Cowen Edwards Trial Lawyers represents families after tragic drowning incidents along beaches in the Fort Lauderdale area. Families need to know about the support that’s available if a property owner, a business, or the City of Fort Lauderdale contributed to the danger that caused the loss of life. Our Fort Lauderdale wrongful death lawyers offer free consultations to grieving families. Please contact our offices to talk about your options in a confidential case review.
Do I Need a Lawyer After Losing Someone in an Ocean Drowning?
If the actions of property owners, business owners, or local government lead to the loss of a loved one to drowning, families have the right to seek support through a wrongful death claim. However, insurance companies won’t make it easy to collect the support the family may need to pay funeral costs and other damages. A large business or the City of Fort Lauderdale will also have the money to pay teams of lawyers to avoid having to accept blame.
Grieving families can seek help from a Fort Lauderdale Drowning Accident Lawyer to protect their interests. A skilled lawyer at Cowen Edwards investigates what happened and gathers the evidence necessary to hold an at-fault party fully responsible. Our lawyers also fight to get the most support possible for families who will need to protect themselves financially, now and in the years ahead.
Beach Drowning Dangers Around Fort Lauderdale
Fort Lauderdale is known worldwide for its sunshine and beautiful beaches. Fort Lauderdale Beach and Las Olas Beach make for great destinations and there are many city and state parks where the sand and surf meet.
These are great spots to relax, but the Atlantic Ocean is a natural body of water and it carries a drowning risk for any visitor. Beachgoers must be careful when wading or swimming out into the waves. But those who are in charge of these beaches, such as city and county parks and rec departments also share a responsibility for keeping beaches as safe as possible.
These owners and operators can be found fully responsible for drownings that could have been prevented. Business owners who take people out into the water and city departments charged with keeping swimmers safe can be liable if they are negligent in these areas and others:
- A lack of warning signs and flags about riptides and other dangers
- A lack of no-swimming signs in appropriate areas
- No warning about dangerous weather
- The absence of lifeguards or not enough lifeguards
- The improper training of lifeguards and other staff members
- A lack of safety equipment and rescue resources
- Lack of CPR training for staff members
- Improper supervision that allows reckless or impaired boaters on the water
- Failure to protect swimmers or warn swimmers about the hazards of water sports activities like water skiers and jet skis
- A lack of safety equipment or inadequate equipment
- Failure to remove slip-and-fall hazards around docks and piers
Families who lose loved ones to these hazards and mistakes have the right to file a wrongful death claim. They would need to show that those at fault were responsible for a lack of safety and care that could have saved someone. Insurance adjusters for these parties would be fighting back and may even try to point the finger of blame at the victim.
That’s why it’s important to have a Fort Lauderdale personal injury lawyer fighting for your rights. At Cowen Edwards, our drowning accident attorneys handle the frustrating claims process with insurance companies while giving close relatives time to grieve their loss with as little disruption as possible.
How Can I Seek Justice If a Family Member Drowns at a Fort Lauderdale Beach?
When individuals or government agencies fail in their “duty of care” to swimmers and someone is lost in a tragic drowning, those at fault can be held liable. This duty to protect visitors to public and private property falls under premises liability.
These and other parties might all be partly responsible for a drowning.
Property Owners – Technically, almost all beaches in Florida are open to the public, but property owners along the coast are generally responsible for areas above the high tide line. If a homeowner did something to put the public in danger of drowning, the owner could be held liable for a drowning death.
Beach Business Owners – Any business that depends on the ocean could be held liable for a preventable drowning. This would include tour boat businesses, boat and jet ski rental places, and fishing excursion providers. Beach resort owners might also be found liable.
Owners and Operators of Piers and Docks – The general public should never be able to easily fall into the water due to a trip-and-fall hazard the owners of a dock or pier leave out. Proper safety precautions should be in place in case anyone ends up in the water.
The City of Fort Lauderdale – A city-operated beach or a beach operated by Broward County would leave a government liable for the loss of life in a drowning. Drownings at state parks with beaches might leave the State of Florida liable for cuts made in safety budgets.
Your drowning accident lawyer will be determining what government department or property owner is liable for the death of your loved one. It’s possible a wrongful death claim would need to be filed against several parties. This would give families a better chance of securing the money they needed to pay off bills created by an untimely death. They should also receive enough in support to avoid financial issues in the future, now that a loved one’s financial support has been lost.
How Long Do I Have to File a Wrongful Death Beach Drowning Claim?
You have two years from the date of an accident to file a wrongful death claim when suing a property or business owner.
But be aware, that if your case involves a government agency like the City of Fort Lauderdale, the statute of limitations may be much shorter. Check with your lawyer to make sure you don’t miss deadlines.
Compensation Available for Families After a Drowning
Nothing can replace the love and care of a loved one after a tragic drowning. Despite this sad fact, families should still seek justice and hold those who contributed to a tragedy fully accountable. This might be a critical necessity for families who have been left to pay the consequences of the loss of life and are without the financial support they used to rely on.
Your wrongful death attorney will be demanding full support for these hardships and more:
- Leftover medical bills and ambulance fees.
- Funeral and burial expenses.
- The lost income the victim can no longer provide for a spouse and children to support them in the future.
- Support for the loss of care and guidance the deceased would have provided to family members in the years to come.
- The loss of parental companionship and instruction for the children of the victim.
- All emotional trauma suffered by family members.
- The “loss of consortium”, intimacy, for a spouse.
Contact a Fort Lauderdale Beach Drowning Lawyer
Losing a loved one in a drowning will leave you and your family devastated and feeling very vulnerable. At a time when your family should be allowed to grieve a loved one, they may have to take action to hold an at-fault party responsible and to protect their futures.
When property owners or government agencies contribute to the factors that lead to a drowning, a wrongful death claim may be necessary. To find out the level of support your family should seek, contact the Fort Lauderdale Drowning Accident Lawyers at Cowen Edwards Trial Lawyers. We offer a free, confidential case review for all Florida families who have lost a loved one. There’s no obligation for this initial consultation.
If you trust your family’s case to us, you won’t need any money to hire us. Your Cowen Edwards representative doesn’t get paid unless we win your case for your family. Then our fee comes out of the wrongful death settlement presented to your family. We also adjust our fees to make sure all family members receive the support they need in order to begin rebuilding their lives.
