A pedestrian struck by a car has no airbag, no seatbelt, and no steel frame, so the injuries tend to be severe and the medical bills large. That makes one question urgent: where does the money to cover those losses actually come from. The answer in Georgia depends on two things that surprise many people, how the right-of-way rules decide fault, and the fact that your own auto policy can pay even though you were walking, not driving.
What Pedestrian Compensation Covers
Georgia does not have a special damages category for pedestrians. The same losses available in any injury claim apply: medical expenses (current and future), lost wages and lost earning capacity, and non-economic harm such as pain and the effect of permanent injury. Because pedestrian impacts often cause catastrophic injuries, the future-care and lost-capacity pieces frequently dominate the value of a serious case, far more than the immediate emergency bill.
How Right-of-Way Decides Fault
Many people believe a pedestrian always has the right of way. Georgia law is more specific, and the distinction drives the entire fault analysis.
Inside a crosswalk, O.C.G.A. § 40-6-91 requires a driver to stop and remain stopped for a pedestrian crossing on the driver’s half of the roadway, or approaching within one lane of it. The same statute also says a pedestrian cannot suddenly leave a curb and step into the path of a vehicle too close to stop.
Outside a crosswalk, the balance shifts. Under O.C.G.A. § 40-6-92, a pedestrian crossing elsewhere must yield to vehicles, unless they have already safely entered the roadway. Even then, drivers are never free to simply hit someone: O.C.G.A. § 40-6-93 imposes a duty of due care on every driver to avoid a collision and to take extra precaution around children or anyone visibly confused or incapacitated.
Because Georgia applies modified comparative negligence, where you were and what the signal showed can shift fault by percentage, and a pedestrian found 50% or more at fault recovers nothing. This is why crosswalk markings, signal timing, and witness accounts matter so much to the value of a claim.
Who Pays
The order of recovery usually runs like this:
- The at-fault driver’s liability insurance, the primary source in most cases.
- An employer’s policy, if the driver was working at the time, through respondeat superior.
- A government entity, if a defective signal or dangerous road design contributed.
- Your own coverage, which is where the most overlooked option lives.
The catch is Georgia’s minimum liability limit of $25,000 per person. A pedestrian’s medical bills routinely exceed that, which makes the next source decisive.
Your Own UM Coverage May Apply on Foot
Uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage under O.C.G.A. § 33-7-11 follows the person, not just the car. If you carry UM/UIM, it can apply to a pedestrian accident even though you were walking when you were hit. If you do not have your own policy, the UM coverage of a resident relative you live with may extend to you as well.
That coverage steps in when the driver who hit you was uninsured, fled the scene, or carried limits too low to cover your injuries. Given how often pedestrian losses run past a $25,000 minimum policy, this layer is frequently the difference between partial and full recovery.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does a pedestrian always have the right of way in Georgia?
No. Inside a crosswalk, drivers must stop under O.C.G.A. § 40-6-91, but a pedestrian crossing outside a crosswalk generally must yield to traffic under § 40-6-92. The location largely sets the fault analysis.
Can I recover if I was partly at fault for the accident?
Possibly. Georgia’s modified comparative negligence rule allows recovery if you were less than 50% at fault, with your compensation reduced by your share.
Can my own car insurance pay if I was hit while walking?
It can. UM/UIM coverage under O.C.G.A. § 33-7-11 follows you as a person, so it can apply to a pedestrian accident, and a resident relative’s policy may also cover you.
What if the driver who hit me had only minimum insurance?
Georgia’s $25,000 per-person minimum often falls short of pedestrian injury costs. Your own UM/UIM coverage, an employer policy, or other sources may be needed to close the gap.
Where the crash happened, the available policies, and the severity of injury all shape a pedestrian claim. A Georgia personal injury attorney can weigh them for a specific case.