Boat Accident Lawyers for Harveys Lake, Lake Wallenpaupack & the Susquehanna

Get everyone out of danger and call 911 — on the water, delayed rescue turns injuries into drownings. Get medical care even if you feel fine; cold water and adrenaline mask injuries. Then document what a roadway crash would leave behind but water erases: photos of the boats and their positions, the operator's name and boat registration, witness contacts from nearby vessels or the shore. Serious accidents must be reported to the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission. Talk to us before giving any insurer a statement.

The operator whose inattention, speed or intoxication caused the crash is the starting point, but rarely the end. The boat's owner may be responsible for handing the helm to an unqualified or intoxicated operator; a rental or marina operation for putting out an unseaworthy or poorly maintained craft; a manufacturer for a defective fuel system, steering component or throttle. Each of those parties carries separate insurance, and we identify all of them before negotiating with any.

Yes, a great deal. Boating under the influence is illegal in Pennsylvania at the same 0.08 limit that applies on the road (30 Pa. C.S. § 5502), and alcohol is a recurring factor in serious boating accidents. A BUI citation or conviction is powerful evidence of negligence in the civil claim. We obtain the Fish and Boat Commission investigation file and any State Police records, and we act quickly — breath and blood results, witness recollections and marina camera footage all degrade with time.

Yes — operators involved in serious accidents must file a report with the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission, which regulates the state's waterways. That report matters to your claim the way a police crash report matters after a car accident: it fixes the date, location, vessels and operators on record before stories change. If the other operator never filed one, that failure itself says something. We obtain the report and the Commission's investigation materials as one of the first steps in every boating case.

Two years from the accident for personal injury and wrongful death claims (42 Pa. C.S. § 5524). For an injured child, the clock generally starts at age 18 (§ 5533(b)). If a government entity is involved — a crash at a state park launch or a claim involving a publicly maintained facility — written notice is required within six months (§ 5522). Practically, the deadline that matters is evidence: a lake leaves no skid marks, so witnesses and photographs are the case. Call before they scatter.

You can still recover. Pennsylvania's modified comparative negligence rule (42 Pa. C.S. § 7102) reduces your compensation by your percentage of fault and bars recovery only if you were more than 50% responsible. Fault on the water is genuinely murky — no lanes, no signals, overlapping right-of-way customs — which is exactly why insurers push blame onto the injured boater. We reconstruct the crash from the Commission report, witness accounts and the damage patterns on the vessels themselves.

Usually, but from more scattered sources than a car crash. The at-fault operator's boat policy is the primary target; your own policy may add medical payments coverage for you and your passengers; a rental operation or marina carries commercial coverage; and a defect claim reaches the manufacturer's insurer. Policies vary enormously in what they cover, so we read every applicable policy — including your own — before valuing the claim, and we don't accept an adjuster's word on what coverage exists.

The claim is valued on your medical expenses past and future, lost wages and earning capacity, and the permanence of the injury — drowning-related brain injuries and propeller wounds are valued on lifetime impact. Pennsylvania sets no cap on non-economic damages in most boating cases, and no honest lawyer quotes a number before reviewing your medical records. The consultation is free, and we work on a written contingency fee: no fee unless we recover for you.