Myrtle Beach Pedestrian Accident Lawyers

A person on foot has little protection when a vehicle strikes. Medical needs, missed work, and questions about insurance can arrive before the facts are clear. Our role is to investigate what happened, identify every responsible party and available policy, document the losses, and explain the choices without promising a particular result.

Get a case review from a Myrtle Beach pedestrian accident lawyer.

Who May Be Liable

A driver may be responsible for speeding, distraction, impairment, failing to yield, an unsafe turn, or another breach of the duty to use reasonable care. Liability can also involve an employer when a driver was working, the owner of a negligently entrusted vehicle, a rideshare or delivery company depending on the relationship and applicable law, or another party whose conduct contributed to the collision.

South Carolina’s pedestrian rules address crosswalk right-of-way, crossings outside crosswalks, and a driver’s continuing duty to exercise due care. See S.C. Code §§ 56-5-3130, 56-5-3150, and 56-5-3230. A pedestrian’s location does not automatically decide fault; visibility, signals, speed, lighting, and each person’s conduct must be examined together.

Evidence To Preserve

Scene evidence can disappear quickly in a busy tourist area. Preserve photographs of the road, crosswalk, signals, skid marks, lighting, sight obstructions, clothing, shoes, and injuries. Keep the collision-report number, witness contacts, medical records, receipts, work restrictions, and every letter or email from an insurer. Nearby businesses, hotels, traffic cameras, rideshare apps, and mobile devices may hold time-sensitive video or data.

When injuries are serious, counsel may send preservation notices before video is overwritten or a vehicle is repaired. Measurements and an inspection can help evaluate speed, visibility, and the point of impact. A written account made while memories are fresh can also help distinguish what you personally observed from what you learned later.

Insurance Issues

The at-fault driver’s liability coverage is usually the starting point, but it may not be the only coverage. Depending on the facts and policy language, uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage, an employer’s policy, a commercial policy, or other coverage may apply. A hit-and-run claim has special proof and notice issues that should be reviewed promptly.

Adjusters may ask for a recorded statement, broad medical authorization, or an early release before the full medical picture is known. Give truthful required information, but do not guess about distance, speed, fault, or prognosis. A signed release usually ends the claim covered by it, so the scope of injuries, future care, liens, and all available policies should be understood first.

Compensation

A pedestrian-injury claim may include reasonable medical expenses, rehabilitation, lost income, diminished earning capacity, pain and suffering, disability, scarring, and other losses supported by evidence. Families may also face travel, household-help, or future-care costs. The value is not determined by a chart; it depends on liability proof, medical causation, the duration and severity of harm, insurance limits, and the credibility of the documentation.

South Carolina follows a modified comparative-negligence rule. A person’s recovery can be reduced by an assigned share of fault and may be barred if that share exceeds the permitted threshold. The South Carolina Supreme Court discusses the rule in Creech v. South Carolina Wildlife and Marine Resources Department.

South Carolina Deadlines

Many South Carolina injury actions are subject to a three-year limitations period under S.C. Code § 15-3-530, but shorter notice periods or different rules can apply when a government entity, minor, death, or other special circumstance is involved. Insurance notice duties may arise even sooner. The deadline should be calculated from the actual facts rather than from a general webpage.

What To Do Now

1. Get appropriate medical care and follow reasonable treatment instructions.
2. Report the crash and keep the incident or collision-report information.
3. Save photographs, video, clothing, witness details, receipts, and insurance communications.
4. Avoid public posts and do not sign a release before the injuries and coverage are understood.
5. Ask for a prompt review when video, vehicle data, or a hit-and-run claim may be involved.

For the broader claim process, visit our Myrtle Beach personal injury attorneys page. When the crash involves a bicycle, see our bicycle accident lawyers page.

Law checked as of September 21, 2026.