West Palm Beach Boat Accident Lawyers
According to the U.S. Coast Guard’s most recent Recreational Boating Statistics report, Florida leads the country in total boating accidents and fatalities, and Palm Beach County is consistently among the most active boating counties in Florida. The Intracoastal Waterway, Lake Worth Lagoon, the waters around Peanut Island, and the open Atlantic off West Palm Beach draw recreational boaters, fishing charters, and rental operators year-round. Boating accidents in Palm Beach County can produce serious injuries, and the liability questions that follow are not always straightforward.
Lesser, Landy, Smith & Siegel has represented boat accident victims in South Florida since 1927. If you were injured in a boating accident in West Palm Beach or anywhere in Palm Beach County or throughout Florida, call our office at (561) 655-2028 for a free consultation.
Boating Accident Hot Spots in Palm Beach County
Palm Beach County’s waterways present accident risks that are specific to the geography and volume of traffic in each area.
- The Intracoastal Waterway through Palm Beach County carries heavy recreational and commercial traffic, with narrow channels, no-wake zones, and blind turns that create collision risks
- Lake Worth Lagoon sees significant boat traffic between Palm Beach and West Palm Beach, with congestion around the inlets and bridges
- Peanut Island draws swimmers, divers, and anchored vessels in close proximity and hazards for inexperienced operators
- The Blue Heron Bridge area near Phil Foster Park is one of the most heavily dived sites in Florida, which puts divers in direct proximity to boat traffic
- The Port of Palm Beach and its approaches mix commercial vessel traffic with recreational boating in ways that require operators to understand right-of-way rules under federal maritime regulations
Lesser, Landy, Smith & Siegel’s boat accident attorneys know these waterways, the regulations that apply to each, and how location affects which parties can be held liable.
Causes of Boating Accidents and Who May Be at Fault
Operator error accounts for the largest share of boating accidents in Florida, but the party responsible for your injuries isn’t always the person at the helm. Depending on the circumstances of your accident, liability may extend to a boat rental company, a charter operator, a vessel manufacturer, a marina, or multiple parties whose negligence contributed to the same accident.
Operator Negligence and Boating Under the Influence
Florida law requires boat operators to exercise reasonable care for the safety of passengers and others on the water. Failure to maintain a proper lookout, excessive speed, operating in restricted areas, and inattention to weather conditions all constitute negligence under Florida law.
Boating under the influence is a criminal offense under Florida Statute § 327.35 and a basis for civil liability. Alcohol is the leading contributing factor in fatal boating accidents nationally, and a BUI conviction or arrest creates significant evidence of negligence in a civil case.
Rental Companies and Charter Operators
Boat rental companies have a duty to maintain their vessels in safe operating condition and to screen the operators they rent to. A rental company that puts an inexperienced or clearly impaired operator on the water, or that rents a vessel with known mechanical defects, can be held liable for resulting injuries alongside the operator.
Charter operators carry similar obligations to their passengers, and their liability exposure extends to the actions of their crew under the doctrine of respondeat superior.
Equipment and Vessel Defects
A manufacturing defect in the vessel, engine, steering system, or safety equipment can give rise to a product liability case against the manufacturer or distributor, separate from any negligence case against the operator.
Identifying every party whose negligence contributed to your accident is one of the first things our boat accident attorneys do when we take a case, because missing a liable party directly reduces what you’re able to recover.
Florida Law and How It Affects Your Case
Modified Comparative Fault
Florida House Bill 837, signed into law on March 24, 2023, changed Florida from a pure comparative fault state to a modified comparative fault state under Florida Statute § 768.81. Under the current law, if you are found to be more than 50% at fault for your own injuries, you cannot recover damages. If your fault is 50% or less, your recovery is reduced by your percentage of fault.
In boating accident cases, insurance companies and defense attorneys will examine your conduct as a passenger or as another vessel’s operator to attribute fault to you. Identifying all parties whose negligence contributed to the accident, and building the evidence that establishes their liability, directly affects what you’re able to recover.
Joint and Several Liability
Florida has abolished joint and several liability in most civil cases, which means each defendant is responsible only for their proportionate share of the damages. If multiple parties were at fault for your accident, your attorney needs to bring all of them into the case. Recovering full compensation requires identifying every negligent party and establishing their individual share of fault.
Florida’s Boating Safety Laws
Florida Chapter 327 governs boating operations on Florida waters and establishes the legal standards that boat operators are required to follow. Violations of Chapter 327, including failure to carry required safety equipment, operating above posted speed limits in restricted areas, and failure to yield right-of-way, are relevant evidence of negligence in a civil case.
Our boat accident lawyers have a thorough knowledge of the Florida laws that govern boating accident cases and how to use them to pursue maximum compensation for our clients.
Federal Maritime Law and When It Applies
Boating accidents that happen on navigable waters — the Atlantic Ocean, the Intracoastal Waterway, and connected waterways — can fall under federal maritime law in addition to Florida law. When federal maritime law applies, it can affect your filing deadline, how damages are calculated, and what legal theories are available to you.
Whether federal maritime law applies to your case depends on where the accident occurred and the nature of the activity. Lesser, Landy, Smith & Siegel has handled boating and maritime cases in South Florida for nearly a century, and our attorneys can determine which body of law applies and how to use it to your advantage.
Injury Type and Case Strategy
The type and severity of your injury determines what experts are needed, what future costs need to be projected, and what damages are available to you. Boating accidents in Palm Beach County produce a range of injuries, each with different case requirements:
- Traumatic brain injuries require neurological and neuropsychological evaluation to document cognitive and behavioral effects that may not be immediately apparent
- Spinal cord injuries require life care planning and vocational expert testimony to project lifetime care costs and lost earning capacity
- Propeller strikes frequently result in amputations or multiple surgeries, with damages that extend well beyond initial medical treatment
- Near-drowning injuries can cause permanent neurological damage from oxygen deprivation that doesn’t fully present until weeks after the accident
- Broken bones, lacerations, and soft tissue injuries vary widely in severity, and treatment complications can turn an initially moderate injury into a long-term case
Lesser, Landy, Smith & Siegel’s accident teams work with the medical and economic experts your specific injury requires to build an accurate, fully documented damages case.
Compensation You May Be Able to Recover
Our skilled Florida boat accident attorneys fight for the maximum compensation available under Florida law, which in a boating accident case can include:
- Past and future medical expenses, including emergency care, surgery, hospitalization, and rehabilitation
- Lost wages from the time of injury through recovery
- Lost earning capacity if your injuries permanently affect your ability to work
- Pain and suffering
- Permanent disability and disfigurement
- Loss of enjoyment of life
- Loss of consortium for your spouse or partner
Wrongful Death in Boating Accidents
When a boating accident results in a fatality, the victim’s family members may have a case under Florida’s Wrongful Death Act, Florida Statute § 768.19. Surviving family members can recover for loss of support and services, loss of companionship, and mental pain and suffering, with the specific damages available depending on the relationship to the victim.
Wrongful death cases carry the same two-year statute of limitations as other negligence claims for accidents occurring on or after March 24, 2023. Fatal boating accident cases require a thorough investigation, and the earlier an attorney gets involved, the stronger the foundation for the case.
After a Boating Accident: What You Need to Know
Florida’s Accident Reporting Requirements
Florida Statute § 327.30 requires the operator of a vessel involved in an accident to file a written accident report with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission if the accident results in a death, disappearance, injury requiring medical treatment beyond first aid, or property damage exceeding $2,000. FWC accident reports are a key piece of evidence in any boating accident case and need to be obtained as part of the initial investigation.
Do Not Give a Recorded Statement
Insurance companies representing boat operators, rental companies, and charter operators will contact you to take a recorded statement. You are not required to give one, and doing so before you have an attorney creates risk. Adjusters are experienced at asking questions in ways that minimize injury severity or establish partial fault on your part, and a recorded statement given in the days after an accident can be used against you throughout the entire case.
Preserve the Vessel
If the vessel that caused your injuries has mechanical defects, missing safety equipment, or physical damage relevant to how the accident occurred, that evidence needs to be preserved before repairs are made. Your attorney can send a spoliation letter requiring the vessel owner, rental company, or marina to preserve the boat and all maintenance records.
Get Consistent Medical Care
Gaps in treatment after a boating accident get used by defense attorneys and insurance adjusters as evidence that your injuries were less severe than you claimed. Consistent, documented medical care from the date of the accident forward creates the record that supports your damages.
Florida's Two-Year Statute of Limitations
Under HB 837, boating accident cases based on negligence that occurred on or after March 24, 2023 are subject to a two-year statute of limitations under Florida Statute § 95.11. The two-year period begins on the date of the accident. Cases filed after that deadline are dismissed regardless of the strength of the evidence.
If your accident involved a government entity, additional notice requirements and shorter deadlines may apply. Claims against Florida government agencies require written notice under Florida Statute § 768.28(6) before a lawsuit can be filed, and the notice requirement has its own deadline separate from the statute of limitations.
Lesser, Landy, Smith & Siegel, PLLC Fights for Victims
Lesser, Landy, Smith & Siegel has represented injured plaintiffs in South Florida since 1927, and boating accident cases have been part of that practice across decades of growth in Florida’s recreational boating industry. Our attorneys bring that accumulated experience to every case, along with the resources to conduct a thorough investigation, retain the expert witnesses your case requires, and build a case prepared for trial from the start.
We handle every boating accident case on a contingency basis, which means you pay no attorney’s fees unless we recover compensation for you. Call our West Palm Beach office at (561) 655-2028 or send us an email for a free consultation.
