Families who lose a loved one to a tragic drowning can file wrongful death claims against those found at fault. This claim seeks help for the family in paying funeral costs, leftover medical bills, and replacing the income the loved one may have provided each month.
Maison Law of McKinleyville stands beside local families to help them seek justice and financial support after a tragic drowning. We help victims hold pool owners and business owners responsible when victims are allowed access to unsafe pools, lakes, rivers, and beaches.
Should My Family Contact a Wrongful Death Lawyer After a Drowning?
After a drowning, families will understandably want to focus on remembering a loved one and mourning such a devastating loss. Unfortunately, financial concerns that often follow a tragedy can make it hard for families to focus on the proper things. Burial costs and leftover medical invoices can leave families responsible for massive bills. This burden might also come as the income the deceased had supported the family with is suddenly gone.
Nothing can bring back a precious life, but families should be allowed to seek justice and financial assistance. A lawyer can help victimized families find this support. A lawyer fully investigates what happened and is ready to fight back if those at fault try to blame the victim for a drowning.
A McKinleyville drowning accident lawyer also works to maximize what grieving family members receive. A Maison Law attorney can often secure more for the family’s future than they could secure by handling a case themselves.
Who Can Be Held Responsible for a Drowning in Humboldt County?
Under California premises liability laws, business and property owners have a duty to keep visitors, customers, and tenants safe. They must act to protect any guest from hazards that employees may have created or other visitors have left behind. When they don’t, pool owners and operators and those in charge of maintaining public parks can be held liable for injuries and fatal accidents.
Owners and corporate chains must do everything possible to make swimming safe or to restrict access to bodies of water that aren’t safe for swimming. Any area business or public location that features a pool should take extra care to protect its guests. That applies to children who must be monitored while swimming and be kept out of bodies of water that may make them curious, such as agricultural ponds.
These are just a few of the potential responsible parties that Maison Law can help you file a wrongful death claim against:
- Property and Business Owners
- Waterpark Owners
- Homeowners
- Homeowners Association (HOA)
- Hotel Owners
- Landlords
- Operators of Gyms
- Property Management Companies
- Country Clubs responsible for maintaining and staffing pools
- Hotel Owners
- Farm and Orchard Owners responsible for ponds and irrigation canals
- Boat and paddleboard rental companies
- Fishing excursion businesses
- City or County Government Department
- State or Federal Agency
McKinleyville swimmers should be protected when they are visiting pools anywhere in the area. That includes visits to the Arcata Community Pool and the Humboldt Bay Aquatic Center. They should expect caution and care from the operators of Mad River Beach.
When the owners and operators, and government departments over these swimming areas are negligent and a life is lost, families should never be left to face the aftermath alone.
What Types of Negligence Can Leave Owners Liable for Drownings?
Your attorney would be collecting evidence of the types of negligence and recklessness that led to a tragic drowning.
These and other careless acts or non-action can be evidence of fault in a premises liability case:
- Failure to provide lifeguards or enough lifeguards
- Failure to provide proper training for lifeguards
- Failure to provide proper drowning safety equipment and safety measures
- Failure to keep up the maintenance of pools to prevent hazards with drains and pumps
- Allowing trip-and-fall hazards to remain on docks and around pools that might send someone into the water while unconscious
- Failure to provide fencing and security measures around unsafe areas like irrigation canals and dangerous sections of the Mad River
- A lack of warning signs
- Failure to keep boaters away from swimming areas
- Lack of supervision to keep children safe
Compensation for Families After a Tragic Drowning
A McKinleyville premises liability lawyer holds those who make their money off of water activities responsible when carelessness allows someone to drown.
Every damage the family faces now and will face in the future must be included in a wrongful death claim. Anything left off would be something a liability insurance company could ignore.
These and other factors would determine the size of the wrongful death settlement or judgment:
- Totals on leftover medical bills and ambulance fees.
- Support to pay for a funeral and burial.
- The emotional hardships a family will suffer.
- Support for children of the victims who have lost the love and guidance of a parent. That includes the cherished moments of entering college and graduating, and sharing the gift of childbirth with parents. Those moments can’t be replaced, but those at fault must be held accountable.
- Support for parents who lose the love and companionship of a child now and in the future.
- Cost of psychological counseling for family members to help them cope with the loss.
- Loss of consortium. (The lost intimacy with a spouse or partner)
- Reimbursement for the wages the victim can no longer contribute to the family in the coming years.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who can file a wrongful death claim in California?
A spouse, the children, and stepchildren of the victim could file on behalf of the family. If the children have passed on, the grandchildren could file. In some cases, the parents and siblings of the victim could file a wrongful death claim. A wrongful death lawyer can also handle the filing of a wrongful death claim on behalf of the entire family and take care of the entire frustrating claims process.
Can parents seek support after losing a child to a tragic drowning?
Yes. Parents would file a wrongful death claim asking for help with burial costs and with leftover medical bills. Parents must also receive support for the loss of the lifetime companionship a child would have provided.
What type of documents should my family gather when building a drowning wrongful death case?
Gather together all emergency response and ambulance fees. Locate pay stubs if the victim had a job and supported the family with the income. You’ll also want to secure a death certificate and, in some cases, an autopsy after a drowning. If you turn your case over to a McKinleyville Wrongful Death Lawyer, your lawyer will help secure all of these documents.
Support for Families After a Humboldt County Drowning
After a heartbreaking drowning accident claims the life of a loved one, take action to seek justice from a negligent property owner or a governmental department. Contact the skilled McKinleyville Drowning Accident Lawyers at Maison Law for a free consultation and case evaluation. We understand the pain a sudden death will cause. We want to make sure families get the support they need while being given the time to grieve without financial worries.
There’s no obligation for your case review, but if you need our help to earn more in support for your family, you don’t need any upfront money to hire a lawyer. Maison Law doesn’t get paid unless we win support for your family. Then our fee comes out of the money that the at-fault party is forced to pay.
