm, you "may not recover any damages," a bar that does not apply to injury or death claims arising out of medical negligence. That rule came from Chapter 2023-15, Laws of Florida, and applies to lawsuits filed after March 24, 2023. Judges decide how the law applies to the facts of each case, and some have ruled differently for injuries that happened before the change, but the law on the books stands.

What happens after you get hit by a car?

At the scene

If an ambulance takes you before you can get the driver's details, ask for the officer's name, agency and report number, or have someone ask for you.

A claim against the driver

You may be able to recover pain and suffering damages from the driver, depending on your injury. Under section 627.737, Florida Statutes, in a lawsuit against the owner, registrant (the person the car is registered to), driver or occupant of a PIP-insured vehicle, damages for pain, suffering, mental anguish and inconvenience are recoverable "only in the event that" the injury includes significant and permanent loss of an important bodily function, a permanent injury within a reasonable degree of medical probability (other than scarring or disfigurement), significant and permanent scarring or disfigurement, or death. See Can I sue the other driver after a Florida car accident if I have PIP?

Other questions after being hit by a car

If you get hit by a car, can you sue?

You may be able to sue a driver whose negligence caused your injuries, subject to the fault rule, the injury rule for pain and suffering when the car that hit you was PIP-insured, and the deadline on this page. Who is to blame depends on the facts; see Who is at fault when a car hits a pedestrian in Florida?

What if the driver who hit me drove away?

Call the police right away. Willfully leaving the scene of a crash that injures someone is a felony. If you qualify, you may be able to apply to Florida's crime victim compensation program. Its rules are in sections 960.03, 960.065, 960.07 and 960.13, Florida Statutes:

• A "crime" for this program includes a driver leaving the scene of a crash that injures or kills someone, or driving under the influence, among other listed offenses, when it results in physical injury or death. Other driving counts only if the injury or death was intentionally inflicted through the use of the vehicle.
• A victim, or certain family members or dependents of a victim who died, can be eligible, but generally not someone who committed or helped commit the crime, was engaged in an unlawful activity at the time (with a narrow exception), or falls in certain other listed groups; for some of those other groups, the state may still approve an award if mitigating or special circumstances would make the disqualification unjust.
• For a crime on or after October 1, 2019, no award is made if the crime was reported more than five days after it happened, unless the program finds good cause for the delay, and the claim must be filed within 3 years after the latest of the crime, the victim's death, or the date the death is determined to be the result of the crime; for good cause, the program may extend that to no more than 5 years after the crime, and different deadlines apply if the victim was under 18 at the time. An award may be denied, reduced or withdrawn if you don't cooperate with the state attorney, law enforcement and the program.
• Awards are based on "actual need" and come after all benefits from primary insurance, including automobile accident coverage, as payment of last resort. An award is reduced, or the claim rejected, to match how much the program finds your own conduct contributed to your injury, and it must be denied if you will not suffer serious financial hardship from your lost earnings or support and out-of-pocket losses.
• The Florida Bureau of Victim Compensation, in the Attorney General's office, starts the process when it receives a claim form and acceptable proof of the crime (some exceptions may apply). Call (800) 226-6667.

A lawyer can check whether any of your own insurance may also apply.

Should I talk to the driver's insurance company?

Be careful. Under section 90.803, Florida Statutes, the hearsay rule does not keep out your own statement when it is offered against you in a court case, so what you say about the crash, to the driver, an insurer or online, can be offered as evidence against you. Give facts only, don't guess, don't say you're fine before a doctor checks you, and talk to a lawyer before any recorded statement.

What to do in the days and weeks after the crash

• See a doctor even if you feel fine, and keep every follow-up visit.
• If you have car insurance, tell your own insurer about the crash, since your own PIP may be the one that pays.
• Get the crash report. According to FLHSMV, its official portal, Buy Florida Crash Reports, sells crash reports for $10.00 per report plus a $2.00 convenience fee for each payment transaction, and crashes from the last 10 days may not show up yet. Reports with the personal information of the people involved are confidential for 60 days after filing, but may be released right away to the people involved, their lawyers, their insurers and others the law lists.

Evidence to keep

• Photos of your injuries over the following days and weeks.
• Photos or video of the spot (crosswalk, signals, signs, lighting), the car and its plate.
• Your clothes and shoes, as they were, and witnesses' phone numbers.
• Nearby homes or businesses that may have cameras. Ask them soon.
• Medical bills, records and receipts, records of missed work, and notes on your pain and what you can't do.

Your deadline to file a lawsuit

Under section 95.11, Florida Statutes, a lawsuit for an injury caused by negligence must be filed within two years. That two-year rule applies only to claims that arose after the 2023 change took effect on March 24, 2023, and under section 768.28, Florida Statutes, a negligence lawsuit against a Florida state or local government agency must be filed within 4 years after the claim arises, except medical malpractice and wrongful death claims, which follow the deadlines in section 95.11(5). Before you can sue a government agency, a written claim generally must be presented within 3 years after the claim arises (2 years for wrongful death) and then denied, or left without a final decision for the time the law allows. Older claims follow different rules, explained in How long do I have to file a personal injury claim in Florida?

Talk to a Melbourne pedestrian accident lawyer

Douglas R. Beam, P.A. is a personal injury law firm in Melbourne, Florida. If you were hit by a car while walking, you can talk with us in a free consultation.

Call us at (321) 723-6591, or send us a message through our website. Our office is at 25 West New Haven Avenue, Suite C, Melbourne, FL 32901.

Sources

• Section 316.027, Florida Statutes
• Section 316.062, Florida Statutes
• Section 316.066, Florida Statutes
• FLHSMV: Buy Florida Crash Reports
• Section 627.736, Florida Statutes
• Section 627.737, Florida Statutes
• Section 768.81, Florida Statutes
• Chapter 2023-15, Laws of Florida
• Section 960.03, Florida Statutes
• Section 960.065, Florida Statutes
• Section 960.07, Florida Statutes
• Section 960.13, Florida Statutes
• Florida Attorney General: Bureau of Victim Compensation
• Section 90.803, Florida Statutes
• Section 95.11, Florida Statutes
• Section 768.28, Florida Statutes