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pedestrian

Contrary to what may one think, our Courts in Cyprus are often prepared to find blame on the part of a pedestrian in car accident compensation cases.

From a legal standpoint, it would not be correct to state that whenever a pedestrian is hit by a car the driver of such car is solely to blame and the pedestrian cannot be found guilty of any negligence. They are both of them users of a road and they owe a duty of care to each other and to other road users; and if they fail to discharge of the particular duty, either or both of them could be found guilty of negligence which has led to the accident.

If the car driver is at fault for causing the accident, the pedestrian will usually be able to claim and recover damages and compensation from the driver’s insurance company. Your average insurance company in Cyprus will certainly be ready to put up a fight, and as such an initial settlement offer is usually low, especially if proceedings are not instituted against the insurance company.

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If the pedestrian is to blame for causing the accident, the pedestrian will probably not be able to recover compensation for his or her injuries. In fact, the driver may be able to sue the pedestrian for compensation for any harm caused to the car or for any of the car driver’s injuries.

Several instances were the pedestrian may be found to be at fault for causing a car accident are the following:

• Proceeding to cross a road without first looking whether there is traffic on the road

• Walking along a highway, for example, or any other area where pedestrians have no legal access

• Crossing the road outside the pedestrian crossing

• Running into the path of oncoming vehicles (so called “dashing in“cases)

Sometimes, the Court will may find that both the car driver and the pedestrian were partially responsible for the accident. In such cases the Court apportions liability on the basis of the law of contributory negligence. This means, for example that the Court may find that the car driver is 70% at fault for causing the accident and the pedestrian is 30% at fault. In this case, if the compensation of the pedestrian would have been €100,000 on the basis of full liability of the car driver it will be reduced accordingly and therefore the insurance company will only have to pay compensation to the pedestrian in the reduced amount of €70,000.

Get Help

Call us today at our law office in Nicosia at +357 22 020130 or email us for a free assessment of your road traffic accident case. If you are unable to visit us at our office we may arrange for a home or hospital visit.

Our law office is in Nicosia and we take on cases and appear before all district Courts in all cities of Cyprus.

We do not charge for the initial consultation. The decision of whether you wish to proceed is entirely yours. We will advise as to the merits of your case, the chances of success and the amount you may expect as compensation. We offer no win no fee funding agreements which means there is no financial risk to you.

Press Here to Find out How we Obtain Your Compensation.