this post was submitted on 19 Mar 2024
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[Outdated, please look at pinned post] Casual Conversation

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I was crossing a crosswalk early this morning on my way to the bus stop for work, while the walk sign was on, and the driver turned left onto a main road from a stop light and smashed into my left side. I was later told that I "flew up into the air".

It was all very much a blur and I was pretty dizzy and out of it at first, but no head trauma. Some kind lady who said she was a nurse ran to help me up and to the side of the road, and the cops and ambulance came pretty fast (I think, at least).

I was taken to the hospital and was told that I fractured my humerus head (left shoulder). They told me I may not need surgery, but we'll see what the orthopedic surgeon says during my follow-up appointment in a few days. Other than that, I just have a bunch of scrapes and bruises.

Overall, while I'm in quite a bit of pain, I'm grateful because it could've been way worse. My SO and parents are pushing to sue for pain/suffering, which I was hesitant to do until I read (online) that I wouldn't be suing the person who hit me, but their insurance company), so I guess that'll probably happen. They already found me a lawyer.

I truly have no ill-will toward that person because shit happens, it was dark, and they got out of the car immediately to call 911, so it's not like they didn't do what was right when it came down to it. I'm sure they're traumatized, and that their insurance payment will go way up... which I feel a little bad about given the state of the US rn. But I guess I don't have any control over that.

Honestly, while the whole thing was obviously pretty traumatic for me, too—and I keep replaying that moment in my head—I think I'd rather get hit by a car than hit someone with my car.

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[–] [email protected] 92 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago) (6 children)

driver turned left

A-Pillar Blindness.

It's a common thing and more people need to be made aware of it. Glad you're ok.

Definitely sue. You don't know how this will affect you long term. Years from now, a pinched nerve can render your arm un-useable.

[–] lady_maria 26 points 8 months ago (1 children)

Huh. I didn't know about a-pillar blindness. Definitely an important thing to know.

You're right, I need to look out for future me even if I feel mostly ok now.

[–] PunnyName 28 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago)

Get a lawyer. Don't mention how "fine" or "okay" you might think you are. Suing the driver is going to potentially care for any future medical issues. And ideally their insurance will take the bigger hit. This is specifically the kind of time you need to sue.

[–] Today 14 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago) (1 children)

My car is really bad for that. I've almost missed seeing pedestrians several times. I agree with this post - you'll likely have medical bills well beyond what they find immediately.

Edit to clarify and to say I'm really glad you're okay.

[–] mPony 6 points 8 months ago

my old car was bad for it too. I got into a habit of doing a "bob and weave" to look around the A Pillar while driving it.

I'm glad OP is okay.

[–] kautau 10 points 8 months ago (2 children)

Also if the walk sign was on and the driver turned left, they drove through a red light, so they’re absolutely at fault. I mean sue either way, as this commenter said, but they broke traffic rules and could have killed OP

[–] lady_maria 8 points 8 months ago

The walk sign was on, but they also had a green light; that's how most intersections work where I live, at least. I fucking WISH pedestrians got a light cycle to ourselves. Or at least a few seconds. 😫

But the driver still should have yielded to any pedestrians according to right-of-way laws.

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[–] [email protected] 10 points 8 months ago (3 children)

I've had few occasions where the timing was just right and a car/pedestrian was perfectly hidden behind the a-pillar and then just appeared out of nowhere. There's even a famous junction in the UK that's known for being dangerous for this exact reason.

[–] [email protected] 13 points 8 months ago (2 children)

As a driver you should lean left and right to check around the A pillar.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 8 months ago (2 children)

And even if you do these things are still bound to happen every now and then. Not a single human alive is capable of paying 100% attention to their surroundings 100% of the time.

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[–] mPony 5 points 8 months ago

Thanks for posting that: I hadn't seen that video before. I'm glad they changed that junction to make it safer.

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[–] [email protected] 9 points 8 months ago

I'm a bicycle rider who's also learning to drive - the one thing I've found is that it's very easy to end up hidden behind a driver's A pillar.

In driving lessons I try to move around in the seat more to see around them, and when I'm riding my bicycle I try and position myself in areas where I can be easily seen, using lights whenever possible to additionally provide a reflection off the road in dark conditions.

Being hidden behind the pillar is really scary because you're literally not seen at all

[–] Land_Strider 8 points 8 months ago

As someone who has been with their family day and night for about a month due to health stuff, I definitely have emphaty with the indecision about the situation.

On the one hand, some types of accidents can happen to anyone due to common variables aligning together and it is natural to chalk it up to "shit happens". Especially more so if the one causing the incident is as surprised about the incident and as cordial as possible afterwards.

On the other hand, even if you feel comparatively fine and seem to be on your way to rather quick and full recovery, you don't know if this will cause later harm, sometimes statistically known to be low as doctors would say a couple percent chance or something like that, sometimes not even considered.

You should sue for compensation without waiting for the "if things gets worse" to come to pass. It will be too late if you wait. Most people would also argue that you should take this as a "never talk to cops" thing so it would be advisable against cordially letting the driver know that you intend to take precautions about future risks by aiming for compensation, considering that it will not impact the driver's life nearly as it may impact yours on the worst case scenario. On this matter, you will have to trust your own judgement and the specific experience of lawyers, I'd say. Not fears of the bystanders that didn't see the incident, attitude of the driver, or don't have experience about how similar things turned out later.

[–] [email protected] 67 points 8 months ago (1 children)

As someone who knows someone who was killed as a pedestrian crossing the road…it is not your fault. Don’t forget that fact. Trauma does weird things to our brains even without head injury. Don’t feel guilty about pursuing a lawsuit either. It was the other person’s responsibility to be watchful and follow traffic laws…and they failed. Repercussions are normal in such circumstances even if it is an honest mistake. Hope that you don’t feel any more pain or have more unseen issues. Sometimes these things take time to surface. If you feel unexplainably sleepy at any point, don’t hesitate to see a doctor. Sometimes head trauma isn’t obvious. Wish you the best and hope you recover quickly and thoroughly.

[–] lady_maria 12 points 8 months ago (3 children)

I have a feeling I'm going to be much sorer tomorrow, for sure. Thank you for the advice and well wishes!

[–] [email protected] 8 points 8 months ago (1 children)

If you weren't prescribed pain meds, ibuprofen and Tylenol taken together have synergistic effects comparable to a moderate dose of codeine. Make sure you stay on top of the swelling too, humeral fractures are no joke. I hope your recovery goes well!

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[–] JustZ 44 points 8 months ago (5 children)

Lawyer here. Bud, your shoulder will never recover fully from this. Shoulders are terrible joints. The bones are just sort of there, not really attached to the rest of your skeleto. Talk with your Ortho about the probability that you will need a total shoulder replacement at some point in your life because of not just the broken bone and the healing processes to come, but also the damage to the surrounding soft tissue.

Plus the ambulance ride, hospital visit, and ensuing treatment, is going to take up time and money and it should not be yours. As you noted, it's really just insurance paperwork, at the end of the day. Call a good lawyer.

[–] SoleInvictus 21 points 8 months ago

Not a lawyer but a guy with shoulder problems from teenage antics. I just want to add that you really need to aggressively pursue treatment for that shoulder. The better you handle it now, the more you'll thank yourself.

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[–] Okokimup 39 points 8 months ago (1 children)

You seem like a really kind and thoughtful person. I hope you make a full recovery and go on to a wonderful life.

[–] lady_maria 16 points 8 months ago (1 children)

Awww...🥺 that honestly made me feel a little better. Thank you so much! 💜💜💜

[–] [email protected] 5 points 8 months ago (1 children)

Honestly you seem like you’re too nice. I hope you find it in your heart to sue this person. Someone hitting you with their car is not okay. They don’t deserve forgiveness. They deserve to pay your hospital bills, and they need to do whatever it takes to not hit another pedestrian with their car.

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[–] [email protected] 37 points 8 months ago (1 children)

I think I’d rather get hit by a car than hit someone with my car.

Banger.

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[–] Dvixen 22 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago)

Glad to hear the driver stopped. I hope your recovery is smooth and there are no long lasting problems.

My daughter was struck by a car last week, while on a pedestrian crossing. The driver (after being chased down by another teenager) stopped, talked to my daughter, and then drove off. She collapsed once the adrenaline wore off, and we spent the evening in the hospital while they checked her over.

Driver deserves a few slaps for stopping after being chased down, and then making the decision a second time to drive off instead of calling emergency services.

[–] ClockworkOtter 19 points 8 months ago (5 children)

It's the responsibility of driving a car to make sure the space the car is going into is empty. They didn't do that and caused you bodily harm. I got hit by a careless driver last year, and have successfully filed a personal injury claim and have pressed for a criminal case. Don't give them the benefit of the doubt.

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[–] graeghos_714 18 points 8 months ago

I was T-boned on my motorcycle. Like you, the driver had no malicious intent and I felt kind of bad for her as well because hitting someone is traumatic too. I tumbled about 60' down the road and spent half a day in the trauma unit in the hospital getting tests and images. Her insurance was not enough to cover all my medical. After about 6 months of care which hit around $200k her insurance was tapped out. I did sue her insurance company but there wasn't a lot there to get due to Michigan insurance laws. I didn't sue her but I did get what I could from insurance. She may be screwed trying to get car insurance in the future but I'll never walk normal again and may never be able to work in my field again. Don't leave yourself short. The future issues may be worse than expected.
My son had a similar accident to yours. His shoulder and elbow were pretty mashed up and he is pretty much back to normal now. Hopefully your recovery is as good as his was. Being young helps healing a lot.

[–] [email protected] 18 points 8 months ago (2 children)
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[–] [email protected] 17 points 8 months ago (1 children)

I don't know if i'd rather be hit than hit someone, but not wanting to find out is definitely one of the reasons I don't want a license.

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[–] [email protected] 14 points 8 months ago (3 children)

I have had two work place injuries, one still affects (effects?) me today 20+ years later (I am slowly going blind because of an eye injury). I wish I had not blown it off when it happened. I was encouraged to sue, but it seemed like a lot of trouble for not a big deal back then. If I knew how bad my eye sight was going to be I would have sued for sure.

[–] lady_maria 5 points 8 months ago

Thank you for sharing your experience... I'm so sorry it went down that way for you.

[–] DillyDaily 5 points 8 months ago

I was struck by a truck in April last year when they turned into a bike path instead of turning into their lane.

I was completely fine at the time, just banged up, I went to a private GP clinic and they did a full assessment and billed it under the transport accident commission (a public fund in Victoria Australia for people injured in transport accidents)

Almost one year on, and what was just a bruise on my shin is still just a bruise on my shin. The blood vessels never healed, the discolouration never went away, the odema still causes pain and I can't kneel or wear boots, and my shin pads for soccer cause pain (and when I take a tackle shin to shin, the pain is so bad it prevents me from weight bearing for an hour or so, and I walked around on a dislocated hip for 3 months, I have a congenital hip deformity, I'm not a stranger to leg pain)

It's literally just a bruise, my regular GP has been keeping an eye on it because it's baffling that it hasn't healed, but it's not dangerous and it's not impacting my life enough that I wish I'd done more at the time of the accident.

But it is annoying, and because I was totally fine after the accident, my TAC claim was open-and-close just to cover the cost of the initial "all clear, just some bruising" private GP appointment. And now I have no way of getting reimbursed for the subsequent "it's been 10 months doc, why is my leg still bruised like I banged it yesterday? Let's get a CT to rule out issues" appointments.

Hindsight is 20-20, if you have any way of keeping your options open as a traffic accident victim to allow your body time to show the true long term impact, take action to leave that door open, just in case.

There's a chance, like me, you will be 100% fine and at most just have a strange new body quirk. But there's also a chance things don't heal the way you expect and it becomes a lifelong issue.

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[–] zeppo 11 points 8 months ago (1 children)

Glad you’re alright! I’m lucky to have driven for years and never done harmed anyone in a collision. If the person’s insurance goes up, well, there’s a reason they do that.

I was lightly struck by a guy at a crosswalk in a busy commercial district… walking on the sidewalk, saw this car apparently coming to a stop and walked out into the crosswalk, but he went a little far. He barely tapped me and I sort of fell o to his hood. It was this old black dude. Not much to say so I just waved and kept going.

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[–] TIMMAY 11 points 8 months ago

sue that fucker for my friend rosalie who got hit in a crosswalk by an old rich guy in maryland and the cops refused to do anything about it

[–] [email protected] 11 points 8 months ago (1 children)

I truly have no ill-will toward that person because shit happens

They were reckless and didn't care to drive safely in an area where they should have even paid extra attention.

[–] lady_maria 13 points 8 months ago (3 children)

You're absolutely right. They're 100% at fault, and should've taken their position as a driver more seriously and diligently. But still, I find it hard to be angry with them, at least currently. 🤷‍♀️

I doubt that they were intentionally reckless... probably just stupid and careless, which we all are at some point or another, in various ways. It just so happens that the consequences of that carelessness in this situation are a lot higher than they are in most other circumstances.

Now, if I found out that they were drunk or texting at the time, that would likely change. Or, perhaps, if I end up having chronic issues that cause me to become resentful.

[–] dingus 6 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago) (2 children)

You sound like a very sweet and understanding person. A lot of people could stand to learn from your views on other people. Hope you have a speedy recovery!

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[–] [email protected] 5 points 8 months ago (2 children)

I doubt that they were intentionally reckless ... probably just stupid and careless

Being stupid and careless while manning heavy machinery (car) is about at reckless as it gets.

If you don't sue, you are teaching them that what happened is okay and to keep doing it.

What if they hit a child next? A puppy?

[–] lady_maria 9 points 8 months ago (1 children)

Oh, I plan on suing, to be clear. My mind is made up. I need to protect myself, especially because I have no idea if this will have long-term effects.

But I still feel the same way about them... just on a more personal level.

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[–] weeeeum 8 points 8 months ago (1 children)

This terrifies me lol. My work is only a mile away, basically down the street but I hate walking there. I have to cross multiple busy roads that are like 40mph, but people frequently speed around 60mph. The pedestrian stop signals are super slow and the one time I used them it took 15 minutes, no shit, I timed it.

So I would have to jay walk, three 4 lane roads, all 40mph everyday, just to walk a mile to work.

There is a faster route but there's no sidewalk, and there's A bridge that forces you onto the road. Safe to say I don't walk that either.

The walkability is so bad, you have to drive somewhere to walk and exercise.

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[–] SecretSauces 6 points 8 months ago

Obligatory /c/fuckcars

Glad you're OK, but definitely get as much as you can from the insurance. Drivers are REQUIRED to pay them hundreds each month for this reason. So make them pay up now that they are needed.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 8 months ago

I'm really sorry. Not that my opinion by itself matters in this context, or should, but I'll just go ahead and add to the list of people agreeing that you should sue. You never did anything to deserve this and you sure don't deserve to pay for it. I would recommend, perhaps, talking to a therapist at some point—probably after all of this has somewhat settled. Something like this could very well end up affecting you long term psychologically. I really hope everything works out for you as well as it possibly can, though, at any rate. Like someone else already said here: you seem really nice. Take care, please.

[–] GrymEdm 6 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago) (1 children)

When it comes to deciding what to do, try to think about what advice you'd give a best friend in your situation and consider following that yourself. You can work with your lawyer to figure what's reasonable to expect, but don't feel bad about making sure any future treatment is covered. Be kind to yourself while you recover, and take medical advice seriously. As someone with a few traumatic head injuries, I'm glad to hear you won't have to deal with that at least. Best wishes for your recovery.

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[–] [email protected] 6 points 8 months ago

If you have a case you should sue. Someone totally fucked you up due to their own carelessness whole driving a dangerous vehicle. Sue them if you have a case and let the court decide what's fair.

[–] JimVanDeventer 5 points 8 months ago

“But you’re still coming to work, right?”

[–] [email protected] 5 points 8 months ago

I got knocked off my bike by a driver in 2016 and it was simultaneously among the worst and best things to ever happen to me. It was very stark how little influence I could exercise over the car. I mean, it weighs a lot, so of course, but I was quite suddenly confronted with it.

Very gruesome description so stop reading if you've not got the stomach:

I landed face-first and the brunt was taken by my front teeth. Imagine the bit where the gum ends as a fulcrum, and my bodyweight against the road surface pushing the bits of the tooth you normally see inwards, so the roots of my teeth tore through the bone and gum holding them in place and through my upper lip. I got whisked to A&E, stayed the night in hospital, couldn't work for a few months, had to see a psychiatrist and a solicitor and all the rest, then I ended up getting a tidy sum for the trouble, wrenching me out of poverty with the same kind of alacrity my teeth had wrenched themselves out with, which felt indescribable.

Like you, I wasn't at all spiteful towards the driver, because it was after all an accident, one that could've been prevented but fine, c'est la vie. The driver was a woman but the insurance policy was under a man's name, and the story of what happened had changed between the accident itself and the insurance, so he's a massive cunt anyway. Then someone from the insurance company was getting paid to make sure I'd be paid as little as possible, so whoever's decided that's a good job for someone to have is a massive cunt. Then the detective who was investigating laughed at me when I told him the road where a witness lived. "Do you expect me to go knocking on doors or something?" I said something like "isn't that detective work?" I don't have enough middle fingers for that cunt.

So I hope you get a little bit of solidarity from my anecdote and a nice windfall down the line.

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