Throughout the United States and the world pedestrian accidents are becoming a serious problem. 64,000 pedestrians are injured and 5000 pedestrians are killed each year in America in accidents involving all types of motor vehicles. The National Highway Traffic Association and the lesser-known Insurance Institute for Highway Safety compile annual statistical studies of all types of accidents, which show that pedestrian deaths are the second leading cause of fatalities from motor vehicle accidents and that on average every 2 hours a pedestrian dies as a result of a traffic accident.

Most pedestrian deaths occur in urban not rural locations, where there is a higher density of people and motor vehicles and a higher level of pedestrian and traffic activity. However, when comparing the statistics of pedestrian deaths to pedestrian injuries the rate of pedestrian death is far higher in rural areas primarily because the accidents involve greater speeds at impact. Although only 11% of all motor vehicle fatalities involve a pedestrian or pedestrians, in the average 30-year period approximately 180,000 pedestrians lose their lives due to accidents involving motor vehicles. In fact, a pedestrian is injured in a traffic accident approximately every 8 minutes in the United States.

While approximately 85% of all non-fatal pedestrian accidents take place in urban areas as compared to 14% in rural areas, males in both locations are far more likely than females to be involved in a pedestrian accident. 69% of all fatalities due to pedestrian accidents are male and 58% of all pedestrian injuries occur to men. Children and teenagers under the age of 16 and elderly individuals over the age of 65 are the most vulnerable to serious injury from a pedestrian accident but anytime a motor vehicle for collides with an unprotected human being the pedestrian is in danger of sustaining more than one severe injury. The head, torso, legs and arms are the most vulnerable areas in these sorts of accidents and serious injuries can include severed spinal cords, traumatic brain injuries, fractured or damaged bones, crushed internal organs and deep contusions.

Although motor vehicle drivers are legally required to carry insurance to cover expenses in the event of an accident, pedestrians infrequently carry insurance policies for their own financial and physical protection. Sadly, if a pedestrian is involved in an accident with a driver without insurance they may easily go bankrupt from the medical costs and lost work time caused by the accident. For this reason it is imperative to contact an experienced personal injury lawyer any event of a pedestrian accident.