How A Boat Accident Attorney Can Help Your Case (2025)

Boat Accident Causes

There is no definitive count of recreational boating accidents in the U.S. The law requires boaters to report accidents to state authorities. However, many accidents go unreported because the crash sites are remote and because some boaters ignore these reporting laws.

State boating officials report data to the U.S. Coast Guard regardless of where the crash occurred. The Coast Guard collects statistics from crashes on the ocean, coastlines, reservoirs, lakes, rivers, and man-made canals.

Coast Guard recreational boating accident statistics for 2023 reveal that the agency received reports of 3,844 accidents. These accidents caused:

• 564 fatal injuries
• 2,126 nonfatal injuries

Many of these accidents were not anyone’s fault. The boat may have swamped or capsized in bad weather. Or the operator may have accidentally grounded the vessel.

However, according to the Coast Guard, the top two reasons for injuries and deaths related to recreational boating were collisions with other vessels and collisions with fixed objects.

Boat Accident Liability

Someone injured in a boat accident may file an injury claim against anyone else whose negligence contributed to their injuries. Similarly, a boat operator can defend themselves by showing that a victim was partially at fault for their injuries under the contributory negligence rule.

Victims of boat accidents may be:

• Swimmers, water-skiers, and other non-boaters in the water
• Bystanders on piers, docks, and land
• Passengers on the at-fault boater’s vessel
• Occupants of other vessels, including nonmotorized vessels like kayaks

To prove liability, victims and their attorneys must have evidence that the operator acted negligently. The most common causes of boating injuries and fatalities are not, as you might suspect, weather, hazardous waters, or mechanical failures. Instead, Coast Guard statistics show that the following operator errors are very common:

• Drug or alcohol use (DUI or BUI)
• Operator inexperience
• Improper lookout
• Operator inattention
• Excessive speed
• Navigation rules violations

A boat accident attorney can use these acts to prove the operator’s failure to exercise reasonable care was the proximate cause of their client’s injuries.

The Role of a Boat Accident Attorney

The greatest obstacle to recovering injury compensation for boating accidents is the absence of any uniform boat insurance requirement.

In Utah and Arkansas, accident victims can file insurance claims against a negligent boater’s mandatory liability policy. Other states do not require boaters to carry liability insurance. However, many boaters voluntarily add this optional coverage.

If the boat owner has this coverage, the victim can file an insurance claim. With their lawyer’s help, they’ll explain how the insured operator caused the crash. The lawyer will provide medical records and other documents to prove their client’s losses.

In most of these cases, the insurer and the attorney negotiate a settlement. If the insurer denies liability, the lawyer can submit additional evidence and legal arguments to challenge the denial.

When an at-fault boater does not have boat liability insurance, a boat accident lawyer must search for alternative sources of compensation. In some cases, the lawyer can file a claim with the boater’s homeowner’s or renter’s insurance policy.

If the lawyer cannot find a policy that will cover their client’s losses — or the policy limits do not fully compensate them — they can file a lawsuit against the boater. However, even if the victim wins, the boater might not have enough assets to pay a judgment. An attorney can investigate the boater and determine whether filing a lawsuit is worthwhile.

How to Find and Hire the Best Boat Accident Attorney for Your Case

Experience matters in legal cases. Insurers have teams of lawyers to defend their policyholders. You need a lawyer who has handled boat accident cases and can match their knowledge.

Depending on where you live, an online search for a “boating accident attorney near me” might not return any results. Instead, you could start your search by finding well-regarded injury lawyers in your area and calling them to find out whether they handle boat accident cases. For example, a personal injury lawyer in Tampa is likely to know boating laws.

Once you find some lawyers who have relevant experience, schedule free consultations with them. Use this time to discuss the lawyer’s previous boat accident cases, including the outcomes of these cases.

Contact ConsumerShield for Help Finding a Boating Accident Attorney

Boat accidents can cause grievous injuries or even death. ConsumerShield educates injury victims about their rights and connects them with skilled lawyers. Contact us for a free case evaluation and a boat accident attorney referral.