After a Crash
What happens if I was hit by a car while walking in Georgia?
Short answer
You generally have a claim against the driver, and often more coverage than you expect. Georgia drivers must yield to pedestrians lawfully in a crosswalk, and even where you crossed outside a crosswalk, drivers must exercise due care and your own share of fault only reduces your recovery unless it reaches 50%. As a pedestrian you can also usually access your own auto policy's uninsured motorist and medical payments coverage — even though you were on foot — and that matters most in hit-and-run and low-limits cases.
What Georgia law says
Georgia's pedestrian rules are in O.C.G.A. Title 40, Chapter 6, Article 5: drivers must stop and remain stopped for pedestrians in a crosswalk (O.C.G.A. § 40-6-91), pedestrians crossing outside a marked or unmarked crosswalk must yield to vehicles (O.C.G.A. § 40-6-92), and drivers must nonetheless exercise due care to avoid a pedestrian and give warning where necessary (O.C.G.A. § 40-6-93). Fault is apportioned under O.C.G.A. § 51-12-33, with recovery barred at 50% or more. Uninsured motorist coverage under O.C.G.A. § 33-7-11 generally protects the insured as a person, not only while driving, which is why a pedestrian may have a UM claim under a household auto policy, subject to the policy language. Injury suits are generally subject to the two-year period in O.C.G.A. § 9-3-33.
What this means after an accident
The two rules people get wrong: crossing mid-block is not automatically fatal to a claim, and being a pedestrian does not mean auto insurance is irrelevant. Your own auto policy is frequently the coverage that pays.
How this actually works
How these claims typically develop: pedestrian injuries are severe, so treatment and the crash report come first. Liability turns on details that disappear fast — crosswalk markings and signal timing, lighting, sightlines, vehicle speed and the point of impact — so scene photographs, nearby business or traffic camera footage, and independent witnesses are gathered early. The driver's liability carrier usually raises the pedestrian's conduct immediately, arguing dark clothing, mid-block crossing or distraction, and the response is physical evidence and, in serious cases, a reconstruction analysis. Coverage is then mapped: driver liability first, then the pedestrian's own UM and med-pay, health insurance for treatment, and hospital liens under O.C.G.A. § 44-14-470 et seq. resolved from the settlement. If the driver fled, the claim usually proceeds as a UM claim, with prompt reporting to law enforcement and the insurer.
What you should do
- 01Get medical care immediately, even if you were able to walk away from the scene.
- 02Make sure law enforcement documents the crash and the vehicle involved.
- 03Photograph the crosswalk, signals, lighting and sightlines, and note nearby cameras.
- 04Notify your own auto insurer promptly — UM and med-pay may apply to you as a pedestrian.
- 05If a city, county, State entity or transit agency may be involved, ask about ante litem notice deadlines right away.
Important exceptions
Exceptions matter here: crashes on premises may add a property-owner claim, government-owned vehicles or dangerous roadway design claims require ante litem notice as short as six months, minors are treated differently for both fault and deadlines, and MARTA or other transit-related claims have their own notice rules. Whether UM applies to a pedestrian depends on the policy language.
When an attorney may help
An attorney may help when injuries are serious, when the driver blames the pedestrian, when the driver fled or has minimal limits, or when a government entity or premises owner may share responsibility.
Attorney
Who handles this type of case at MCA
Licensed in Georgia and mapped to this case type in the MCA attorney bench. Attorney availability is not a statement that this page has been legally reviewed.
MCA Answers
What you may need to know next
Straight answers built around Georgia law, authoritative sources and practical guidance.
- Can I still recover money if I was partly at fault in Georgia?Yes, as long as you are found less than 50% responsible. Georgia uses modified comparative negligence: your recovery is generally reduced by your percentage of fault, and at 50% or more it is generally barred entirely.
- What should I do after a hit-and-run accident in Georgia?Call 911 from the scene and report it as a hit-and-run so an official report exists, get the responding officer's name and the report number, look for witnesses and cameras before you leave, get medically evaluated the same day, and notify your own insurer promptly — because in Georgia your uninsured motorist coverage is usually what pays when the driver is never identified. Leaving the scene without a police report is the single most common reason these claims fail.
- Who pays my medical bills after a Georgia car accident?Georgia has no no-fault coverage, so your bills are generally paid as you go by medical payments coverage, health insurance, or a provider treating on a lien — and the at-fault driver's insurer typically reimburses those costs at the end, as part of a single settlement.
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2
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3
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