Boating Accident Attorney in Atlanta

What Causes Atlanta Boat Accidents and Injuries?

Dozens of boating accidents occur every year in the State of Georgia, many of them right in the Atlanta area. Recently, these types of injury accidents have been happening at a greater frequency. For example, between 2015 and 2018, the number of Georgia’s boating accidents increased by more than 13 percent. The good news is that while the total number of accidents increased, fatal accidents decreased.

According to the United States Coast Guard, the leading causes of these accidents include:

Other causes of boating accidents in and around Atlanta include bad weather conditions, limited visibility, overcrowded waterways, and navigation rules violations.

Boating Accidents and Negligence

No matter what exactly causes boating accidents, at the root of most accidents is negligence. Negligence is the failure to behave in a way that someone else would behave in the same or similar circumstances or the failure to take proper care in doing something.

In Georgia, more than one individual or party might be negligent in causing a boating accident. Under state law, you can potentially hold each one of them liable.

People or entities that might be liable for your damages include:

When you hire an Atlanta boat accident lawyer from Brauns Law Accident Injury Lawyers, PC, we work hard to uncover all sources of potential compensation for your injuries. This includes identifying all parties who could be responsible for your accident. Each party that accepts their potential liability through a settlement offer or is assigned liability in litigation will pay for their portion of your damages.

For example, let’s say you are involved in a boat accident linked to a defective boat part, and the boat rental company knew that there was a recall for the defective part. Since the defective part manufacturer sold it and the boat rental company knowingly let you rent the boat without adhering to the recall, they could both be liable for your resulting damages.

An experienced Atlanta boating accident attorney could negotiate a settlement agreement with one or both parties. Suppose one or both parties refuse to offer you a fair settlement. In that case, your maritime injury attorney can help you file a lawsuit against one or both parties to seek adequate compensation.

If your case goes to court, the court will assign each liable party a percentage of fault for the accident. In our scenario, the jury might determine the boating rental company to be 30 percent at fault while the part manufacturer would be 70 percent to blame. If your damages totaled $100,000, the rental company would owe you $30,000, and the part manufacturer would owe you $70,000.

Common Serious Boating Accident Injuries

Boating accidents can lead to many different types of injuries. Some of these injuries are minor, requiring only basic first aid, if any at all. In comparison, other injuries can be life- and limb-threatening and debilitate someone for the rest of their life.

Some of the most common serious boating injuries we see in our clients include:

• Drowning: Since boating is an activity done on the water, it’s no surprise that such accidents can drown people. Even for people who know how to swim, drowning is still a common cause of death in a boating accident. Accidents can pull people underwater or cause brain trauma before falling into the water, making it impossible for them to swim to safety.
• Traumatic brain injuries (TBI): Boating accidents can cause a TBI in two ways. The first can happen due to oxygen deprivation when someone is submerged underwater or exposed to substantial amounts of carbon monoxide, for example, from the running engines of boats docked or idling. The second is from an impact to the head, such as being thrown against a wall, hard object, or bulkhead during a collision with another water vessel, structure, or underwater obstruction.
• Spinal cord injuries (SCI): Spinal cord injuries can result from an impact, such as a collision. They can be the result of spinal compression. This type of compression typically happens when a boat bounces up and down on the water because of strong waves or wake from another boat. Disc herniations are common spinal compression injuries.
• Lacerations: Most boats depend on an exposed propeller that spins at high speed to move. If someone gets too close to the moving propeller or a boat driver isn’t paying close attention to those in the water, serious injuries can occur. Quick-moving propeller blades can cause deep lacerations or even amputate an arm or leg.
• Broken bones: Typically, boating accidents involve some kind of force. While human bones protect and provide structure to the body, they are still vulnerable to fracturing or snapping when enough force comes down upon them. Broken arms, legs, ribs, pelvis, and hips are common in boating accidents.
• Whiplash: Whiplash is a neck injury to the soft tissues caused by a sudden force that moves the head and body in a traumatic and violent manner. Although whiplash injuries are usually associated with motor vehicle accidents, they also frequently occur in boating accidents.
• Electrocution: Significant electrical currents are necessary for electrical systems and appliances aboard most boats. Standing water and even poor maintenance increase the risk of electrocution injuries. Electrocution can cause the heart to lose rhythm (fibrillation) and suffer electrical burns, among other severe injuries.

Identifying Your Damages After a Georgia Boating Accident

After an Atlanta boating accident, you might have a valid claim against one or more at-fault parties. Injured parties in Georgia can usually recover both economic and non-economic awards for the damages they suffer.

Economic Damages

Economic damages intend to make up for the financial costs and losses of your accident and injuries. Not only can these damages include what your injuries cost you currently but also what they’re likely to cost you down the road.

Compensable economic damages can include:

By receiving economic damages, you should be back in the financial position you were in before you got hurt. This is the ultimate goal and purpose of filing an injury claim.

Non-Economic Damages

Non-economic damages aim to compensate for the injuries and consequences of your accident that are difficult to value. Unfortunately, these types of losses don’t come with a receipt and are subjective, unlike their economic counterparts. The value of non-economic damages varies from one person and case to the next.

These can include:

Much more so than economic damages, non-economic damages are typically the root of contentions and disputes between the at-fault parties and injured parties. Sometimes you need experts to back up your demands for compensation. At Brauns Law Accident Injury Lawyers, PC, we have access to the experts you need to prove your claim. They will go on the record explaining how your injuries will likely impact your life. Such experts make it more difficult for insurers and negligent parties to minimize the trauma you’ve endured because of the accident.

Punitive Damages

While much less common, punitive damages are sometimes appropriate in boating accident cases that end up in litigation. Economic and non-economic damages compensate injured parties for their losses. On the other hand, punitive damages punish the at-fault party and prevent future similar behaviors from them and others. Your Atlanta boat accident lawyer can determine if these types of damages might be available in your case.

How Insurance Coverage Affects Your Boat Accident Case

Even if someone else was at fault for your boating accident, it doesn’t necessarily mean that you will recover monetary damages from that person. If the liable party has no boaters’ insurance and no assets, they can’t pay for your damages.

Many victims and at-fault parties alike are unaware that auto insurance doesn’t cover injuries in boating accidents. Some homeowners’ insurance policies might provide insurance coverage for these injuries.

However, not everyone has homeowner’s insurance coverage, and every boat owner has boating insurance coverage through their homeowner’s policy. You can’t always file a claim against your own homeowner’s insurance for this type of accident. In contrast to motor vehicle coverage that typically includes uninsured benefits, homeowners’ insurance policies rarely cover the behaviors of others who don’t have the necessary boating insurance coverage in place.

The Statute of Limitations for Boat Accidents in Georgia

After an Atlanta boat accident, you only have a limited amount of time to demand compensation for your injuries, no matter their severity. Under Georgia state law, the statute of limitations or deadline for boat accident cases is generally two years from the date of the accident or the discovery of the injury. In some cases, it might be weeks or months until you discover that you suffered injuries.

If you’re filing a wrongful death claim after a fatal boating accident, the clock begins to run the day your loved one passes away. If your claim involves injuries to a minor child or if you cannot locate the person who caused your accident, a longer statute of limitations will apply. However, it’s important to note that you might have a diminished window of time to assert your legal rights if you believe a government agency or employee is at fault for your injuries. You can be certain that you’ll lose the right to recover a financial award through the civil court system if you don’t start legal action on time.

Atlanta Boating Accident FAQs

In just one year, 122 boating accidents in Georgia took the lives of 23 individuals and severely injured many others. Boating and water recreation come with inherent risks. Still, no one signs up to become the victim of negligence while trying to enjoy the outdoors. If you or your loved one was injured or killed while boating, you likely have many questions. The Atlanta boating accident lawyers at Brauns Law Accident Injury Lawyers, PC answer some of your most common questions here. If you don’t see the answer to your question or would like further legal assistance, reach out to us today.

What are contingency fees in Atlanta boating accidents?

In general, contingency fees are payments based on fulfilling certain conditions. In the legal realm, contingency fees are payments for services paid only after a settlement agreement or jury award. Our attorneys work solely on contingency fees. You pay us upfront nothing to secure our services and representation. Sadly, many injury victims miss out on the legal help and, therefore, the money they deserve for their injuries and damages because they think they need money upfront to hire an Atlanta boating accident attorney.

We know that most claimants don’t have large amounts of money to pay for an attorney. They usually struggle to pay their bills because they have missed work and now have additional medical bills to pay. We take on the financial risk of settling or litigating your claim. Once we negotiate a full and fair settlement on your behalf or successfully litigate your case, your compensation will pay our predetermined percentage of contingency fees.

Besides using contingency fees, we never charge for consultations. Suppose you were injured in a boating accident or sustained some other injury that was potentially the fault of a negligent person or party. In that case, we will meet with you for free. During this consultation, we can assess your case, determine if you have a valid legal claim, and, if so, how much it might be worth.

Our legal team is ready to help boating accident victims in Atlanta. Reach out to us today to learn more.