Florida Car Accident Lawyer Blog
When you are in a Hollywood car crash or approach a collision, you might see someone who’s injured. Do you know what to do? In this situation, the last thing you want to worry about is being sued because you stopped to offer assistance. Thankfully, Florida’s “Good Samaritan Act” can help.
If you’ve been injured in a car accident or have been injured by a bystander after your accident, contact Flaxman Law Group for a free accident consultation with a Hollywood car accident attorney. Let’s talk about the Good Samaritan Act and any other Florida laws that could affect your claim. Then, let’s strategize any possible ways you can get fair compensation to pay for your injuries.
What Is the Good Samaritan Act in Florida?
If you’re a bystander or are in a car accident and someone is injured at the scene, the Good Samaritan Act gives you legal protection as you to try to help anyone who is in medical danger or who is incapacitated.
Where possible, it’s best to get medical professionals’ help. You can call 911 and follow the directions of the dispatch. Where this isn’t possible, the Good Samaritan Act protects you from legal action, as long as you don’t cause further injury by acting negligently.
The Good Samaritan Act is important because a person injured in a car accident can have their conditioned worsened. Let’s say you stop to render aid at the scene of a car crash in Hollywood. You don’t realize it, but the person who is injured has sustained a spinal cord injury. As you move them to get them out of the way of a car fire, you inadvertently and unintentionally make their injury worse, leading to permanent paralysis. These things do happen and if they happen to you, the Good Samaritan Act is meant to protect you from civil claims as long as you acted in good faith.
What If I’m Injured at the Site of a Hollywood Car Collision?
Originally, Florida’s Good Samaritan Act was meant to protect paramedics and other professionals who stopped to render aid, though now it applies to the general public. If you’re injured in a car accident and a stranger or a medical professional makes your injuries worse through their actions, the Good Samaritan Act can affect your ability to file a legal claim and seek compensation.
In this situation, it’s still important to contact an experienced Hollywood car accident claims attorney to find out what your rights are. Depending on your situation, you may have a medical malpractice claim. There are also important limits to the Good Samaritan Act that could still give you the right to seek compensation. For example, under the Act, the injured person must give consent (unless they’re incapacitated) before getting help. If someone at the scene acted with “gross negligence” or if your injuries themselves were caused by someone’s negligence, you may also still have a claim.
If you’ve been injured in a car accident, it may take a thorough investigation to get you all the answers you need to build a strong case. To find out if you have a claim and to discuss how much your claim may be worth, call Flaxman Law Group at 866-352-9626 to speak to Hollywood car accident attorney about your situation. Your initial consultation with us is free and comes with no obligation.