South Florida Personal Injury Blog

Broward injury lawyer Andrew Alitowski provides advice to clients who have been involved in boating accidents. With the high coastal population of South Florida and the beautiful Atlantic ocean, it’s no wonder that so many people take to the seas every year off of the coast of Broward, Palm Beach, and Miami-Dade Counties. Still, the scenic waters draw tourists as well as life-long Florida boaters and those with moderate amounts of experience. Tourists, in particular, can be prone to making dangerous errors that can result in boating accidents. Fort Lauderdale accident attorney Alitowski finds that while seasoned boaters are not always perfect, years of experience on the water can lead to a wealth of knowledge regarding safe boating practices.

The United States Coast Guard has found that education regarding safety is important for preventing boating accidents. The Coast Guard compiles annual statistics on boating accidents, which illuminate the causes and the seriousness of the problem. In 2007, the most recent year for which statistics are currently available, boating accidents caused $53 million worth of damage in the United States – an astoundingly high figure. The statistics also show that about 700 people are killed in boating accidents every year. Of those, two-thirds died of drowning. Only ten percent of the drowning victims were wearing life jackets at the time of the accident. Additionally, 75 percent of those who drowned were traveling in small boats, less than 21 feet in length.

Of those operators who had a boating accident, only 14 percent had received instruction on boating safety. The top five contributing causes of boating accidents are all preventable: operator distraction, careless or reckless boating, actions of passengers or skiers, boating at an unsafe rate of speed, and the use of alcohol. For those accidents resulting in death, alcohol usage is the highest contributing cause in 21 percent of the cases. Many boat operators are unaware of the stringent rules that they must abide by, especially those involving alcohol. Boating under the influence, or BUI, remains a serious problem in the waterways just as driving under the influence (DUI) is a public concern on the streets.

Fort Lauderdale accident lawyer Alitowski reports that there are close to 13 million vessels registered in the United States at this time. Almost one million of those are registered in the state of Florida and, when combined with the boats registered in other states but operating in Florida, there are about 1.5 million boats operating in Florida’s waters. The attorneys of Alitowski & Moore, P.A., advise all boat operators and passengers to wear life jackets, follow all boating laws, and exercise caution this Memorial Day.