Boating is a favorite pastime of many and is a great way to spend a sunny afternoon. Unfortunately, there are too many people who are irresponsible and reckless with the fun. If you are a victim of a boating injury due to someone else’s negligence, you may be entitled to compensation.
When someone else causes injury to you or a loved one while boating, our Augusta boat accident lawyer with Barrios Virgüez Law will have your back. Navigating insurance claims and companies is stressful. Contact an experienced personal injury attorney from our firm to learn more.
Useful Boating Information
In the last reporting year, there have been 5,265 boating accidents nationally, 107 of which were in Georgia. Some of the leading causes of boating accidents, according to the 2020 Recreational Boating Statistics data, are:
- Operator error: inattention or inexperience
- Improper lookout
- Excessive speed
- Machinery Failure
- Alcohol
- Environmental factors
Many of the causes of boat accidents are similar to those of car accidents, including driver inattention and excessive speed being among the highest contributing factors. Speaking with an Augusta boat accident attorney can help injured victims understand their legal options after a collision on the water.
In recent years, the nation has seen a 25% increase in fatalities resulting from boating accidents. Included in these numbers are ten fatal accidents, with 11 deaths in Georgia. Most of these are caused by drowning while not wearing a life jacket, but many of them are from other injuries.
Damages Assessment After a Boating Accident
If you find yourself injured in a boating accident, your boat accident attorney in Augusta can consider these factors to secure the compensation you are owed. Most people know that lawsuits for personal injury will consider economic losses like medical bills and missed work. Your Barrios Virgüez lawyer can go further and help you quantify non-economic damages.
Economic and Non-Economic Damages
Economic damages are a well-known part of compensation. These will likely include a sum for past and future medical bills, damage to property from the accident, and lost wages from time away from work. These tend to be easier to calculate with good record-keeping of costs, bills, and medical notes.
Non-economic damages go beyond tangible monetary concerns and can include loss of quality of life for severe or long-term injury or disability, emotional damages like anxiety developed from the accident, or the emotional effects of the injury on you or your family. Suppose you have a family member who has a life-altering injury. In that case, you may be able to claim Loss of Consortium to compensate for the emotional stresses and relationship disconnect that results.
Wrongful Death and Punitive Damages
In the devastating event that you lose someone in a boating accident, you may also be eligible to claim wrongful death. If it can be proven that the driver or other responsible parties were acting with malice and causing the fatal accident, there are options for punitive damages. However, punitive damages are awarded to punish and discourage the behavior rather than to serve as compensation that you are entitled to. Our wrongful death lawyers can help.
Supporting Your Boat Accident Injury Case
You can support our council in many ways. This includes taking pictures at the accident scene, collecting witness statements and police reports, and minimizing conversations with the other parties’ insurance representatives. The most significant way you can assist, though, is by calling immediately.
Our Augusta boat accident attorney has years of experience navigating complex legal claims and can help you prepare the necessary documentation to build your case. Some of these things may include a journal to document your emotional recovery and a folder for all medical documentation, including bills, test results, assessments, and ongoing photos of injuries to track the healing process.
Our attorney may also ask that you refrain from speaking freely about the encounter or posting on social media. Just like our attorneys are gathering evidence to support your case, the other parties will be doing the same. They will be eager to take any social media posts, pictures, or records with the insurance company and use them to belittle your suffering and decrease their liability.
Possible Concerns for Your Boat Injury Claim
While there are many ways to support your case, there are also many barriers to or concerns around building a solid argument. As mentioned above, if you are not cautious about what you say or do regarding the accident on social media, this can present unnecessary challenges. The same applies to not quickly pursuing a medical evaluation and immediately contacting one of our attorneys. Speaking with an Augusta boat crash attorney early can help you avoid common pitfalls and strengthen your claim. However, even if you have not contacted one of our attorneys immediately or are partially at fault for the accident, we still might be able to secure compensation for you.
Georgia has a statute of limitations for personal injury that lasts two years. This means that, while the case may be weaker after time, you still have the legal right to take legal action as long as it is within two years of the accident. Don’t let the amount of time that has passed be the only reason you do not seek a free case consult.
If you are concerned about your liability in an accident, know that Georgia is a comparative liability state, meaning that as long as you are found to hold less than 50% liability, you can still receive reduced compensation. For example, if someone is intoxicated and causes an accident, but you have not maintained your boat, you may be found 20% liable while they are 80%; therefore, you would receive your compensation minus 20%.
Reach Out to an Augusta Boat Accident Attorney for Help With Your Claim
If you or a loved one has been injured or killed by a boating accident due to another’s negligence or malice, you deserve to have someone fight for you. Recovering from an accident is hard physically, financially, and emotionally. Grieving the loss of a loved one can be one of the hardest things you do. Our Augusta boat accident lawyer can help with the day-to-day tasks of your case while you focus on healing.
If finances are a concern, we work on a contingency-based payment. This means that we take a percentage of the overall compensation awarded and it keeps us motivated to earn the maximum you can get. We get paid when you get paid. Call today for a free case consultation.
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