INJURY | PERSONAL INJURY LAWYER | PERSONAL INJURY ATTORNEY | INJURIES

Injuries and fatalities from recreational vehicles happen all too often. Recreational vehicles include boats, ATVs, cruise ships, dirt bikes, jet skis, and more. Here are some statistics:

• ATVs cause 130,000 injuries and several hundred deaths each year
• Pleasure boats cause more than 3,000 injuries and 700 deaths each year
• Personal watercrafts like jet skis cause almost 50 percent of water vessel injuries and deaths each year

• You wear a helmet, life vest, and other safety apparel
• You have a license or proper training
• You don’t operate the vehicle after consuming alcohol
• You follow all safety rules
• You don’t drive aggressively or in excess of speed limits

Pleasure boat accidents occur while boating on navigable waters, including lakes, rivers, seas and oceans. Pleasure boat accidents happen while riding pleasure boats of varying sizes, including jet skis, row boats, ski boats, yachts, recreational fishing boats, cruise ships, or if your property is damaged by any of these vessels. Pleasure boat accidents fall under different laws that accidents that happen on land. Laws include the Jones Act, maritime and admiralty laws and other offshore laws, and contacting an injury attorney who specializes in these laws is important.

Pleasure boat accidents include collisions, which are actually called “allisions” if they are caused by vessels in the water, as well as property damage, theft, fires, cruise ship claims, and fishing accidents. Cases also include missing people and wrongful death cases, when vessels malfunction, run aground and/or capsize.

Some ways to keep yourself and your loved ones safe include:

• Always have an adequate amount of life jackets, and wear them at all times
• Do not drive while intoxicated or ride with a driver who is intoxicated
• The driver must also have a license to operate the vessel
• Avoid boating during inclement weather conditions
• Maintain a safe distance from other boats at all times
• Avoid excessive speeds and activities like “wake jumping”
• Be aware of shallow water, jutting land, buoys and other hazards
• It is mandatory that children under the age of 12 wear life vests at all times
• Have a good understanding of maritime traffic rules
• Have a way to contact emergency services at all times
• Know your location at all times

If you or a loved one was killed or injured while pleasure boating, you should contact a personal injury attorney, especially one who specializes in maritime law, immediately. There are many factors that can determine whether you have a case, including negligence, property damage, faulty manufacturing, driver or passenger error, unsafe water conditions, and any other unsafe situations.

Cruise ship accidents are anything but relaxing, which is what your vacation is supposed to be. Cruise ship accidents include:

• Injuries sustained on cruise ships include those that happen while on board the ship, injuries sustained during outings sanctioned by the cruise line, and injuries from being physically or sexually assaulted by cruise employees or other passengers.

• Fires can start in the kitchen, the engine, and in passenger rooms. Causes include faulty wiring and mechanics, negligent actions such as leaving a stove on or not disposing of cigarette butts properly.

• Running aground occurs when the ship hits ground in shallow water or hits a reef or other barrier.

• Collisions occur with other ships, platforms, buoys or other large objects.

• Persons overboard happen when people fall because of sharp maneuvers, poor weather conditions and other conditions.

• Illness outbreaks occur when ships are contaminated by people, food, animals, or by other means and are not properly disinfected.

• Environmental disasters happen when ships leak oil, fuel, human waste, food waste, or other substances into the water.

All of these accidents can be catastrophic and extremely expensive to remedy. Stay safe by following this simple list:

• Know the safety rules for your ship. Know where flotation devices are at all times, and know what to do in the instance of any time of disaster.

• Consider participating in the safer outings your cruise ship offers. Remember you’re in another country and will likely receive different medical treatment before you go horseback riding and take a fall. Sight seeing and shopping expeditions, as well as museum and cultural tours are safer alternatives. Make sure that the cruise line sanctions any activity you participate in.

• Avoid becoming intoxicated.

• Have any of your necessary medication handy, and safely conceal money with a pouch that you can wear under your clothes.

• Set a curfew and talk about safety rules and meeting spots with everyone in your family.

• Know what foods are not safe to eat when you are visiting other countries.

• Know the laws of each country, as well as be aware of Maritime Law, which is different from U.S. law even if you’re on a U.S. ship.

Recent cruise ship accidents include a woman who was pushed down a flight of stairs, a bomb scare, a boy who suffered a head injury after diving into a shallow pool, a man who went missing after the ship docked and was later found dead a few miles from the boat, a man whose pinky finger was accidentally amputated when he tried to stop an elevator door from closing, and an intoxicated man who fell overboard and was later rescued.

If you or a loved one is injured during a cruise ship vacation, contact a person injury lawyer who specializes in offshore injuries and Maritime Law.