The Orlando, Florida metro area remains the most visited destination in the USA. If you are an out-of-state resident who is injured in a Florida car accident, you may be able to seek monetary compensation. That being said, it is important to know that your case will likely be handled differently than if you resided in the state and were injured in the state.
Tragedy in Florida for British Family
NBC 2 reports
a family of four, who were visiting the Sunshine state from England, was involved in a fatal accident when a pickup truck hit their care. The family’s car was making a left turn when the vehicle drove into a pickup truck’s path. The entire family of four was killed in the tragic crash. The family had just visited the Kennedy Space Center and was returning to their rental home, about 60 miles away in Davenport, Florida. The family’s vehicle’s global-positioning system (GPS) revealed they were following a detour around a crash that happened earlier in the area. According to law enforcement, the driver of the truck was hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries.
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Understanding the Applicable Law
If you are hurt in a Florida car accident but do not reside in the Sunshine state, you may own a car in your state of residence. As a result, you may have uninsured motorist (“UM”) or underinsured motorist (“UIM”) coverage that can likely cover the damages suffered in the crash. Of note, your UM or UIM coverage will cover you even if you are not in your own car at the time of the accident.
Under Florida law, UM coverage does not typically cover you for pain and suffering, unless you can meet the tort threshold required by the state. This threshold is the requirement that an injured party must have a certain type of injury in order to successfully recover non-economic damages for things such as pain and suffering, mental anguish, and inconvenience as a result of a Florida car accident. This is commonly referred to as Florida’s “no fault” threshold. Because Florida is a “no-fault” state, when a car accident happens, each parties’y’s own car insurance pays for 80% of the medical bills up to $10,000. After that, compensation can be sought from the at-fault driver’s Bodily Injury (BI) coverage. If the at-fault driver doesn’t have BI coverage, or the BI coverage is not sufficient to cover the injury damages, then compensation can be sought from your UM or UIM policy. Again, in order to recover for pain and suffering or other non-economic damages, you must meet the permanency threshold; which requires that the victim must meet one of the following criteria as a result of the crash:
- A significant and permanent loss of an important bodily function
- A permanent injury within a reasonable degree of medical probability
- A significant and permanent disfiguring or scarring
- Death
That being said, if you live in an “at fault” state — in other words, a state that does not follow the “no fault” rule — and the negligent uninsured driver caused your injuries, there is no need to meet a particular threshold. You can seek monetary compensation for pain and suffering from your UM insurance carrier.
…A family of four, who were visiting the Sunshine state from England, was involved in a fatal accident when a pickup truck hit their care.
Florida Car Accident Help
If you or someone you know has been hurt in a Florida car accident, the personal injury lawyers at Bogin, Munns & Munns can help. Our auto accident attorneys know Florida law and know how to analyze which law applies if you are hurt in Florida but reside somewhere else. Schedule your free personal injury consultation at one of our convenient Central Florida locations.
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NOTICE: The article above is not intended to serve as legal advice, and you should not rely on it as such. It is offered only as general information. You should consult with a duly licensed attorney regarding your Florida legal matter, as every situation is unique. Please know that merely reading this article, subscribing to this blog, or otherwise contacting Bogin, Munns & Munns does not establish an attorney-client relationship with our firm. Should you seek legal representation from Bogin, Munns & Munns, any such representation must first be agreed to by the firm and confirmed in a written agreement.
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