Shortly before 6 a.m. on Tuesday, October 13, 2026, a man pushing an electric scooter was struck by a vehicle near Northwest Seventh Avenue and 27th Street in Miami and taken to Ryder Trauma Center in critical condition. The driver did not stop. Police said they were looking for a dark sedan or SUV with major front-end and windshield damage, and surveillance video from a nearby business captured the collision. Reports noted the pedestrians were crossing mid-block, outside a designated crossing area. Cases like this raise three questions injured pedestrians ask again and again: what happens if the driver is never found, does crossing outside a crosswalk end the claim, and whose insurance pays first?

If the Driver Flees, Your Claim Does Not Automatically End

Leaving the scene of a crash involving injuries is a serious offense in Florida, and police investigations in hit-and-run cases often turn on surveillance video, vehicle debris left at the scene, and tips from the public. A second pedestrian hit-and-run was reported in Dania Beach just days after the Miami crash — a reminder that this pattern is common in Miami-Dade and Broward.

For the injured person, the civil claim can proceed even while the driver is unknown. If the driver is later identified, a claim can be made against that driver’s insurance. If the driver is never found, or has no insurance, an injured pedestrian’s own uninsured motorist (UM) coverage may apply — UM generally treats an unidentified hit-and-run driver as an uninsured motorist. That is one reason UM coverage matters even for people who walk or cycle more than they drive.

Crossing Mid-Block Does Not Automatically Bar Recovery

Florida law requires pedestrians crossing outside a marked or unmarked crosswalk to yield the right of way to vehicles, and drivers in turn must exercise care to avoid colliding with a pedestrian and must yield in crosswalks. Crossing mid-block can therefore be evidence of fault — but it is not an automatic bar to compensation, and it does not excuse a driver who was speeding, distracted, or who left the scene.

Florida follows modified comparative negligence for most negligence claims, including pedestrian crashes: your compensation is reduced by your percentage of fault, and if you are found more than 50% at fault, you cannot recover damages. That makes the details decisive — lighting before dawn, vehicle speed, where the pedestrian was in the roadway, what surveillance video shows, and whether the driver had a chance to avoid the collision. Insurers will push to assign as much fault as possible to the person on foot; early evidence is how that push is answered.

Whose Insurance Pays the First Medical Bills?

Florida’s no-fault system can help pedestrians, too. A pedestrian struck by a motor vehicle may be able to claim Personal Injury Protection (PIP) benefits — generally through their own auto policy, through a policy held by a relative they live with, or in some circumstances through the involved vehicle’s policy — for 80% of reasonable medical expenses and 60% of lost wages, up to the $10,000 limit. The same strict rule applies: you must seek medical treatment within 14 days of the crash or PIP benefits can be lost, and the full limit generally requires a determination of an emergency medical condition, otherwise benefits may be capped at $2,500.

Serious pedestrian injuries often exceed PIP quickly. Beyond PIP and UM coverage, an identified at-fault driver’s bodily-injury coverage is the next source, and health insurance may cover treatment while a claim is pending. Keeping bills, records, and proof of missed work from the start helps connect each source correctly.

Bicyclists Face the Same Fault Fight

The Miami crash involved people crossing with a scooter and a bicycle nearby, and bicyclists are regularly in the same position. A rider lawfully traveling on the roadway generally has the same rights — and duties — as a driver, and a motorist’s failure to see a bicycle does not excuse a failure to yield. As with pedestrians, fault is apportioned under modified comparative negligence, evidence disappears quickly, and Florida’s general two-year deadline to file a personal injury lawsuit applies from the date of the crash.

What to Do After a Pedestrian or Bicycle Crash

1. Get medical care immediately — the 14-day PIP rule and your health both depend on it.
2. Report the crash and, in a hit-and-run, tell police about any nearby cameras, businesses, or witnesses.
3. Photograph the scene, the roadway, lighting, and your injuries if you are able, or ask someone to do it.
4. Keep the scooter, bicycle, helmet, and clothing unrepaired and as-is until they can be documented.
5. Do not give a recorded statement to an insurer before getting legal advice, especially about where you were crossing.
6. Act quickly on video — surveillance footage is often overwritten within days.

If you or a loved one was hit while walking or riding in Miami-Dade or Broward County, Tacher Law offers free consultations for pedestrian, bicycle, and other personal injury matters. Call (305) 644-2211 or visit our contact page to discuss your situation.

Tacher Law, 16445 Collins Avenue, Suite 1625, Sunny Isles Beach, FL 33160.