Riverside Watercraft Accident Attorneys

Watercraft accidents are any accidents that occur on a boat or a personal watercraft such as a jet ski.

With the amount of registered boats on the water and the steady rise in the use of personal watercraft, California has one of the highest accident rates in the country.

And while many states have responded to this increased traffic on the water by instituting mandatory licenses and certification programs, California has not fallen suit. So, it is up to each individual boat driver and operator of a personal watercraft to exercise the same amount of care they do when they are behind the wheel of a car.

Most watercraft accidents involve collisions with other boats or water skiers, slip and falls on the boat, sinking, and boat disappearance. There are a variety of causes of boating accidents but most are a result of: 

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A reckless or careless operator

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Excessive speed

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Operating the vessel under the influence

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Boat malfunction or product defect

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An inexperienced (underage or uneducated) operator

According to the United States Coast Guard there were 569 watercraft accidents in California in 2006. Of those, 42 resulted in fatalities.

Some boating accident statistics for 2006:

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2/3 of all fatal boating accident victims drowned – of those 90% were not wearing a life jacket

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8 out of every 10 boaters who drowned were using boats less than 20 feet in length

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70% of reported fatalities happened on boats where the operator had not received boating safety instruction

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Alcohol use is the leading contributing factor in fatal boating accidents, accounting for nearly 20% of all reported fatalities

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29 children under the age of 12 lost their lives while boating in the U.S. in 2006

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Nearly twice as many children drowned in 2006 than in 2005

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The most common types of boats involved in reported accidents were open motorboats (45%), personal watercraft (PWC) (24%) and cabin motorboats (14%).

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A significant increase was observed in the number of reported fatalities associated with the use of canoes/kayaks (99) when compared to 2005 (78).

The experienced watercraft accident attorneys at Bisnar|Chase have the knowledge and resources to hold negligence watercraft operators responsible. Since 1978 we have been helping people involved in watercraft accidents recover compensation for their injuries. We can help you too.

Here's how to get in touch with us:

For Fastest Service Call: 1-866-310-5252

Contact Us using the Personal Injury Lawyer Online Form

We’ll quickly answer your call, carefully listen to your entire story, lay out all of your available options, and answer any questions you have.

All at no risk and no cost to you. That’s right. Our consultations are completely free. We’re here to help. So call us now at 1-866-310-5252.

 
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The Riverside County Personal Injury Attorneys at Bisnar|Chase are licensed to practice in California, Nevada, New York. We represent Riverside County Personal Injury clients in other states through our associations with local law firms. Through the local firm, we will be admitted to practice law in their State, "pro hac vice", meaning "for this particular occasion". When in our client's best interest, we employ the local law firm (at no additional cost to our client) to assist us with routine court appearances and discovery proceedings to more efficiently pursue our client's cause.   Disclaimer: The Riverside County personal injury, wrongful death, dog bite, product liability or other Riverside County legal information presented at this site should not be construed to be formal legal advice nor the formation of a lawyer or attorney client relationship. Any results set forth here were dependent on the facts of that case and the results will differ from case to case. This web site is not intended to solicit clients for matters outside of the State of California. The lawyer to contact regarding this website is John Bisnar.