Boating is a popular pastime in Miami. Tens of thousands of watercraft are registered in Miami-Dade County, and they’re both used for personal enjoyment and rented out to tourists. As with any other type of vehicle, however, as soon as you have multiple vessels moving around on the water, you have a chance of accidents.
According to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission Division of Law Enforcement (FWC), collisions with another vessel are the most common type of boating accident, and almost 40% of those accidents happen in Miami-Dade County.
Under Florida law, boat drivers are required to report accidents when:
- Someone dies
- Someone disappears and it’s reasonable to believe that they’re injured or dead
- Someone receives medical treatment beyond first aid
- At least $2,000 of property damage occurs due to an accident
- A vessel is destroyed or lost
This means that drownings, collisions with stationary objects, and storm-related damage are all frequently reported types of accidents.
Responsibility in a Miami Boat Collision
When two boats collide, it’s usually because at least one boat driver violated boating safety regulations. These regulations aren’t quite as strict as motor vehicle laws because there are no roads on the water. However, they’re equally (if not more) important.
Most boats don’t have seat belts or similar safety devices. Consequently, a collision at any meaningful speed is very likely to result in injuries to the people onboard. And responsibility goes hand-in-hand with negligence — if a boat driver isn’t taking appropriate caution, they could be liable for any injuries sustained in a collision.
The following scenarios will help illustrate who’s responsible for common types of boating accidents.
A Collision Between a Moving Boat and an Unmoving Boat
As a rule of thumb, if one vessel is moving and another isn’t, whoever is operating the moving vessel is at fault. There may be rare exceptions where a non-moving boat is in a location where it shouldn’t be and isn’t immediately visible. But typically, the driver of the moving boat should keep an eye out for other vessels, moving or stationary.
Unfortunately, just because a boat isn’t moving doesn’t mean it isn’t occupied. Many boaters will navigate their vessels somewhere and anchor them while fishing or engaging in other activities where they’re stopped.
While a collision with an unmoving boat will likely be less severe than one between two moving boats, it can still seriously injure the occupants of both vessels.
A Crash Involving a Drunk Boater
Drinking and boating are every bit as dangerous as drinking and driving, albeit in different ways. It also automatically makes the driver liable for any accident they’re involved in.
Operating a boat while under the influence of drugs or alcohol is against the law. If a boater injures or kills someone while drunk, they will likely face criminal charges.
That could be very useful to your case if you’re injured by someone who’s boating under the influence. Your Miami boating accident lawyer can use the result from a conviction as evidence in a civil lawsuit against the boat’s operator.
A Violation of Right-of-Way Regulations
There may not be lanes on Florida waterways, but there are still right-of-way regulations. Boaters are required to know these regulations and obey them. If one boat has the right-of-way and the driver of another boat doesn’t respect it, it could result in an accident.
Right-of-way can be signaled in several ways. For example, at most ports, there are written procedures that everyone who uses the port agrees to. These procedures are usually enforced with signs and signal flags.
In open areas of water, the regulations and procedures may be less clear. However, if two boats are heading toward one another, the drivers should slow down and signal their intent, at the very least. Failure to do so will usually make at least one of them responsible for an accident.
An Accident Involving a Rented Boat
If you rent a watercraft in Miami-Dade, the company that provides the vessel may be liable for an accident under some circumstances. For example, if the company rented you a boat that had mechanical issues and those issues caused an accident, you could file a lawsuit for any injuries the defective equipment caused.
Injuries to Passengers in Boat Collisions
When passengers are hurt in a boating accident, determining responsibility is crucial because it will determine how they’ll get compensation. Unfortunately, many passengers don’t understand the law well enough to know who is liable in an accident scenario.
As such, the best option for passengers is to consult a Miami boating accident lawyer as soon as possible. A qualified lawyer will have the necessary knowledge, tools, and resources to determine legal responsibility.
When to Contact a Miami Boating Accident Lawyer
If you’re injured on the water, the best time to contact a Miami boating accident lawyer is right away. Hospital bills and other expenses can pile up quickly, and you don’t want to fall into financial distress while waiting for compensation.
Furthermore, it’s often more complicated to determine liability for boating accidents than car accidents. There may be fewer witnesses to the accident and less physical evidence to work with. For this reason, a boating accident could take months or even years to litigate.
Florida has a two-year statute of limitations for personal injury lawsuits, including those stemming from boating mishaps. That means you only have two years to file a lawsuit after being injured.
Your boating accident attorney will need as much time as possible to piece together a strong case. The longer you wait to hire them, the harder it will be for them to win fair compensation for you.
Talk to a Miami Boating Accident Lawyer at Schrier Law Group Today
If you’ve been hurt in a boating accident in Miami, you may be eligible to get compensation for your injuries. The experienced personal injury attorneys at Schrier Law Group can help you plan your next steps. Contact us today to schedule a free consultation and lay the groundwork for a successful injury claim.
