Boating Accidents in Florida
An experienced attorney who can help you recover compensation
People often think they are safer on the water in a boat compared to driving down the street, but you are more likely to get into a crash and suffer a personal injury on a ferry than in a bus.
For more than 15 years, The Cerasa Law Firm LLC in Orlando has successfully represented boating accident victims in claims against at-fault operators, manufacturers, and others. Whether your accident happened in the Atlantic, on Crystal River, St. John’s, or on your way to the Disappearing Island, our law firm has the experience you need to win your case.
Our firm gives free case consultations to accident victims. A member of our legal team will listen to you talk about the events leading up to your injury and what you require to heal. We demand maximum compensation for our clients. At your consultation, we will discuss your best legal options.
The term “boating accident” in the legal realm is broader than it sounds. Watercrafts of any size, from kayaks to yachts, can be involved in boating accidents. Hundreds of personal watercrafts or PWC accidents, most frequently occur in a bay, sound, ocean, or gulf. The accident is usually caused by falling off a watercraft or collision with a vessel or fixed object.
Whether you were injured while swimming at Lake Kissimmee, sailing around Tampa Bay, taking a boat tour in Orlando, or some other water-related accident, you can take control after an accident and assert your right to file a claim against those responsible.
We build strong cases
To get the insurance companies to take your injuries and property loss seriously, it’s best to have a lawyer fighting for you. Boating accident attorney Michael Cerasa knows the industry's tricks and traps – and he knows how to respond. Attorney Cerasa takes an aggressive approach when it comes to getting you the compensation you require to heal. Without a proper claim settlement, you and your family will end up paying out of pocket for things an insurance policy would have covered – medical expenses, lost property, your diminished earning potential, loss of enjoyment, pain and suffering, and other related damages.
Cerasa knows Florida boating law
Florida records hundreds of boating accident injuries every year.
In fact, Florida is known for having more boating accident-related fatalities than any other state. The occasionally choppy waters of the Gulf Coast have claimed many lives, but fatalities have been recorded all over the state.
Not enough people realize that while Florida does not issue boating licenses, it does require operators to take a National Association of State Boating Law Administrators (NASBLA) approved boating education course. It’s a modern rule and applies to people who were born on or after Jan. 1, 1988.
Once completed, boating operators are issued a boater education ID card that they must have on them when operating a boat.
Even people on vacation in fun-packed Orlando or Tampa need to get an ID. A temporary boating ID is good for 90 days and can be issued to people who can prove they have undergone boating education in another state or pass a standardized boating test.
Despite this requirement, most boating accidents involve uneducated operators, according to Florida’s Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. About 70 percent of boating fatalities involve an operator who had no boating education or otherwise did not pass the test.
What causes boating accidents?
The Cerasa Law Firm LLC has successfully represented many boating accident victims in Central Florida and we’ve seen a wide variety of situations that can lead to injuries, including:
- Boat-on-boat crashes
- Falls overboard
- Run-ins with aquatic plants or animals
- Capsizing
- Buoy entanglement
- Boat vs. swimmer accidents
- Skeg or propeller mishaps
- Skier falls
- Fires or explosions
- Flooding, aka “swamping”
- Overloading
- Engine or other machinery failures
- Sharp turns
- Weather
- Speed
- Inattention
- Careless or reckless behavior
Common boating accident injuries
Some of Central Florida’s cities are known to be rough for boaters. Tampa’s bay, for example, is recognized for its fast-changing conditions. You can sail out under clear skies then 15 minutes later get clobbered by a thunderstorm.
Even though the Orlando area isn’t along the coast, the larger region with its many lakes is among the top Florida areas with the most boating accidents every year.
ORMC sees all kinds of people with boating accident injuries every year. In a boating accident, it’s typically the passengers on the vessel who are most frequently injured, though operators are often hurt, as well.
By far the most common type of boating injuries are lacerations and cuts. When people die in boating accidents it’s usually due to drowning or physical trauma.
Other frequent boating accident injuries include:
- Lacerations, cuts
- Broken bones
- Hand injuries
- Contusions
- Back injuries
- Internal injuries
- Burns
- Sprains and strains
- Teeth, jaw injuries
- Neck injuries
Get Cerasa to get results
With its abundance of lakes, swamps, rivers, and beaches, Florida has some of the most beautiful natural resources in the country, as well as one of the highest boat accident rates in the U.S. If you have been injured on the water, you deserve to get everything essential to your recovery. Contact The Cerasa Law Firm LLC today for a free consultation with a skilled, Orlando boat accident lawyer. We are ready to hear about your accident, injuries, and needs. We can plan a strategy to get the settlement that you deserve.