Immediate Steps After Being Hit by a Speeding Driver
Being hit by a speeding driver is terrifying. The violence of high-speed impacts can leave you disoriented and unsure what to do. Follow these steps to protect your health and your legal rights:
Ensure Safety: If possible, move to a safe location away from traffic. Turn on hazard lights. Do not attempt to move anyone who may have spinal injuries unless there's immediate danger.
Call 911: High-speed crashes require emergency response. Request police and ambulances. Tell the dispatcher you were hit by a speeding driver so this information gets documented.
Document Everything: Use your phone to photograph the scene from multiple angles. Capture vehicle damage, skid marks, road conditions, traffic signs, and debris patterns. Skid marks fade quickly—photograph them immediately.
Gather Witness Information: Witnesses often see speeding or reckless behavior before crashes. Get names and phone numbers from anyone who saw what happened. Ask specifically what they observed about the other driver's speed and behavior.
Do Not Admit Fault: Even if you were also speeding slightly, the other driver's excessive speed may dominate liability. Let attorneys and insurers sort out comparative fault.
Seek Medical Attention: High-speed impacts cause severe injuries. Get a thorough medical evaluation even if you feel okay—adrenaline masks pain, and some injuries have delayed symptoms.
Contact an Attorney Immediately: Speeding cases require rapid evidence preservation. EDR data can be overwritten, skid marks fade, and vehicles get repaired. An attorney can take immediate steps to preserve evidence.
Ensure Safety: If possible, move to a safe location away from traffic. Turn on hazard lights. Do not attempt to move anyone who may have spinal injuries unless there's immediate danger.
Call 911: High-speed crashes require emergency response. Request police and ambulances. Tell the dispatcher you were hit by a speeding driver so this information gets documented.
Document Everything: Use your phone to photograph the scene from multiple angles. Capture vehicle damage, skid marks, road conditions, traffic signs, and debris patterns. Skid marks fade quickly—photograph them immediately.
Gather Witness Information: Witnesses often see speeding or reckless behavior before crashes. Get names and phone numbers from anyone who saw what happened. Ask specifically what they observed about the other driver's speed and behavior.
Do Not Admit Fault: Even if you were also speeding slightly, the other driver's excessive speed may dominate liability. Let attorneys and insurers sort out comparative fault.
Seek Medical Attention: High-speed impacts cause severe injuries. Get a thorough medical evaluation even if you feel okay—adrenaline masks pain, and some injuries have delayed symptoms.
Contact an Attorney Immediately: Speeding cases require rapid evidence preservation. EDR data can be overwritten, skid marks fade, and vehicles get repaired. An attorney can take immediate steps to preserve evidence.
Why High-Speed Crashes Cause Catastrophic Injuries
The physics of high-speed crashes explain why injuries are so severe:
Kinetic Energy: A vehicle's kinetic energy increases with the square of its velocity. A car traveling 60 mph has four times the kinetic energy of one traveling 30 mph. All that energy must go somewhere during a crash—often into the occupants' bodies.
Stopping Distance: At 30 mph, a car needs about 75 feet to stop. At 60 mph, that distance increases to 240 feet. Speeding drivers often cannot stop in time to avoid collisions, resulting in full-speed impacts.
Reaction Time: At higher speeds, drivers cover more ground during the fraction of a second it takes to perceive danger and react. A driver going 70 mph travels 103 feet per second—nearly the length of a football field in three seconds.
Collision Forces: The force experienced during rapid deceleration causes injuries. A 60 mph crash stopping in 0.1 seconds subjects occupants to about 27 Gs of force—equivalent to 27 times their body weight.
Safety System Limits: Vehicle safety systems like airbags and crumple zones are designed for certain crash severities. Extreme speeds can exceed their protective capacity.
Common Injuries: High-speed crashes frequently cause traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord damage, multiple fractures, internal organ damage, severe burns (from post-crash fires), and death. These injuries often require lifelong medical care and result in permanent disability.
Kinetic Energy: A vehicle's kinetic energy increases with the square of its velocity. A car traveling 60 mph has four times the kinetic energy of one traveling 30 mph. All that energy must go somewhere during a crash—often into the occupants' bodies.
Stopping Distance: At 30 mph, a car needs about 75 feet to stop. At 60 mph, that distance increases to 240 feet. Speeding drivers often cannot stop in time to avoid collisions, resulting in full-speed impacts.
Reaction Time: At higher speeds, drivers cover more ground during the fraction of a second it takes to perceive danger and react. A driver going 70 mph travels 103 feet per second—nearly the length of a football field in three seconds.
Collision Forces: The force experienced during rapid deceleration causes injuries. A 60 mph crash stopping in 0.1 seconds subjects occupants to about 27 Gs of force—equivalent to 27 times their body weight.
Safety System Limits: Vehicle safety systems like airbags and crumple zones are designed for certain crash severities. Extreme speeds can exceed their protective capacity.
Common Injuries: High-speed crashes frequently cause traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord damage, multiple fractures, internal organ damage, severe burns (from post-crash fires), and death. These injuries often require lifelong medical care and result in permanent disability.
Understanding Your Legal Options
When a speeding driver hits you, you have several paths to compensation:
Personal Injury Claim: File a claim against the at-fault driver's liability insurance. We negotiate aggressively and take cases to trial when necessary to achieve fair compensation.
Punitive Damages Claim: If the driver's conduct was particularly egregious (street racing, extreme speeding, road rage), we can pursue punitive damages beyond ordinary compensation.
Underinsured/Uninsured Motorist Claim: If the at-fault driver lacks adequate insurance, your own UIM/UM coverage can provide additional compensation.
Employer Liability: If the speeding driver was working (delivery driver, trucker, sales rep), their employer may be liable through vicarious liability or direct negligence in hiring/supervision.
Vehicle Defect Claims: If a vehicle defect contributed to crash severity—faulty brakes, tire blowout, airbag failure—the manufacturer may share liability.
Wrongful Death Claims: If a loved one was killed by a speeding driver, surviving family members can pursue wrongful death claims for both economic losses and emotional damages.
Our attorneys investigate every potential source of recovery to maximize compensation for your injuries.
Personal Injury Claim: File a claim against the at-fault driver's liability insurance. We negotiate aggressively and take cases to trial when necessary to achieve fair compensation.
Punitive Damages Claim: If the driver's conduct was particularly egregious (street racing, extreme speeding, road rage), we can pursue punitive damages beyond ordinary compensation.
Underinsured/Uninsured Motorist Claim: If the at-fault driver lacks adequate insurance, your own UIM/UM coverage can provide additional compensation.
Employer Liability: If the speeding driver was working (delivery driver, trucker, sales rep), their employer may be liable through vicarious liability or direct negligence in hiring/supervision.
Vehicle Defect Claims: If a vehicle defect contributed to crash severity—faulty brakes, tire blowout, airbag failure—the manufacturer may share liability.
Wrongful Death Claims: If a loved one was killed by a speeding driver, surviving family members can pursue wrongful death claims for both economic losses and emotional damages.
Our attorneys investigate every potential source of recovery to maximize compensation for your injuries.