How Do I Know If I Need To File A Wrongful Death Claim After An Accident?
Michael Babboni
Wrongful Death
When a loved one passes away in an accident, the grief can be overwhelming. You have lost an important person, and your life will never be the same.Dealing with those feelings of loss can be challenging. It can be worse if you also have to handle all the aspects of the deceased’s estate. If your loved one was the sole provider for the family, you have to think about your financial future as well. However, you have options that will allow you to get through this difficult time.
What Is A Wrongful Death Claim?
“Wrongful death” is a legal term for when someone dies as the result of another person’s negligence. It is different from murder, which is a criminal charge for intentionally taking someone’s life.
Wrongful death claims typically come after an accident that caused a person to lose a loved one. For example, if there was a car crash that was the fault of another driver and your loved one dies in the incident, you may file a claim for wrongful death.
Who Can File A Wrongful Death Claim In Florida?
According to Florida state law, only authorized individuals can file a wrongful death claim after an accident. Those include the following:
● The deceased’s parents
● The deceased’s children
● The deceased’s spouse
● Relatives who relies on the deceased for financial support
Any of those people are free to file a wrongful death claim. However, in the state of Florida, you only have two years from the date of someone’s passing to file for wrongful death. If you do so well beyond that time frame, your claim will be rejected.
Damages In A Wrongful Death Claim
A wrongful death claim is essentially a claim to recover the financial damages lost from an accident. Also, though no amount of money will ever make up for one’s loss, there are non-financial damages that may be compensated as well. Those may include the following:
● Lost wages, earnings, and benefits
● Prospective net accumulations, which are the total value of the future earnings the deceased would have made had they survived the accident
● Medical expenses such as treatment, therapy, and pharmaceuticals as well as mental health care
● The costs associated with the funeral and the wake
● Loss of consortium, which means the loss of your loved one
Those are just some of the damages you can recover from a wrongful death suit. A wrongful death attorney can help you identify which ones are relevant to your unique circumstances. They will also calculate the value of those damages.
Working With A Florida Wrongful Death Attorney
When you file a wrongful death claim, it is critical that you work with an attorney. Attorneys take on all the aspects of a case so the client can focus on their grief and rebuilding their life. They will do everything from collecting evidence, filing paperwork, and negotiating the settlement.
An experienced attorney like Michael Babboni, The St. Pete Lawyer, knows the hardship faced by families after they have lost someone. He has worked for over 30 years with grieving survivors to help them get back on their feet after their loved one passes away.
If you are thinking about filing a wrongful death claim, give him a call at 1-727-381-9200 or message him on this page. Michael Babboni will review your case, listen to your concerns, and help you put together a plan of action in order to take care of your entire family.