Florida Personal Injury Lawyers Blog
Less than a year after a University of Central Florida student drowned after her car crashed into a pond, a law is being passed in her name that would require roadside guardrails in front of bodies of water.
Chloe’s Law has passed both the House and the Senate and will go into effect this summer.
With the passing of Chloe’s law, any site of a drowning-related traffic accident over the past ten years will be outfitted with a guardrail.
According to Federal crash data, 49 people in Florida died inside submerged vehicles from 2008 to 2012. No other state comes close to these alarming numbers. Texas, ranks No. 2, with 18 deaths, followed by Indiana with 14, and Arizona and Louisiana, each with 10.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, counties with the highest concentration of motor vehicle drownings were:
- Palm Beach
- Broward
- Miami-Dade
Orange, Duval, Lee and Collier Counties are tied for fourth place.
While it is true that guard rails won’t stop all accidents from occurring, strategically placed rails can reduce drowning fatalities from these types of collisions. In many cases, guard rails can turn what could be a fatal accident into a minor traffic incident.
If you or someone you love has been involved in any type of auto accident that resulted in serious injuries or death, you might have a claim for financial compensation if someone else is responsible for the incident, including when another driver’s negligent actions caused your car to travel off the road and into a body of water.
For a free consultation to find out whether you have a valid le for compensation, please call a Florida Auto Accident Lawyer at Whittel & Melton at 866-608-5529 or contact us online. We gladly make house calls and hospital visits if you are unable to come into one of our offices.