Serving Southern Illinois Since 1950
Boating Accident Lawyers in Southern Illinois
Boating Accident Lawyer Southern Illinois. Whether fishing with friends or taking your family for a day on the water, boating is a fun recreational activity. Boating, however, also presents a lot of danger which can sometimes lead to serious accidents and injuries.
Boating collisions and personal watercraft collisions — including accidents involving jet skis, sailboats, and powerboats — can cause serious personal injuries or even death. Boating injury victims have the right to receive compensation under the law when those injuries are the result of negligent or careless operation of a boat.
The experienced Southern Illinois personal injury attorneys at Hassakis & Hassakis have helped many people before who have been in boating accidents caused by someone else's negligence and are ready to help you today. Our law firm has been representing the people of Southern Illinois in boating accidents since 1950. We have the experience to help you get the compensation you need to get back on your feet.
Common Causes of Boating Accidents
- Failed equipment
- Not properly repairing a boat
- Inattention from the boat's pilot
- Poor weather
- Operating while intoxicated/impaired
- Adverse water conditions
- Colliding with another boat/structure
- Colliding with a swimmer
Boating Accident Lawyers in Southern Illinois
Injury Law Practice Areas
When you have been injured in a boating accident, turn to the Illinois personal injury law firm you can trust. The attorneys of Hassakis & Hassakis, P.C. are accomplished lawyers in all areas of personal injury law and have been trusted by the Southern Illinois community for generations. With your best interests at heart and a track record of successfully helping Illinois residents recover from devastating events by obtaining the compensation they deserve, the personal injury lawyers of Hassakis & Hassakis offer the best legal representation available for you and your family after you have been injured in a car accident, workplace accident, dog bite, or any other type of personal injury case.
Serving Southern Illinois Since 1950
Boating Accident Lawyers in Southern Illinois
Boating Accident Lawyer Southern Illinois. Whether fishing with friends or taking your family for a day on the water, boating is a fun recreational activity. Boating, however, also presents a lot of danger which can sometimes lead to serious accidents and injuries.
Boating collisions and personal watercraft collisions — including accidents involving jet skis, sailboats, and powerboats — can cause serious personal injuries or even death. Boating injury victims have the right to receive compensation under the law when those injuries are the result of negligent or careless operation of a boat.
The experienced Southern Illinois personal injury attorneys at Hassakis & Hassakis have helped many people before who have been in boating accidents caused by someone else's negligence and are ready to help you today. Our law firm has been representing the people of Southern Illinois in boating accidents since 1950. We have the experience to help you get the compensation you need to get back on your feet.
Common Causes of Boating Accidents
- Failed equipment
- Not properly repairing a boat
- Inattention from the boat's pilot
- Poor weather
- Operating while intoxicated/impaired
- Adverse water conditions
- Colliding with another boat/structure
- Colliding with a swimmer
Medical Malpractice
View Case TypeWrongful Death
View Case TypeBoating Accident Lawyers in Southern Illinois
Injury Law Practice Areas
When you have been injured in a boating accident, turn to the Illinois personal injury law firm you can trust. The attorneys of Hassakis & Hassakis, P.C. are accomplished lawyers in all areas of personal injury law and have been trusted by the Southern Illinois community for generations. With your best interests at heart and a track record of successfully helping Illinois residents recover from devastating events by obtaining the compensation they deserve, the personal injury lawyers of Hassakis & Hassakis offer the best legal representation available for you and your family after you have been injured in a car accident, workplace accident, dog bite, or any other type of personal injury case.
Car Accident
View Case TypeTruck Accident
View Case TypePremises Liability
View Case TypeWorkers’ Compensation
View Case TypeWhat Are Some Common Boating Accidents?
If you are injured, or someone you love has been critically injured in a boating accident caused by another person's negligence, know that you are not alone. According to the U.S. Coast Guard, every, more than 500 people die and over 2,000 people suffer injuries in boating accidents. Boats require regular maintenance and are hazardous if operated without proper training. The most common types of boating injuries that occur every year because of speeding, operating under the influence, and not following navigational rules when operating a boat include:
- Overboard Accidents - if a boat is moving at high speeds, or it isn't regularly maintained, passengers could flip overboard or suffer neck injuries, broken bones, lung damage, and other injuries while on board
- Slip and Fall - boat operators are required to maintain their vehicles and take precautions to avoid slip and fall accidents. A slip and fall accident could cause head damage, brain damage, or even death depending on what caused the accident
- Drowning - 80% of boating accidents that occur are due to drowning
- Propeller Accidents - boat propellers are fast and can cause broken bones, lacerations, and head injuries if passengers aren't careful around them
If you have been injured or someone you care about has been killed because of a boat operator's negligence, it's crucial to stay calm, call 911, get to dry land, and speak with an Illinois boating accident lawyer immediately.
Proving Negligence In Southern Illinois Boating Accident Cases
When you make a claim against a boat operator, or someone responsible for repairing and maintaining a boat, you will need to prove negligence in order to get compensated. Negligence can be proven in one of two ways:
- Negligence per se—You can make a negligence per se case if the operator of the boat violated safety laws that are on the books in Illinois to protect boaters. In these cases, negligence is automatically assumed, and injured victims are not required to prove it. As an example: it is illegal to operate a boat in a "No Wake" zone, such as an area clearly marked for fishing or swimming or within 150 feet of a public launch ramp, at a speed higher than 5 mph. If a boat pilot was operating their watercraft in one of these zones at a higher speed, they would be in violation of the law. If any accident was directly caused by speeding in a "No Wake" zone, the operator would automatically be deemed responsible under the law.
- Common-law negligence—These claims involve showing that a boat operator or someone responsible for maintaining a boat (for instance, the owner of a rented boat) was more careless than a reasonable body would have been in a similar situation, and that said carelessness directly led to an accident.
In these cases, having an experienced Southern Illinois boating accident lawyer on your side can help determine which legal strategy is best for your boat wreck claim.
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$2.3 Million Settlement
CASE TYPE: Workers' Compensation
$2.25 Million Workers' Compensation Settlement. We fought hard to get this incredible settlement for our client in his workers' compensation claim. Our client worked as a coal miner and suffered a brain injury and partial blindness as a result of a work accident. Through tough litigation, we were able to get this client a $2.5 million settlement.
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If you or your child are hurt while riding your bicycle, the lawyers of Hassakis & Hassakis, P.C. can help you recover. A minor was riding their bicycle when they were seriously injured by a worker with a local entity. We fought to get a confidential settlement for our client.
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A 61 year old male sustained traumatic and severe fractures to his pelvis and nose, right rib fractures, fractures to his back and neck requiring surgical intervention. He was discharged from the hospital to a rehab facility for occupational and physical therapy. This case was settled for $46,476.46.
read moreCase Type: Group Home Injuries
In this confidential settlement case, a minor child was seriously injured in a group home.
read moreBoating Accident Lawyers Serving Southern Illinois For Seven Decades
Illinois Boating Accident Statistics
Each year, the Illinois Department of Natural Resources publishes the Recreational Boating Report, a full and total look at boating statistics across the state ranging from the amount of people who took boating safety courses the previous year to the number of boats across the state. It also includes a complete listing of boating accidents for the previous year, which shed quite a bit of light on just how boating accidents occur and where they are most common. Among other stats, in a reporting period from October 2019 to September 2020, there were:
- 81 total boat accidents in the state
- 36 injuries sustained in boat accidents
- 21 boat accident fatalities
- 19 total fatalities due to drowning
- 102 arrests for boating while under the influence
- 863 written citations handed out for violations (such as not having flotation devices or not having a license number displayed), and 3.208 written warnings (which are given out for not having certain required safety items on a boat, like a battery cover, whistle/horn, or fire extinguisher
While Cook County was home to the most boat accidents in the state (primarily due to the presence of Lake Michigan, home to 12 accidents and 3 fatalities), Southern Illinois bodies of water still carried their share of danger. Jersey County saw two accidents on the Illinois River, Clinton County had three accidents, Rend Lake was responsible for six accidents including a fatality, and both Lake Sara in Effingham and Lake Springfield had one accident each.
Southern Illinois Boat Accident Attorneys | Hassakis & Hassakis
Boating accidents are often severe and confusing to navigate. Boating laws vary depending on the type of water vehicle involved (for instance, there are different rules for jetskis than speedboats), but a Southern Illinois boating accident lawyer can analyze your situation, determine if you can recover compensation, and help you pursue a boating accident claim against the negligent party responsible. If we determine that you have a valid boating accident claim, you could be eligible to recover compensation for medical bills, mental and physical distress, loss of income, property damage, and any other damages that you or your loved one suffered because of the accident.
Call Hassakis & Hassakis at (618)-244-5335 or talk to us online to speak with an attorney and schedule a free, no-obligation review of your Illinois boating accident case. Our firm has been trusted by generations of Southern Illinois residents because we are proud to be part of this community and are driven to get our friends and neighbors the best possible outcomes for their personal injury case.
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