The statutes which can be used to argue the relative faults of the driver and the pedestrian include: N.R.S. 484.043, which defines crosswalks; N.R.S. 484.327 which gives the right of way to the driver in every case in which a pedestrian is not in a marked or unmarked crosswalk; N.R.S. 484.3245 which states that every driver shall use due care to avoid hitting a pedestrian; and N.R.S. 484.325(3) which states that whenever a vehicle is stopped at a marked or unmarked crosswalk at an intersection, “the driver of any other vehicle approaching from the rear shall not overtake and pass the stopped vehicle until the driver has determined that the vehicle being overtaken was not stopped for the purpose of permitting a pedestrian to cross the highway.”
Having lived in Las Vegas since 1981, I don’t think car drivers give pedestrians any respect at these unmarked statutory crosswalks and it’s even risky assuming a car will stop at a marked crosswalk. I think you could even make a safety argument that carefully crossing in the middle of the street is safer since you don’t have to worry about getting hit by cars zipping around corners. But, as you can see from the above statutes, a pedestrian hit inside marked or unmarked crosswalk has a much better chance of winning money damages than a pedestrian hit outside a crosswalk.
Intersection Collisions Between Vehicles: Police generally assume that a vehicle which enters an intersection on a yellow light has the right of way in the intersection until it clears the intersection--even if it entered with insufficient time to clear the intersection before the light turns red. This is based on N.R.S. 384.315 which says the driver of a vehicle approaching an intersection shall yield to one already in the intersection and upon N.R.S.384.319(2) which states that a driver approaching an intersection shall also yield to vehicles which are approaching so closely as to constitute an immediate hazard during the time such driver is moving across or within the intersection.
So, if the traffic light facing you turns green as you approach an intersection and you hit the gas and head into the intersection, you may be at fault if you collide with a car in the intersection.
Duty to Report Collisions: If you are involved in a motor vehicle accident on public roads or property to which the public has access, you are required to promptly stop if there is a death or personal injury. You must render first aid if necessary to an injured party and notify the police. Failure to do so is a Class B Felony with a prison term of 2-15 years under N.R.S. 384.219(3). This severe penalty is designed to discourage drunk drivers from leaving the scene while they sober up. Personal injury is not defined by this statute so it presumably includes minor personal injury such as small cuts or “whiplash.”
If your car damages an empty vehicle or damages other property you are required to make a report to the police as quickly as possible, according to N.R.S. 484.227; presumably if you have a cell phone that means a 911 call. You must also leave a note on the damaged vehicle or property identifying yourself under N.R.S. 225.
If you drive your own car into a rock or other object without doing any property damage to anything but your own car and you don’t hurt yourself or anyone else, then under N.R.S. 484.229, if the damage to your own car is $750 or more, you are still required to file a report to the police within 10 days. Yes, I have had clients who have faced criminal liability for failing to report a no-injury accident with no damage except to their own car.
Over the years I have had many clients who have been involved in a fender bender and then both drivers agree to exchange information and not wait for the police to investigate. In these days of cell phones I believe you are technically violating the law if you don’t at least call 911, explain the situation, and ask if you should wait for an investigating officer. While the police may agree that in a no-injury or minor injury situation it is not necessary to send an officer to investigate, if you are in the right, you may compromise your legal situation by missing the chance to have an independent person investigate the accident and assign fault. The other driver who verbally apologizes or admits fault may well deny being at fault later on. Usually if there is an accident on public roads, even without injury, the police will eventually come and investigate if requested.
Parking Lot Collisions:
Police usually refuse to investigate minor car accidents on private property such as parking lots. But this does not relieve you of the reporting duties described above.
How Fault Determines Whether you Can Get Paid for Injuries in an Auto Collision:
Usually the passenger of a motor vehicle is not at fault for any collision. Therefore, the passenger can collect for injuries regardless of which driver was at fault provided there is insurance as discussed below in the section, “What is ‘full insurance coverage’”?.
Applying N.R.S. 41.141 to a two vehicle collision one driver could collect personal injury damages from the other driver provided that the driver seeking damages is not more at fault than the other driver. The driver seeking damages will have his or their recovery reduced by the percentage the driver seeking damages is at fault. For example, a driver who is 50% at fault can collect 50% of the normal personal injury damages. A driver who is 20% at fault can collect 80% of the normal damages. A driver who is 51% or more at fault can not collect any damages. The only case in which both drivers can recover from each other if they are each 50% at fault in which case each will collect half of their damages.
Fault determinations are made either in negotiations or by a judge or jury. If one party has violated a statute relevant to the collision, for example, failure to yield, speeding, etc., a conviction for violating the statute—for example, paying the failure to yield ticket—can be used as evidence in any civil case. If the person who got a citation succeeds in having the citation dismissed, the citation will not be automatic evidence of negligence, but the other side can still argue the issue.
How are Money Damages for Physical Injury Determined?
Money damages for physical injury are awarded based on specific claims:
First, there should be an award for medical expenses. This award is usually based on the actual bill, provided that the medical services were reasonable and necessary and caused by the action sued upon. The fact that the plaintiff (person suing for injury) may have medical insurance is usually irrelevant. The defendant caused injury and must pay for the medical bills. This award will cover past medical bills and a provision for future medical bills if future medical care is more likely than not to be necessary because of the collision.
Second, there should be an award for pain and suffering. This is very subjective. This award can include both past and future pain and suffering.
Third, there may be an award for lost wages or income. Sometimes this is easy to calculate. For wage earners it may be straight forward to calculate how many days of work at a specific wage were missed due to a collision. A wage earner who has sick leave can still collect for missed work. But if the plaintiff had already been missing work because of other problems it could be more complicated. For self-employed people it is harder to calculate a wage loss since such people usually have variable income and don’t work regular hours. In all cases the insurance company paying the damages will try to prevent payment to claimants who illegally don’t pay taxes. The insurance company will demand copies of filed tax returns or an authorization to obtain filed tax returns. If the plaintiff hasn’t been paying taxes the plaintiff has to admit the felony of income tax evasion or abandon the wage loss claim.
Fourth, the injured person may in some cases be able to claim that they have been disabled from further work or from future work for a certain period of time.
Fifth, in some cases family members can make a claim for injury to one of their relatives. If a wage earner has been killed the spouse or children may sue for loss of support. In the case of serious injury a spouse may sue for “loss of consortium” which can cover both loss of sexual relations and compensation for other disruption to the marriage. A spouse or parent may sue for lost income from necessarily missing work to care for the injured person.
In all of these cases, if there is a substantial claim for future damages (lost income, pain and suffering, medical care) it may be necessary for your attorney to hire an economist to testify to the present value of these future claims.
What is “full insurance coverage?”:
If you are in a car accident there are 4 major types of coverage which may be important. For damage to your own car there is collision insurance. This is no-fault coverage which provides for the repair of your car no matter who was at fault. If your car is leased or financed you must have this coverage. Usually this insurance has a deductible such as $100 or $500, or even $1,000. Your own insurance company may suggest to you that you not claim against your own company and instead claim against the other driver’s insurance company. This is usually bad advice which can delay getting your property damage fixed. If the other driver was at fault and you claim against your own insurance company your own insurance company will collect what they pay from the other insurance company and even collect your deductible for you. Whether or not your insurance rates get raised will depend on who was at fault, not on whether you claimed against your own policy.
You are required to have liability coverage. This coverage protects other people if you cause injury to them or damage their vehicles in a collision at which you are at fault. Liability coverage also protects you because if you become financially obligated to someone else, the liability coverage takes over your obligation. However, the minimum amount of liability coverage you are required to have according to N.R.S. 485.185 is only $15,000 for injury or death to one person, $30,000 for injury or death to any number of people in one accident, and $10,000 for damage to property. As you can see this amount of coverage is inadequate. It is a good idea to buy much higher limits.
But if you are a good driver, you are more in danger of being the victim than the cause of personal injury. A driver who hits you might be uninsured or underinsured because the driver has only the low limits mentioned above. Therefore it is a good idea to buy uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage. This insurance means that if another driver injures you and does not have sufficient liability coverage to compensate you, your own insurance company will compensate you up to the combined amount of your own uninsured/underinsured coverage plus whatever liability coverage the other driver may have. Your own insurance company must offer you according to N.R.S. 687B.145(2) uninsured/underinsured coverage in an amount equal to the liability limit you purchase. This coverage also protects you under N.R.S. 690B.020 in the event that you are hit by a hit and run driver or in the event that the other driver’s insurance company goes bankrupt and can’t pay you. In addition, most liability insurance only covers the insured driver and people using the vehicle with the permission of the insured driver. If someone uses an insured vehicle without the permission of the insured driver the liability coverage does not apply. This happens when the vehicle is stolen and sometimes happens when a friend or relative takes the vehicle without the owner’s permission. (When a friend or relative uses the vehicle without express permission there is often an issue as to whether permission was implied.) If you are in a collision which is not your fault and the other driver was using an insured vehicle without the owner’s permission uninsured motorist coverage will compensate you.
Finally, a great additional benefit of uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage is that it covers the insured driver when the insured driver is a passenger in someone else’s vehicle or a pedestrian. And this coverage also applies to most people in the insured driver’s house such as children.
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