Billings, MontanaBillings Pedestrian Accident
Billings Pedestrian Accident Lawyers: Crosswalk Crashes, Hit-and-Runs and Parking-Lot Injuries in Downtown Billings, the Heights and the West End
Boland Aarab PLLP.
If a driver hit you while you were walking in Billings, you can usually recover from that driver’s insurer, and after a hit-and-run, often from your own uninsured motorist coverage. Montana drivers must yield to pedestrians in crosswalks and use due care everywhere. You generally have 3 years to file, but video and witnesses disappear in days.
Hit by a car while walking, or lost a loved one in a pedestrian crash? Contact Boland Aarab PLLP for a free consultation at (406) 315-3737.
Where are pedestrians at risk in Billings?
Billings is a driving city with walking neighborhoods inside it, and pedestrian crashes cluster where the two meet.
- Downtown. The downtown grid around the numbered streets and lettered avenues draws people on foot to offices, the courthouse and restaurants. Three downtown streets, North 27th, 28th and 29th, cross the railroad at grade between Montana and Minnesota Avenues. When a train clears, traffic that has been waiting moves all at once.
- Bus stops. MET Transit runs fixed routes across the city, with two transfer centers: the Downtown Transfer Center and the Stewart Park Transfer Center on the West End (City of Billings, MET). Every bus rider is a pedestrian at both ends of the trip, often crossing a busy arterial to reach the stop.
- Campus crossings. Students and staff cross 27th Street North, Poly Drive and Rimrock Road around MSU Billings and Rocky Mountain College.
- Main Street in the Heights. The Montana Department of Transportation says the Main Street and Airport Road corridor carries about 63,500 vehicles a day (MDT). Crossing that many lanes of traffic on foot is hard at any hour.
- West End parking lots. The big-box and shopping-center lots along King Avenue West and Shiloh Road produce backover and turning crashes that never happen on a public street.
Winter makes every one of these worse. In December, it is dark in Billings by late afternoon, snowbanks narrow the view at corners, and a driver on packed snow needs far more distance to stop than one on dry pavement. None of that excuses a driver. It is exactly why the law requires drivers to adjust to conditions.
What happens after a pedestrian crash in Billings?
Call 911. On city streets, the Billings Police Department usually investigates. If the driver fled, report it right away, because many insurance policies require prompt reporting for hit-and-run coverage. Write down what you remember about the car and where it went.
Then think about video. Downtown businesses, bus cameras, gas stations and Heights and West End retailers often have cameras pointed at the street or the lot. Much of that footage is overwritten within days. A written request to preserve it should go out as soon as possible. Serious pedestrian injuries are often treated at Billings Clinic or St. Vincent Regional Hospital. Ask for the emergency department records and the imaging, not just the discharge summary.
A lawsuit in state court is filed in the Thirteenth Judicial District Court, which serves Yellowstone County from the courthouse at 217 North 27th Street (§ 3-5-101, MCA). If the driver or the driver’s employer is from another state, the case may be moved to the Billings Division of federal court, at the James F. Battin Federal Courthouse (District of Montana). Claims against the City of Billings, for example over a dangerous crossing, have their own written-notice rules.
What if I was hit in a Billings parking lot?
You can still bring a claim. Many traffic statutes apply only on highways, which Montana defines as public ways, so a private parking lot is usually outside them (§ 61-8-101, MCA). But every driver still owes ordinary care (§ 27-1-701, MCA), and the property owner may share responsibility for poor lighting or a dangerous traffic layout. Store video is the key evidence, and it is the first thing to go.
Montana law that applies
- Crosswalks: where there is no working signal, drivers must yield to a pedestrian in a marked crosswalk or an unmarked crosswalk at an intersection (§ 61-8-502, MCA). Every intersection has a crosswalk, painted or not (§ 61-8-102, MCA).
- Outside a crosswalk, a pedestrian yields (§ 61-8-503, MCA), but drivers must still use due care (§ 61-8-504, MCA).
- Hit-and-run drivers must stop, give information and render aid (§§ 61-7-103, 61-7-105, MCA).
- Uninsured motorist coverage must be offered on Montana auto policies (§ 33-23-201, MCA) and often covers insureds on foot.
- Comparative fault and the 3-year deadline apply (§§ 27-1-702, 27-2-204, MCA); government claims require written presentation (§ 2-9-301, MCA).
Our Montana pedestrian accident page covers hit-and-run coverage and parking-lot claims in more depth.
Why hire a Great Falls firm for a Billings case?
We are based in Great Falls and handle pedestrian cases statewide. The legal work is the same in both cities, and what separates a strong case from a weak one is how fast the evidence is gathered and how well the injuries are proven. Our attorneys travel to Billings for depositions, hearings and trial. Our firm has tried jury trials in Yellowstone County, so we know the courthouse and the jury pool. We have no Billings office, and you will not need to travel to Great Falls.
The Boland Aarab Way
- We try cases. More than a dozen jury trials, in Cascade, Phillips, Meagher and Yellowstone Counties, and more than 4,000 hours in the courtroom.
- We hold cities accountable. A jury returned a $115,000 net verdict for our client against a Montana city (Jack v. City of White Sulphur Springs).
- We protect verdicts. The Montana Supreme Court reinstated a $168,500 verdict for our client (Voegel v. Salsbery, 2023 MT 137).
- You work with the lawyers. Both attorneys are members of the American Association for Justice and the Montana Trial Lawyers Association, and Samir Aarab is also a member of Public Justice.
Related Billings pages: bicycle accidents · wrongful death · all Billings personal injury cases
Frequently Asked Questions
I was hit crossing downtown after a train cleared. Who is at fault? Usually the driver who failed to yield. Drivers must yield to pedestrians in marked and unmarked crosswalks at intersections (§ 61-8-502, MCA), and a line of cars moving at once does not change that duty.
I was hit walking to a MET bus stop. Does my own insurance help? Often. Your uninsured, underinsured or medical payments coverage may apply while you are on foot, depending on the policy, and household policies may also cover you.
Can I recover if I was hit in a West End store parking lot? Yes. Drivers owe ordinary care in parking lots (§ 27-1-701, MCA), and the property owner may share responsibility. Ask the store in writing to keep its video.
Who investigates a pedestrian crash in Billings? Usually the Billings Police Department inside city limits and the Yellowstone County Sheriff’s Office outside them. Request the full report and any photos.
What if the driver who hit me in Billings drove away? Report it immediately. Leaving the scene is a crime (§ 61-7-103, MCA), and your uninsured motorist coverage may pay if the driver is never found.
Talk to a Billings Pedestrian Accident Lawyer
Contact Boland Aarab PLLP for a free consultation at (406) 315-3737.
Our attorneys: Caitlin Boland Aarab · Samir F. Aarab
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship.
