Miami and Tampa pedestrian accident lawyer

You were walking. A car policy still pays first.

Florida is consistently among the deadliest states in the country for people on foot, and both of these metros sit near the top of the national lists. A pedestrian has no metal around them and no policy of their own in the crash — which makes the question of whose insurance responds the first thing worth answering.

Free case review Miami (305) 662-4323 Tampa (813) 930-5422

Whose PIP pays: Yours firstThen a household policy, then the car that hit you
See a doctor within: 14 daysThe PIP deadline applies to pedestrians too. § 627.736
Deadline to sue: 2 yearsFla. Stat. § 95.11, for crashes on or after 24 March 2023
Fault limit: 50%Over half at fault and the claim is barred. § 768.81

01 The coverage question

Whose insurance pays when a pedestrian is hit in Florida

If you own a car, your own PIP covers you as a pedestrian. If you do not, a resident relative’s policy may. If neither exists, the PIP of the vehicle that struck you generally responds.

The fourteen-day rule follows you into all of it. A pedestrian who walks away sore, goes home and sees a doctor three weeks later has the same problem as a driver who does — the benefit is simply gone.

The hard exception is the same one: if you owned an operable car in Florida and did not insure it, no PIP is available to you at all.

02 Fault is the whole argument

How fault is decided in a Florida pedestrian accident

Florida’s traffic statutes give pedestrians the right of way in marked crosswalks and at intersections, and require drivers to exercise due care regardless. They also put obligations on the pedestrian — crossing outside a crosswalk, against a signal, or stepping into the path of a vehicle too close to yield.

Since 2023 that matters more than it used to. Comparative fault no longer merely reduces a recovery; above 50% it eliminates it. An insurer defending a pedestrian claim will spend its effort on exactly this, and will often have the first and only version of events while the injured person is still in hospital.

Which makes early evidence decisive: signal timing, the position of the vehicle, lighting, witness names, and any camera on a nearby business.

03 Where these cases come from

Miami-Dade

Miami-Dade pedestrian injuries concentrate on US-1, Biscayne Boulevard, Flagler and the wide arterial roads through Hialeah and Little Havana, where crossings are far apart and traffic moves at speed. Serious injuries go to Ryder Trauma at Jackson Memorial.

The Miami office · Homestead

Hillsborough

Hillsborough injuries follow Hillsborough Avenue, Nebraska, Fletcher and Dale Mabry — long commercial corridors with distant crossings and heavy night traffic. Serious injuries are routed to Tampa General.

The Tampa office

04 What damages a claim

Assuming no car of your own means no coverage. Usually there is some.
Missing the fourteen-day window because nothing was broken.
Leaving the scene without anyone taking witness names.
Letting the driver’s insurer take your statement before the police report is even available.

Frequently asked questions about Florida pedestrian accidents

I was crossing mid-block. Is my claim over?

Not automatically. It becomes an argument about percentages, and the 50% bar makes that argument decisive rather than merely expensive.

Driver speed, lighting, visibility, distraction and whether there was any reasonable crossing nearby all go into it. Crossing outside a crosswalk is not an automatic verdict against you.

The driver was never identified. What then?

That becomes an uninsured motorist claim under your own policy or a resident relative’s, if that coverage exists.

Report it to police promptly. A delayed report is the first thing a carrier points to when it wants to question whether the crash happened as described.

05 Related matters

The full list is on the personal injury page.

Tell Jose what happened

A free review of your pedestrian accidents case, with no obligation, and no fee and no costs unless there is a recovery. English or Spanish, whichever you would rather use. You speak with Jose A. Dapena directly at every stage, not with an intake department — and if there is no claim worth bringing, he will tell you that.

Miami (305) 662-4323 Homestead (786) 900-0184 Tampa (813) 930-5422