Boating Accidents

Personal Injury – Boating Accident Lawyers San Diego, CA

Across the country hundreds of people die in boating accidents every year and many more are injured and San Diego is no exception. These boating accidents may also result in severe Personal Injury, unpaid medical bills, lost earnings due to missing work, and long-term or permanent injuries. Boating accidents or crashes are what are known as personal injury claims. The Personal Injury and Boating Accident lawyers at the Justice Law Group of San Diego are experienced in handling personal injury cases. Boating accidents can occur on a wide variety of water vehicles including personal watercrafts (such as a Jet Ski, Wave Runner, Sea-Doo). Alcohol and carelessness are often contributing factors involved in a boating accident that results with a personal injury.

If you or a family member has had a Personal Injury from a boating accident or a family member has been killed, the lawyers at the Justice Law Group of San Diego stand ready to help you pick up the pieces. State, Federal and Administrative regulations as well as the U.S. Coast Guard’s Navigation Rules govern all facets of boating and boating safety. The laws are complex yet crucial in helping to compensate those who have been injured in a boating accident.

Personal Injury – Boating Accident – Negligence in San Diego

Generally boating accidents contain a cause of action for Negligence.  Negligence is a claim based on recklessness or carelessness as opposed to an intentional tort. In civil litigation, if a Plaintiff (injured party) proves that he or she was harmed through someone else’s negligent actions, they can recover damages. In our society, people and entities owe a general duty of care towards you to not harm you (such as by crashing their boat into you or throwing you off a JetSki while drunk). To prove Negligence in a boating accident it must be established that a duty of due care was owed and the defendant(s) breached their duty of due care – and as a result someone (the plaintiff) was harmed. The test to establish a breach of the duty of due care in a boating accident is whether a reasonable person in the same situation would have acted differently. This is both a subjective and objective test and is generally fact specific. Often times it involves expert testimony to help establish this. Establishing a Negligence cause of action in a boating accident will entitle someone to obtain economic and non-economic damages, including pain and suffering, emotional distress, lost wages, medical bills, and property damage.

Aside from Negligence in a boating accident, there are also personal injury claims that involve Intentional Torts, such as an Assault and Battery. With intentional torts it is also possible to obtain punitive damages. Punitive damages serve to punish the wrongdoer for their actions. The amount of punitive damages that someone may be entitled to are based on the gravity of the harm (how severe the conduct was that resulted in the harm) and the financial well-being or assets of the defendant(s). Punitive damages may come into play if alcohol was involved or severe recklessness (conscious disregard).

Personal Injury – Boating Accident – Operator Caused Boating Accidents in San Diego

The largest cause of recreational boating accidents and personal injury are operator inattention, careless/reckless boat operation, driving a boat or water vehicle too fast, aggressive or reckless passenger/skier behavior, alcohol, and improper lookout. These negligent acts and others can cause boats to capsize or collide or have someone thrown off a vehicle. They may result in flooding, fire, and explosion. When boat operators are careless, skiers or wakeboarders may be hit and people may fall overboard. From time to time, negligently designed boats and defective boating equipment can also cause accidents which give rise to claims against the entities that made the vehicle.

  • Was the driver of the boat or water vehicle drunk at the time of the boat accident?
  • Was the driver of the boat or water vehicle driving too fast for the circumstances and conditions – i.e. the waters are bumpy, there are others around, or it is dark?
  • Was the driver of the boat or water vehicle turning too sharply in close proximity to another vessel or person?
  • If the driver was operating a personal watercraft such as Jet Ski, Sea-Doo, or Wave Runner:  Was the driver going too fast or weaving across the water in an unsafe manner?  Was the driver too close to another vehicle weaving dangerously?

Winning a boating accident case in San Diego  involving death or injury due to the negligence of a boat operator or a boat equipment manufacturer can be difficult without the help of an attorney who knows the ins and outs of boating negligence litigation.

Personal Injury – Boating Accidents and Justice Law Group of San Diego

The Personal Injury lawyers at the Justice Law Group of San Diego will investigate the circumstances surrounding your boat accident and personal injury using our legal experience and private investigators and experts when applicable. This includes retrieving all available cell phone records and any relevant video records, work reports, prior accident reports, litigation history, police reports, disciplinary action reports, and other relevant documentation. We will work with healthcare providers to get you the treatment that you need, often on a lien basis. Our office will retain medical experts and accident reconstructionists to evaluate and prosecute your boat accident claim in San Diego.

We understand the intricacies of the overlapping laws with a boating accident and personal injury and how they apply to boating and water safety. We will work with insurance companies when possible to ensure you receive what you deserve for your personal injury resulting from a boating accident. If you have suffered serious boating injuries or a loved one has been injured as a result of a boating related accident, we can help you. At the Justice Law Group of San Diego, you will not be passed to a secretary or paralegal, instead you will speak to the lawyers who will be handling your case all the way through trial when necessary. Please call us now to discuss your case and set up a free consultation.

How much do we believe in our ability to successfully fight for you? If we take your case, you pay NO ATTORNEYS FEES, unless and until we recover payment for you.  At the Justice Law Group of San Diego, you will not be passed to a secretary or paralegal, instead you will speak to the Personal Injury and Boat Accident lawyers who will be handling your case all the way through trial when necessary. Call us today. 858.412.0019 or contact@justice-lawgroup.com