The entire country took notice when the news of a 14-year-old boy falling to his death at an Orlando amusement park hit the news. While this story definitely shocked and saddened anyone who heard it, many people don’t realize that amusement park accidents are more common than they realize. The horrible nature of this accident was reported on heavily, but the fact is, injuries occur almost daily at amusement parks across the country.
Do you know what rights you have when injured at an amusement park? If not, it’s time to learn more to know how to handle this situation if you ever find yourself in it.
One of the best things you can do in this situation is to contact our amusement park accident lawyers at Zimmet & Zimmet. We can help with your case and ensure you recover the compensation you deserve.
How Common Are Florida Amusement Park Accidents?
There’s no question that one of the top attractions in Florida is the theme parks. Universal Studios, Disney World, Busch Gardens, and SeaWorld are just a few of the options available. Each year, millions of people from around the globe flock to these parks, with Florida’s Universal Studios being the most visited theme park in the world.
This could be one of the reasons why this park also has one of the highest rates of ride injuries in the area. Unfortunately, quite a few cases are never reported, making it difficult to get an accurate look at the real impact of amusement park accidents in Florida.
While this is true, the state of Florida still mandates that all theme parks in the area submit an injury port at the end of every three months. However, the only injuries reported on these are if a visitor is hospitalized for 24 hours or more due to the incident.
Common Causes of Theme Park Accidents
The safety of rides at theme parks, particularly roller coasters, has increased in the past few decades. After all, it isn’t shocking to learn that the old wooden roller coasters were not as safe as the modern, state-of-the-art rides available today.
While this is true, negligent acts and omissions can still cause injuries on rides, no matter how old or new it is. Some of the most common reasons injuries occur include:
- Weak, defective, or unattached restraints and lap bars
- Inadequate warnings about ride risks
- Poor maintenance practices
- Defective manufacturing or design
- Ride operator distractions or errors
- Improper staff training
These are just a few examples of how visitors are injured while on amusement park rides. However, injuries also occur from slips, trips, falls, and other situations.
Protecting Your Rights After a Florida
After an amusement park injury, you must take steps to protect your rights. If you want to file a personal injury lawsuit, it’s best to take the following steps:
Seek Medical Attention Right Away
After being injured at an amusement park, go to the doctor or emergency room right away. This will help document your injuries and reduce the likelihood of worsening.
You can seek medical care at some parks, on-site, such as Universal Studios. However, this isn’t an option at all Florida theme parks.
Report the Incident and Your Injuries
It’s important to let the park administrators know about what happened and your injuries right away. This is especially important if you don’t need urgent medical attention. This is because small incidents usually don’t get noticed by administrators.
Document Your Injuries
It’s a good idea to capture videos and pictures of the accident scene. Do the same with your injuries. This type of documentation can help to show what happened and the extent of your injuries. If you cannot document your injuries on your own, you can ask someone to help you do it. Make sure the pictures are clear and that you capture several angles.
Contact Our Legal Team
If you are injured at a Florida amusement park, it’s best to contact our legal team right away. Since this is a personal injury lawsuit, there is a statute of limitations of four years from when the incident took place. Because of this, you need to make sure that you report your injury and begin the legal process as soon as possible.
Most amusement park incident and accident cases are settled out of court. One of the main reasons for this is that the parks don’t want the incident to get public attention, harming their reputation.
Don’t Wait to Act
Unfortunately, amusement park accidents in Florida happen all the time. Because of this, you must take steps to protect yourself and your rights. At Zimmet & Zimmet, we have experience representing accident victims and will fight for your rights and help you get the compensation you deserve.
