Boat accidents near Atlanta, Georgia, can be scary. As a victim, it’s important to know that you have rights, including the ability to seek compensation for your medical bills, disability, and harder-to-value changes in your life. Our experienced Atlanta boating accident lawyers can help you fight for a maximum recovery.
At Guardian Accident & Injury Lawyers, we’re award-winning litigators with over 75 years of collective experience and a proven ability to help injury victims and families in Georgia. By leveling the playing field against powerful corporations, we’ve successfully won over $250 million in damages for our clients.
Don’t struggle with the aftermath of your boating accident on your own. Demand the accountability you deserve by trusting our top-rated law firm to fight for you. Your initial case evaluation is free, so contact our Atlanta, GA, law office or call (404) 255-9000 to get started now.
How Guardian Accident & Injury Lawyers Helps Boat Accident Victims in Atlanta, GA
While you may have the right to take legal action against a negligent boat operator, a boat manufacturer, or another liable party, the road to recovery won’t necessarily be easy. You’ll face resistance at every turn from insurance adjusters and defense attorneys.
Fortunately, you can set the stage for success and give yourself the opportunity to focus on your recovery by hiring an experienced Atlanta personal injury lawyer to handle your boat injury claim.
Choosing Guardian Accident & Injury Lawyers puts highly respected and successful legal advocates in your corner. It shows the person who caused your boat accident (and their insurance company) that you won’t be pushed around or manipulated into accepting less than your personal injury case is worth.
You’ll work with trustworthy attorneys who will be prepared to handle all aspects of your boating accident case, including:
- Conducting a thorough investigation into the circumstances of your accident
- Gathering accident reports, medical records, vessel maintenance records, eyewitness statements, photographs of the wreckage, and other important pieces of evidence
- Consulting experts in boating, accident reconstruction, medicine, and other areas of specialty
- Determining what your boating accident case is worth
- Defending against claims of comparative negligence
- Aggressively seeking a meaningful settlement offer during negotiations
- Representing you at trial if the defense refuses to take responsibility for the boat accident and your resulting trauma
Our boating accident attorneys in Atlanta understand that you have one shot at getting compensation. We want to help you make the most of it without adding to the stress you’re under. That’s why we’ll take your case on a contingency fee basis.
We won’t get paid unless we win compensation for you.
Call our Atlanta law office today to learn more and discuss the details of your boat accident case. There is no charge for your initial case assessment.
Georgia Boating Accident Statistics
More than one hundred boating accidents are reported in the state of Georgia every year. Some of these boat accidents take place on the open waters off Georgia’s Atlantic coast. Most, however, unfold on landlocked lakes, including Lake Allatoona and Lake Lanier, both of which are situated just miles from Atlanta.
In a recent year, 19 boat accidents were reported on Lake Allatoona, resulting in two non-fatal drownings and 12 injuries. That same year, 31 boat accidents were reported on Lake Lanier, resulting in 8 drownings, 21 injuries, and three deaths.
Collectively, these two lakes accounted for 48 percent of all boating accidents across the state of Georgia.
So, while Atlanta might not be situated near a coast, it is in very close proximity to the bodies of water where most of Georgia’s boat accidents occur.
Representing Clients in All Types of Atlanta Boat Accident Cases
At Guardian Accident & Injury Lawyers, we proudly represent injury victims and families whose lives have been turned upside down because of accidents involving:
- Kayaks
- Canoes
- Jet skis
- Paddle boats
- Sailboats
- Powerboats
- Pontoon boats
- Fishing boats
- Dinghies
- Charter boats
- Yachts
- Houseboats
If you or a loved one has been involved in a boat accident and suspect it’s someone else’s fault, don’t hesitate to contact our law office to discuss your legal rights. Our Atlanta personal injury attorneys can help you fight for justice if your accident could have been avoided.
What Causes Most Boat Accidents?
Georgia has rules and regulations to encourage safe boating and prevent accidents – including licensing requirements.
Anyone born after January 1, 1998, must have a Georgia Boater Education Card, which is the equivalent of a boating license, to operate a motorized vessel. Minors with boating licenses can only operate a vessel with a licensed adult on board.
However, licensing requirements and vessel restrictions can only have so much of an impact on boating across the state. It’s still up to vessel owners and operators to exercise caution, follow rules of navigation, and remain aware and alert on the water.
All too often, boating accidents near Atlanta happen because someone makes a mistake or is careless.
Some of the most commonly cited causes of boat accidents include:
- Operator inattention
- Negligent vessel maintenance
- Falling overboard
- Unsafe speed
- Equipment failure
- Violating local navigation rules
- Inexperience
- Flooding
- Grounding
- Collision with a fixed object
- Weather
Drug and alcohol use are also leading causes of boat accidents in Atlanta. According to state boat accident data, 79 people were cited for BUIs (boating under the influence) on Lakes Lanier and Allatoona in a recent year.
Common Boating Accident Injuries
Boat accidents can be particularly catastrophic, given the added injuries that water can inflict.
Whether you’ve fallen overboard, gotten your hand caught in the boat’s motor, or were crushed by an object, our boat accident lawyers in Atlanta are here to help you seek compensation for:
- Brain injuries, including drowning-related hypoxia
- Hypothermia
- Concussion injuries
- Neck injuries
- Back injuries
- Spinal cord injuries
- Paralysis
- Amputations
- Degloving injuries
- Eye injuries
- Chest injuries
- Nerve damage
- Burns
- Catastrophic injuries
- A loved one’s wrongful death
Do your best to report your boat accident to the local authorities immediately. Then, seek medical treatment at the closest medical facility on shore. Once your injuries have been properly diagnosed and treatment has begun, reach out to our Atlanta boating accident attorneys to discuss your situation. You have rights, and our law firm is here to help you make the most of them.
What Types of Damages Can an Atlanta Boat Accident Victim Recover?
If you get into a boat accident near Atlanta because someone else is negligent, you’ll have the opportunity to take legal action. You can seek economic and non-economic damages through an insurance claim or lawsuit.
Economic damages are intended to help you deal with the sudden and stressful costs of your boat accident, which can include:
- Current and future medical bills
- Lost wages
- Rehabilitation
- Nursing care
- Property damage
- Costs paid out of pocket
- Funeral expenses if a boat accident is fatal
Non-economic damages are intended to help you cope with trauma and changes that aren’t as easily valued, including:
- Pain and suffering
- Mental anguish
- Disability
- Disfigurement
- Physical scarring
- Loss of companionship
- Embarrassment
- Chronic physical pain
- PTSD
The person who caused your boating accident, their defense attorney, and their insurer will fight your claim with everything they have. They’ll downplay your injuries and argue that the boat accident hasn’t changed your life in any significant way.
Our Georgia boating accident lawyers won’t let these tactics dictate the terms of your case. Instead, we’ll be your most aggressive advocate and concentrate on building a claim that not only wins your case but forces the defense to pay you a life-changing monetary award.
Who Could Be Liable For a Boat Accident in Atlanta?
In Georgia, liability is shared proportionately to fault. So, anyone who contributes to a boat accident – even in the slightest – will be liable for some resulting damages.
Depending on why and how your boat accident happened, one or more of the following might be on the hook for your damages:
- A boat operator
- Boat passengers
- The boat’s owner
- The vessel’s manufacturer
- The boat’s mechanic
- A negligent party’s employer
- A boat rental company
In some situations, victims also share responsibility for their boat accidents. When this happens, it will have a direct and adverse impact on the victim’s ability to recover damages from another party. Under Georgia’s modified comparative fault statute, damages are reduced proportionately to fault – up to 49 percent. Once you share equal blame (or more) for a boat accident, you will lose the right to recover compensation for your injuries, suffering, and losses.
How Long Will I Have to Seek Compensation After a Boat Accident in Georgia?
You’ll typically have two years from the date of your boat accident to seek damages through an insurance company or Georgia state court. Once the two-year statute of limitations expires, you lose the ability to assert your rights and get the money you need to move forward with your life.
A two-year statute of limitations also applies to matters of wrongful death. Following a fatal boat accident in Atlanta, you’ll have two years from the date your loved one died to sue.
Schedule a Free Consultation With an Experienced Atlanta Boating Accident Lawyer
Call our law firm if you’ve been injured in a boating accident in Atlanta, Georgia. You may have the right to file a legal claim for damages. Our Atlanta boat accident lawyers want to help you secure the life-changing monetary award you deserve.
When you hire Guardian Accident & Injury Lawyers, you put over 75 years of combined experience and a proven track record of victory in your corner. We’ve helped clients win over $250 million in damages. Today, we’re here to fight for you, too.
Call our Atlanta law office to schedule a free consultation. Members of our team are standing by to help 24 hours a day.