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The American Automobile Association (AAA) reported that nearly 800 people died in Florida from bicycle accidents in 2017, making Florida the leading state in the nation for fatal bicycle accidents.

A Florida jury found a landscaping company 30 percent liable in a wrongful death accident that killed a South Florida doctor who was bicycling in the area where the landscaping company was working. The plaintiff’s legal team claimed the landscaping company’s crew negligently parked its truck in a path frequented by bikes, and the defense team countered that the doctor crashed into the back of the vehicle because he was dehydrated and not paying attention. The trial lasted nine days and focused on who caused the wreck. Jurors apportioned a post-verdict award according to the liability percentage.

Florida’s wrongful death act (Statute 768.18) states that when a person’s death is caused by the wrongful act, negligence, default or breach of contract of another person or some other entity, the estate of the deceased person may bring a civil lawsuit in Florida’s courts to seek a legal remedy for the death and the losses.  

According to the Florida statute, the following definitions apply to wrongful death cases:

(1) “Survivors” means the decedent’s spouse, children, parents, and, when partly or wholly dependent on the decedent for support or services, any blood relatives and adoptive brothers and sisters. It includes the child born out of wedlock of a mother, but not the child born out of wedlock of the father unless the father has recognized a responsibility for the child’s support.

(2) “Minor children” means children under 25 years of age, notwithstanding the age of majority.

(3) “Support” includes contributions in kind as well as money.

(4) “Services” means tasks, usually of a household nature, regularly performed by the decedent that will be a necessary expense to the survivors of the decedent. These services may vary according to the identity of the decedent and survivor and shall be determined under the particular facts of each case. 

“One of many wrongful death lawsuits handled by our firm was that of a mother who lost her son in a motorcycle accident when a driver was fleeing from police and crashed into his motorcycle in Sarasota. Another wrongful death accident case was that of a husband who lost his wife in a motorcycle accident when a landscaping truck made an improper u-turn into her path in Venice. These, and others, are devastating cases leaving survivors with a lifetime of sorrow and potential financial loss,” said Fort Myers Wrongful Death Attorney Randall Spivey of Spivey Law Firm, Personal Injury Attorneys, P.A. “If you or a loved one has suffered a death as the result of another’s negligence, please contact our firm. We are always available to assist you.”

Fort Myers Wrongful Death Attorney Randall L. Spivey is a Board Certified Trial Attorney – the highest recognition for competence bestowed by the Florida Bar and a distinction earned by just one (1%) percent of Florida attorneys.  He has handled over 2,000 personal injury and wrongful death cases throughout Florida.  For a free and confidential consultation to discuss your legal rights, contact the Spivey Law Firm, Personal Injury Attorneys, P.A., in Lee County at 239.337.7483 or toll free at 1.888.477.4839,or by email to Randall@SpiveyLaw.com.  Visit SpiveyLaw.com for more information.  You can contact Spivey Law Firm, Personal Injury Attorneys, P.A.in Charlotte County at 941.764.7748 and in Collier County 239.793.7748.