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By Jared J. Pehrson | Impact Legal Car Accident Attorneys | Updated January 2026
Arizona has one of the highest pedestrian fatality rates in the country. In 2023, ADOT recorded 287 pedestrian deaths statewide, with Maricopa County accounting for more than half. Someone hit by a car in Phoenix is not dealing with a routine fender-bender. They are dealing with serious injuries, an insurance company that already has a strategy, and a 2-year clock that started ticking the moment the driver made contact.
Our team handles pedestrian cases in Phoenix and across Maricopa County. This page answers the questions people actually ask in a first phone call: what a case like this is typically worth, how fault works when a driver hits a pedestrian in Arizona, what insurance covers the bills, and what to do in the next 72 hours. Free case review: (602) 345-1818.
Phoenix is one of the deadliest US metros for pedestrians. Here is what the data shows:
Why does this matter? Two reasons. First, juries in Maricopa County know these numbers, and they understand that pedestrian crashes here are usually not the pedestrian’s fault. Second, the patterns (night, arterial road, failure to yield) often line up with the police report, which helps prove driver liability.
If you are reading this in the hours or days after a crash, here is the short version:
When someone calls us after a pedestrian crash, here is what actually happens, not a generic bullet list.
Hour 1. We get the client’s version of events while it’s fresh. We confirm where they are being treated. We tell them what to say (and not say) if the driver’s insurance calls.
First 24 hours. We get the Phoenix PD or DPS crash report request started. We send a letter of representation to the driver’s insurance, which stops the calls to the client. If the driver was uninsured or fled, we notify the client’s own auto insurer (or a household member’s) to open a UM claim.
First 72 hours. We send a preservation letter to anyone with relevant video: nearby businesses, traffic cams, doorbell cameras, RTA bus cameras, Valley Metro light rail cameras. Phoenix surveillance footage is typically overwritten in 7 to 30 days. Miss that window and the footage is gone for good.
We also start mapping the scene. Was the crosswalk signalized? Was there adequate lighting? Was there a driver sight-line obstruction (parked truck, landscaping, glare)? Those facts move comparative fault percentages.
The client focuses on medical recovery. Our team handles the rest.
Pedestrian cases are usually worth more than equivalent car-on-car cases, because the injuries are worse. A person hit by a 4,000-pound vehicle at 30 mph absorbs the entire force of the impact.
Realistic settlement ranges in Maricopa County, based on injury severity:
These are ranges, not promises. The actual number depends on liability strength, available insurance, medical specials, lost income, and how a Maricopa County jury would view the facts.
Insurance policy limits often cap recovery. Arizona’s minimum liability limit is $25,000 per person. That is often not enough to cover a serious pedestrian injury. We look immediately for additional coverage: the driver’s umbrella policy, employer coverage if the driver was on the clock, and the injured person’s own UM/UIM.
For more on damages categories, see our pages on economic damages and non-economic damages.
Arizona is one of the more plaintiff-friendly damages jurisdictions in the country. Under Arizona Constitution, Article 2, § 31, the state legislature is prohibited from capping damages in personal injury and wrongful death cases. There is no cap on pain and suffering. No cap on medical bills. No cap on lost earning capacity.
Available categories of recovery may include:
Economic damages (the numbers on paper):
– Past and future medical expenses
– Lost wages
– Lost future earning capacity
– Property damage (phone, clothing, glasses, anything destroyed in the impact)
– Out-of-pocket costs (parking at the hospital, prescriptions, medical equipment)
Non-economic damages (the human costs):
– Pain and suffering
– Scarring and disfigurement
– Loss of enjoyment of life
– Emotional distress
– Loss of consortium (for spouses)
Punitive damages are rare and require clear and convincing evidence of “evil mind” conduct. They sometimes apply in claims involving extreme DUI, street racing, or hit-and-run. They are designed to punish the driver, not to compensate the injured person.
This is where most pedestrian claims are won or lost. Arizona law puts significant duties on drivers, and the insurance company will work hard to shift fault to the pedestrian anyway.
The two key statutes:
If a pedestrian was in a crosswalk and a driver hit them, the driver is almost always liable. If the pedestrian was crossing mid-block, the analysis gets more complicated, but it does not end the claim.
Crossing outside a crosswalk does not automatically lose a case. It triggers comparative fault analysis. The driver still has the statutory duty under § 28-794 to exercise due care. A driver who was speeding, distracted, or impaired is still substantially at fault even if the pedestrian was technically jaywalking.
Yes. Arizona uses pure comparative negligence under A.R.S. § 12-2505. Arizona is one of only 12 states that follows the pure comparative rule, which is unusually favorable to injured plaintiffs.
Here is how it works in practice. A fault percentage reduces recovery by that percentage, but it does not eliminate it.
Example: A jury values a claim at $100,000. The jury finds the pedestrian was 30% at fault because they crossed mid-block at night in dark clothing. Recovery: $70,000.
In a modified comparative state (like most of the country), being 50% or 51% at fault would zero out the claim. In Arizona, even at 80% fault, a pedestrian can recover 20% of their damages. The only bar to recovery under § 12-2505 is intentional, willful, or wanton conduct that caused the injury, or being 100% at fault.
This is why insurance adjusters work so hard to inflate the pedestrian’s fault percentage. Every percentage point they pin on the injured person saves them money. Don’t help them. Don’t apologize, don’t speculate, and don’t agree with their version of events without a lawyer reviewing it first.
Phoenix’s road design is part of the problem. The arterial roads were built for cars moving at 45+ mph, with long blocks between signalized crossings. That forces pedestrians to either walk an extra quarter-mile or take their chances mid-block.
Crash hotspots we see repeatedly:
If a crash happened in one of these corridors, there is often a documented history of similar incidents, which can support a claim that the city or ADOT had notice of a dangerous condition. That opens a separate (and shorter) legal path. See the government claims rule below.
Most people assume that if a car hit them, the car’s insurance pays. That is the starting point, but it is often not the whole picture, especially in Phoenix where uninsured driver rates are high.
Sources of recovery in a pedestrian claim:
Pedestrians can claim under their own UM/UIM coverage even though they were not in a car. Under A.R.S. § 20-259.01, uninsured motorist coverage follows the insured person, not the vehicle. If a pedestrian was hit while walking and the driver was uninsured, underinsured, or fled the scene, the pedestrian’s own auto policy’s UM/UIM coverage applies. If the pedestrian does not have a personal auto policy, a resident relative’s policy may cover them.
This matters enormously. Someone may be paying $20 a month for $250,000 in UM coverage they didn’t know would protect them while walking. We have recovered seven-figure totals on claims where the driver had only the minimum policy but the household had stacked UM coverage.
Phoenix has one of the highest hit-and-run rates of any major US city, and pedestrians are disproportionately the victims. The driver flees, the situation feels hopeless, and people often assume there is no recovery available.
There usually is. A UM policy treats a hit-and-run driver as an uninsured motorist. As long as the injured person can prove (1) they were hit by a vehicle and (2) the driver fled without identifying themselves, the UM carrier owes the same compensation as if the driver had been identified and sued directly.
Practical tips for hit-and-run pedestrian claims:
Pedestrians have no airbags, crumple zones, or seatbelts. The injuries are usually severe and frequently permanent:
A common pattern: someone gets discharged from the ER with what looks like a bad sprain, then weeks later an MRI reveals a torn ACL, hairline pelvic fracture, or concussion the ER missed. Document every symptom. Tell every provider about every body part that hurts. Gaps in treatment are the first thing the defense attacks.
Based on Phoenix PD and ADOT crash data, the dominant causes are:
The insurance company will try to anchor on pedestrian behavior (jaywalking, dark clothing, headphones). Don’t accept that framing. Driver behavior is almost always the primary cause in a fatal or serious-injury crash.
Under Arizona’s statute of limitations, A.R.S. § 12-542, an injured person has 2 years from the date of injury to file a personal injury or wrongful death lawsuit. Miss that deadline and the claim is over, regardless of how strong the facts are.
Three important exceptions:
Minors. Under A.R.S. § 12-502, the 2-year clock is tolled for injured minors. The statute of limitations does not start running until the minor turns 18, giving them until their 20th birthday to file. A parent can file on the child’s behalf at any time before then.
Mental incompetency. Also tolled under § 12-502 if the injured person is of unsound mind at the time of injury.
Government entities. If the claim involves a government vehicle, a government employee driving on the job, or a municipal road defect, A.R.S. § 12-821.01 requires a Notice of Claim within 180 days of the injury. That is six months, not two years. Miss it and the claim against the government is barred forever, even if the regular 2-year statute has not run. Examples that trigger the 180-day rule:
If there is any chance a government entity is involved, talk to a lawyer immediately. The 180-day notice has strict content requirements (specific dollar demand, factual basis) and a single mistake can void the claim.
To prove a pedestrian claim, the injured person will need to establish negligence: the driver owed a duty of care, committed a breach of duty, and caused the injuries. For broader questions on Arizona personal injury law, see our Phoenix personal injury FAQ.
Our team works on contingency. No upfront fee, no hourly billing, no retainer. We get paid a percentage of the recovery only if there is a recovery. If there is no recovery, the client owes nothing in attorney’s fees.
That arrangement matters in pedestrian cases because the injuries are usually serious and the bills pile up fast. Contingency means an injured person can hire experienced counsel without writing a check while they are still in physical therapy.
The injured person’s own UM coverage applies. Under A.R.S. § 20-259.01, UM follows the insured person, not the vehicle. If the pedestrian does not have a personal auto policy, a resident relative’s policy may cover them. We routinely pursue UM claims for pedestrian clients.
Yes. Arizona’s pure comparative negligence rule (A.R.S. § 12-2505) means jaywalking reduces recovery proportionally to the share of fault, but it does not bar the claim. Drivers still have a statutory duty under A.R.S. § 28-794 to use due care to avoid hitting any pedestrian.
The driver is almost certainly liable. A.R.S. § 28-792 requires drivers to yield to pedestrians in marked or unmarked crosswalks. The defense will look for any pedestrian conduct that contributed (entering against the signal, running into the road), but the starting position is heavily in the pedestrian’s favor.
Yes, health insurance pays medical bills upfront. However, the health insurer typically has a subrogation right, meaning they get reimbursed out of the settlement. Our team negotiates these liens to maximize what stays in the client’s pocket. Medicare and AHCCCS liens have specific rules that must be followed.
Anywhere from 4 months to 3+ years. Straightforward claims with clear liability and moderate injuries often settle in 6 to 12 months. Severe injury claims take longer because settlement demands wait until the injured person reaches maximum medical improvement. Cases that go to trial in Maricopa County Superior Court typically take 18 to 30 months from filing.
Hit-and-run pedestrian claims are recoverable through UM coverage. Report the incident to Phoenix Police immediately. Gather witness information and any nearby surveillance leads. UM carriers treat documented hit-and
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