In Florida, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission ("FWC") is responsible for controlling the waterways and enforcing the law. In Florida, there are roughly 941,589 registered vessels. There are an additional estimated 1,000,000 non-registered vessels. With such a large number of boaters on the waterways, the likelihood of an injury is rather high. ATampa Boating Accident Attorney can help individuals who have suffered an injury or loss of a loved one while boating.
Recent statistics provided by the FWC revealed there were 668 reportable boating accidents in Florida. Of those, 389 resulted in an injury and 79 resulted in a fatality. The majority of the deaths involved a person falling overboard and drowning. The overwhelming majority of drowning's involved individuals who were not wearing a lifejacket. Of the 668 reportable accidents, 66% of the vessel operators involved had no formal boating education and/or training.
If order for a boating accident to qualify as a "reportable" boating accident, you must have at least one of the following:
- A person dies;
- A person disappears under circumstances that indicate possible death or injury;
- A person receives an injury requiring medical treatment beyond immediate first aid; or
- There is at least $2,000.00 aggregate property damage to the vessel or other property.
Should you have any questions regarding boating injuries and/or boating accidents, please contact us, your
Tampa Personal Injury Attorneys. Our attorneys litigate boating accident cases throughout the greater Tampa Bay area.