With a sprawling coastline of 840 miles, California is a hotspot for recreational boating, drilling, sailing, and long shoring. Statistics reveal that boating-related earnings in this American state are around USD $13 billion. Hence, the craze for boating on this side of the country is understandable. Unfortunately, there is another dimension to this reality, which is the risk of boating accidents. A person can get severely injured, incurring more than USD $40k in medical bills. How do you arrange for that big a sum and continue your treatment? The financial baggage can hinder your recovery and elevate your emotional and noneconomic losses.
Is there a solution to this problem? Expert personal injury litigators can show the way. Let’s understand the types of injuries these accidents can cause and what it takes to prove someone’s liability.
- Common injuries caused by a boat accident
Most injuries can be related to collision, falling, and drowning. One of the common forms of collision-related injury is whiplash, which takes time to detect. Treatment can also be more complex. However, symptoms can be similar to accident-related shocks, such as feelings of disorientation, stiffness in the neck, etc. You can recover from accident-related shocks with rest. But whiplash-induced injury will only worsen with time, increasing paralysis risks.
Furthermore, cars equip passengers with seat belts that keep them in position even during the impact. Boats lack such mechanisms, due to which occupants fall with their heads hitting the deck or some other solid object. Such head injuries can stay forever as the dead brain cells don’t regenerate. Only trained therapists can do something in this area. However, the worst consequences are often faced if someone drowns and stays in the water for several minutes.
- Predominant causes of boating crashes
Boat accidents can happen due to different factors, such as operator inexperience or error, DUI, navigation rule violation, speeding, malfunctioning, etc. Operator error is like distracted driving, where the driver doesn’t keep a check on the car’s body, weather, environmental conditions, and other things. Inexperience is also a plausible reason because any experienced boater can tackle the unexpected by taking emergency steps or changing the boat’s course. California law prohibits anyone from operating a boat if the level of alcohol in their blood is 0.04% to 0.08% or higher. 0.04% applies to non-recreational boaters. Not following navigation rules can lead to a collision between boats or running aground. In this way, various factors can be considered behind an unwanted occurrence.
- Liability in boating accidents
Negligence can be the leading factor behind most accident cases besides operator errors. Negligence equals lack of care. When someone operates a boat drunkenly, he disobeys their duty of care. Even speeding is the same thing. Hence, if you are injured, you must report the case and say why the operator is at fault. There should be evidence to support your claim for compensation for your suffering.
Legal systems are like a labyrinth, where the chances of hitting a dead-end are always higher without knowledge and skills. However, your legal advisor can solve this maze for you. You can depend on them to make your damage claim journey easier. While they manage formalities, you focus on your treatment and recovery.
