Florida injury lawyer

June 1, 2022

How Not Wearing a Seat Belt May Ding Your Broward Car Accident Claim

Florida is a no-fault state when it comes to car accident claims. However, that doesn’t mean you can’t pursue monetary damages from negligent drivers. It also doesn’t mean you can’t be held responsible (at least partly) for your own injuries. The seat belt defense is a good example of the latter, as our Broward car accident lawyers can explain.

Let’s start with the fact that with very few exceptions, seat belts are required by Florida law for all drivers and passengers in motor vehicles.

Florida’s no-fault car insurance law holds that all vehicle owners must carry personal injury protection (PIP) coverage that provides up to $10,000 in compensation for any insureds injured in a crash with that vehicle – regardless of who was at-fault in causing the crash. An injured person can step outside the state’s no-fault PIP system and pursue a claim for additional monetary damages against any at-fault parties IF their injuries meet the serious injury threshold. As set forth in F.S. 627.737, they must prove their injuries – caused by the crash for which the defendant is responsible – resulted in significant/permanent loss of a bodily function, permanent injury within a reasonable degree of medical probability, significant/permanent scarring/disfigurement or death.

It’s worth noting that Florida is recognized as a pure comparative fault state when it comes to negligence claims. Per F.S. 768.81, that means each person/entity can only be held legally responsible to pay for the damages they caused. So for example, if one suffers $100,000 in damages and Defendant A is responsible for 40 percent and Defendant B is responsible for 60 percent, Defendant A will be ordered to pay $40,000 and Defendant B will be ordered to pay $60,000.

But what if one of the people responsible for a plaintiff’s injuries is the plaintiff themself? That is what we call contributory negligence. By way of their own negligence, they contributed to their own injuries. So if you suffered $100,000 in damages – but are 20 percent responsible for your own injuries – the most you can expect to be awarded is $80,000.

That brings us to the seat belt defense. Continue reading

September 30, 2019

How Serious Does My Injury Have to be to File a Claim

By Ansara Law Personal Injury Attorneys

Florida personal injury lawsuits are among the most commonly weighed in our state courts. To avoid overwhelming the courts, most personal injury claims settle prior to trial. Additionally, F.S. 627.737 sets a seriousness threshold has been set for recovering damages from an at-fault driver. If injuries don’t meet that threshold, then claimants will have to rely on their own personal injury protection policy issued by their own auto insurer. Broward injury lawyer

A bruised arm or a scratched leg likely isn’t going to cut it. PIP provides up to $10,000 in damages for medical expenses and 60 percent of your lost wages for the time you were forced to take off work. It will also cover things like travel expenses to doctor appointments. It will not cover things like pain and suffering or loss of consortium that would be available in lawsuit.

If your injuries are more serious and $10,000 will not cover your losses, a Broward injury lawyer can review the facts and help you determine if the injuries you’ve suffered medically meet the statutory threshold. Continue reading

December 2, 2016

Davis v. Baez – Florida Negligence Claim Against School Bus Driver Gets Green Light

By Ansara Law Personal Injury Attorneys

A horrific school bus crash in Tennessee made international headlines when the driver, ferrying 37 children, strayed from the route and crashed, leaving six children dead and dozens injured. Questions have been raised as to whether the 24-year-old driver intentionally crashed the bus and whether the district should have been aware that he was a possible risk on the road.

The reality is that school bus accidents – especially fatal ones – aren’t all that common. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) reports that between 20004 and 2013, there were 1,214 school-transportation related fatal crashes. Approximately 134 people die in school vehicle-related crashes and about 8 percent of those are actually on the bus. About one-fifth are pedestrians and bicyclists. Most are people in other vehicles.

In the recent Florida case of Davis v. Baez, plaintiff was a student pedestrian who was injured when she was struck by another vehicle while crossing a darkened, busy street early one morning to get to her bus stop. Normally, the school bus driver wouldn’t be liable in a case like this, but the driver – allegedly and against the school district’s policy – instructed students at this particular stop to cross the street and be waiting for him at the bus stop on the east side of the street when he arrived. He told them if they didn’t cross before he got there, he wouldn’t stop to pick them up. However, school policy required that the students be allowed to wait on the east side of the street until the bus arrived, at which time the driver would extend his flashing stop sign to halt traffic in both directions so students could cross safely to the stop. Continue reading

June 10, 2016

Florida Road Rage Act Injures Motorcyclists. Will Insurance Cover?

By Ansara Law Personal Injury Attorneys

A 31-year-old habitual traffic offender was arrested following a road rage incident caught on film in which he appears to intentionally run over two motorcyclists before fleeing the scene.

The Florida Highway Patrol reports the Land O’Lakes man had a nasty exchange with the bikers in the moments before the incident. One of the victims, a 46-year-old Navy veteran, said he feared for his life and the life of his female passenger.

“You don’t know what’s going through his mind,” the victim told 10 News. “Is he going to put the car in reverse? Is he going to turn around? Is he going to stop and pull out a gun?” Continue reading

February 27, 2016

Florida Energy Drink Lawsuits Allege Serious, Irreversible Effects

By Ansara Law Personal Injury Attorneys

A man in his 20s, constantly on-the-go, felt a sudden wave of nausea come over him as he was driving on the way to work. His vision grew blurry. He pulled over and called his boss. He wouldn’t be in that day. Within hours, he was rushed to the emergency room, where he discovered he had stage 4 kidney disease.

The case, according to a recently-filed lawsuit, is long-term consumption of energy drinks. He reportedly drank four every single day, which is the caffeine equivalent of 12 Coca-Colas. He did this for 10 years. Now, he’s awaiting a liver transplant.

His case is one of five filed against Monster Beverage Corp., asserting claims of severe and almost deadly health problems resulting from longtime use of the drink. It’s alleged that habitual drinkers of the products suffer renal failure, stroke and heart attacks, among other health concerns. Continue reading

February 16, 2016

Gores v. Miller – Use Caution in Car Accident Settlement Releases

By Ansara Law Personal Injury Attorneys

When entering into a car accident settlement, crash victims must make sure the language of the agreement is carefully reviewed. Some agreements contain provisions that release not only the person or entity involved, but also all future defendants, even if those have not yet been identified.

Make sure to ask the personal injury lawyer negotiating your settlement about this possibility, and carefully read the document yourself before signing off.

The case of Gores v. Miller is a cautionary tale. This was a case recently before the South Dakota Supreme Court, but the principles are still applicable to accident victims in South Florida. Continue reading