Summer Boating Accidents In Arizona

What You Need To Know If You’ve Been Injured In an Arizona Accident Involving a Boat or Jetski

Summer is here, and for many Arizona families, that means days out on the water to escape the intense heat. Whether you own or rent, a day boating on the lake is a treasured memory for most people who live in Arizona. But just like riding in a car, there is always the risk of an accident when riding in a boat as well. According to recreational boating data from the United States Coast Guard, there were 96 boating accidents in Arizona in 2019, down from 129 in 2018. Boating accidents can result in severe injuries that are painful and have a long recovery process. If you’re injured in an Arizona boating accident, you deserve fair compensation for your injuries. Call our injury lawyers at  to set up your free case evaluation. Cal our Mesa Injury Lawyers at 602-600-6001.

Common Causes of Boating Accidents on Arizona Lakes

Many people forget that they should exercise just as much caution behind the wheel of a boat as behind the wheel of a car. There are several types of boating behaviors that the state has deemed reckless and negligent. This means that by law, the driver failed to meet the standard of care necessary to protect the human and animal lives, as well as the property, around them.

Common Accident Causes on Arizona Waterways Include:

• Entering marked restricted areas and speeding in no-wake zones
• Failure to follow state and local boating laws
• Exceeding the boat’s weight or occupant capacity
• Powering the boat with an engine that is too large for its frame
• Weaving through high traffic waterways
• Purposely chasing and disturbing wildlife with your boat
• Allowing a passenger to ride on a dangerous area of the boat at a high speed
• Going against the flow of traffic, which is counter clockwise

What Should I Do if I’ve Been Involved in an Arizona Boating Accident?

After any type of accident, your number one priority should be making sure that everyone involved is safe and whether or not they need immediate medical attention. The drivers of both boats should stop and exchange insurance information. Both parties should take pictures of the scene of the accident, the damage to their boats, and the injuries. The parties involved should also call the police to the scene. The operator of any boats involved may have some reporting requirements. If there is damage of more than $500, the operator must report the accident to the Arizona Game and Fish Department within 5 days.

If there is a fatality, the accident must be reported within 48 hours.
If you don’t need to go to the hospital for your injuries, you should still go see a doctor or Urgent Care as soon as possible after the accident. This creates documentation of your injuries, and your medical records can later be used as evidence in your claim. You might be prescribed medication or given recommendations to help heal your injuries and at the same time, prevent them from getting worse. You may also have injuries that you aren’t even aware of yet- for example, whiplash symptoms can take weeks or even months to appear.

What Kinds of Damages Can I Collect in a Boating Accident Claim in AZ?

If someone is at fault for a boating accident, they may be liable for more than just the cost of the damage to the boats. Depending on the victim’s personal circumstances and the severity of their injuries, there could be numerous types of damages the plaintiff would be eligible to collect.  Thus, our AZ Accident Attorneys are:

Medical Bills

Medical bills are the first and most obvious expense that can be reimbursed in a personal injury claim. Some of this portion of your award may need to go to your doctors if you used medical liens, a process described below. You can also be reimbursed for future medical expenses, if your doctors anticipate that your treatment will extend beyond your case’s statute of limitations. This damage will need to account for inflation in the costs of medical treatments, so it’s best to estimate it with the assistance of a qualified injury attorney.

Missing Work

Your doctor might recommend, based on your line of work, that you take some time off to speed up your injury recovery. You could also miss work due to doctors’ appointments, surgeries, physical therapy, etc. This is another expense that can be compensated in your personal injury claim. In some unfortunate cases, the person is injured so badly that it will permanently diminish their career prospects. You may need to work with multiple types of experts to calculate how much this will cost you over the course of your career.

Pain, Trauma, Suffering

If your injuries are so severe that you have extensive medical treatment and lose income from missing work, you can probably expect that your injuries came with much pain and trauma. Pain and Suffering is the damage meant to compensate you for these non-financial losses. There are several ways to quantify your pain and suffering, but the most common way is to sum up the rest of your damages and multiply them by a number between one and five. A higher multiplier will be used for more severe injuries. The multiplier can also be increased if the at fault party’s conduct was especially reckless and negligent, like if the driver was under the influence.

Contact our Arizona personal injury team for more information about calculating pain and suffering damages at 602-600-6001. Our Mesa Injury Lawyers can help you recoup your gamages and get you the settlement that you deserve in Arizona Boating and Lake Accidents.

What If I Can’t Afford My Out of Pocket Medical Costs After a Boating Accident?

Even with costly health insurance, you could be left with medical bills after an accident that you can’t afford. Medical debt is one of the leading causes of bankruptcy, but you shouldn’t be put in that financial position due to someone else’s negligence. A personal injury attorney can help you make sure that your medical expenses are taken care of without the damage to your credit.

Sometimes, it is crystal clear which party is at fault in an accident. Here, that party’s boating insurance may pay for the victim’s medical expenses early in the process. Other times, it won’t be so easy to get the insurance company to pay out. Your own boating insurance may include MedPay as part of your policy. If so, your own insurance will cover some or all of your medical expenses until you are compensated by the other party. Your insurance will typically later require for those expenses to be reimbursed out of your award.

When you’re part of an ongoing personal injury suit, some doctors will accept payments through medical liens. These are liens against your future personal injury award for your medical costs. Additionally, your doctor will treat you and keep track of how much you have incurred. That amount will later come out of your injury award and be paid to them. However, it can be difficult to find doctors who are willing to work on medical liens. At, Mesa Injury Lawyers can help you find doctors that understand the personal injury process and are willing to be flexible with payment. We can also help you coordinate with other specialists depending on the severity of your injuries. Therefore, to get additional information on AZ Boating Accidents, call now and speak with one of our Arizona injury lawyers.

Mesa Injury Lawyer
1731 West Baseline Road Suite #103
Mesa, AZ 85202
Tel: 602-600-6001
Enail: [email protected]
Website: injurylawyersmesa.com