After a boat accident, there are a number of possible options to recover compensation for losses. Here are some of the different ways you could get your bills paid.
Your Health Insurer Will Pay Your Medical Bills
If a boat accident caused an injury, you can have a health insurer pay for your care. However, this could mean you end up paying high deductibles and coinsurance costs. And you would have uncompensated losses for missed work time or damaged property since your health insurer wouldn’t cover these things.
If you do turn to your health insurer, be prepared for the fact that the insurance company will try to recover the money they paid out if you also pursue a legal claim for compensation and receive a settlement or are awarded damages by the court.
Your Boat Insurer May Provide Compensation
If you have insurance on the boat involved in the accident, your own insurer would potentially compensate you.
Your insurance company would pay for the repair or replacement of your boat under your property damage coverage. If you have medical payments coverage, your boat insurer would pay your medical costs as well.
This is a good option if you were at fault for the accident and do not have another boater’s insurance company to turn to.
You Can Get Compensation From the At-Fault Boater
If you were a passenger on a boat and the boat operator caused the accident, you can recover compensation from the boat operator’s liability insurer. Likewise, if you were operating or riding on a boat and another boater was at fault for the incident, you could pursue a claim for compensation from that boater’s liability policy.
If you obtain compensation from another boater, you should be fully compensated for all losses including medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering and emotional distress. The boat insurer covering the at-fault vessel should pay for these damages up to policy limits.
You Could Get Compensation from the Boat Manufacturer
If there was a problem with the boat, you could pursue a product liability claim against the boat manufacturer. You do not need to show the manufacturer was negligent in this situation–just that the boat was used as intended and you were harmed during that operation as a result of a problem with the vessel.
You Could Get Compensation From the Government
If the government created a hazardous situation on the waterways through negligence, it may be possible to pursue a claim against the agency responsible. There are special rules associated with suing government authorities, so an attorney should be consulted right away in these circumstances.
You Could Get Compensation From an Employer
If your boat accident happened while you were working, you could pursue a workers’ compensation claim from your employer. This is a different process than a personal injury claim and you would not need to show your employer was negligent.
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