A Lawyer Can Help You File a Boat Accident Lawsuit

A boat accident can leave you with severe medical bills and financial stress. A lawyer can help you get you the compensation you deserve.

In general, you can claim damages by proving that a person or entity was obligated to you with a duty of care and failed to fulfill it, leading to your injuries. There are four primary elements to a successful boat accident lawsuit:

Damages

Like other personal injury cases, victims of boat accidents are entitled to compensation for their losses. These damages can include medical expenses lost wages, future earning capacity as well as property damage, pain and suffering, and emotional distress.

The amount a jury awards will be contingent on the severity of your injuries and how long you will need to recover from them. Jury settlements and awards tend to be higher when you suffer catastrophic injuries. These injuries could include trauma to the brain (TBI), spinal cord injury (SCI), and permanent disfigurement.

It may be difficult to decide who is liable for your boating accident. Your attorney will look into the cause of the accident and pinpoint any parties who could be held responsible for liability for your losses. This could include the boat owner and any other boat operators, or anyone else who was aboard at the time of the accident.

In some cases it may be possible to sue the manufacturer of your boat if it can be proven that an ineffective component caused your injury. This is called product liability and is covered by the laws that govern automobile manufacturers. Get an attorney's advice as soon as you can if you are thinking of making this claim. The attorney can guide you through the entire process and ensure that all damages are recovered.

Liability

It is important to realize that, like a car accident lawsuit, the boating injury lawsuit has to demonstrate four elements in order to be successful. This includes proving the defendant's responsibility, breach of this duty, actual damages and causation. This is not an easy task, and it requires the skill of a highly experienced personal injury lawyer.

Negligence and recklessness can cause boating accidents. Boating safety regulations should be adhered to, as do road rules. Furthermore, if an accident was caused by the person operating the boat accident lawyer under the influence of alcohol or other drugs then he or she could be held responsible. It is also crucial to remember that boating requires the greatest amount of awareness and attention due to the erratic nature of weather and water conditions.

In an accident that results in a boating injury the victim is entitled to compensation damages to cover their losses and boat accidents costs. These costs include direct medical costs loss of wages due to missed work, property damage or injury, and many more. If you have health insurance it will typically pay for a portion of these expenses. This is particularly relevant for maritime workers who are covered by the Jones Act to compensation, which is a law dating back to the 1800s that gives injured maritime workers the same path to recovery to workers compensation.

Preparation

Compensation for damages can help families deal with the financial burdens associated with their losses. As with car accidents, boat accidents typically involve multiple parties who may share responsibility for the accident, which makes it necessary to seek experienced legal representation when seeking compensation.

In the majority of cases, victims of boating accidents can recover the same types damages as they could in a car accident case which includes property damage and medical expenses, along with lost wages due to missed work. They can also seek compensation for emotional trauma and pain and suffering, and also loss of enjoyment of their lives.

Boating accidents can be caused by a number of causes, but in most cases, the person or business is held responsible for an accident occurring on a waterway due to their inattention. Common defendants are the boat owner or the owner of the boat or if the accident occurred when the victim was aboard commercial vessel, the employer of the individual.

Workers' compensation benefits are available for boaters injured in an incident. However it is a different procedure from filing personal injury lawsuits for the same incident.

Filing

A serious boating incident can be devastating regardless of whether or not you own a luxurious boat or a simple fishing boat. An experienced attorney can assist you in recovering damages for your losses.

As with car accidents, those who are injured in a boating incident may file a personal injury lawsuit against the party at fault for damages. A successful lawsuit could cover medical expenses as well as lost income, pain and discomfort, and other financial losses as a result of the incident. The severity of your injury will determine the amount you are owed by the defendant. A person who has suffered a serious spinal cord injury or brain injury is likely to be hit with huge medical bills as well as a loss of future earning potential.

In addition to showing negligence the plaintiff must also establish the causation. This means that the defendant violated their duty of exercising reasonable care in order to avoid harming others on the water and this was the direct cause of your injuries. Examples of breaches include operating a boat intoxicated, recklessly losing control of a vessel or failing to leave enough space for other vessels.

An experienced lawyer can analyze the evidence to determine which parties are responsible for your accident. They can also negotiate with the insurance company of the defendant and other legal counsel on behalf of you. If you cannot agree to a settlement, your case will be heard and the jury will rule on damages and liability.