Maison Law stands beside families after they’ve lost a loved one in a drowning accident along a Los Angeles beach. We help close relatives hold property owners, businesses, and city government agencies accountable when victims are allowed to swim in unsafe waters and without proper safety precautions available. To find out how to hold at-fault parties fully accountable for their negligence in a drowning, contact a skilled Los Angeles personal injury lawyer and schedule a free and confidential consultation.
Los Angeles Beach Drowning Dangers
Los Angeles locals and people from around the world enjoy beach days along our coastline each year. People might go for the people-watching at busy places like Venice Beach or for quieter days in the sun at Playa Del Rey Beach.
Yet, many people also hop in the ocean to cool down. Any trip into a natural body of water, especially the beautiful and powerful Pacific Ocean can bring with it drowning risks.
Beachgoers must be careful, but the city and county Parks and Rec departments that oversee these natural attractions must also do everything possible to reduce the risks to swimmers and surfers. At times, these entities may even be guilty of adding to the risks through their negligence.
These are just some of the duties that the owners and operators of beaches and beach businesses must make sure are completed to avoid tragic drownings and full liability:
- Providing lifeguards who have proper training
- Supervision of lifeguards to make sure they are staying focused
- Lack of supervision to keep children safe
- Providing safety equipment and rescue boats
- Posted red flag warnings about rip tide dangers
- Posted underwater obstruction warnings
- Posted deep water and depth drop warnings
- No swimming signs in appropriate places
- Protection from reckless, drunk boaters
- Cleanup of trip-and-fall and slip-and-fall hazards around docks and piers
- Warning beachgoers about weather hazards
When your loved one is hurt in a near drowning or is killed in a drowning, it can be hard for families to determine how to seek justice. In many cases, a legal expert is necessary to sort through liability and to collect the evidence necessary to hold those at-fault parties fully responsible. Your Los Angeles Drowning Accident Lawyer is a safeguard to make sure no one who contributed to a loved one’s harm gets to walk away without facing consequences and without providing support to family members left behind.
Who Is Responsible for a Beach Drowning in Los Angeles?
When owners and operators fail their duty to warn people of hazards and remove hazards, and an injury is suffered or life is taken, victims and their families can file claims. Families are empowered to file wrongful death accident claims and seek help in recovery or with the hardships that follow a tragic death.
There most common entities responsible will be city and county government departments and law enforcement agencies that are negligent in their duties to protect beachgoers.
- Property owners such as a homeowner near the beach who create hazards that contribute to a drowning.
- Business owners including resort owners, tour boat operators, and others who contribute to unsafe conditions that result in drownings.
- Negligent boaters who strike swimmers in the water.
- The Los Angeles County Department of Beaches and Harbors tasked with keeping reckless boaters off the water where they can hurt swimmers and surfers.
- Pier and dock owners and operators.
- City or County officials who operate beaches and provide lifeguards.
- State agencies such as the California Coastal Commission (CCC) might create hazards for swimmers or fail to properly warn visitors about hazards.
Unfortunately, these parties won’t accept blame willingly and may be able to afford teams of lawyers. These lawyers and insurance adjusters look for ways to blame victims and find ways to limit the support victims or their families receive. You’ll want a skilled Maison Law beach drowning lawyer safeguarding your case and making sure your family receives what you’ll need to rebuild your lives. We can handle the frustrating back-and-forth with unhelpful insurance companies while providing as little disruption to grieving families as possible.
Drownings on City and County-Operated Beaches
There are very few private beaches, and in most cases, the families of Los Angeles beach drowning victims will be forced to deal with city and county departments to seek support.
When a beach drowning can be traced back to a government agency’s negligence, the families left behind may need the help of a skilled wrongful death lawyer to ensure the city or county can’t find ways to avoid liability or blame the victim.
Cases against any government agency are complex. Government agencies like the City of Los Angeles have legal protections that regular business and property owners don’t have. Families may have to file extensive paperwork simply to seek permission to file a legal claim with a city or state agency after a drowning.
The deadlines for filing a claim after a drowning could also be much shorter when dealing with local government, like the city or Los Angeles County. Families would have to file their claims much sooner or risk having their cases rejected. Make sure to consult with a skilled California drowning accident attorney to cut through this red tape and avoid missing important time limits.
What Type of Support Is Available to Families After a Los Angeles Beach Drowning?
Nothing can bring back a precious loved one after a drowning, but the family members will still want to seek justice and protect themselves financially in the years ahead. A spouse and children of the victim can quickly face financial turmoil as bills for a funeral and burial come due. They’ll face the leftover medical bills and ambulance fees that could remain.
These and other financial burdens should not be the family’s worry, especially when an at-fault party is to blame for a tragic drowning incident.
A wrongful death lawyer demands support for the family’s current hardships and the difficulties that will arise in the years ahead:
- Totals on leftover medical bills and ambulance fees.
- Support to pay for funeral services and a burial.
- Reimbursement for the wages the victim can no longer contribute to the family in the years ahead.
- The emotional hardships a family endures and will continue to endure. Children must receive support for the love and guidance they’ll miss out on in the years ahead.
- Cost of psychological counseling for family members to help them cope with the loss.
- Loss of consortium. (The lost support of a spouse or partner)
Frequently Asked Questions
What if my family can’t afford the help of a Los Angeles beach drowning accident lawyer?
Maison Law fights for the rights of families on a contingency basis. It means we don’t get paid unless we win the case for your family. Then our fee comes out of the settlement check or judgment your family receives.
How long do I have to file a claim against a property owner, business owner, or homeowner after a drowning?
Families have up to two years to file a wrongful death claim after a drowning when it involves a property or business owner. But remember, any case filed with the city or county may have a much shorter statute of limitations.
Can I seek support if I lose a child to a tragic drowning?
Parents who lose children in terrible beach drowning accidents are empowered to seek justice. They’d ask for support from at-fault parties for the loss of love and companionship a child can no longer provide. The life expectancy of the child would help determine how much support a family should receive for the years they’ll never get back.
Schedule a Free Consultation with a Los Angeles Beach Drowning Lawyer
After a beach drowning accident claims the life of a loved one, take action to seek justice from a negligent property owner or business owner. Contact the skilled Los Angeles Drowning Accident Lawyers at Maison Law for a free consultation and case evaluation. It’s a no-risk way to find out how to keep a negligent party from avoiding blame and how to secure every benefit possible for your family after a tragedy.
