Nassau County Boat Accident

While both recreational boats and commercial boats are involved in serious accidents, most accidents involve recreational watercraft. Recreational boats include cruisers, motorboats, sailboats, and water scooters. There are a wide range of injuries that boat accident victims can suffer including a spinal cord injury, broken bones, bruises, contusions, a head injury or a brain injury. In the same way that a victim of a car accident may seek damages from the negligent person through a personal injury claim, the law allows victims of boat accidents to seek damages as well. Depending on where the boat accident takes place, the law that will be applied to a boat accident is either maritime law or New York law. In addition, there is another set of laws that will apply if an employee is injured while working on navigable waters. If you are in need of a personal injury lawyer because you were seriously injured as a result of the negligence of another person, contact an experienced Bronx boat accident lawyer who will review the facts of your case and work aggressively to ensure that you receive the compensation to which you are entitled. In addition, if during the course of the treatment for your injuries the medical staff commits medical malpractice, the party responsible for your boat accident injuries may be required to compensate you for the medical malpractice injury as well.

Depending on the type of watercraft, there are a variety of factors that could lead to an accident. A common factor is speed. If someone is driving a speedboat or jet ski to fast, for example, it is harder to slow down or turn to avoid other boaters or people in the water. Speeding also leads to capsizing and people falling overboard.

Another factor that can lead to boating accidents include alcohol or drug use. Just like operating a car while under the influence is illegal and can lead to deadly accidents, operating a boat while impaired is illegal and can lead to deadly accidents. Other common causes of watercraft accidents include: inexperience and poor training, poor maintenance, mechanical problems, overloaded boat, and failure to follow safety rules.

Not all boat accidents involve recreational watercraft. In New York there have been major accidents with several injured victims that involved commercial boats such as the Staten Island Ferry and cargo boats.

Victims of boat accidents suffer a variety of injuries. One of the most common is an injury to the head or brain. Brain injuries are complex and can lead to a host of other medical complications. For example, victims with brain injuries can suffer memory loss, chronic headaches, hearing loss, vision problems, dementia, balance problems, and cognitive deficits.

Whether the injury is a brain injury or some other type of injury, serious injuries from a boat accident can lead to substantial medical bills, extended recovery time, and inability to work. Through a personal injury lawsuit there are a variety of types of damages that may be available to you based on the losses you suffered. For example, seriously injured victims will undoubtedly face substantial medical expenses. These expenses include the fees your doctors charge, ambulance fees, emergency room fees, hospital fees, surgical fees, costs of prescriptions, costs of medical equipment, as well as fees associated with rehabilitation. In addition, if you miss work, the negligent party is responsible for paying you the wages and other compensation that you lost.

Whether it is a recreational boat, a commercial boat, or a cargo boat, if you are a crewmember and are injured while working, you may be able to collect benefits through workers' compensation or through Jones Act benefits. The Jones Act provides benefits to seamen such as cruise ship workers who are injured while working.

Boat accident cases are extremely complicated and may involve state, federal as well as international law. To make sure that your case is properly handled it is critical that those who represent you are experienced handling boat accident cases. Contact the Law Offices of Stephen Bilkis & Associates to discuss the details of your case. Our staff is experienced in handling claims from people injured on a variety of watercraft including fishing boats, water skis, cruise ships, jet skis, commuter ferries, and sailboats. We understand both the legal issues associated with boat-related accidents as well as the medical issues associated with serious injuries. Contact us at 800.696.9529 to schedule a free, no obligation consultation regarding your case. We represent clients in the following locations: the Bronx, Brooklyn, Long Island, Manhattan, Nassau County, Queens, Staten Island, Suffolk County and Westchester County.