Franklin Pedestrian Accident Lawyer

A pedestrian struck in Franklin rarely has the leverage a driver does. There is no steel around them, no airbag, and often no witness who stopped. The driver’s insurer, on the other hand, usually has an adjuster on the phone within a day or two. Fox, Farley, Willis & Burnette is a personal injury law firm that represents people hurt on foot, along with families who have lost someone, and a Franklin pedestrian accident lawyer from the firm can take over that early contact so the injured person is not negotiating while still in treatment.

Pedestrian cases are not car wrecks with a different victim. The injuries tend to be worse: fractured pelvises, shattered legs, head trauma from the pavement. The fault questions are also different. Was the walker in a crosswalk? Was the driver looking at a phone? Was the street lit? Did the driver leave? The answers come from physical evidence that fades quickly, which is why the first weeks matter.

Where Franklin Pedestrian Cases Come From

• Crosswalk and Intersection Strikes: A driver turning left or right while watching traffic, not the crosswalk, is one of the most common causes. These cases turn on signal timing, sight lines, and whether the driver yielded as required.
• Distracted Driver Impacts: Tennessee’s Hands Free law bars drivers from holding a phone, reading or sending text communication, or watching video while driving. Phone records and the driver’s own testimony can show a violation that supports a negligence claim.
• Impaired Driver Collisions: Tennessee’s per se alcohol limit is 0.08%. Proof of impairment can matter beyond fault, because it can lift the limit on noneconomic damages and open the door to punitive damages.
• Hit-and-Run Cases: When a driver flees, the claim may shift to the injured person’s own uninsured motorist coverage. Surveillance video, witness accounts, and paint or debris evidence become the whole case.
• Parking Lot and Driveway Accidents: Shopping center lots and business driveways produce backing and low-speed impacts that still cause serious injury, and they can involve a property owner as well as the driver.
• Dark Roads and Missing Sidewalks: Walkers on poorly lit roads or roads with no shoulder are often blamed for being there. Lighting, road design, and the driver’s speed for conditions all bear on who was careless.
• Commercial and Delivery Vehicle Strikes: Work trucks and delivery vehicles bring employer liability, driver logs, and company insurance into the picture, which changes both the evidence to preserve and the coverage available.
• Child and Teen Pedestrians: Minors are treated differently under the law, and the time limit to sue is paused until a child turns 18 before the one-year clock starts.

How Fault Gets Decided When Someone Was on Foot

Insurers defending a pedestrian claim almost always argue the walker shares the blame: crossing mid-block, dark clothing, looking down, stepping out suddenly. Tennessee uses modified comparative fault. If you are found less than 50 percent responsible, you can still recover, but your award shrinks by your percentage. At 50 percent or more, you recover nothing. Fault can also be assigned to people who are not even in the lawsuit, which is another reason defense lawyers try to spread responsibility around.

That is why a Franklin pedestrian injury attorney spends early effort on the scene itself: where the walker was, where the vehicle came from, what the driver could have seen, and how fast the car was moving. Skid marks, vehicle damage patterns, nearby cameras, and event data from the vehicle can settle arguments that otherwise become one person’s word against another’s.

The damages side has its own rules. Economic losses such as medical bills, lost wages, and future care are not capped in Tennessee. Noneconomic damages for pain and suffering are generally limited to $750,000, rising to $1 million for defined catastrophic losses such as paraplegia, quadriplegia, or loss of both hands, both feet, or one of each, or the wrongful death of a parent with minor children. Those limits are applied by the judge after the verdict and are not told to the jury, and they fall away in cases involving intoxication, intentional harm, destroyed evidence, or a related felony conviction. Punitive damages, where allowed, are limited to the greater of twice the compensatory award or $500,000.

Insurance is the other practical limit. Tennessee’s minimum liability coverage is $25,000 per person and $50,000 per accident for bodily injury. A serious pedestrian injury can exceed that quickly, so identifying every available policy, including the injured person’s own uninsured or underinsured coverage, is part of the work from the start.

Why Choose Fox, Farley, Willis & Burnette for a Pedestrian Injury Claim

People call this firm after a pedestrian crash for a simple reason: the injuries are serious and the other side has more resources. The firm’s attorneys bring more than 170 years of combined experience to car, truck, and wrongful death cases, and the firm has recovered over $100 million for clients. Consultations are free, and in injury cases there are no attorney fees unless compensation is recovered. If hospital stays or a long recovery make travel hard, the firm can meet clients at home or in the hospital.

Two of the firm’s partners spent the early part of their careers defending insurance companies, trucking companies, and businesses. That matters in a pedestrian case, because they know how an adjuster builds a comparative fault argument and how a defense lawyer decides what a claim is worth.

Several results are close to what Franklin families face. The firm obtained $3.4 million for the family of a man killed in a Morgan County rear-end collision caused by a construction company driver, $2.3 million for a Knox County motorcyclist who lost a leg when a driver struck him and fled, and $1.9 million after a driver who failed to yield on Dolly Parton Parkway in Sevier County killed a mother and seriously injured her daughter. Every case is different, and past results do not guarantee a similar outcome.

Bruce D. Fox, co-founder, has tried more than 125 jury trials, is a past president of the Tennessee Trial Lawyers Association, received its Lifetime Achievement Award in 2025, and is a member of the American Board of Trial Advocates. Partner Brad C. Burnette holds an AV Preeminent rating from Martindale-Hubbell and serves on the association’s Board of Governors, as does partner John Willis. Trial attorney Michael C. Beehan is fluent in Spanish, and the firm welcomes Spanish-speaking clients: hablamos español. When an insurer refuses to pay what a case is worth, the firm’s lawyers are prepared to put it in front of a jury.

What to Do After Being Hit on Foot in Franklin

Get medical care first, even if you feel mobile. Adrenaline hides fractures, internal bleeding, and concussions, and a gap between the crash and the first exam gives an insurer room to argue the injury came from something else. Tell every provider exactly how you were hurt and follow the treatment plan.

Make sure police respond and a report is written. Ask for the officer’s name and report number, and get the driver’s name, insurance information, and plate number if you can. If you cannot, ask bystanders for contact information. If you are able, photograph the crosswalk, signals, signage, lighting, the vehicle, and your injuries. Do not delete anything from your phone, and do not post about the crash online.

Be careful with the other driver’s insurer. You are not required to give a recorded statement, and an early casual comment about how the crash happened can be used to assign you fault. Do not sign a medical authorization that opens your entire history, and do not accept a quick offer before you know the full extent of your injuries.

The deadline is short. Most Tennessee personal injury suits must be filed within one year of the injury. The period can extend to two years when criminal charges are brought against the person who caused the injury, prosecution begins within that first year, and you sue that same person. A wrongful death claim follows the same one-year clock, running from the date of the injury, not the date of death. If a government vehicle or employee is involved, a separate set of rules applies, and suit generally must be filed within 12 months. Property damage claims have a three-year window. Waiting even a few months can cost you evidence such as video that is overwritten.

Cases begin with investigation and treatment, then a demand to the insurer, and, if needed, a lawsuit in the appropriate court. Wrongful death claims have their own order of who may sue: the personal representative or the surviving spouse, or, if there is no spouse, the children or next of kin.

Pedestrian Accident Questions Franklin Residents Ask

How long do I have to file a pedestrian accident lawsuit in Tennessee?

Generally one year from the date of the injury. A two-year period can apply when criminal charges are filed against the driver within that first year and you sue that driver. Claims against government entities have their own 12-month limit, so act quickly.

Can I recover if I was crossing outside a crosswalk?

Possibly. Tennessee’s modified comparative fault rule lets you recover as long as you are less than 50 percent at fault, with your award reduced by your share. Drivers still owe reasonable care to people on foot, and fault in a mid-block case depends on visibility, speed, and what the driver should have seen.

What if the driver who hit me left the scene?

Report it to police immediately and preserve any evidence. If the driver is never found, your own uninsured motorist coverage may respond. Nearby cameras, witness statements, and vehicle debris left at the scene are often what lead to an identification.

Who pays my medical bills while the claim is pending?

Your health insurance or any medical payments coverage you carry typically handles treatment as it happens. Those insurers may seek reimbursement from a later recovery, so the claim should account for them from the start.

Does the driver’s insurance limit what I can collect?

The driver’s policy sets the practical ceiling in many cases. Tennessee’s minimum is $25,000 per person and $50,000 per accident for bodily injury, which can fall well short of a serious injury. Other sources can include your own underinsured coverage, an employer’s policy if the driver was working, or other responsible parties.

Is there a cap on what I can recover?

Economic damages like medical costs and lost income are not capped. Noneconomic damages are generally limited to $750,000, or $1 million for defined catastrophic injuries, with exceptions such as intoxicated drivers. Punitive damages are separately limited.

Can a family bring a claim if a pedestrian dies?

Yes. A wrongful death action may be brought by the personal representative or the surviving spouse, or by the children or next of kin if there is no spouse. Recoverable losses include lost income, medical and funeral expenses, and the value of the life lost.

What if a child was the pedestrian hit?

The filing deadline is paused until a minor turns 18, after which the one-year period begins. Settlements involving children often need court approval, so it is wise to talk to a lawyer well before any deadline matters.

Does the driver being charged with DUI help my civil case?

It can. A conviction or strong proof of impairment supports fault and can remove the limit on noneconomic damages. A criminal case also does not replace your civil claim, and the two move on separate tracks with separate deadlines.

Is it worth hiring a lawyer if my injuries seem minor?

Often yes, because pedestrian injuries can surface or worsen days later, and a quick settlement closes the claim for good. The consultation is free, and fees are owed only if there is a recovery, so you can learn where you stand without risk.

Will a pedestrian case go to trial?

Most are resolved by settlement, but that depends on the insurer taking the claim seriously. A firm known for trying cases tends to receive more realistic offers than one that is not.

Serving Pedestrian Injury Clients Across Franklin and Middle Tennessee

The firm represents injured walkers and their families from Franklin and throughout Tennessee, and travels to clients when injuries make it hard to come in. In Franklin and the surrounding area, that includes people hurt in the downtown district, along busy commercial corridors, and in the shopping center lots and residential streets that feed them. The firm also helps people across the Nashville area and statewide.

Across East Tennessee, the firm serves Knox County, Sevier County, Blount County, Anderson County, Campbell County, Roane County, Claiborne County, Morgan County, Jefferson County, and Monroe County. That reach includes Knoxville, Clinton, Maryville, Sevierville, Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge, and LaFollette, and clients in Johnson City and Memphis as well. Visitors injured while walking in tourist areas, along with residents, can bring claims, and out-of-state clients do not need to return for every step of the case.

Talk With a Franklin Pedestrian Accident Attorney

If you or someone in your family was hit while on foot, a Franklin pedestrian accident attorney at Fox, Farley, Willis & Burnette can review what happened, explain how fault and damages are likely to be argued, and tell you what needs to be preserved right now. The consultation is free, and no fee is owed unless compensation is recovered. Call to speak with the firm about your case.