Has fun on the family boat turned from play to nightmare because of the carelessness of another boater? If so, you may need somewhere to turn to in order to get questions about your accident, injury, and rights answered. Fortunately, our lawyers have experience in handling boating accident claims and are dedicated to serving every client with compassion, respect, and understanding. Whether your boating accident was caused by another boat operator's drunkenness or inexperience, you likely have a valid claim, particularly if the accident resulted in injury to yourself or someone on your watercraft.
Accident Basics
Among the most common causes of boat accidents in 2005, according to the U.S. Coast Guard, were:
- alcohol use
- careless or reckless operation
- excessive speed
- hazardous waters
- operator inattention
- operator inexperience
Additionally, the three most common types of boat accidents are collisions with other vessels, collisions with fixed objects such as a pier, and passengers falling overboard. Other common types of accidents are skier mishaps and capsizing.
Things You Can Do
As with any accident, it's helpful to keep documentation relating to your boat accident in a convenient location. Items that may be helpful to your claim include the boating accident report, receipts from boat repair work and medical care, photographs of the damage to your boat and your injuries, where the accident happened, and the injuries you and any other passengers sustained. Also, if you haven't already done so, try to get the names and contact information of anyone who may have witnessed the accident. Contacting these people as your claim develops may be helpful, as witnesses can attest to the carelessness of the other boater.
Another note of importance is to be careful of speaking to insurance adjustors. Often an adjustor will contact the injured party to get a statement or have him or her sign a release. If an insurance adjustor contacts you for something similar, know that you don't have to talk to the adjustor nor do you have to sign a release. In fact, it's best to contact an attorney before doing either to be sure that you don't sign away any rights or hurt your claim.
If you were injured in a boating accident, contact us now! |
