You were crossing at a corner on the way home, or walking the kids back from a friend's house as the light went, or stepping out of a parking lot at the end of the day. The driver didn't see you. You weren't in a car at all, and now you're the one dealing with insurance.
In Newfoundland and Labrador, a pedestrian hit by a vehicle claims accident benefits first from the insurer of the vehicle that hit them, if that policy carries them. Call 911 if you're hurt, get assessed the same day, tell the insurers within 30 days, and start a dated record of your symptoms that day.
Being on foot doesn't put you outside the system. It puts you at the centre of it, because you had nothing around you when it happened.
Is a pedestrian covered after being hit by a car in Newfoundland and Labrador?
Usually, but not automatically. This is the only province in Canada where accident benefits, known as Section B, are optional on an auto policy. So the first question after a crash is whether the policy on the vehicle that hit you includes them.
When it does, the law is clear about who pays. The insurer of the vehicle that hit you is liable first, and your own policy, or one you're covered under at home, only tops up what that insurer doesn't pay. You don't need to own a car or hold a licence.
The standard limits are lower than people expect: up to $25,000 for medical and rehabilitation costs within four years of the crash, and, if you can't work, 80 percent of your gross weekly income to a maximum of $140 a week. Some policies carry higher limits, so ask what the policy includes and write down the answer.
Why are November evenings the riskiest time to be on foot in Newfoundland and Labrador?
Because the walk home moves into the dark overnight. In St. John's, the sun sets at 5:44 p.m. on Halloween. Two days later, after the clocks go back on Sunday 1 November, it sets at 4:41 p.m., and it stays before 5 p.m. every day until the end of January.
The dark matters on these streets. In the City of St. John's most recent collision report, covering 2018 to 2022, 46 percent of pedestrian collisions happened in the dark or at dusk, and 86 percent of pedestrian collisions ended in an injury or a death.
Out trick-or-treating? If a child is hit by a car
Halloween falls in the riskiest stretch of the year for children on foot. Across Canada, more children under 15 are hurt as pedestrians in October than in any other month, with November close behind, and nearly a quarter are hurt in those two months, according to Transport Canada collision data for 2021 to 2023. This year Halloween falls on a Saturday, the night before the clocks go back, so trick-or-treaters will share the streets with Saturday-night party traffic. If the worst happens, here is what to do.
Call 911 and stay with your child. Any collision with an injury must be reported to police, even if the driver says it was nothing.
Get your child checked the same day. Children often can't describe what hurts, and a fall onto pavement can hide an injury that shows up later. Tell the doctor your child was hit by a vehicle.
Be the one who keeps the record. Write down what your child said, how they slept, any change in mood or behaviour, and every school day missed. The record you keep is what shows how the weeks went. Our article on what families should write down goes further.
Find out which insurer pays. Ask the driver for their insurance details at the scene, or get them from police. Children are covered like anyone else when the policy carries accident benefits, and the notice to that insurer is due within 30 days.
Whose insurance does a pedestrian claim through in Newfoundland and Labrador?
First, the insurer of the vehicle that hit you. Your own policy, or one you're covered under at home, comes second and pays only what the first insurer doesn't.
If the driver left the scene or had no insurance, report it to police within 24 hours. If you or someone in your home has an auto policy, give that insurer written notice within 30 days. If no policy applies, a claim can be made through the Facility Association.
If you were working when you were hit, tell your employer and WorkplaceNL right away. You'll choose between WorkplaceNL compensation and suing the driver within three months, and the claim to WorkplaceNL is also due within three months.
The Newfoundland and Labrador MVA Companion Guide sets out who to contact, along with the forms and the deadlines.
Does it matter who was at fault?
Not for accident benefits. They pay for your treatment whoever caused the crash.
Fault matters for a separate claim against the driver, for losses beyond what the benefits cover. There's no cap on pain and suffering in this province, but a $5,000 deductible comes off any award for it. To keep that claim fully on track, written notice has to reach the driver's side within 120 days of the crash, and the claim generally has to start within two years. Our article on the $5,000 deductible explains how it works.
Why do pedestrian injuries need extra care?
Because there's nothing between you and the vehicle. No seatbelt, no airbag, no frame. Even a slow impact can mean a fall onto pavement, a head injury or a knee or hip that takes the full force.
Adrenaline hides a lot at the scene. Many people stand up, say they're fine and walk home, then wake up the next morning unable to move. Our article on why car accident injuries sometimes appear days later explains why, and why the date a symptom first appears matters so much.
What should you do in the first week?
Four things, in this order.
Get assessed, even if you feel alright. Tell the doctor you were hit by a vehicle while walking, and describe every symptom, including the small ones. That first visit is the starting point everything else is measured from.
Make sure police know. Any collision with an injury must be reported to police. If you're hurt, call 911. If police didn't come to the scene, call the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary at 709-729-8000, or the RCMP at 1-800-709-7267 outside RNC areas.
Tell the insurers. Give written notice of your accident benefits claim within 30 days, and proof of claim within 90 days. For a sprain, strain or whiplash treated under the province's protocols, the claim form is due within 10 business days. Our article on Newfoundland and Labrador car accident deadlines lists every date.
Start writing things down. Nobody else records the days between appointments. That part is yours.
What are you allowed to do?
You are allowed to make a claim even though you weren't in a vehicle.
You are allowed to see a doctor days later and say the pain arrived after the crash rather than at it.
You are allowed to say you're afraid to cross that street now, and to have that written into your file alongside the physical injuries.
You are allowed to change your route home, or wait for daylight, while you recover.
You are allowed to ask a family member to keep notes for you if writing is hard right now.
What should you record after being hit while walking?
| What to record | Why it helps |
|---|---|
| Where you were, which way you were walking and the light and weather | Sets out how it happened while your memory is clear |
| The vehicle, the driver's insurer and any witnesses | The driver's insurer is the one that pays first |
| Your police file number and the date of every notice you send | The 30-day and 120-day notices are easy to prove when they're written down |
| Every symptom and the date it first appeared | Connects each injury to the collision |
| Every appointment, and any you had to cancel | Shows treatment running continuously |
| What you couldn't do that week that you could do before | Turns the injury into something another person can measure |
The National MVA Recovery Guide is built for anyone hurt in a collision, whether you were driving, riding or walking. It gives every symptom a date and every appointment a page.
Keep your recovery in one place
The National MVA Recovery Guide holds your whole recovery. The Newfoundland and Labrador MVA Companion Guide adds the insurers, the forms and the deadlines in Newfoundland and Labrador.
Why use Hurt Square?
Because a pedestrian's injuries are often more serious, and the details of the day are hard to rebuild later. Hurt Square guides give you one place to keep it all.
- The day it happened, and every day after. The National MVA Recovery Guide has space for the first hours after your accident, daily pain and symptom tracking, every appointment and every expense, for anyone hurt by a vehicle.
- Newfoundland and Labrador's rules, in plain words. The Newfoundland and Labrador MVA Companion Guide holds the deadlines, notices and insurer routes in the province.
- Made for hard days. 192 pages and more than 1,600 fillable fields that work on your phone, tablet or computer, in plain language.
Both guides, $39 until 22 November. The National MVA Recovery Guide and the Newfoundland and Labrador MVA Companion Guide, with the discount applied at checkout. Bought separately: $63.99.
Get both guidesRead next
- “I Need Help After My Crash!” | Car Accident Injury Claims in Newfoundland and Labrador
- “Why Is My Payout Smaller?” | No Cap, But a $5,000 Deductible: Claims in Newfoundland and Labrador
- Recovering After a Car Accident in Newfoundland and Labrador: A Complete Guide
- “I Felt Fine. Now I Hurt!” | Why Car Accident Injuries Sometimes Appear Days Later
Last verified 25 October 2026. Who pays first, the 120-day notice and the $5,000 deductible from the Automobile Insurance Act and the Automobile Insurance Regulations, 2019; optional accident benefits from the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador's automobile insurance review; standard limits and deadlines from the standard automobile policy; the protocol deadline from the Diagnostic and Treatment Protocols Regulations; hit-and-run steps from the uninsured and unidentified automobile regulations; limitation rules from the Limitations Act; WorkplaceNL rules from the Workplace Health, Safety and Compensation Act, 2022; police reporting from the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary; St. John's figures from the City of St. John's Collision Report 2018 to 2022; child pedestrian figures from Transport Canada's National Collision Database, 2021 to 2023; sun times calculated for St. John's. This article is general information for people in Newfoundland and Labrador. It is not medical, legal or insurance advice.
