November 9, 2018
Categories: Personal Injury, Uncategorized
Golf carts are both fun and functional, and the use of them is spreading throughout Florida’s neighborhoods and communities. Under Florida law (Chapter 320, section 320.01, of the Florida Statutes), a golf cart is “a motor vehicle that is designed and manufactured for operation on a golf course for sporting or recreational purposes and that is not capable of exceeding speeds of 20 miles per hour.” Golf carts can weigh well over 500 pounds, and they are often used in retirement communities. Legal issues can arise when people use the carts privately – especially if they don’t take their driving responsibilities as seriously as they do when they drive their own cars on the public roadways.
Negligence Laws Still Apply
As the Tampa golf cart accident attorneys at Wagner, McLaughlin & Whittemore can attest, the fact that a golf cart driver isn’t on a public roadway doesn’t free him or her from the law of negligence. Although these vehicles are much smaller than an automobile or SUV, a person can still be severely injured or even die in a golf cart accident. If a driver of a golf cart negligently injures a passenger on it, a person on another golf cart, or a bicyclist or pedestrian, that careless golf cart driver and the golf cart’s owner may be held liable for the victim’s injuries.
Golf Cart Accident Injuries
As with automobiles, Florida law regards golf carts as dangerous instrumentalities. Although some of them might have a roof, they don’t have doors, air bags, or seat belts. People are often ejected from golf carts during accidents. Injuries can include neck and back strains and sprains, traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord bruising or tearing, multiple fractures, injuries to vertebrae and spinal nerves and organ damage.
If you or your family members have been injured in a golf cart accident, you’ll want to speak with a golf cart accident attorney Tampa Florida here at Wagner, McLaughlin & Whittemore. Do not hesitate to contact us as immediately as possible after being injured in any golf cart accident. We are standing by to offer a free consultation with one of our personal injury lawyers in Tampa.