Car Accidents

Thousands of residents and tourists drive in Florida each day, and with so many travelers on the road, it is not surprising that car accidents are a regular occurrence throughout the state. However, simply because crashes occur frequently does not mean that they are inevitable and most collisions would not occur absent reckless behavior. While some accidents are minor, many lead to serious and lasting harm, and they often cause the injured parties to incur significant expenses. It is wise, therefore, for people who were hurt in a collision to seek legal counsel to see they may be able to recoup damages for the losses they suffered via a civil lawsuit. If you suffered injuries in a car crash, the assertive Cape Coral car accident attorneys of Lusk, Drasites & Tolisano, P.A. can advise you of your options for seeking compensation and develop a strategy to help you seek to protect your interests. We frequently assist injured people pursue claims against negligent parties in Cape Coral and in other cities in Florida.

In some instances, a car accident will occur for reasons beyond anyone’s control, such as inclement weather or wild animals running into traffic. Usually, however, the careless acts of one or more people will cause an accident. For example, many drivers are distracted by text messages or social media posts and take their attention away from the road, which ultimately results in a collision. Driving too fast, traveling too closely behind other motorists, and turning unsafely also cause many crashes. In some instances, a driver will lack confidence due to inexperience or advanced age, and will simply be unable to safely operate a vehicle. In addition to unsafe driving, crashes can also be caused by roads that are not properly designed, and cars that suffer from latent defects.

As the root cause of most car accidents is reckless behavior, most lawsuits seeking damages for the harm suffered due to a collision will allege a negligence claim against the defendant. In Florida, to recover damages for negligence, a plaintiff must show that the defendant had a duty to abide by a certain standard of conduct to protect others from foreseeable risks of harm and a breach of the duty by the defendant.

The standard of conduct may be imposed by a statute, such as a traffic law, or may merely be the reasonable person standard, which is the care that an ordinary, prudent person would exercise under similar circumstances. For example, if the defendant drove twenty miles over the speed limit while it was raining and a sensible person would not do so, it may constitute a departure from the standard. After establishing duty and a breach with the assistance of car accident attorneys in Cape Coral, the plaintiff must then demonstrate causation. In other words, the plaintiff must show that he or she suffered quantifiable harm and that the harm was directly attributable to the defendant’s breach, and, that if the breach had not happened, the plaintiff would not have been hurt.

It is a common defense tactic in car collision cases to attempt to avoid liability by arguing that the plaintiff caused the accident and should therefore not be permitted to recover compensation. Even if a judge or jury ultimately finds a plaintiff to be partially responsible for a collision, under Florida law, a plaintiff’s fault will merely result in a reduction of damages, rather than bar the plaintiff from recovering altogether.

While car accidents are common, they nonetheless can shatter people’s lives. Those injured in collisions should not have to bear the burden of the losses they suffered due to other parties’ negligence. If you have been injured, the trusted Cape Coral car accident attorneys of Lusk, Drasites & Tolisano, P.A. can help you seek the full amount of damages recoverable under the law, and we will advocate aggressively on your behalf to help you pursue a just result. We regularly represent parties in Cape Coral, and in Fort Myers and Naples. We can be reached at any of our offices at 800-283-7442 or via our online form to schedule a confidential and free meeting.