People in the Chicago area and throughout the state of Illinois often enjoy spending time on the water in boats or other types of watercraft. While this can be a relaxing and enjoyable activity, it can also be dangerous, and boating accidents can lead to serious injuries or fatalities. If you have been involved in a boat accident, you should work with a personal injury attorney to determine your options for recovering compensation from the parties who were responsible.

Common Causes of Boat Accidents and Injuries

According to the most recent data available from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, there were 80 boating accidents throughout the state in 2017. These accidents resulted in 48 injuries and 12 fatalities. However, these numbers may not accurately reflect the actual injuries that occurred in boat accidents, since they do not include “non-reportable” accidents. For example, injuries or fatalities that occur when someone jumps or dives from an anchored or moored boat are not reportable.

Some of the reasons boating injuries may occur include:

Construction zones are a familiar sight on the roads in Illinois, and most people are aware of the need to take extra care when driving through work areas. However, many drivers fail to follow the proper roadway safety rules, and when car accidents occur in construction zones, workers are likely to be seriously injured. These types of accidents occur all too frequently. In fact, the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) reports that on average, more than 5,000 accidents occur every year in work zones throughout the state. These accidents lead to more than 1,500 injuries on an annual basis.

Construction Zone Safety Tips

Drivers can face severe penalties if they do not obey the law in a work zone. Striking a worker in a construction zone can result in fines up to $10,000 and a prison sentence of up to 14 years. In order to avoid construction zone accidents, drivers should take the following safety precautions:

Large numbers of people use taxicabs for transportation throughout the Chicago area every day. Unfortunately, most people are familiar with the experience of being afraid for their safety while riding in a vehicle operated by a cab driver who has little regard for traffic laws. The desire to complete fares as quickly as possible causes many taxi drivers to put passengers, other drivers, and pedestrians at risk. Fortunately, taxi companies’ status as common carriers provides those who have been injured in taxi accidents with the ability to recover compensation for their damages.

What Is a Common Carrier?

Companies, entities, or individuals that transport people or property within or through the state of Illinois are considered common carriers. According to decisions made in Illinois courts, common carriers have a duty to provide the “highest degree of care” to their passengers while transporting them or while passengers are entering or exiting a vehicle.

Because of this duty of care, taxi companies may be held liable for passenger injuries which occur because of the negligence of taxi drivers or other employees. In addition to injuries that may occur because of negligent driving, a company may be responsible for injuries caused by equipment failure, negligent maintenance, or failure to follow the proper safety procedures.

Being involved in a car accident can be a traumatic experience, regardless of whether the collision is minor or major. Even if a car crash does not result in serious injuries, it is likely to cause damage to your vehicle, and you may experience injuries that are not immediately evident which only begin to affect you in the days or weeks after the accident. In most cases, your injuries and the damage to your vehicle will be covered by the insurance policy of the driver who was at fault. But what happens when you are involved in a collision with a driver who has no insurance?

Uninsured Motorist Coverage

All drivers are required by law to have insurance coverage on their vehicles. At minimum, a vehicle must be covered by liability insurance, which will pay for damages a driver causes to other vehicles, drivers, or passengers in a car accident. However, some drivers do not maintain their required insurance coverage. Many people who are involved in an accident with an uninsured driver may believe that they have no way to recover compensation for their injuries or vehicular damages.

In some cases, an injured driver may be able to pursue a personal injury lawsuit against the at-fault driver. However, a driver who does not have insurance will likely not be able to pay damages, and even if compensation is awarded, they may be able to declare bankruptcy in order to avoid paying damages.

While people have traditionally used taxis for transportation around cities such as Chicago and its surrounding suburbs, many people now choose to use ridesharing apps such as Uber, Lyft, or Via. These services offer convenience and savings, but since they have only begun operating within the last few years, they are still lightly regulated, especially when compared to the strict laws and regulations surrounding taxis and other forms of public transportation. This means that those who are injured in an accident with a rideshare driver may have trouble determining what is covered by insurance and how to receive compensation.

Insurance Coverage for Rideshare Accidents

Determining liability for any accident can be difficult, but matters become even more complicated in collisions involving rideshare drivers. Accidents may be caused because of a Uber or Lyft driver’s inexperience, because they were distracted when using the rideshare app, or because they were driving recklessly. Accidents may also be caused by other drivers or because of poor vehicle maintenance, and people injured may include passengers in the ridesharing vehicle or other drivers, passengers, or pedestrians. Untangling these factors to establish fault and determine who is covered by insurance is likely to be a complex undertaking.

In response to these issues, rideshare companies have provided insurance policies that cover those injured in accidents. Both Uber and Lyft provide $1 million in coverage per accident for anyone who has been injured, including rideshare passengers, those in other vehicles, and pedestrians. However, this coverage typically only applies if a Uber or Lyft driver is on their way to pick up a passenger or while they have a passenger in their car. Coverage limits are lower when a driver is waiting for a ride request, and they do not apply when a driver is driving their vehicle for personal use.