Pedestrian Injuries in San Francisco and Right of Way

Every person should know that if he is hit by a car when they cross the street not in the crosswalk, they will likely not be able to recover compensation for their injuries. The pedestrian law is clear - a pedestrian does not have the right of way when he or she crosses the road outside the crosswalk.  This is especially true if the driver has no way of seeing that a pedestrian is intending to cross the street up until right before hitting the person, as it would be in cases where the pedestrians pops out from between the parked cars.

Over the past few years I had to regretfully inform several people who had very serious injuries when they tried to run across the street but not in a crosswalk, that I simply couldn't help them beyond referring them to the good doctors.

On the other hand, the law is very protective of those pedestrians who proceed across the street through the crosswalk, giving absolute right of way to pedestrians. In cases where a pedestrian is hit while in a crosswalk, the driver will almost always be found liable for those injuries, regardless of why the driver couldn't see the pedestrian (i.e. time of the day, weather condition, etc.).

---