Motor Vehicle Accidents

You probably see car accidents regularly if you drive on busy roads. Unsurprisingly, they make up a large part of common personal injury lawsuits. It’s also important to remember that motor vehicle cases are not only about cars. Cars, trucks, motorcycles, scooters, buses, bicycles, boats, and other watercraft can all be considered motor vehicles and be included in this type of lawsuit.

Many motor vehicle accident personal injury cases in Florida are complicated by the no-fault insurance laws in the state. Who pays if the injured party was, for example, a bicyclist who wasn’t insured themselves? Depending on the extent of the damage in an accident, insurance payouts may not be enough to cover all the claimant’s losses. There are different types of damages that can be awarded in a motor vehicle case, including out-of-pocket expenses like the costs of medical treatments and prescriptions and speculative costs like pain and suffering. A good attorney will guide you through the potentially confusing ins and outs of a motor vehicle accident case in Florida.

Dog Bites

Dog bites and other types of animal attacks happen often enough to be a common type of personal injury lawsuit in Florida.

Animal owners have a duty to keep their pets under control; when they don’t, they’re liable for any damage the animal causes. Animal attacks can be quite serious. Not only are some attacks immediately recognizable as extremely damaging, but even seemingly minor injuries could lead to infections or complications that could end up being quite serious.

Recovering compensation after an animal attack is not always straightforward. The injury might be covered under the animal owner’s homeowner’s insurance policy, but some homeowner’s insurance policies exclude these injuries from their policies. Suing an animal owner directly may prove difficult if that person has few assets or funds to sue for. People who have experienced an animal attack should contact the police or animal control authorities immediately – this ensures that an attack is documented and also allows these authorities to take steps to prevent another attack. The victim of a dog bite or other animal attack should get appropriate medical treatment and contact a personal injury lawyer for help.

Slip and Fall

The kind of case that most people think of as a slip and fall case is actually a case of premises liability. It boils down to the idea that the owner of a premises, like a place of business, has a responsibility to make sure that their property is reasonably safe. If they fail to do that, they can be held liable for a person's injuries on their property. An example of that might be a wet floor that has no signage or barrier to prevent people from walking on it, which causes an unwary visitor to the premises to slip and fall.

While slipping or tripping and then falling are common varieties of premises liability cases, there are many other potential varieties of these cases, and they can result in various types of injuries. Premises liability injuries could run the gamut from minor finger injuries to severe head injuries. It can also sometimes be complicated to determine who is liable. For example, is it the resident or the resident’s condominium association or apartment complex who’s responsible if the injury occurs in a residential building? An attorney specializing in personal injury can help untangle these issues. 

Wrongful Death

Losing a loved one before their time is, of course, an awful experience. While no amount of money can replace a lost loved one, factors like lost support and services, lost companionship, lost protection, and mental pain and suffering can be compensated for. Those damages are what’s at stake in a wrongful death case.

Almost any kind of case can be a wrongful death case if it results in death. A motor vehicle case, an animal attack, or a premises liability case where the victim died may meet the conditions of a wrongful death case if a victim died from their injuries. These cases are even more complicated than a personal injury case without a death. There may be more than one party that could be legally responsible or more than one type of insurance that could be obligated to pay out. Survivors of a wrongful death need knowledgeable legal guidance to navigate the myriad issues involved in these cases. 

Conclusion

There are many types of personal injury cases, and even the most common types of these cases can often be divided into many sub-types. You should be compensated for an injury that someone else was responsible for, but the legal issues involved in pursuing a personal injury case are complex. If you’ve been injured, a skilled and experienced personal injury lawyer with a track record for cases like yours is necessary to ensure that you stand the best chance of recovering the compensation you deserve. 

"The information provided herein is simply a brief overview of the Florida law on this particular matter. It should not be relied upon for legal purposes, as the facts and circumstances to any specific legal matter may vary substantially from the limited explanation and application of often complicated legal rules and principles that may be addressed herein, or applicable in your particular legal matter. You should only rely upon legal advice provided to you by a licensed attorney who has had an opportunity to fully evaluate your particular legal matter".